Communication isn't always easy. Sometimes, you say something you didn't mean to say, whether it's because a joke you made fell flat, or someone overheard something they weren't supposed to hear. And some people are just plain careless.
However, mean comments they make can be explained away and are usually followed by an apology.
Of course, some people are just plain nasty and want to deliver an insult that will shake you to your very core. The things people say to you can be mean, hurtful, and sometimes even soul-crushing.
Redditor Embarrassed-Host-949 was curious about the most soul-crushing thing Reddit users have ever heard someone say, and asked:
"What was the most soul crushing thing someone told you or you heard?"
One Daughter Over Another
"My dad and step mom adopted a baby girl, and my step sister overheard my dad talking about how excited he is to adopt a girl because he’s never had a daughter"
"Absolutely crushed my step sister, she thought of my dad like her own father. He’s been all she’s known."
– DieselSwapEverything
Poor Kid
"My husband and I took our teenage son and his friend (I’ll call him Alex) to an amusement park recently."
"My husband is a really funny guy and was making both boys laugh on the car ride home."
"Alex told my husband, “You’re really funny, Mr. D! You remind me of my Dad, except your jokes aren’t hurtful.”"
"My heart"
– NancyDrew1932
Abandonned
""My family just gave up on me.""
"-A 10-year-old that just got the news they had been unadopted by their family of the last 5 years."
– internetpointswoot
Amnesia
""How can she be my wife? I have no idea who she is. " said my husband of 8 years after a bad car wreck and 4 weeks in a coma. He lost about 12 years of memories. Including our whole relationship. We got divorced 2 years after as his memory never returned."
– jenmrsx
Maybe This Mother Shouldn't Have Been A Mother
"My mum once told me “You wouldn’t be a very good mother, your sister would be much better”. I always loved and worked with children, my sister is more of an animal person. It crushed me because I always dreamed of being a mother and I still think about that comment made years ago when my boyfriend brings up the children topic."
– Everything-is_good
All Work And No Play
"I saw a documentary.... I don't even recall what it was about, but they were focusing on this family in a rural part of eastern Europe or southern Asia. There was a little girl in this family and all she did was work. She couldn't go to school, and she just assisted her mother in doing all the necessary drudgery around the house."
"One of the film makers asked the girl what her secret dream was."
"She said, "To play.""
– Adddicus
The Wrong Response To A Loss
"My (now ex) wife and I had just lost our unborn daughter at 22 weeks and my (now ex) best-friend offered her thoughts: “You wouldn’t want a baby that obviously had issues to begin with. God doesn’t make mistakes.”"
"I’ll leave it at that."
– van_ebasion
Conditional Love
"When my grandpa told me I wasn’t good enough. I was always never a girly girl but not quite a tomboy. I was really close to him but he was old school. As I grew up he started to realize that I wasn’t changing in the right way. He kept telling me to use my lady voice, to sit ladylike, eat lady like, and do ladylike things. He had enough when he saw me with my animals being not gentle when they were stubborn and getting dirty and liking it. He got mad and yelled at me after when no one was around. It hurt because always thought he would love me no matter what then I found out that there were conditions to his love."
– Indianagirl25
Love All Your Kids Equally
""Mom and Dad have been telling people they only have two kids" from my sister. They have three kids. All because I didn't go to the religious college they wanted me to go to"
– Zeophyle
"My dad is a pastor and he's always treated me differently. He used to say from the pulpit while preaching, "I have 2 kids I'm proud of...""
"He has 3 children, but he wasn't lying."
– roundaboutrich
Shattered At Prom
"Pretty tame here, but I had been invited to two proms for my senior year. I went dressed in the same outfit for both of them because I didn’t have a lot of time to prepare. I went with my girlfriend to both of them and spent the better half of an hour putting makeup on (which is insane because I’ve never had the confidence to do so) and getting all nice for her because I couldn’t believe she was mine. I’ve been bullied my whole life and due to that I lack confidence and self esteem but those two nights I genuinely (and finally) felt pretty and good in my own skin. Fast forward a couple weeks and she tells me that my makeup was ugly and she should’ve done it for me. She said the colors and style was ugly and a bad choice overall."
"I broke. I cried for days and it still makes my eyes sting just thinking about it. I played it off though and told her it just looked weird because I can only use certain products since I have really sensitive skin. It may sound dramatic, but I honestly don’t ever think I’ll be able to fully recover from that and I always worry she’ll call me ugly again whenever she looks at me. She’s very sweet and kind, but it made my chest implode when she confessed that to me."
– ArticleElectronic341
Pretty Sure SHE Was At Fault!
"That my ex was letting a guy put hickeys on her thighs a month before our anniversary,then she had the audacity to break up with ME because I was upset about it!"
– Whyeverme
The Drink Shouldn't Be An Excuse
"i’m late but my mom came into my room really drunk at 2am when i was 15, and started crying and saying how she feels she failed as a mother when she looks at me, and that i’m a horrible sister to my siblings. i just stared at her, im used to her saying this type of stuff when she’s drunk, but hearing that really crushed me for some reason."
– elegantfraud
Forever Friendzoned
"I liked (and still like) this girl that I am in high school with (let’s call her Amy). I have multiple classes with her and we hang out a bit. Mainly through badminton practice. I was developing a crush on her, I loved her voice, she’s smart, athletic, amazing personality. Then I saw her face and it was the icing on the cake. I naturally told some friends about this girl that I had a crush on. And them being high school friends, they told her. I was given a chuckle followed by a flat out no."
"We are just friends now, and I am highly convinced that is all it will ever be."
– takoyaki_depressants
Teacher's Pet...Or Not
""I don't like you so stop trying to suck up to me" for context the person who said this was my 3rd grade teacher, I had a very bubbly personality back then and he clearly didn't like that, or me for that matter.it completely crushed my ego and never got to fully recover from everything he put me through. I was only 3rd Grade."
– Let_Me_Use_This_App
The Loss Will Never Be Okay
"I came home from training to find one of my friends had gone missing. I spent hours over my home hoping news would come in about them. Eventually I decided to go for a shower to distract myself slightly. As I was getting out I had 3 missed calls from my best friend. "He's just been found dead.""
– Ok-Main-7362
Life Is Too Short
"For me it was the vet saying "There's nothing else to do". My beloved dog had suffered with epilepsy the last 4 years, and despite all the medicin and operations, she still lost the battle. Broke me down completely."
– Lost-Psychology
What Is The Truth?
"I remember when I was really young, probably about 7, I overheard my mom on the phone with my aunt. They were talking about money and how having a family got expensive really quickly. My mom then told my aunt that if she had the money, she would’ve divorced my dad years ago."
"My parents were fairly good parents, they never really seemed to have any serious fights, they never really argued and they appeared to love each other."
"It’s been years since then and whenever I see my parents (who are still married) I always find myself dissecting their behaviours and trying to see something I might have missed as a kid. I just wonder if it was something my mom meant of if it was just some weird way of reassuring my aunt (who is now split from her husband)."
– 23_emma_13
This Breaks My Heart
"Someone told me once that any bad thing you can possibly imagine someone doing to an animal, is being done somewhere in the world."
"Broke my fucking spirit right then and there."
"Hate this species."
– shilmista_
Not A True Friend
"When I was ten years old, one of my friends at School, told me If I died he wouldn't go to my funeral. That still hurts 20 years later."
– Suspicious-Roll2908
People can be cruel, and sometimes you will have to hear the worst of insults. The important thing is how you react.
Remember that few people are evil enough to bluntly say the negative thoughts that roam around in their head, and people who are that cruel don't deserve the time of day.
People Confess The Most Soul-Crushing Thing Someone's Ever Told Them
Communication isn't always easy. Sometimes, you say something you didn't mean to say, whether it's because a joke you made fell flat, or someone overheard something they weren't supposed to hear. And some people are just plain careless.
However, mean comments they make can be explained away and are usually followed by an apology.
Of course, some people are just plain nasty and want to deliver an insult that will shake you to your very core. The things people say to you can be mean, hurtful, and sometimes even soul-crushing.
Redditor Embarrassed-Host-949 was curious about the most soul-crushing thing Reddit users have ever heard someone say, and asked:
One Daughter Over Another
"My dad and step mom adopted a baby girl, and my step sister overheard my dad talking about how excited he is to adopt a girl because he’s never had a daughter"
"Absolutely crushed my step sister, she thought of my dad like her own father. He’s been all she’s known."
– DieselSwapEverything
Poor Kid
"My husband and I took our teenage son and his friend (I’ll call him Alex) to an amusement park recently."
"My husband is a really funny guy and was making both boys laugh on the car ride home."
"Alex told my husband, “You’re really funny, Mr. D! You remind me of my Dad, except your jokes aren’t hurtful.”"
"My heart"
– NancyDrew1932
Abandonned
""My family just gave up on me.""
"-A 10-year-old that just got the news they had been unadopted by their family of the last 5 years."
– internetpointswoot
Amnesia
""How can she be my wife? I have no idea who she is. " said my husband of 8 years after a bad car wreck and 4 weeks in a coma. He lost about 12 years of memories. Including our whole relationship. We got divorced 2 years after as his memory never returned."
– jenmrsx
Maybe This Mother Shouldn't Have Been A Mother
"My mum once told me “You wouldn’t be a very good mother, your sister would be much better”. I always loved and worked with children, my sister is more of an animal person. It crushed me because I always dreamed of being a mother and I still think about that comment made years ago when my boyfriend brings up the children topic."
– Everything-is_good
All Work And No Play
"I saw a documentary.... I don't even recall what it was about, but they were focusing on this family in a rural part of eastern Europe or southern Asia. There was a little girl in this family and all she did was work. She couldn't go to school, and she just assisted her mother in doing all the necessary drudgery around the house."
"One of the film makers asked the girl what her secret dream was."
"She said, "To play.""
– Adddicus
The Wrong Response To A Loss
"My (now ex) wife and I had just lost our unborn daughter at 22 weeks and my (now ex) best-friend offered her thoughts: “You wouldn’t want a baby that obviously had issues to begin with. God doesn’t make mistakes.”"
"I’ll leave it at that."
– van_ebasion
Conditional Love
"When my grandpa told me I wasn’t good enough. I was always never a girly girl but not quite a tomboy. I was really close to him but he was old school. As I grew up he started to realize that I wasn’t changing in the right way. He kept telling me to use my lady voice, to sit ladylike, eat lady like, and do ladylike things. He had enough when he saw me with my animals being not gentle when they were stubborn and getting dirty and liking it. He got mad and yelled at me after when no one was around. It hurt because always thought he would love me no matter what then I found out that there were conditions to his love."
– Indianagirl25
Love All Your Kids Equally
""Mom and Dad have been telling people they only have two kids" from my sister. They have three kids. All because I didn't go to the religious college they wanted me to go to"
– Zeophyle
"My dad is a pastor and he's always treated me differently. He used to say from the pulpit while preaching, "I have 2 kids I'm proud of...""
"He has 3 children, but he wasn't lying."
– roundaboutrich
Shattered At Prom
"Pretty tame here, but I had been invited to two proms for my senior year. I went dressed in the same outfit for both of them because I didn’t have a lot of time to prepare. I went with my girlfriend to both of them and spent the better half of an hour putting makeup on (which is insane because I’ve never had the confidence to do so) and getting all nice for her because I couldn’t believe she was mine. I’ve been bullied my whole life and due to that I lack confidence and self esteem but those two nights I genuinely (and finally) felt pretty and good in my own skin. Fast forward a couple weeks and she tells me that my makeup was ugly and she should’ve done it for me. She said the colors and style was ugly and a bad choice overall."
"I broke. I cried for days and it still makes my eyes sting just thinking about it. I played it off though and told her it just looked weird because I can only use certain products since I have really sensitive skin. It may sound dramatic, but I honestly don’t ever think I’ll be able to fully recover from that and I always worry she’ll call me ugly again whenever she looks at me. She’s very sweet and kind, but it made my chest implode when she confessed that to me."
– ArticleElectronic341
Pretty Sure SHE Was At Fault!
"That my ex was letting a guy put hickeys on her thighs a month before our anniversary,then she had the audacity to break up with ME because I was upset about it!"
– Whyeverme
The Drink Shouldn't Be An Excuse
"i’m late but my mom came into my room really drunk at 2am when i was 15, and started crying and saying how she feels she failed as a mother when she looks at me, and that i’m a horrible sister to my siblings. i just stared at her, im used to her saying this type of stuff when she’s drunk, but hearing that really crushed me for some reason."
– elegantfraud
Forever Friendzoned
"I liked (and still like) this girl that I am in high school with (let’s call her Amy). I have multiple classes with her and we hang out a bit. Mainly through badminton practice. I was developing a crush on her, I loved her voice, she’s smart, athletic, amazing personality. Then I saw her face and it was the icing on the cake. I naturally told some friends about this girl that I had a crush on. And them being high school friends, they told her. I was given a chuckle followed by a flat out no."
"We are just friends now, and I am highly convinced that is all it will ever be."
– takoyaki_depressants
Teacher's Pet...Or Not
""I don't like you so stop trying to suck up to me" for context the person who said this was my 3rd grade teacher, I had a very bubbly personality back then and he clearly didn't like that, or me for that matter.it completely crushed my ego and never got to fully recover from everything he put me through. I was only 3rd Grade."
– Let_Me_Use_This_App
The Loss Will Never Be Okay
"I came home from training to find one of my friends had gone missing. I spent hours over my home hoping news would come in about them. Eventually I decided to go for a shower to distract myself slightly. As I was getting out I had 3 missed calls from my best friend. "He's just been found dead.""
– Ok-Main-7362
Life Is Too Short
"For me it was the vet saying "There's nothing else to do". My beloved dog had suffered with epilepsy the last 4 years, and despite all the medicin and operations, she still lost the battle. Broke me down completely."
– Lost-Psychology
What Is The Truth?
"I remember when I was really young, probably about 7, I overheard my mom on the phone with my aunt. They were talking about money and how having a family got expensive really quickly. My mom then told my aunt that if she had the money, she would’ve divorced my dad years ago."
"My parents were fairly good parents, they never really seemed to have any serious fights, they never really argued and they appeared to love each other."
"It’s been years since then and whenever I see my parents (who are still married) I always find myself dissecting their behaviours and trying to see something I might have missed as a kid. I just wonder if it was something my mom meant of if it was just some weird way of reassuring my aunt (who is now split from her husband)."
– 23_emma_13
This Breaks My Heart
"Someone told me once that any bad thing you can possibly imagine someone doing to an animal, is being done somewhere in the world."
"Broke my fucking spirit right then and there."
"Hate this species."
– shilmista_
Not A True Friend
"When I was ten years old, one of my friends at School, told me If I died he wouldn't go to my funeral. That still hurts 20 years later."
– Suspicious-Roll2908
People can be cruel, and sometimes you will have to hear the worst of insults. The important thing is how you react.
Remember that few people are evil enough to bluntly say the negative thoughts that roam around in their head, and people who are that cruel don't deserve the time of day.