We tend to think of "rich" as some sort of destination or goal post. It's a place we work hard to get to, and once we get there we're good. Rags to riches story over. Somebody turn it into an inspirational movie with a strings-heavy soundtrack.
But what about riches to rags stories? Do they really happen?
One Reddit user asked:
Ex-rich people of Reddit, when did you lose everything?
And yeah, pretty much none of it played out like the Goldie Hawn classic, Overboard. The real world is much, much crueler and doesn't involve anywhere near as much amnesia.
Millionaire For A Moment
My ex had a friend who inherited a million dollars in cash and near-cash assets when his only parent died. He was 20 years old.
Now, you aren't just going to retire at 20 on a million bucks - but it's a great way to pay for college, maybe buy a car and a down payment on a house, and save/invest the rest. Basically, it's a really good way to start your adult life and nearly ensure you'll be quite wealthy in your later years.
Did he do any of that? Nope.
He bought himself a ridiculous luxury car, bought cars for his friends, bought wardrobes of designer clothes, threw huge parties repeatedly, etc. Ended up broke in two or three years and went back to waiting tables to make rent.
Sad to see.
- 05110909
Dad Was Cooking The Books
Growing up, my best friends family was extremely well to do. I'm talking running with the bulls in Spain, private jets to Aspen to ski kind of rich. My friend had every toy, gaming console, and cool piece of clothing imaginable.
Right before our senior year of highschool, my friend's dad ended his life.
Turns out he was cooking the books at his business as well as falsifying his his taxes. The company was basically worth nothing. He was looking at 30 years in prison, so he just decided to end it all.
My best friend went from a 6,500 square foot mansion on the water to a 1,200 square foot apartment with his mom and two siblings.
He eventually adjusted to being normal like the rest of us and he is still my best friend.
Would Have Been Set For Life
fox tv marcus pierce GIF by LuciferGiphyMaybe not exactly rich, but my sister would have been set for life. Her father died from cancer and she lost both her eyes to cancer at the age of 6 months. The way things were set up, she was going to be able to draw her father's social security the rest of her life so long as she never married and had a full ride to an all blind college, dorm and everything, paid for through scholarships.
She was a really smart, straight A student and she was going to be a court stenographer. So, this pay combined with the social security may not have made her exactly rich, but she would have been extremely comfortable in life/close to rich.
A little white before she was suppose to leave for college, my parents found a note on to the front door. It was from her and her new husband.
She had ran off and gotten eloped! Right out of high school!
He discouraged her from going to college. The man was 20 years older than her, about a year or two older than my mother. He later admitted he wanted to marry my sister because he knew she'd be able to draw a disability check.
So, not only did she lose her scholarships, but she also lost her father's social security before she even received the first check from it. And that man got her involved in a lot of drugs.
He was a man from the local church that basically manipulated my sister and did that thing that most abusers do by making the person they're targeting feel incredibly special and desirable. My sister, being only 18, I think 16-17 when they met, took the bait.
They divorced and she's clean now, had been for a few good years. But now has to live off her disability check and food stamps.
She talks a lot about how she wished she had just gone off to college and it's sad to see how one bad choice changed everything. She really encourages her daughters to focus on education and was one of the driving forces that encouraged me to get my GED when I dropped out of high school.
I Don't Regret It At All
I wasn't "rich" but comfortably upper middle-class. If I wanted to spend my birthday in Paris, I could, for example.
However, I was in a toxic marriage and had been out of the workforce for years raising my children. Once they were older, I got help for my depression and got out of the toxic marriage. At the time I worked for a local newspaper and was able to put a down payment on a modest house for myself and the kids.
Then the housing market crashed. Then the print news market crashed. Then my ex-husband withheld child support. I had several VERY lean years while I built up my own business, and it was incredibly hard.
But you know what? I don't regret it at all. I came through to the other side a stronger, much happier person. I have a great relationship with my now-grown children and their children. My income isn't impressive, but I have what I need. I can stand on my own two feet and overcome adversity. Looking back, I wouldn't trade the experience of the last 15 years for anything.
Taking The Breakup Badly
I wouldn't say I was rich but I had a job that paid $120,000 year working quality control for a pavement company. My girlfriend of 10 years (who I was about to propose to) left me out of the blue.
I had bought a ring. I saved up enough money to help with the wedding and even enough to put down on a decent condo for a starter home.
Anyway after she left me I fell into drugs and alcohol and ended up losing my job.
I also got into a car accident when driving drunk. I hit a concrete barrier and only hurt myself, thank god. Don't drink and drive.
Believe it or not I still kept drinking.
I broke my my back and shoulder blade in an atv accident - again I was drunk as f*ck. Now I'm held together by pins and needles and am in constant pain.
I can't do labor work anymore and now make minimum wage in the food industry. I lost 3 more jobs due to drugs and alcohol before I finally checked myself into rehab.
The Bosnian War
I have never been rich, but my family was well above average when I was a kid. My father was a mechanic and in 1981 he bought a car repair shop that made us money pretty well.
Then in 1992 the Bosnian war started and our hometown of Sarajevo was put under a siege that lasted until 1996.
In 1994 we were able to escape the city and move into a refugee camp. When the war ended we returned to Sarajevo and my father's car repair shop as well as our home were in total ruins after all the artillery and mortar fire.
We were able to get a new home fairly quickly with the help of some of our relatives, but we never got the car repair shop fixed. It was in such bad condition we just demolished it after we had sold all found scrap metal and usable tools.
Riches To Rags To Riches Again
My parents had built up a multi-million dollar company over a couple decades before and during my early childhood.
Around 2006 they separated and ran each other dry in court. Then the crash came and bankrupted both of them and they lost everything they put years into.
After my mother's parents passed away she was able to take a portion of an investment account that built millions from her father's stock from working in the railroad industry.
My father rebuilt his business from scratch repaired his credit and has grown it bigger than it ever was before.
By the age of 21 I've witnessed my life go from rich to broke to wealthy. I am in a great position in life now for my age, but work, plan, live and learn like everything could be again gone in the blink of an eye.
Expensive, But Cool
twins yes GIFGiphy"Congratulations! You're having twins!"
Wasn't rich but doing pretty good...but damn kids are expensive. But they're cool so all is good. Who needs to travel anyway?
Dissolved A Thriving Company
During this year's outbreak, after I gave out my company's final cash flow to employees, we dissolved the thriving international trade company, and I ended up the same.
Although the company has no employees, I still stick to it and don't want to give up the support of our international customers. I never give up, but this year is not good.
- JD868
An Alzheimer's Donation
My Grandma lost it all because of her Alzheimer's. She inherited most of the money from her husband when he passed. It totaled a bit over $2mil with about $150k divided between the 5 children.
My father (her son) does everything for her as she is 93 and has severe Alzheimer's. The plan was to split the money equally between the 5 children when it was her time.
About 2 years ago she started asking my father for money to pay for groceries and other random little things. He got curious about why she would need money and checked the bank account with the inheritance in it.
It was all gone.
She had gotten the approval to empty the account from the bank - without my father's consent. That consent was supposed to happen given her mental state.
She donated everything to the Catholic Church...
Not saying that is a bad use of the money, but could've been used to improve the lives of her children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren.
Marry Back Into Wealth
Family was wealthy - or more precisely my grandfather was wealthy. Somewhere in the mid 7 figure range.
My grandfather started his own company and was making bank. He had 3 daughters and finally a son - my dad.
My dad was a slacker through and through. My grandfather knew this but had advise all his kids to marry wealthy. My 3 aunt's married wealthy and all still live in that mid 7 figure lifestyle.
My dad married my mom (a farmer) and had me and my siblings.
We immigrated to Canada and still made bank. Definitely loved comfortably up until my grandfather passed. Then my parents got divorced and my dad had custody of us.
He left the country and took my 2 siblings with him. Dumped them in a boarding school and left me with relatives in Canada.
At this point my mom had already gone off and was doing her own thing. Many relationships and my dad had dried up all the inheritance with his lavish spending.
I'm talking straight out of a movie. He had girlfriends that he gifted vehicles, luxury clothes, etc to. Meanwhile I started working at 16 so I could afford lunch because my relatives didn't care about me.
My dad has still told me to this day that I should engage with wealthy people and marry back into wealth.
She Got Nothing
I have an older relative who lived in luxury, her husband took care of everything and she was living in different countries every other year and had mansions.
That must've made her think she was invincible because she f*cked some other dude and had his kid. Her husband wanted at least loyalty from her - so he divorced her.
She got nothing, she now lives in the boonies and the only thing that reminds her of the previous lifestyle is the engagement ring she lied about losing.
Her baby daddy actually took custody of the kid and raised him well.
The husband has never contacted her or her family, believing they hid the affair from him.
Reichpogromnacht
My family used to own several apartment buildings and the German equivalent to malls. They were also Jewish.
On the reichspogromnacht (1938, the Night where the Nazis staged a "people's uprising" against the Jews. Most rioters and looters weren't, in fact, angry Germans but SS and SA dressed in normal civilian clothing) they were having dinner with friends as were therefore not at home when the Nazis raided and burned their house.
They paid a Taxi driver to to drive my grandfather through Berlin for the rest of the night while looting, murdering, and the first deportations were happening and went back to the friends place they were having dinner at. The next day, all property was seized by the nazis, the bank accounts taken, the house robbed and partially burned.
They took the last bit they had, bought jewelry, fled to the Netherlands and went to America.
- MeMphi-S
War Reparations
My great great grandfather was the mayor of Prague (twice) as well as a successful lawyer, and my great grandmother owned several hotels where wealthy people would holiday on the Mediterranean.
Then Czechoslovakia turned communist and the government told her they would seize everything and she could leave or they would seize everything and she could stay.
She left and came to Australia. My grand parents and mother too.
Apparently there are letters from various war reparations departments in Europe suggesting that we may or may not have returned monies awaiting collection.
However since my grandmother and great grandmother have passed on, the chain of providence is getting thinner. Not to mention the costs of getting translators and lawyers involved just to find out if there even is anything of value in there.
Could be several hundred thousand euros, could be several euros. But since we can't even travel to Czech Republic at the moment there is no way to know
- W2ttsy
A New Roommate
When my dad left my mom for someone twenty years younger. My dad was hoping my mom would let her move in with us.
If you or someone you know is struggling, you can contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255).
To find help outside the United States, the International Association for Suicide Prevention has resources available at https://www.iasp.info/resources/Crisis_Centres/
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.
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.