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People Share Photos With The Absolute Creepiest Backstories

I don't want to know...

People Share Photos With The Absolute Creepiest Backstories
Image by Michal Jarmoluk from Pixabay

There are just some moments in life that are far too real and far too gruesome to ever want to capture for nostalgia. Those are definitely not the times Kodak had in mind. However, we can't often control the story the camera is going to tell because, nine times out of ten, the photographer isn't psychic. So once in a while, every snapshot can be the beginning of a sordid tale that will haunt you.

Redditor u/BreakRulesRun wanted to discuss the truth behind some photos that maybe we'd rather not know by asking... What photo has a creepy backstory?

***WARNING-SENSITIVE MATERIAL AHEAD***

Lights. Camera. Pose. Now what? I remember recently looking through an old photo album. And in it was a photo myself and some college friends. The moment that was captured was our last before we said a round of drunken goodbyes on a raucous New Year's Eve. In the photo one of our friends took her last snapshot. Because five minutes later, stone cold sober, she was killed by a drunk driver. In the photo, she's the only one not smiling.

1-

i.dailymail.co.uk

The picture of a family photo, the guy taking the picture also caught the guy about to kill him:

MadMan018

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i2-prod.mirror.co.uk

The Columbine 1999 class photo

In the top left corner there's a small group of people pretending to shoot at the camera. The one in the black hat is Eric Harris and the one with the sunglasses is Dylan Klebold, the shooters of the Columbine massacre. This photo was only taken a few weeks beforehand.

ilikejalapenocheetos

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external-preview.redd.it

Air New Zealand Flight 901, a passenger caught the moment of impact on their camera as the plane slammed into Mount Erebus.

bi_metallic

A very interesting and gruesome account. I recommend the documentary/dramatization "Erebus: Into The Unknown", which tells things largely from the side of the NZ police investigation.

bi_metallic

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Couple having a swim, on their honeymoon if I'm correct, this is just a picture of a video on youtube actually, you can see they both get in the water, having some fun and it looks like the boy slips away and goes into a shock pulling his girlfriend with him into the water. If the video ends you can still hear the underwater screaming. It's horrible.

Edit: what makes it even more horrible, in the video the girl actually gets out but the boy pulls her back in.

Crimsonpets

5-

i.redd.it

This picture of the BTK killer always stuck with me. It's just his overall vibe here. He's so uncomfortably close to this tree, like he doesn't really know how to stand or behave in front of a camera. Almost like he's so uncertain that he can't just "be." It'd be an absolutely hilarious photo if he hadn't killed 10 people.

https://i.redd.it/lrfs73cj62k11.jpg.

sushiladyboner

Yeah, those are some pics that we'd be better off not having to scrapbook. It's amazing what moments can be caught without explanation. Let's see what other mysteries and horrors made the list.

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Here is the photo.

Although this just looks like a creepy, poorly made doll, it is actually the mummified remains of a little girl that was robbed from her grave. Anatoly Moskvin dug up her and 20 other women and dressed them up and mummified them. He was arrested in 2011 and refused to apologise to the families of his victims.

imwhittling

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i.dailymail.co.uk

In this photo a man took of his wife diving, you can probably see another diver on the sea floor. That's Tina Watson. A few minutes before this photo, her husband turned off her air supply and held her underwater until she drowned. He then went up to the surface and told the other divers she was "in trouble", and you can see someone else swimming to try and save her.

He did serve 12 months in prison in Australia for Manslaughter, as a plea bargain (Neither he nor the court knew if he was going down for murder). When he returned home to Alabama, the US courts tried to get him on the grounds that he'd planned the murder there, but he got off due to lack of evidence. Australian authorities refused to help with the American trial, as they'd broken an extradition clause not to push for the death penalty.

Dead-Shot1

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Omayra Sanchez. It's a creepy picture but the story behind it is heartbreaking. This 13-year-old girl was trapped in the water for three days before passing away. No one could help her.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Omayra_S%C3%A1nchez.

showmeyourbirds

She was stuck in a kneeling position, with concrete trapping her legs under the water. The options were to amputate (under the water) which surely would have killed her, or to let her die naturally. Really sad stuff.

smokey_randy

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This picture of the "Elephant's Foot" courtesy of the University of Washington

The elephant's foot is a lump of radioactive slag that was formed during the disaster at Chernobyl. It emits a high amount of radiation, even to this day, but what is especially creepy about this photo is that the man who quickly took it four years after the disaster still died from the radiation dose he received. In the words of the professor who obtained it (which you can see at the link) "this picture cost a man his life."

I first learned about this particular photo and the Elephant's Foot in more detail from this video by Kyle Hill.

RettiSeti

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4.bp.blogspot.com

Photo taken in the black of night by Kris Kremers, Lisanne Froon, or an unknown person before disappearing in a Panama jungle. The picture is thought to be of a trail marker crafted by one of the two girls. Their bones were found months later but the cause of death remains unsolved.

ThatSpookyGhost

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www.sickchirpse.com

This one taken by serial killer Ben Robert Rhodes before killing his victim Regina Kay Walters:

https://www.sickchirpse.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/Regina-Kay-Walters.jpg.

Cycle419

I knew this one would be here.

If anyone wants to read about the world of Roberts, trucker culture and teenage runaways in the 80s - this is one of the best articles I have ever read. I wish someone would make a film about this writer's experience.

pk666

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How Two Murderers Were Spotted on an Old Mark Jackson Trading Card

www.slamonline.com

The Mark Jackson basketball card that features the Menendez Brothers. They brutally killed their parents for their inheritance/insurance money and then went on a spending spree, which included a Knicks game as Madison Square Garden. They sat in the front row and a picture was taken that wound up being used on NBA player Mark Jackson's trading card. Nobody made the connection until 30 years later: https://www.slamonline.com/nba/how-two-serial-killers-were-discovered-on-an-old-mark-jackson-basketball-card/.

LooksLikeDennisFranz

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Scared Dog GIFGiphy

the Martinez dog demon photo

The thing could just be a really freaky example of kenopsia, but it did help a man battle his addiction.

Ermaquillz

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https://abcnews.go.com/US/mystery-deepens-delphi-girls-double-murder/story?id=62571284

This is a case that has fallen out of popularity, sadly, though I still pray it will get solved one day.

This is the last photo of Abby Williams, 13, taken by her friend Liberty German, 14, on Monon High Bridge, in Delphi, Indiana. Quickly following the picture, a video is taken by German, an obscured one of a man, head down, quickly approaching the girls. After the girls fail to return to the location where one of the girl's father planned to pick them up, police come and search the area.

The effort is fleet as night quickly approaches. Believing the girls are in no immediate danger, it is decided to resume the search tomorrow. The girls' bodies are found the next day on the other side of the trail. Both the video and a snip of audio of their killer has been shared to the public, but no arrests have ever been made.

Sea-Honeydew484

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4.bp.blogspot.com

Most photos of Kim Il Sung were taken at an angle to conceal the softball sized tumor he had growing out the back of his head. So, literally a creepy back story.

CollegeA**DiscoDorm

Kim Il Sung

https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-XWiwBqq4JNk/V9OAn4HWV1I/AAAAAAAALA4/Sk8O-6keniIDb4XFCdJ9XUcNxLcDA7qHwCLcB/s1600/kim_il_sung_tumor_1980s.jpg

I did not know this, looked up a pic for those who wanna see.

junkiesietze

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The Pulitzer Prize winning Burst of Joy photgraph.

Lt. Col Robert Stirm, a Vietnam POW had been released after years of confinement. The family looks happy to see him, but three days before he arrived in the United States, the same day he was released from captivity, Stirm received a Dear John letter from his wife Loretta informing him that their marriage was over.

She had been openly dating other men while he was in captivity. They divorced, the kids sided with their dad, but he only got custody of the two older ones and he had to pay 43% of his retirement pay to her as alimony.

ksiyoto

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Not exactly sure if this counts, but this is a photo of Darlene Elizabeth Ferren, one of the victims of the Zodiac Killer. the man next to her is unknown, but for reference, this is a composite sketch of the Zodiac Killer made from multiple witness statements.

King_Kenobi

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During the Ferguson riots, there were pictures going around about cops and people of color getting along. This picture here has a darker meaning to it.

https://media.heartlandtv.com/images/640x360_41129P00-XLTKK.jpg

The child went through extreme abuse and neglect and there was a homicide case involving the adoptive mothers and they haven't located Devonte's body. His tears were not because of injsutice in the country, but because of abuse and trauma.

He cried because he found someone that could protect him from the abuse and neglect he and his siblings received. He was basically the poster child for the family. There were tons of signs of abuse and neglect that came from the house. One of the daughters had a bruise, and the second adult Sarah took the blame. Basically the mother Jennifer was the abuser and Sarah was the scapegoat and enabler.

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john lennon GIFGiphy

The last photo of John Lennon, He publishes his autograph. In the background you can see the man who will kill him a little later. Sorry for my bad English

https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2020/05/29/22/28990138-8371155-image-a-49_1590788517803.jpg.

aktamittanus

Now there is quite a photo gallery. They say a picture is worth a thousand words, what about the price tag on the shots that leave you breathless?

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REDDIT

People Reveal The Weirdest Thing About Themselves

Reddit user Isitjustmedownhere asked: 'Give an example; how weird are you really?'

Let's get one thing straight: no one is normal. We're all weird in our own ways, and that is actually normal.

Of course, that doesn't mean we don't all have that one strange trait or quirk that outweighs all the other weirdness we possess.

For me, it's the fact that I'm almost 30 years old, and I still have an imaginary friend. Her name is Sarah, she has red hair and green eyes, and I strongly believe that, since I lived in India when I created her and there were no actual people with red hair around, she was based on Daphne Blake from Scooby-Doo.

I also didn't know the name Sarah when I created her, so that came later. I know she's not really there, hence the term 'imaginary friend,' but she's kind of always been around. We all have conversations in our heads; mine are with Sarah. She keeps me on task and efficient.

My mom thinks I'm crazy that I still have an imaginary friend, and writing about her like this makes me think I may actually be crazy, but I don't mind. As I said, we're all weird, and we all have that one trait that outweighs all the other weirdness.

Redditors know this all too well and are eager to share their weird traits.

It all started when Redditor Isitjustmedownhere asked:

"Give an example; how weird are you really?"

Monsters Under My Bed

"My bed doesn't touch any wall."

"Edit: I guess i should clarify im not rich."

– Practical_Eye_3600

"Gosh the monsters can get you from any angle then."

– bikergirlr7

"At first I thought this was a flex on how big your bedroom is, but then I realized you're just a psycho 😁"

– zenOFiniquity8

Can You See Why?

"I bought one of those super-powerful fans to dry a basement carpet. Afterwards, I realized that it can point straight up and that it would be amazing to use on myself post-shower. Now I squeegee my body with my hands, step out of the shower and get blasted by a wide jet of room-temp air. I barely use my towel at all. Wife thinks I'm weird."

– KingBooRadley

Remember

"In 1990 when I was 8 years old and bored on a field trip, I saw a black Oldsmobile Cutlass driving down the street on a hot day to where you could see that mirage like distortion from the heat on the road. I took a “snapshot” by blinking my eyes and told myself “I wonder how long I can remember this image” ….well."

– AquamarineCheetah

"Even before smartphones, I always take "snapshots" by blinking my eyes hoping I'll remember every detail so I can draw it when I get home. Unfortunately, I may have taken so much snapshots that I can no longer remember every detail I want to draw."

"Makes me think my "memory is full.""

– Reasonable-Pirate902

Same, Same

"I have eaten the same lunch every day for the past 4 years and I'm not bored yet."

– OhhGoood

"How f**king big was this lunch when you started?"

– notmyrealnam3

Not Sure Who Was Weirder

"Had a line cook that worked for us for 6 months never said much. My sous chef once told him with no context, "Baw wit da baw daw bang daw bang diggy diggy." The guy smiled, left, and never came back."

– Frostygrunt

Imagination

"I pace around my house for hours listening to music imagining that I have done all the things I simply lack the brain capacity to do, or in some really bizarre scenarios, I can really get immersed in these imaginations sometimes I don't know if this is some form of schizophrenia or what."

– RandomSharinganUser

"I do the same exact thing, sometimes for hours. When I was young it would be a ridiculous amount of time and many years later it’s sort of trickled off into almost nothing (almost). It’s weird but I just thought it’s how my brain processes sh*t."

– Kolkeia

If Only

"Even as an adult I still think that if you are in a car that goes over a cliff; and right as you are about to hit the ground if you jump up you can avoid the damage and will land safely. I know I'm wrong. You shut up. I'm not crying."

– ShotCompetition2593

Pet Food

"As a kid I would snack on my dog's Milkbones."

– drummerskillit

"Haha, I have a clear memory of myself doing this as well. I was around 3 y/o. Needless to say no one was supervising me."

– Isitjustmedownhere

"When I was younger, one of my responsibilities was to feed the pet fish every day. Instead, I would hide under the futon in the spare bedroom and eat the fish food."

– -GateKeep-

My Favorite Subject

"I'm autistic and have always had a thing for insects. My neurotypical best friend and I used to hang out at this local bar to talk to girls, back in the late 90s. One time he claimed that my tendency to circle conversations back to insects was hurting my game. The next time we went to that bar (with a few other friends), he turned and said sternly "No talking about bugs. Or space, or statistics or other bullsh*t but mainly no bugs." I felt like he was losing his mind over nothing."

"It was summer, the bar had its windows open. Our group hit it off with a group of young ladies, We were all chatting and having a good time. I was talking to one of these girls, my buddy was behind her facing away from me talking to a few other people."

"A cloudless sulphur flies in and lands on little thing that holds coasters."

"Cue Jordan Peele sweating gif."

"The girl notices my tension, and asks if I am looking at the leaf. "Actually, that's a lepidoptera called..." I looked at the back of my friend's head, he wasn't looking, "I mean a butterfly..." I poked it and it spread its wings the girl says "oh that's a BUG?!" and I still remember my friend turning around slowly to look at me with chastisement. The ONE thing he told me not to do."

"I was 21, and was completely not aware that I already had a rep for being an oddball. It got worse from there."

– Phormicidae

*Teeth Chatter*

"I bite ice cream sometimes."

RedditbOiiiiiiiiii

"That's how I am with popsicles. My wife shudders every single time."

monobarreller

Never Speak Of This

"I put ice in my milk."

– GTFOakaFOD

"You should keep that kind of thing to yourself. Even when asked."

– We-R-Doomed

"There's some disturbing sh*t in this thread, but this one takes the cake."

– RatonaMuffin

More Than Super Hearing

"I can hear the television while it's on mute."

– Tira13e

"What does it say to you, child?"

– Mama_Skip

Yikes!

"I put mustard on my omelettes."

– Deleted User

"Oh."

– NotCrustOr-filling

Evened Up

"Whenever I say a word and feel like I used a half of my mouth more than the other half, I have to even it out by saying the word again using the other half of my mouth more. If I don't do it correctly, that can go on forever until I feel it's ok."

"I do it silently so I don't creep people out."

– LesPaltaX

"That sounds like a symptom of OCD (I have it myself). Some people with OCD feel like certain actions have to be balanced (like counting or making sure physical movements are even). You should find a therapist who specializes in OCD, because they can help you."

– MoonlightKayla

I totally have the same need for things to be balanced! Guess I'm weird and a little OCD!

Close up face of a woman in bed, staring into the camera
Photo by Jen Theodore

Experiencing death is a fascinating and frightening idea.

Who doesn't want to know what is waiting for us on the other side?

But so many of us want to know and then come back and live a little longer.

It would be so great to be sure there is something else.

But the whole dying part is not that great, so we'll have to rely on other people's accounts.

Redditor AlaskaStiletto wanted to hear from everyone who has returned to life, so they asked:

"Redditors who have 'died' and come back to life, what did you see?"

Sensations

Happy Good Vibes GIF by Major League SoccerGiphy

"My dad's heart stopped when he had a heart attack and he had to be brought back to life. He kept the paper copy of the heart monitor which shows he flatlined. He said he felt an overwhelming sensation of peace, like nothing he had felt before."

PeachesnPain

Recovery

"I had surgical complications in 2010 that caused a great deal of blood loss. As a result, I had extremely low blood pressure and could barely stay awake. I remember feeling like I was surrounded by loved ones who had passed. They were in a circle around me and I knew they were there to guide me onwards. I told them I was not ready to go because my kids needed me and I came back."

"My nurse later said she was afraid she’d find me dead every time she came into the room."

"It took months, and blood transfusions, but I recovered."

good_golly99

Take Me Back

"Overwhelming peace and happiness. A bright airy and floating feeling. I live a very stressful life. Imagine finding out the person you have had a crush on reveals they have the same feelings for you and then you win the lotto later that day - that was the feeling I had."

"I never feared death afterward and am relieved when I hear of people dying after suffering from an illness."

rayrayrayray

Free

The Light Minnie GIF by (G)I-DLEGiphy

"I had a heart surgery with near-death experience, for me at least (well the possibility that those effects are caused by morphine is also there) I just saw black and nothing else but it was warm and I had such inner peace, its weird as I sometimes still think about it and wish this feeling of being so light and free again."

TooReDTooHigh

This is why I hate surgery.

You just never know.

Shocked

Giphy

"More of a near-death experience. I was electrocuted. I felt like I was in a deep hole looking straight up in the sky. My life flashed before me. Felt sad for my family, but I had a deep sense of peace."

Admirable_Buyer6528

The SOB

"Nursing in the ICU, we’ve had people try to die on us many times during the years, some successfully. One guy stood out to me. His heart stopped. We called a code, are working on him, and suddenly he comes to. We hadn’t vented him yet, so he was able to talk, and he started screaming, 'Don’t let them take me, don’t let them take me, they are coming,' he was scared and yelling."

"Then he yelled a little more, as we tried to calm him down, he screamed, 'No, No,' and gestured towards the end of the bed, and died again. We didn’t get him back. It was seriously creepy. We called his son to tell him the news, and the son said basically, 'Good, he was an SOB.'”

1-cupcake-at-a-time

Colors

"My sister died and said it was extremely peaceful. She said it was very loud like a train station and lots of talking and she was stuck in this area that was like a curtain with lots of beautiful colors (colors that you don’t see in real life according to her) a man told her 'He was sorry, but she had to go back as it wasn’t her time.'"

Hannah_LL7

"I had a really similar experience except I was in an endless garden with flowers that were colors I had never seen before. It was quiet and peaceful and a woman in a dress looked at me, shook her head, and just said 'Not yet.' As I was coming back, it was extremely loud, like everyone in the world was trying to talk all at once. It was all very disorienting but it changed my perspective on life!"

huntokarrr

The Fog

"I was in a gray fog with a girl who looked a lot like a young version of my grandmother (who was still alive) but dressed like a pioneer in the 1800s she didn't say anything but kept pulling me towards an opening in the wall. I kept refusing to go because I was so tired."

"I finally got tired of her nagging and went and that's when I came to. I had bled out during a c-section and my heart could not beat without blood. They had to deliver the baby and sew up the bleeders. refill me with blood before they could restart my heart so, like, at least 12 minutes gone."

Fluffy-Hotel-5184

Through the Walls

"My spouse was dead for a couple of minutes one miserable night. She maintains that she saw nothing, but only heard people talking about her like through a wall. The only thing she remembers for absolute certain was begging an ER nurse that she didn't want to die."

"She's quite alive and well today."

Hot-Refrigerator6583

Well let's all be happy to be alive.

It seems to be all we have.

Man's waist line
Santhosh Vaithiyanathan/Unsplash

Trying to lose weight is a struggle understood by many people regardless of size.

The goal of reaching a healthy weight may seem unattainable, but with diet and exercise, it can pay off through persistence and discipline.

Seeing the pounds gradually drop off can also be a great motivator and incentivize people to stay the course.

Those who've achieved their respective weight goals shared their experiences when Redditor apprenti8455 asked:

"People who lost a lot of weight, what surprises you the most now?"

Redditors didn't see these coming.

Shiver Me Timbers

"I’m always cold now!"

– Telrom_1

"I had a coworker lose over 130 pounds five or six years ago. I’ve never seen him without a jacket on since."

– r7ndom

"140 lbs lost here starting just before COVID, I feel like that little old lady that's always cold, damn this top comment was on point lmao."

– mr_remy

Drawing Concern

"I lost 100 pounds over a year and a half but since I’m old(70’s) it seems few people comment on it because (I think) they think I’m wasting away from some terminal illness."

– dee-fondy

"Congrats on the weight loss! It’s honestly a real accomplishment 🙂"

"Working in oncology, I can never comment on someone’s weight loss unless I specifically know it was on purpose, regardless of their age. I think it kind of ruffles feathers at times, but like I don’t want to congratulate someone for having cancer or something. It’s a weird place to be in."

– LizardofDeath

Unleashing Insults

"I remember when I lost the first big chunk of weight (around 50 lbs) it was like it gave some people license to talk sh*t about the 'old' me. Old coworkers, friends, made a lot of not just negative, but harsh comments about what I used to look like. One person I met after the big loss saw a picture of me prior and said, 'Wow, we wouldn’t even be friends!'”

"It wasn’t extremely common, but I was a little alarmed by some of the attention. My weight has been up and down since then, but every time I gain a little it gets me a little down thinking about those things people said."

– alanamablamaspama

Not Everything Goes After Losing Weight

"The loose skin is a bit unexpected."

– KeltarCentauri

"I haven’t experienced it myself, but surgery to remove skin takes a long time to recover. Longer than bariatric surgery and usually isn’t covered by insurance unless you have both."

– KatMagic1977

"It definitely does take a long time to recover. My Dad dropped a little over 200 pounds a few years back and decided to go through with skin removal surgery to deal with the excess. His procedure was extensive, as in he had skin taken from just about every part of his body excluding his head, and he went through hell for weeks in recovery, and he was bedridden for a lot of it."

– Jaew96

These Redditors shared their pleasantly surprising experiences.

Shopping

"I can buy clothes in any store I want."

– WaySavvyD

"When I lost weight I was dying to go find cute, smaller clothes and I really struggled. As someone who had always been restricted to one or two stores that catered to plus-sized clothing, a full mall of shops with items in my size was daunting. Too many options and not enough knowledge of brands that were good vs cheap. I usually went home pretty frustrated."

– ganache98012

No More Symptoms

"Lost about 80 pounds in the past year and a half, biggest thing that I’ve noticed that I haven’t seen mentioned on here yet is my acid reflux and heartburn are basically gone. I used to be popping tums every couple hours and now they just sit in the medicine cabinet collecting dust."

– colleennicole93

Expanding Capabilities

"I'm all for not judging people by their appearance and I recognise that there are unhealthy, unachievable beauty standards, but one thing that is undeniable is that I can just do stuff now. Just stamina and flexibility alone are worth it, appearance is tertiary at best."

– Ramblonius

People Change Their Tune

"How much nicer people are to you."

"My feet weren't 'wide' they were 'fat.'"

– LiZZygsu

"Have to agree. Lost 220 lbs, people make eye contact and hold open doors and stuff"

"And on the foot thing, I also lost a full shoe size numerically and also wear regular width now 😅"

– awholedamngarden

It's gonna take some getting used to.

Bones Everywhere

"Having bones. Collarbones, wrist bones, knee bones, hip bones, ribs. I have so many bones sticking out everywhere and it’s weird as hell."

– Princess-Pancake-97

"I noticed the shadow of my ribs the other day and it threw me, there’s a whole skeleton in here."

– bekastrange

Knee Pillow

"Right?! And they’re so … pointy! Now I get why people sleep with pillows between their legs - the knee bones laying on top of each other (side sleeper here) is weird and jarring."

– snic2030

"I lost only 40 pounds within the last year or so. I’m struggling to relate to most of these comments as I feel like I just 'slimmed down' rather than dropped a ton. But wow, the pillow between the knees at night. YES! I can relate to this. I think a lot of my weight was in my thighs. I never needed to do this up until recently."

– Strongbad23

More Mobility

"I’ve lost 100 lbs since 2020. It’s a collection of little things that surprise me. For at least 10 years I couldn’t put on socks, or tie my shoes. I couldn’t bend over and pick something up. I couldn’t climb a ladder to fix something. Simple things like that I can do now that fascinate me."

"Edit: Some additional little things are sitting in a chair with arms, sitting in a booth in a restaurant, being able to shop in a normal store AND not needing to buy the biggest size there, being able to easily wipe my butt, and looking down and being able to see my penis."

– dma1965

People making significant changes, whether for mental or physical health, can surely find a newfound perspective on life.

But they can also discover different issues they never saw coming.

That being said, overcoming any challenge in life is laudable, especially if it leads to gaining confidence and ditching insecurities.