People's 'Thank God It's Over And I Never Have To Do It Again' Experiences
There are countless things we just can't wait to get over with, and are beyond grateful when we finally get them taken care of.
Going to the dentist, replacing the washing machine, and mowing the lawn just to name a few.
Unfortunately, our relief is in the grand scheme of things short-lived as these are things we know we will have to do again.
There are other times, however, when we let out an even deeper sigh of relief.
As these were the things we often wish we didn't have to do in the first place... and couldn't be more thankful that we will hopefully never have to go through it again.
A true one-and-done experience.
Redditor tsPatrii_ was curious to hear the various things people couldn't wait to get over with and wasted no time celebrating being finished with, leading them to ask:
"What’s your 'thank god that’s over and I never have to do it again' thing in your life?"
That's Esquire to you!
"The Bar Exam."- fedah72796
Can See Things Much More Clearly Now
"Three months of recovering from retina reattachment surgery, watching the gas bubble in my right eye recede by millimeters every day."- Egheaumaen
All The Wanted For Christmas Was Their Two Front Teeth... And The Rest Of Them...
"Had all my teeth removed and waited 8 weeks toothless before they could fit me for dentures."- Complete-Grape-1269
season 9 dentures GIFGiphySlow Spiral Downwards
"Deal with my father's dementia."- FocusGullible985
Only One They Had
"Had my prostate removed because of cancer."
"Since you only have one, I guess I won’t do that again."- yaraye4686
It's Less Fun That It Looks...
"Being a Best Man."
"It took nearly 3 years after I found out I'd be doing it for the wedding to actually roll around, so it was always in the back of my mind."
"It was my best friend's wedding in another country that had traditions, like "kidnapping" the bride, that as a British person I had no idea existed or how to arrange them, but that's the Best Man's job."
"Never again."
"Thank f*ck that's over with."- IDoctorSkelly
Season 4 Episode 22 GIF by FriendsGiphy"Under The Sea..."
"Night SCUBA dives."
"I did my five."
"I'll never do it again."
"It's dark. It's creepy. Things sneak up on you."
"The ocean is full of terrifying noises at night."
"Never again."- roman_fyseek
Splash!
"The drunk tank."
"Just you and your thoughts, and a commercial-grade ceiling light that never goes off."
"You lose all track of time and feel like this is all you’ve ever known."
"I was in for 36 hours but I feel like I aged years."
"Be responsible, kids."- Quick_Criticism_1690
Those Hallowed Halls Were The Stuff Of Nightmares!
"Any kind of school work/studying."
"Never having to take another exam hits my brain in the best way."- WeAreTuanon
"Middle and high school."
"The amount of bullying I had to endure is something I wish no one ever has to."
"What absolute toxic sh*t holes."- yeetgodmcnechass
One Can Have Too Much Of A Good Thing
"I used to love hiking."
"I was quite the outdoors guy."
"I loved being out in the woods."
"My love for hikes progressed into a love for difficult hikes."
"I used to go on hikes specifically that were less traveled or had steep elevation gain."
"Eventually I started summiting mountains."
"This culminated with a climb of Mt. Rainer in Washington state."
"A difficult, technical climb that people make in preparation for Everest attempts."
"The climb took five days all in all. In a highly technical climb like that your life is constantly in peril."
"We had to cross crevasses hundreds, or maybe even a thousand, feet deep on a stepladder with two 2x4s laid across it."
"While we were crossing snowfields, there were rockslides that sent boulders the size of smart cars across our path."
"If one of those had come loose at the wrong time we’d have been toast."
"Team members lost their footing and we on their rope team had to perform emergency self arrests to prevent all of us from slipping off the side of the mountain to our deaths."
"We summited on schedule."
"We made our way back to base camp, and then down to the bottom of the mountain."
"I’ve never been more happy to see a parking lot."
"I see that experience more as an ordeal that I survived and less like a life achievement."
"I decided I never needed to climb a mountain again."- stebbi01
hiking GIFGiphySome experiences are so traumatizing or painful, that we can't even bring ourselves to craft a good story about them.
Making the only positive outcome of having these memories is the fact that they were experiences we will never have to put ourselves through ever again.
Sometimes, we truly never know how lucky we are.
Particularly when we might be disappointed to have missed out on something, only to learn after the fact that it was something of a miracle we did.
As the saying goes, we "dodged a bullet".
This could be for something trivial, like being late for a concert owing to traffic, only to find out it was a real stinker, or having to cancel a trip, only to discover how terrible the weather was the whole time you would have been there.
In other cases, the bullet you dodged may have been an actual life or death situation.
"What was the biggest bullet you dodged?"
Miracle Survival!
"My dad was a truck driver in the oilfield in Canada."
"He worked a lot of long hours and every single day."
"So on weekends he would bring me and my younger brother on some of his jobs."
"We were on location and my little brother, 3 yrs, and me, 10 yrs, were waiting for him playing in cab of truck."
"My little brother opened the passenger door and my little arms closed it."
"Jobs done, we start our trek home going about 35 km/hr and the door flies open and I get sucked out of truck."
"I remember doing about 10 back flips as I tumbled out."
"Hitting the ground on my back a few times and rolling my way to a stop."
"I stood up before the truck was even stopped in absolute shock."
"Next thing I see my dad looking for me and he burst into tears."
"First time I ever seen him cry."
"I’m 33 now and he still won’t talk to me about it."
"Luckily the rig was in a farmers field."
"So when we were leaving I landed on softer dirt."
"Not a single scratch on me."
"Dad thought he ran over me with trailer."
"Don’t think we ever went to work with dad again."
"I work for the company now."- Paydayson
Near Kidnapping
"Years ago I lived in Vancouver and liked to go for long walks, beautiful city to do so."
"I was heading to a friends first to drop something off and and cut through a neighborhood with a lot of south east asian immigrants, the ones I got to talk to were mostly from Vietnam."
"I was aware of a van behind me but it was mid day and there were people out, so it was only a passing thought."
"A lady was working in her garden and as I approached her house she started to look behind me."
"Then she came out onto the side walk and started talking to me in her native language."
"I understood none of it but her body language was agitated."
"She kept gesturing to me to come with her up their walkway."
"As I looked behind me I see three men getting out of the van, which is now parked just behind me."
"By this point the woman has a good grip on my arm and and has me dragged almost to her porch."
"She kept talking to me and pointing to stuff in her garden and i just listened, nodded, and kept a good eye on the men and van."
"I don't remember how long we were there but the men finally left."
"Both myself and the woman let out huge sighs of relief."
"She then patted me on the arm, said something, and then went back to her gardening."
"I booted it to my friends house."
"On the news the next day was the story of a woman who was kidnapped."
"The victim was grabbed on the next street over from the woman's house, not long after my encounter with her, by 5 men in a van."
"The men were distinctive and the description of the men and van fit the ones I had see."
"That woman saved me from something horrible and I am forever thankful."- grainia99
Near Fatal Illness
:A few years ago I had pneumonia, but my whole family insisted that it was just post nasal drip, which runs in the family."
"After a week or two I woke up in the middle of the night when I couldn't feel my arm."
"After I got to the ER the doctor said that it was the worst he'd ever seen and he was surprised I wasn't dead."
"I had 3 lbs of mucus cut out of my lungs and another two weeks in the hospital siphoning out the rest."
"For three months afterwards I could barely walk half a mile without starting to pass out and I still can't run for more than 200-300 yards without collapsing."- Deadthrow742
Near Fatal Collision
"Around 30,000 pounds."
"I was driving with my wife in town one snowy evening and we had pulled up to a stop light."
"I happened to glance up at the rear view mirror and saw a city bus heading towards us."
"And rotating sideways."
"I hit the gas and pulled ahead into the intersection and left into the turning lane, and less than a second later, the bus went sliding through right where our car was."
"It came to a stop on the other side of the intersection and fortunately didn't hit anything, but one second or two feet difference and we would've had some nice spinal injuries."- LackingUtility
Barely Safe Landing
"Many years ago, my flight had just landed at Chicago O'hare and the plane was taxiing when the pilot suddenly slammed on the brakes."
"People were literally thrown forward against the seat in front of them."
"A few seconds later, another plane, taking off I think, went screaming by right in front of us."
"No explanation was given, though our imaginations provided a lot of gory details."- khendron
Timing Is everything
"Not changing jobs in early 2020."
"Would have been a short lived promotion after early restructuring and layoffs."- LegallyBodacious
We all find ourselves wondering "what if" regarding certain choices we've made in our lives.
It's never helpful to look back with regret.
Instead, one should only be grateful for avoiding the many wrong turns our lives could have easily taken.
There are many things we take for granted that we should be thankful for.
But perhaps the biggest thing to be grateful for is having another day to live–which is something that has not gone unnoticed by those who've experienced a brush with death.
Curious to hear from those who survived to share their stories, Redditor Rapid_falls263 asked:
"What was the closest you have ever been to death? (Serious)"
Gravity is not always our friend.
The Right Landing
"I fell two stories off my roof onto concrete a few years back. I broke my knee and my wrist. Luckily that was it. If I’d fallen on my head, it would have been game over."
– Actuaryba
Tethered To Life
"Slipped on a steep hill with 100lbs of cable around my neck/chest. One end caught between some rocks and the cable started tightening around me, while I was sliding down the hill into a river ravine. I couldn't grab onto anything and saw the edge of the cliff coming up quick."
"Fortunately the cable stopped tightening before it got to my throat, and that ended up saving me from going off the cliff."
Lucky Timing
"Late teens heading to school by train, I was feeling like sh*t that morning and even puked halfway to the train but shrugged it off."
"As I was standing on the platform, waiting for the train, I was hoping it'd get better once I sat down on the train."
"A couple of minutes later when the train arrived, I waited until the train stopped and walked towards it. I blink and I'm suddenly on my back on the platform with a circle of people around me and a police officer asking me if I can tell her what weekday it is."
"Turns out, I had fainted walking towards the train and fell down on the track, behind the train. A passerby pulled me back up on the platform."
"Had I positioned myself near the tracks a few seconds earlier like I normally do, I would've fallen in front of the train. Instead, I got a mild concussion and a scar on my chin from the fall."
– Miathon
Some unexpected detours can be a matter of life or death.
Popped Tire
"Car accident on the fwy when I was 12. My mom popped a tire, lost control of the vehicle and ended up spinning around to a dead stop facing on coming traffic. A giant trailer was headed right for us. We got so lucky he saw the whole thing unfold so he had already slowed down and was able to stop."
– Turbulent-Army2631
Misinterpreting The Signal
"I ran a red left turn arrow right in front of a Chevy 2500 doing close to 60MPH. I was already stopped at the light and had been waiting for it to turn green. It was later in the day and the sun was positioned directly behind the light. 16 year old me looked up and said 'yeah, that's probably green'. No, no it wasn't."
"Anyway, I got T-boned right where the front and rear doors meet on the passenger side. The part of the frame that separates the doors got pushed all the way to the center consul, which I smacked my head against. I just remember waking up in a daze with a lot of blood on the right side of my face."
"Fast forward through the call to mom and the ambulance ride. doctors showed me a scan and said several fragments of my skull were a piece of paper thickness away from entering my brain. The best (worst) part is I was supposed to be taking my sister with me. She was taking her sweet time at home so I left without her."
– ThePassenger08
Close Call
"Haul truck ran an intersection and nearly ran me over. I speed up and swerved between him and another oncoming haul truck to avoid collision. A safety supervisor witnessed all of it, and had me and the idiot in the truck stop at a camp and proceeded to chew him out for nearly killing me."
– anothersatanist89
These examples serve as a reminder how our bodies are unpredictable.
Illness
"I managed to get Legionnaires Disease a couple years ago. 25% fatality rate, even with treatment."
"Spent 1 week in the hospital, and 1 week sleeping at home. Couldn't eat for most of the time (the bacteria was in my left lung and stomach)."
"edit: I didn't find out what it was until a week or two later when the Health Department called me with questions. Up to then, I was only told it was pneumonia."
– SubversiveLogic
Shower Accident
"Had a seizure in the shower, smashed my head into the faucet when I fell and landed face-down. I was turning blue and had a four inch gash on my head when my boyfriend found me. Cat was soaking wet, because he jumped into the tub. Took about four minutes of CPR."
"I do not shower with the bathroom door closed, and I do not shower if someone isn't at the apartment with me."
– SocksAndPi
Mom To The Rescue
"My appendix ruptured while I was lying in a hospital bed trying to convince the doctors that I really was in pain. They assumed I was pregnant and just lying about it. They took blood, pee, and did a pelvic exam--which made me throw up because it hurt so bad to move my torso, let alone put my feet up in stirrups."
"All negative. They still didn't believe me that I wasn't even sexually active at the time."
"Anyway, I have a very hazy memory of talking to my mom and telling her that it was okay, soon it wouldn't hurt anymore. I was just gonna sleep for a bit."
"She flipped and happened to work at that hospital, so she got them to do an ultrasound to find this phantom pregnancy. 1 terrified look from a tech later, I was booked for surgery and finally got a morphine drip. After almost 14 hours in the ER."
– Nillabeans
Aggressive Infection
"I had pneumonia, and I didn't realize how serious it was until the doctors tried three strong antibiotics, and the infection kept growing, and fluid was building up on my lung."
"They openly told me they didn't know why the infection was growing, only they it was resistant to all three antibiotics they tried. They put me on two IVs for four days, but the infection was not going away. It was getting harder to breathe, and laying on my back was impossible because of all the pain in my right lung."
"Eventually the infection started shrinking on its own, but it was so scary!"
– hyacinths_
On The Brink
"I was dx with lung cancer in 2014. Numerous failed treatments and I got down to 101lbs. I was very sick. But we finally found a good treatment and I have been NED for about 3 or so years now."
– Diianeee
These Redditors almost reached their final destination.
Mystery Tug
"Working on flight deck of aircraft carrier during flight ops. Felt someone behind me tugging on my coat trying to get my attention. When I turned around it wasn’t a person tugging on me; it was the intake of an F-14 trying to pull me inside for a closer look at the afterlife."
"Or maybe all the other near-death stuff that happens on a flight deck. It’s hard to pick just one. Cool job, though."
– ChooChooSoulCrusher
Thin Ice
"Fell through the ice ones frigid January day. Not quite the middle of nowhere. Thankfully a random motorist was driving the back roads and found me."
– PMyourTastefulNudes
Good Instinct
"Almost stepped on a Mojave rattlesnake when were were miles from civilization and nowhere near a road. I was a child at the time, and it was before everyone carried cell phones so if I got bit I would have been in serious trouble. That's one of the deadliest snakes in America."
"The snake was nestled in some big rocks that made a little hole in the ground. I was going to step in there because it looked cool, but right before I did, I had a six sense sort of feeling that I shouldn't. I trusted my gut, and really examined the area in front of me."
"It took me a while but I eventually spotted a little baby Mojave rattler right where I was going to step. One of the few times my I've experienced my instincts protect me like that. Kind of cool actually, it almost feels like a superpower when it happens"
– 14thCluelessbird
Consequence Of Contaminated Food
"I thought I got roofied once. One beer got me drink for 6 hours, got someone to drive me home from the bar. Next day worst headache I ever had, immediately threw up anything I tried to drink, so slept all day. Day 3 got up to pee, fell down couldn’t get up. Crawled to the couch and called 911."
"Ambulance lady said I had a temp of 103, I had E. coli in my blood, said another 24 hours I woulda been dead. I only called 911 cause my work said I’d get fired without doctors note. Otherwise I woulda just went to sleep on the couch."
"Also didn’t have pants on when I called 911. Had no pants to go home in."
– SomePerson80
The Unfriendly Visitor
"I was in Iraq and I thought I was just 'backed up' from the fortified peanut butter. It got worse so I went to the medic. Next thing I know they are flying me to Kuwait. I fucked up real bad, and caught some crazy parasite from eating ice off the local economy. The doctor said I would have died if that medic hadn’t got me outta dodge. Mortar fire, small arms fire on a daily basis and I almost get taken out by a parasite eating a hole in my colon….."
– 4t0micpunk
A Major Catastrophe Thwarted
"I learned that one of my coworkers was planning a mass shooting at my office, and the only reason it didn’t happen was that a family member found out and intervened at the literal last moment."
– Umbre-Mon
Failed To Detonate
"I stepped on two IED pressure-plates that failed to detonate, during one deployment."
"On another, my Bradley CFV juuuust clipped the edge of a AT mine buried in the road, but since we didn't roll over the pressure-trigger in the center, it didn't explode."
"Just another day in the life, back then......"
– TheGoodJudgeHolden
This terrified my mother more than it did me, but as a five-year-old–I believe–I fell out of the passenger seat of the car while she was driving on a residential street.
Luckily, the truck behind us came to a stop. However, my mom had kept driving as she panicked from seeing the empty seat next to her and mistook the gas pedal for the brake.
Apparently, I begged to sit in the front like the "grown-ups" did and I eventually figured out how to unbuckle the safety belt, unlock the door, and pull on the handle.
I was a very curious child.
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Self reflection is a critical skill. When we reflect on our lives, our work, our academics, we actually learn more about ourselves and can improve in the future.
Not only that, but looking at the positive aspects of life can actually improve your health.
The Mayo Clinic says positive thinking can reduce stress and depression, increase resistance to the common cold, improve cardiovascular health, and even lengthen your life span.
Redditor poodewoopwoopwoop wanted to know:
"What is going good in your life?"
Let's take a moment to reflect on what good is happening in the world and in our own lives.
The treatment is working.
"My cancer is finally showing signs of shrinking from treatment."
- 22poppills
"Congrats!"
- Microsofte
"F*ck yeah. F*ck cancer, go you. I hope you're feeling well. Treatment can be a b*tch as well."
- poodewoopwoopwoop
It's good to be grateful for you're and it's also okay to have thing you're sad about at the same time.
"Good Health."
"I have fortunately been blessed with good health, and I'm even more grateful then I ever would have been before the virus."
"But at the same time, my social activity has been really bad. I'm unfortunate enough to live far away from my entire family. I want to see them all so badly."
"Even though I may be out of lockdown, borders are still closed. This really makes me upset at times, especially considering I have some new family members I want to meet."
- uhhiiguessuhm
There's a lot to be grateful for.
"I'm coming to appreciate the basics on a day-to-day basis."
- "I have a roof over my head; there were times I nearly didn't."
- "I have a job that always pays on time, and pretty well given my lack of degree; there were times I made minimum wage in a clay factory."
- "I can afford food; there were times I couldn't."
- "I have a car and enjoy it; there were times where I could barely keep a beater on the road."
- "There's a couple people I could call upon if I need help; there were times where I didn't and it was terrifying and lonely."
- "Despite chronic pain and spine issues, I have all my limbs and they work. My organs function pretty good, too. I can be active and still enjoy life despite that."
"I still get caught up in both boring and existential anxieties about the future, because of course. Will the job last? Will the chronic pain send me back into another depression? Will I ever be able to retire?"
"But I like to take a step back and have that moment of, 'You know what? This isn't so bad, and you know what? It's not just not bad, it's pretty good, too.'"
- NotChristina
A new love.
"My relationship is amazing."
- BriaCass
"New relationship, nearly together for 1 year. Getting over a past ex, therapy going well which is helping me to ruminate less."
- Jusmumbo1
"I never thought I'd date again. Forced myself anyway and found the person for me. You couldn't tell me love existed. I'm moving into his house soon. It doesn't feel real to be loved like this. It's awesome."
- Ariannaree
New jobs.
"I have a great new job. I'm so happy here."
- AdZestyclose353
"I quit a bad job with no backup plan, and then I got a letter saying 'Btw you had a 401k you can withdraw from if you need.'"
"I'm not planning on it but it's helping me avoid getting over-stressed."
- Jusmumbo1
"I have less than 2 weeks left at my current 2nd shift hell job I've been at for 3 years (though to be fair, it only started sucking HORRIBLY this past year), and will be starting a M-F 8-5 government job later this month."
- legolug
"I'm leaving my current job which has turned into a depressing nightmare and landed a job with my #1 engineering firm."
"Worked with them in my current position throughout the years. They all seem friendly, like their jobs, and I like the kinds of work they do."
"They're also located in our downtown area and I'm trading a 30 minute driving commute for a 30 minute bus ride. No time saved but I don't have to be functional for it, so it's a win to me."
- FistedTate
The Strangest Superstitions People Actually Observe | George Takei’s Oh Myyy
The world can be a superstitious place. If you've ever knocked on wood or thrown salt over your shoulder then you've run into one or two throughout your life..."My last day working at a job that makes me miserable is on Friday, and I'm about two months away from being permanently reunited with my fiancé and our doggos."
- thatsapaddlin31
"Well, I'm 27 years young and about to be making 18.50 an hour once my job gets the details about all of our raises ironed out. Which is awesome. Financial security is a huge stress relief when you come from a family who is still not financially secure on their own. Also sticking to some pretty healthy boundaries and I've been happily married almost a year and a half!"
- beautifulbloop
"Almost 4 months sober and a new job!"
- Icy_Ad_6066
"I got out of rehab 3 months ago and just got my first 'adult' job. Finally feel like I have at least some semblance of a path, albeit not one I've dreamed about. It's progress nonetheless and I'm learning that sometimes a wrong choice is better than no choice at all. Happy to end a long period of stagnation in my life and hope this flourishes into something I can take pride in one day."
- Glum-Fishing5
Thankful for family.
"My daughters. Only thing keeps me going."
- Mrlostsoul90
"Having my 2 wonderful kids. They are what puts a smile on my face every day and keeps me pushing forward."
- Open-Platform7196
"My daughter is the most amazing thing in this world. She's beautiful, smart as a whip, funny as all hell, and more loving than anyone I've ever met. Two weeks ago she made me the most proud father ever. We were at a little pond and she hooked, and fought for about 5 minutes, an 8 pound largemouth. Later that night I found out she got the highest grades in her class. She is five years old."
- WranglerSilver6451
A frank discussion.
"Despite being 26, I've never had a job or really gotten started on being an adult because my overly lenient and emotionally distant father never helped me get the proper stuff to get the ball rolling so to speak."
"But it seems like that's finally started to change after a pretty blunt discussion I had with him about it after he tried to tell me that I need to start taking responsibility for myself."
"We've talked about finally getting me an ID so I can start working at a nearby gas station that my friend works at that pays decently well for a first job ($14 an hour) has full benefits and is really close, and while I'm nervous it also feels good knowing that I'm finally taking some real tangible steps forward in my life."
- FrameUsual
Thankful for friends.
"I have a good group of friends and i am about to start college in a year."
- not-creative123
A new home.
"29 and just bought a house."
- No-Worldliness-3741
"Congrats!!!"
- missyo5
Confidence in school.
"I actually feel like I'm trying in school, whether or not that backfires in my face when I get a report card I don't care right now. I have some academic confidence and it feels pretty nice."
- SomeKidWhoPlaysGD
"A year ago, I decided to go back to school to get a certification in the medical field. My kids are getting older, my husband would like to retire or at least work less, and I wanted a new marketable skill for myself. Here it is a year later and not only did I graduate from that program top of my class, but I went for second certification in a related field and I graduate next week. Job prospects look good too. It just blows my mind that a year ago I had none of this."
- PacificCoastHighway2
"Gained a habit of studying everyday (sometimes with one day off). Makes me way happier than procrastinating all the time."
- RaccoonsBurnInHell
"Hockey! I'm hoping to make varsity at my high school so fingers crossed!"
- tottheshmeeg
Making a nice meal.
"Cooking."
"I was terrible at cooking before I met my fiancée, and now we have started cooking together every night and I have improved quite a bit. It's quite relaxing and exactly what I needed in my life."
- MourningPath
An upcoming birthday.
"I'm like 6 months away from being able to legally drink myself to death. This also means the ladies will want me more. Right? Right fellas? Fellas?"
- MarvinMelancholy
"Y.. yeah. Sure man, they will. Absolutely."
"So um, how's it going? I heard therapy is nice and all."
- poodewoopwoopwoop
Stocks are up.
"Stocks are flying high lately. Looks like risk-on trading is back on the menu, boys!"
- Hrnghekth
Sometimes it's hard to see what's going well.
"Not much at the moment."
- _ManWhoSoldTheWorld_
If you feel like there isn't a lot going well in your life, that can be very overwhelming or depressing. Here's a list from Psychology Today of helpful ways to keep yourself going when things just aren't going your way.
Whatever it may be that you're going through, reflecting on what we have to be grateful for is an important practice.
It's part of taking care of yourself, especially when there's a global pandemic and the world feels really heavy.
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Privilege is discussed quite a bit these days, and for good reason. So many people are able to live life longer, more peacefully, and freely than others thanks to factors they had no control over.
And yet, there is an element of popularity among the privileges discussed. People acknowledge their race, class, gender identity, sexual orientation, and citizenship status a lot.
That makes sense. Those are massively significant social realities that we need to grapple with constantly.
But there are some other privileges that we don't always think about. There are some things even more basic that not everybody gets to enjoy.
Observing them can make us all feel a bit more grateful.
Redditor Mburns15 asked:
"What is something most people don't realize is a privilege?"
Many called attention to the fact that the physical ability to interact with a majority of public infrastructure isn't a sure thing.
Always Calling Ahead
"Spontaneity in your daily plans. If you're a wheelchair user that's virtually impossible."
"So few places have accessible restrooms, some public transport needs contact 24 hours in advance in order to accommodate you, the list goes on."
"I envy people who can just go with the flow."
Take Care
"Being able-bodied. So many people are one accident away from being unemployed and don't realize that. Your job will ruin your body - be aware and fight it."
A Silent Struggle
"Not having chronic pain" -- Aggravating_Okra_00
"Having energy to do what you want with your life. Trying to explain to people how exhausting and draining chronic pain can be. Having to explain the concept of energy budgets to people - sure I could come out and do $funthing with you, but then I wouldn't have the energy to cook and clean the house and would be useless at work tomorrow." -- Fraerie
Others chose to point out the very basic necessities that are far from ensured across the world.
To Be Comfortable
"Feeling safe in your own home. Not worrying about rats, mice, roaches, bed bugs, bricks being thrown through windows, violence outside, break ins."
-- yesohoygh
Peace
"Privacy. I don't mean digital privacy, I mean a room with solid walls and a door that closes. Lots of people don't have that."
Exercising Gratitude
"Having access to water and a sewage system. Also the abundance of food in western super markets is quite frankly insane. Every day I try and spend a moment to reflect on how lucky I am."
-- DrSealMan
Game Changer
"Sanitary products for women! It's different in different parts of the world + economic backgrounds"
And finally, a few people from countries around the world discussed the unique, intense struggles of living in a place that isn't embedded in the affluence of the Western world.
Just Imagine
"Going about your daily life without seriously worrying about your physical safety. Sleeping at night without worrying about whether a bomb is going to come through your roof."
Not a Given
"Having the ability to express an opinion. Free speech is very censored in a lot of the world." -- BananaLCG
"Criticizing your own government." -- ipf000
The Ability to Think About Other Things
"Living in a good country, not having to spend your youth worrying about how to immigrate to good countries."
-- MiniSugaSwag
But before you think of this list as a big long guilt trip, imagine a more positive spin on this. There are so many things to feel grateful for, even when it seems like everything is working against you.
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