Redditor CantStalkMeNowLmao wanted to discuss the moments in life when the massive change happened.
"What event divided your life into 'before' and 'after?'"
My life is all about weight.
The gaining and the losing.
It's all before and after sizes.
Happy Occasions?
Naturi Naughton Starz GIF by PowerGiphy"Event #1 - getting married. Event #2 - getting divorced."
lukrog33
"I am trying to figure out which one of these I would go with if I could only have one."
htownlifer
The Worst
"Death of my dad! I had to grow up so much faster due to court fights against my mother. I now don't speak to her so I'm pretty much parentless. I will always encourage people to have their will up to date because death brings out the worst in people."
portlover91
Wild
Celebrate Stir Crazy GIF by This GIF Is HauntedGiphy"I fell on my a** and broke 2 vertebrae."
"Lost 80 pounds (? 40 kg) and changed my job."
"Life was wild."
Mysterious-Data-8307
Barbie butt
"I'm sure most people will say something like: marriage or birth of their kids. For me, it was having my anus removed."
"I live with Crohn's disease, which is where the body starts attacking your intestines. Mine was so bad that the only option was removing all the afflicted parts, where were the anus and rectum."
"So first the surgeons re-route the intestines to a surgically made opening on the abdomen. This is called an ostomy.
Then the diseased parts are removed, including the sphincter muscles of the rectum. Finally, everything is stitched up. It's often called a 'Barbie butt' surgery because the patient ends up with a backside that looks like a Barbie doll."
"Minute_Cartoonist509
Necessary
"Rehab. About 6 years ago I moved a few hours away from my hometown. I stopped talking to everyone I used to associate with, I changed my phone number, I quit social media. It’s nice being sober but when I quit drugs I found I have bad depression, so now I just sit in my apartment all day on days I don’t work. I don’t have any friends or anyone to talk to. But at least I’m not spending 100% of my time and money trying to get heroin or meth."
blitherblather425
So many endings and beginnings...
Different country
happy well done GIFGiphy"Moving to a different country for me. My whole life changed. Different country, moved in with a partner, different job, different language... Would I do it again? No, probably not. Would I move back? No."
Both_Manufacturer311
The End
"My father's death. He died suddenly, and it turned our lives upside down. I wasn't a child, I was 20, but I still wasn't ready to lose a parent, let alone without warning."
"Plus, my grieving process wasn't exactly healthy in its beginning, so a lot of the repercussions of that are still at play to this day. Yes, I did go to therapy, and it did wonders, but it can't undo the consequences of my actions back when my father's passing was recent. I lost friends, I lost time in university, I effed my body up."
Interesting-Issue475
Found my feet
"Mum and dad dying of cancer within six months, we had to sell our childhood home and my sister married an abusive guy who only hung around long enough to spend her money. I was lucky I was taken in by my aunt until I found my feet but could easily have ended up homeless."
New-Outlandishness28
That Day
"Birth of my daughter. I have trouble remembering a time before her, and she's only 15. Not trouble remembering stuff events before her, but in my head with old memories I'm like 'let's see, how old was she when that happened?'"
Eye_Doc_Photog
"The part that is terrifying though (for me anyways), is how much slower life was before my daughter. Just way less happened in those years so they felt like they just stretched on and on. Now I’ll jolt upright in the middle of the day at like “Holy s**t she was born yesterday but also six years ago.”
SeaTie
I'm Out
I Love La Los Angeles GIF by vhspositiveGiphy"I moved from my hometown to Los Angeles to get into the film industry. I didn't ever really make it in film, but that decision to move might have been the first big change in my life that wasn't approved by my parents."
Snoo-35252
Grief
"The deaths of my older brother & my mom within two years of each other. I was really close to both if them now my life is permanently changed I just see the world differently."
AltruisticRule6711
Dropping Out
"Dropping out of university."
"I was a traumatized, depressed, and anxious young person who couldn't see a life that didn't involve completing a degree, and I was drowning. Letting go of that future was terrifying, but it had been dragging me down for years at this point."
"The whole world opened up for me. My "after" has been hard work, but I love it."
Strong-Usual6131
Against My Parents' Wishes
"At the age of twenty, I went against my parents' wishes and abandoned my study of physics for a degree in the performing arts. My father, an engineer, (as are all my brothers) didn't speak to me for two years."
"Recently retired from a 45 year career as a property master, first for live theatre, then for television, film, and eventually blockbuster-level features. I've been asked by some of the most creative people on the planet, whose names are household words, to help them make movies in some of the most beautiful, desolate and challenging environments to be found. Loved nearly every minute of it."
"That one moment of decision changed me from a dutiful, manipulable and obedient child into a fully-functioning, independent adult."
theartfulcodger
Murder
"My grandfather murdered his wife when I was like 10. So, that."
giveupbee
Life changes every second. Be ready....
Do you have similar before and afters to share? Let us know in the comments below.
I miss people being sane. Though that maybe election cycle issues not COVID. We'll never know.
I thought I was Alone...
Black Friday Nbc GIF by SuperstoreGiphy"Being able to grocery shop after 11 pm."
Reading_Rainboner
"Hell yes. I miss the days where the Walmart across the street was open 24 hours."
Small_Tax_9432
let's just go...
"I miss spontaneity... everything now seems to have a barrier of difficulty."
iidosee
"I live very close to Disneyland so I have an annual pass. My friends and I would just go there after work and hang out and grab a bite to eat."
"Now, we have to reserve a day to go. And most of the time, the days are at 'full' capacity so we couldn't even reserve. I don't want to schedule to hang out at Disneyland for a couple hours for July. So yeah, I definitely miss the 'lets go eat at Disneyland tonight?' texts."
mymymissmai
Not til 24-25
"Functioning global supply chains. Ah, the product you want has got microchips in it? 9 month wait."
richard-king
"Minimum, I'd been saying for a while now that I wouldn't expect a true return to normalcy in terms of electronics prices till 2024-2025. Although Crypto crashing through the floor really took some of the pressure off graphics cards which I really appreciate."
statiiic
WTF?!?!
"How affordable everything was!"
Disastrous_Hour_6776
"Yep. Today I was bagging up my things at the grocery store and I heard the cashier say to the lady behind me 'thats $78.12.' She had -- 2 boxes of Kellogg's corn flakes, a carton of 12 eggs, milk, strawberries, raspberries, blue berries, a small cheese cake, English muffins, coffee, and a small whole frozen chicken that could maybe feed 3 people if the meat portioning was small."
SnowyInuk
Sushi
sushi GIFGiphy"My favorite sushi place. It was good quality, close by, kid-friendly, and not too expensive."
InannasPocket
All of this... it was a simpler time.
NASTY
Janet Jackson Reaction GIFGiphy"As a retail worker, just how f**king NASTY some people have gotten."
DmitriPetrov*itch
"They applauded you for being an essential worker but won’t vote for policies that’ll raise minimum wage while insisting a wage cap for heavily paid employees."
sketchysketchist
CHANGES your DNA...
"Some of the people closest to me became very bitter and petty over the last 2 years. So many people have the 'crazy eyes' now."
__--__7
"So true and holidays with the family is like who has the biggest tinfoil hat building contest. How many jumps does your brain have to go through to think that the Covid vaccine CHANGES your DNA into the patented DNA so that the government now controls your body."
"So like vaccinated people now have a singular DNA set. I feel like I still have a chunk of my brain just broken off due to that comment alone. I was also told by same family member that I could never donate blood again due to the vaccine. I guess it is so my patented DNA doesn't affect people?? FYI my vaccinated butt just donated today fine and multiple other times after the vaccine."
tyreka13
Homeward Bound
"House prices."
adrianinked
"I'm resigned to never thinking I have a chance on owning property where I live. I'm 30 and just can't imagine it anymore. And I don't want to live anywhere else so, whatever."
Osdab2daf
"That didn’t happen because of the pandemic. That was already happening regardless."
CH11DW
Oh Mickey
"All Day Breakfast at McDonalds."
hutch2522
"It was honestly hell to do, and not very popular. ITs margins aren't anywhere dinner and lunch specials. ON top of that, the temperatures are such that They require its own grill, meaning that if you have 2 grills in shop, you are down 50% of lunch capacity."
Freyas_Follower
Way back when...
Season 5 Friends Tv Show GIF by FriendsGiphy"Hanging out with friends. And I mean waaaaaay before Covid. Like 2006 back when I had some friends."
LoocsinatasYT
I miss the old days. Maybe we'll get back there.
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Oh.
GiphyI went to high school with Sandra Oh. She was funny, dynamic, smart, outgoing, and very into drama. In one school play, she played what I will call sort of a mime character - she didn't have lines but was still a big part of the action, commenting on what was going on through her actions. Anyhow, in one scene as she was exiting the stage she banged her head on one of the props - you could hear the loud bang- but she was a pro and just carried on. It has been great to see her have such success, and I love that she has kept in touch with her close friends from high school (you can spot them at awards show sometimes).
I went to school with Rupert Grint (Ron Weasley from Harry Potter). I was into acting too, so we had done a few school plays together. He was really nice, very chill, a good laugh. I haven't seen him since school days, but he kept coming to classes whenever he wasn't filming, was always happy to chat about the movies. Sometimes he'd need a little break from so many people wanting to talk, and would come and hang out in the library, and honestly, you'd never know he was in the biggest film series at the time.
Honestly, I think a lot of these answers boil down to if they want fame or not. Rupert loved what he was doing, but didn't care about being famous and having people kiss his butt. Just a nice normal kid.
Daisy.
A co-worker of mine met Daisy Ridley while on a backpacking trip, got to know each other pretty well while traveling together. She told my co-worker that she wanted to become an actress, looks like that panned out pretty well. They said Daisy was an absolutely lovely individual.
HEEEEERE'S JACK!
GiphyMy grandfather taught Jack Nicholson in High School math class. Said he was rebellious but wasn't too bad at math.
WHAM!
My grandmother and mum were really good friends with George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley from Wham! They got invited to concerts and got to sit in special seats etc. And a few years ago me and my family stayed with Andrew Ridgeley in his guest house in Cornwall for a weekend. But, they seemed to me like they stayed really nice to my grandparents and mum. And Andrew Ridgeley was very kind to my family when we met him.
First class, humility in action.
A friend of mine is buddies with Paul Rudd. Says he's exactly the same and a great human.
Friends and I went to a basketball court a few years back shortly after a rainstorm... half the court was wet and half was dry. Saw a man and his son playing on the dry side, so we hit the wet side, no need to force a father and son out! After a few minutes, the father walks over and offers to switch, says he and his son are just shooting around, no need to keep a game from the dry side... at first we say it's all good, enjoy, but he insists, graciously of course. We get to the other side and realize, the father was Paul Rudd. First class, humility in action.
The Giving Queen....
GiphyMy coworkers dad grew up with Queen Latifah in North Jersey. His whole family loves her because they were about to lose their house, so she paid it off for them. They've never said a bad thing about her.
(Queen Latifah, if this gets back to you, thanks for what you did for your friends in NJ. Phil's a really cool guy.)
Johny be Funny.....
My mom is friends with Johnny Knoxville's cousin. She met him once and had no idea who he was. She said he was nice and funny as all hell. She didn't realize until years later she'd even met him until I showed her one of his movies. From what I gather he's a normal dude and pretty hilarious.
Smartypants...
GiphyKesha.
Total nerd. 1600 on her SATs. Quiet. A bit of a social outcast. Nice, though. You could tell she cared about others and wouldn't ever hurt a flea.
No good at footy but.
My Dad went to school with Steve Irwin, reckons he was exactly the same as a young fella. He would be away from school all the time on trips with Bob to rescue and rehome crocs all over Australia. No good at footy but.
Dreamy Steve.
GiphyI went to college with Joe Keery aka Steve Harrington in Stranger Things. He was my college boyfriend's suite mate and just the nicest guy. His hair has always been dreamy and amazing. Last time I saw him was at a viewing of the Hateful Eight after we graduated and he still made a point to come over and say hi! piggieees
Wesley.
My Grandpa(RIP) owned a grocery store in Miami in the late 70s. Wesley Snipes and his friends once stole some candy from his store and when he caught them he let them have it. Since then Wesley and his friends were regulars. Once, Wesley left his bike in front of the store and it got stolen (was a pretty bad area). My grandpa gave him his old bike that he kept in the back of the store. My uncle took over in 2001 when my grandpa died. In 2007 he came back to the store while my uncle and cousin were there, to ask about my grandpa.
My uncle said they talked for a little over an hour about how he my grandpa treated him like a son. When he found out my grandpa passed he felt guilty he didn't visit sooner. He embraced my uncle and cousin and left. My uncle said he told him they plan on having the building repainted while they talked. About a week later a crew of painters arrived and told my uncle they were already paid to have the building repainted. Such a genuine dude. Shaka-Zulu1
Norah.
I went to Junior High with Norah Jones. She was the most sincere and serene person. She was fun to talk to and she never gave a hint of who her father was. The night she won all those Grammys was very telling that she hadn't changed a bit. imbackwards
I believe this. I've met her twice after her shows and she was super nice and took pictures and signed autographs. Once she had a little dog with her. I didn't expect someone as famous as Norah Jones to actually come out and meet fans after her show, but she did. hall_residence
Rachel.
GiphyWork in a restaurant about 15 years ago as a manager. Rachel McAdams walked in for an interview. She was still in acting school and serving table to pay for it. She worked at my restaurant over the course of the next 2 summers, serving on our patio. Still friends to this day. She hasn't changed a bit. Still bikes to get groceries. Pymm
Mark.
I went to high school with Mark Ruffalo. He was nice. He was "one of those thespians". Our high school had an acting group that challenged the students to get out of their shell and do things in front of strangers like introducing yourself as the wild fairy of the woods and presenting them with a flower.
We didn't talk much, but like I said, he was a good guy. vman4402
Gordon.
My aunt used to work with Gordon Ramsey's mother but never made the connection. Once they were out for lunch and he ended up coming in to see his mum and met my aunt in the process. She said he was so lovely and polite!! Plus my dad has a bunch of Gordon's old jumpers he didn't want anymore. Not signed or anything like that, it's just a fun family story now. BaffledAndBemused
Same People.
I knew Bret & Jemaine (Flight of the Conchords) back in the late 90s / early 2000s, and met Taika Waititi a few times too - I was a big fan of his art at the time, there was one painting of someone in a bathtub that stuck in my head. (I knew Bret better than the others, because he was in a reggae band with my good friend Barnaby).
As far as I can tell, they are all... exactly the same. paulfknwalsh
Tom.
GiphyFriend of mine was friends with Tom Hanks in high school and went to prom with him. He still writes her personalized BDay cards on one of his typewriters. ScottishHeat
Dolly.
GiphyI live in the town where Dolly Parton grew up, and practically everyone above the age of 50 who grew up here claims to either be a distant relative of Dolly's, or they claim to know her in some way. Everyone has their story of the time they met Dolly. It's pretty obvious, but regardless of who you talk to, Dolly has always been sweet and generous, but everything has simply grown exponentially due to her fame. Examples are the millions of books she gives out for free to children around the globe each month, or how she gave out $10,000 cash to many of my close friends after their houses burned in a fire a couple years back.
Thousands of people are employed here and work for one of the businesses she owns, and it's a tad strange to see when you walk in, but the birthing center at the local hospital is funded by and named after her. I honestly can't think of one person I know who doesn't like her. Dolly's heart has only gotten bigger because of fame. 2ndbestguyyouknow
It's Mental.
My glow up wasn't physical, it was mental. When I had my first child, my hormones helped my mental health level out and everyone couldn't help but mention how happy I seemed, even when I was getting two hours of sleep because of breastfeeding.
I didn't end up needing as many medications and was able to get more active in my community and with my friends and family.
So I'm a good bit heavier than I'm happier being (used to weigh 115 pounds, now when not pregnant its closer to 150), but I'm not tired and sullen anymore. Lovelyladykaty
12 to 6....
GiphyWent from a size 12 to a size 6 in college. People were much nicer particularly men, got a lot of dates, invited to a lot of stuff, people were always interested in my opinions, doors were opened for me (literally). The attention was nice but I married the man that treated me beautifully both ways. mokshmoon
Respect Me.
People started noticing me and respecting more my opinions. I felt soooo destroyed by the difference that I stopped believing in true friendship and love. Everyone is superficial, either they realize it or not.
Edit: for context, I'm a man and that realization came some time ago, starting on my late teens and finally reaching a critical point in my mid 20's, it was something I sawed through the longest of times but tried to fight off. Believe me, making friends becomes harder as you get older for a reason. TudoCasual
People are really weird.
GiphyI have more or less looked the same for most of my adult life, fairly handsome, but never really had any luck with girls. That changed pretty much immediately when I got into my first serious long-term relationship with my now EX. Suddenly I was getting attention from all these girls whenever me and the EX went out. They were shameless in their approaches and could barely give a rats ass that my girlfriend was sitting next to me.
I'm less approachable then than when I was single. Yet now is the time I'm getting approached and getting all this positive attention?! I always found that really odd. I'm back to single now and it's back to the good ole' normal of being mostly ignored. People are really weird. Jauxerous
Talk to Me.
My confidence invited people to come talk to me. I was chubby and depressed in high school, developed an eating disorder but was still depressed (so, still, nobody talked to me) and it wasn't until I really started taking care of myself that people wanted to be around me. christian2pt0
80 Down....
I lost about 80lbs over the last two years since graduating high school. I don't notice too much different treatment - I do look great in clothes now, which is a huge plus. I suppose people might match me more online than if I was fatter. My own self-image? Changed a massive ton! writingwithmovement
"daaaamn you glew up!"
In the summer between high school and college, I got serious about my diet and exercise, and dropped about 8 lbs of fat. I also read a lot. It was a transformative time when I gained a lot of discipline and really worked on myself, and I'm proud of me for doing it. When my college friends saw old photos of me, they said, almost in unison "daaaamn you glew up!" While that may not seem very positive, I take it as almost a watermark of my life and my decisions and the influences they have over my physical body, experiences, and personality, and just who I am today. AllThotsAllowed
idolizing Siouxsie Sioux.....
GiphyWas kinda bullied throughout school. Not severely but It was made very clear to me that I was unpopular and weird and unattractive compared to the other girls. I had fairly unkempt hair that was long enough to sit on, quite a skinny boyish frame and one eye. Also desperately wanted to be a goth or at least alternative from like the age of 7, idolizing Siouxsie Sioux a lot.
When I got to sixth form (roughly 16-18 yrs old) there was a sudden change in how people acted towards me. The same people who called me a freak for my eccentric way of dressing/acting now wanted to be my friend. Boys who had asked me out as a prank were now clearly lying when they drunkenly confessed to me at parties "I had a huge crush on you all throughout high school."
Girls started inviting me out and acting like they'd been close friends with me this whole time. I didn't rly believe these people suddenly liked me tbh, I think they just found it novel to have a quirky one-eyed friend. I don't forget lol. slime_pixie
I cannot tell a lie.
When I was little I had super thick glasses, stringy hair, a gap in my teeth the size of the Grand Canyon, and a mother who dressed me like I was 2 long into my youth. At around 13 is when my glow up happened; my Braces came off, puberty hit, and I got highlights, contacts, and fashion sense. I went from the nerdy girl that nobody knew, To being the girl every guy loved and every girl hated.
I cannot lie though I let that go right to my head and became pregnant at 15. It was a huge wake up call I pulled my act together graduated high school and college high honors and found an amazing man who loved me and my son to spend the rest of our lives with. tla07412
Gross.
GiphyI lost a lot of weight after high school and learned to do my makeup. It's like going from being invisible to seen.
Guys are a lot nicer too. It made me disgusted. chappychap1234
The Freshman.
GiphyFreshman year of college I lost about 30 pounds and immediately noticed people treating me better, being much more polite and accommodating, more likely to start a conversation. Was nice at first but then made me a little cynical. pdxblazer
27.
I used to be real rough around the edges. Fat, patchy beard, unkept hair, clean but disheveled look. I dressed the bare minimum amount of professional for work.
Sometime before my 27th birthday, I remember seeing an ad for a barbershop with a half off coupon for a professional haircut and shave. I went and they made me look so much better. I looked so good that I immediately went and bought some nicer clothes. just a couple slacks and button downs, but I looked good.
From then on, while I'm not a suit guy, I made sure I always looked neat and presentable. My boss treated me better, I actually got asked out a couple times, I felt better about myself and cared what I ate and drank, I was more sociable and enjoyable.
That haircut changed my life. AdminTom
Overtime.
Over time I've gained and lost a lot of weight. The attention, unwanted or not, hasn't really been that different. If anything, but that might be me, or cultural, I slightly feel that people "liked me better" when I was bigger. I clearly remember before I lost 20 kilos I went vacationing somewhere and the attention was through the roof. As for general polite/nice... haven't felt a difference in my daily interactions. J-Erso
Above the Eyes.
When I was pregnant or nursing, I had boobs. I've always been really small chested otherwise. Definitely got a LOT more attention from men. As to how I reacted, I was annoyed by the attention. I liked it better when guys who knew me asked me out instead of strangers that were lured in by boobs. almostahermit
Exit Please.
My boyfriend was overweight, awkward, and painfully shy in high school.
In college he got super fit, and through a lot of cool opportunities became charismatic and outgoing. He even became a paid streamer for a few years.
When we had first started dating, I remember this girl who knew him from high school came to one of his house parties, and started like hard core hitting on him.
"Omg you look SO good, you look SO different, you really changed WOW."
She was like trying to give him hugs and he wasn't really having it. He told me two nights later, when I wasn't there, she showed up out of the blue at his house and basically said something along the lines of "it's good you were fat in high school because that probably makes you humble, but now you must be grateful you can get a girl like me."
He politely asked her to leave, and we laughed about it. To this day, every once in a while he'll run into someone from high school and they'll act kind of surprised by his appearance, but that was for sure the weirdest and most blatant example. squidkyd
Just a Little...
Not a huge glow up but I lost a little bit of weight, changed my hairstyle and puberty happened. I'm treated mostly the same but girls are just a little bit nicer and I think someone might have a crush on me for the first time since first grade. ByeItsWaffles98
13.
I was always flat-chested. My breasts grew to D cups over the course of a summer. My nipples turned really dark and poked out so much that I couldn't hide them. My boobs were really round and stayed up so my body looked like a P from the side. Some of the girls at school laughed but I think they were just jealous that a guy had better boobs than they did. NickelFish
I find it funny!
I get this every day. I work in the trades and tend to be dirty after work. On the street I can tell people are waiting for me to bum off of them or they keep their distance. I get home, shower, put a collared shirt on, and a nice pair of jeans. The fear is gone when I go back out. People don't cross the street when they see me. I find it funny! lick_as_a_pinecone
Hey Dad.
GiphyTurned from a dad bod to being pretty cut/ripped this summer. Girls treated me the same whilst guys hyped up my physique. That's when I realized most girls don't care about your dad bod. EfficientEscape