People Who Were Considered The 'Weird' Kid In School Share Their Side Of The Story
February 22 | 2021
Children and adolescence are often completely inept and socializing responsibly.
Their hormones are flowing. They're obsessed with status and social hierarchies.
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<p><span>Maybe you remember that age—or maybe you're currently in the throes of it. It felt like doing well socially was a zero-sum game: be cool or be decimated.</span></p><p>Unfortunately, certain traits were rewarded and others were not. For example, it's easy to interpret loud energy as confidence and humor.</p><p>But some kids just didn't have loudness in them. They were patient, didn't feel the need to take up the air time.<br><br>But in that high school ecosystem, that's no mere attribute. It's grounds for ridicule.</p><p>A recent Reddit thread asked for the Mose quite kids' side of that story.</p><p><br>blossomb1tch__ asked, <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/llkp32/people_who_were_the_weird_or_quiet_kids_in_high/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">"People who were the 'Weird' or 'Quiet' kids in high school, what's your side of the story?"</a></p>
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<p>For plenty of people, the reason for their timidity only became clear as they grew up and understood what was motivating it all the while.</p><p>The fog clears, and a previously unobserved deriving force becomes obvious.</p>
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From Quiet to Manic
<p>"I had undiagnosed mental illnesses and no mental health support system" -- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/llkp32/people_who_were_the_weird_or_quiet_kids_in_high/gnq5zlq?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">stealtoadboots</a></p><p style="margin-left: 20px;">"Same. In my case I was the weird quiet kid in elementary school. From Kindergarten to about halfway through 5th grade, I suffered from <a href="https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Selective_mutism" target="_blank">selective mutism</a> in school, mixed with severe depression."</p><p style="margin-left: 20px;">"Part way through 5th grade I started to talk in school, but continued to suffer from severe and debilitating depression until freshman year of high school. By high school I wasn't the quiet kid in school anymore."</p><p style="margin-left: 20px;">"At that point Bipolar I made its grand appearance, and, while mania may have made me weird, it did not make me quiet. Didn't actually get diagnosed until I was in my late 30s. Everything made a lot more sense after that." -- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/llkp32/people_who_were_the_weird_or_quiet_kids_in_high/gnqx7sp?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">librarymania</a></p><div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_3" style="min-height:280px"></div>
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Hard to Relate When You’re So Far Away
<p>"I had undiagnosed inattentive ADHD so my head was in the clouds more often than not." -- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/llkp32/people_who_were_the_weird_or_quiet_kids_in_high/gnq6iw9?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">coronaslayer</a></p><p style="margin-left: 20px;">"Undiagnosed ADHD-PI + social anxiety (almost certainly caused by social rejection by peers in K-8)."</p><p style="margin-left: 20px;">"Not fun. And not recognized until I was in college." -- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/llkp32/people_who_were_the_weird_or_quiet_kids_in_high/gnr8o5u?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">PyroDesu</a></p><p style="margin-left: 20px;">"I have ADHD as well :) It was tough at first but I've learned to embrace it to an extent. It's never too bad to live in the clouds, as the ground sucks sometimes. I hope you're doing well <3" -- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/llkp32/people_who_were_the_weird_or_quiet_kids_in_high/gnqa41d?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">blossomb1tch__</a></p><div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_4" style="min-height:280px"></div>
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A Pivotal Discovery
<p>"Had Autism, didn't know." -- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/llkp32/people_who_were_the_weird_or_quiet_kids_in_high/gnq4juv?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">[deleted]</a></p><p style="margin-left: 20px;">"It's not very specific and there are loads of varying symptoms. Why it's called a spectrum."</p><p style="margin-left: 20px;">But biggest indicators for me at least were strong, unusual obsessions. As in I would get extremely obsessed over a topic that there's no reason to be obsessed about. Some other indicators are trouble making friends or maintaining relationships."</p><p style="margin-left: 20px;">"Sensitive to bright lights and sounds. Stimming (fidgeting). OCD tendencies. Often people get frustrated or irritated with you about your behavior or things you might have said, but you have no idea why they are."</p><p style="margin-left: 20px;">"And the biggest indicator is if you think you might be autistic, you probably are." -- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/llkp32/people_who_were_the_weird_or_quiet_kids_in_high/gnsh8kk?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">drewisawesome14</a></p><div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_5" style="min-height:280px"></div>
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Tremors and Tiredness
<p>"Secretly and unknowingly suffering from severe anxiety and depression mixed with a little insomnia to boot." -- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/llkp32/people_who_were_the_weird_or_quiet_kids_in_high/gnqb8j8?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">perspicacity-404</a></p><p style="margin-left: 20px;">"Lol I have social anxiety and insomnia, (my sleep schedule is very irregular) for the last two days I didn't sleep and my anxiety was on the top of mount Everest..."</p><p style="margin-left: 20px;">"...I just got a full nights sleep yesterday and the amount of confidence I had today was unbelievable." -- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/llkp32/people_who_were_the_weird_or_quiet_kids_in_high/gns4gtp?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">Dry_Ad_7848</a></p><p>Others highlighted an important dynamic. <br></p><p>These Redditors explained that sometimes the alienated kid was originally not very different from anyone else. <br></p><p>But one quirk can snowball.</p>
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Chicken-Egg
<p>"<span></span>It's a downward spiral. You get picked on a few times, and don't take it well. After a while you learn to not draw attention to yourself by being quiet and withdrawing."</p><p>"When you withdraw, you internalise more, which isn't necessarily healthy."</p><p>-- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/llkp32/people_who_were_the_weird_or_quiet_kids_in_high/gnq6gjz?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">AlterEdward</a></p><div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_7" style="min-height:280px"></div>
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A Last Ditch Effort
<p>"I guess I'll share my side. I was frequently seen as weird and bullied for wearing pajamas and not looking put together during school, and just being an awkward kid with poor social skills."</p><p>"The reality was my home life wasn't that great, I had undiagnosed anxiety, and I was doing the bare minimum of showing up so people wouldn't think I was dead."</p><p>"When I made valentines letters for my class one year I got teased for trying to be nice and it only hurt my reputation more. This made me scared to talk to my peers, emotional and 'quiet.' "</p><p>"Thank god I graduated."</p><p>-- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/llkp32/people_who_were_the_weird_or_quiet_kids_in_high/gnq3cqs?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">blossomb1tch__</a></p><div data-conversation-spotlight style="min-height:90px"></div>
Laying Low
<p>"I thought everyone hated me, so I stopped talking to people because I didn't want to bother them." -- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/llkp32/people_who_were_the_weird_or_quiet_kids_in_high/gnqcom5?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">biaforeverwar</a></p><p style="margin-left: 20px;">"If complete strangers (aka kids not even in my class) are spending a disturbing amount of time making fun of you, you tend to think that everybody hates you."</p><p style="margin-left: 20px;">"Source: me." -- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/llkp32/people_who_were_the_weird_or_quiet_kids_in_high/gnsy9ba?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">shf500</a></p><div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_8" style="min-height:280px"></div>
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<p>And a few didn’t see their quietness as a problem at all.</p><p>They owned their decision to keep their cards close to the best. They dispassionately noticed their uniqueness, and that was that.</p>
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Nothing To Speak Of
<p>"There's not much of a story. I just didn't feel the need to talk as much as other people." -- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/llkp32/people_who_were_the_weird_or_quiet_kids_in_high/gnq2t3n?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Asriel92</a></p><p style="margin-left: 20px;">"I never knew how people could think up new things to talk about every day. I've never had the knack. Plus, I was so nervous of saying the wrong thing." -- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/llkp32/people_who_were_the_weird_or_quiet_kids_in_high/gnqxzdh?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">BringBackRobotWars</a></p><p style="margin-left: 20px;">"Yes agreed. I felt a lot of people talked for the sake of saying something but it was nothing of substance." -- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/llkp32/people_who_were_the_weird_or_quiet_kids_in_high/gnqgky1?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">toast_with_butt</a></p>Eyes on the Prize
<p>"I wanted to go to medical school. I knew I wanted this since I was 6. I was not going to do anything to jeopardize my dreams, so I didn't do anything the other kids did."</p><p>"I didn't go drinking at the high school parties. I never did any drugs. I was a good kid."</p><p>"The few times I got sent to the principals' office, I was laughed at and sent back to class with no punishment. I caught hell for being a 'goody-two-shoes.' "</p><p>"What am I now? I'm a doctor."</p><p><span></span>-- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/llkp32/people_who_were_the_weird_or_quiet_kids_in_high/gnqdnvb?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">angmarsilar</a></p><div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_10" style="min-height:280px"></div>
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Little Overlap
<p>"I had nothing in common with the people at my school with the exception of 2 friends. I wasn't into anything that my peers were into or that they felt was important."</p><p>"Nothing has changed really."</p><p>-- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/llkp32/people_who_were_the_weird_or_quiet_kids_in_high/gnq7i2b?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">you_are_marvelous</a></p><div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_11" style="min-height:280px"></div>
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<p><br>I'm sure if you look back on your time at school you'll remember at least a couple kids just like this.</p><p>Or perhaps you were the quiet kid.<em></em></p><p>Either way, now you likely know a little bit more of the untold story behind it all</p><p>Want to "know" more? Never miss another big, odd, funny, or heartbreaking moment again. Sign up for the Knowable newsletter <a href="https://mailchi.mp/knowable/knowable-newsletter-in-content" target="_blank">here</a>.</p>
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The minds of teenagers are about as mysterious as the outer recesses of deep space or the dynamics of life at the ocean's bottom.
<p>Like those faraway places, adolescent brains play by rules no adult can fathom--even if they had just that kind of brain years ago. </p><p>Those teenage brains are characterized by their inability to fully consider long term consequences and risks. They also tend to consider themselves at the complete center of the universe. </p><p>The mixture of both properties makes for some wild clothes, far out makeup choices, and, when seen in the rear view mirror of adulthood, insufferable behavior. </p><p>Some Redditors gathered to describe the old habits that still make them squirm with embarrassment. </p><p>WorseCup asked, <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/l8b675/what_was_your_cringy_teenager_phase/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">"What was your cringy teenager phase?"</a></p>
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In Public?!
<p>"I used to fake an English accent. Not a particular one, just what a 14 year old from the US South thought people from England sounded like."</p><p>"I must stress that I did this in public. On several occasions."</p><p>-- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/l8b675/what_was_your_cringy_teenager_phase/glboel0?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">thoawaydatrash</a></p><div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_36" style="min-height:280px"></div>
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Center of the Universe
<p>"Tumblr in 2014 as a 16 year old was brutal."</p><p>"I blasted Lana Del Rey's born to die album as I walked my family's Australian Shepard in our suburban neighbourhood thinking I was extremely mysterious and, of course, the main character."</p><p>-- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/l8b675/what_was_your_cringy_teenager_phase/glc7mc7?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">iwliwnoli</a></p><div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_2" style="min-height:280px"></div>
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Stomach Turning Reflections
<p>"Straight edge scene kid. I was fu**ing insufferable." -- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/l8b675/what_was_your_cringy_teenager_phase/glbo2fb?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">ReadingBagder</a></p><p style="margin-left: 20px;">"The first part would have been me if my mom let me style myself the way I wanted to. The second part was totally me; I was also insufferable." -- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/l8b675/what_was_your_cringy_teenager_phase/glcf4c1?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">Known_Character</a></p><p style="margin-left: 20px;">"Same. Went from the hippie-looking burnout look into the scenester emo look. Gut wrenching." -- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/l8b675/what_was_your_cringy_teenager_phase/glcg7pj?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">labbykun</a></p><div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_3" style="min-height:280px"></div>
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A Few Favorites
<ol><li>Mom, no one understands me. Neither do you.</li><li>Metal is the greatest genre and unlike other genre of music, it is 'real' music.</li><li>I will wait until they invent a color darker than black.</li><li>Society bad.</li></ol><div>-- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/l8b675/what_was_your_cringy_teenager_phase/glc4vfm?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">PretentiousLover</a></div><div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_4" style="min-height:280px"></div>
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Shameless Fanhood
<p>"I'd have a 'Minecraft Monday' and 'Black Ops Tuesday (II's day).' So Monday I'd wear my Minecraft t-shirt and use my Minecraft lanyard, then Tuesday I'd wear my Black Ops II shirt, hoodie, wallet, and iPod case."</p><p>"This was my sophomore year of high school btw. Probably one of the couple of reasons I didn't have a girlfriend."</p><p>-- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/l8b675/what_was_your_cringy_teenager_phase/glc3e0g?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">thechiangsta</a></p><div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_5" style="min-height:280px"></div>
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"Entertain Me!"
<p>"Thought of myself as a legitimate Manic Pixie Dream Girl. A retrospectively embarrassing blend of insecurity, narcissism, and a desire to be seen as 'the one who got away.'" </p><p>"I rejected anything trendy or popular because truthfully I didn't know how to succeed in that aesthetic, but I told myself (and everybody else) that it was because I found conformity tiresome and needed my soul constantly ignited by the strange and unexpected."</p><p>"I still full-body-cringe at my former self."</p><p>-- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/l8b675/what_was_your_cringy_teenager_phase/glc9jjs?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">Mesmerotic</a></p>Living a Lie
<p>"I tried to convince myself that I liked the horror genre and watched a ton of horror movies and drew horror sh** until I realized that I didn't like horror and that I was actually interested in mythology and folklore."</p><p>"I think it was because I was really into Slenderman as a 13-year-old or I was trying to break free from my Catholic upbringing. Probably both."</p><p>-- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/l8b675/what_was_your_cringy_teenager_phase/glc13i6?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">HiddenMasquerade</a></p><div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_6" style="min-height:280px"></div>
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Harder Core
<p>"I saw myself as 'a hardcore' and made it part of my identity."</p><p>"Better believe I'm going to get better at this game than my friends, I'm a hardcore! I'm naturally wired to have more dedication and perseverance than they are."</p><p>"This guy thinks he's going to beat me in the school cross country? Hah, I'll show him! I'm a hardcore. I keep going when others would have given up."</p><p>"Others may have a fleeting interest in something, get mediocre at it then give up and move on to the next silly distraction. Not me! I'm a hardcore."</p><p>-- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/l8b675/what_was_your_cringy_teenager_phase/glbolt4?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">flameylamey</a></p><div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_7" style="min-height:280px"></div>
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CLASSIC
<p>"Had a 'girlfriend' who 'moved to Florida.'" -- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/l8b675/what_was_your_cringy_teenager_phase/glbr8p1?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">_Mechaloth_</a></p><p style="margin-left: 20px;">"So your girlfriend was...retirement age?" -- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/l8b675/what_was_your_cringy_teenager_phase/glccxke?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">RandomGuyWithStick</a></p><p style="margin-left: 20px;">"When I was 7 or 8, I told people I had a boyfriend named Casey who went to another school. Really I had a crush on someone in our class whose initials were KC." -- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/l8b675/what_was_your_cringy_teenager_phase/glcn0b1?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">noisy748922</a></p><div data-conversation-spotlight style="min-height:90px"></div>
Doing More Looking Around Than Reading
<p>"Reading Jean-Paul Sartre's <em>Being and Nothingness</em> on the bus to school in the hopes that a girl would be impressed and strike up a conversation with me." -- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/l8b675/what_was_your_cringy_teenager_phase/glbo36y?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">RunDNA</a></p><p style="margin-left: 20px;">"Oh god. I was a girl version of you. Dressed like a Wes Anderson character and made a big show of writing in the margins." -- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/l8b675/what_was_your_cringy_teenager_phase/glbv1la?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">doittomejulia</a></p><p style="margin-left: 20px;">"The real question is how much of it did you understand..." -- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/l8b675/what_was_your_cringy_teenager_phase/glcn1n9?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">SeasickWalnutt</a></p><div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_8" style="min-height:280px"></div>
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<p>Want to "know" more? Never miss another big, odd, funny, or heartbreaking moment again. Sign up for the Knowable newsletter <a href="https://mailchi.mp/knowable/knowable-newsletter-in-content" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">here</a>. </p>
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Come on, old folks. It's time to do the thing where we give teenagers advice that they will probably forget until it's too late.
<p>It's not because they're trying to be flippant and forgetful. It's just a brain thing, ya know? </p><p>One Reddit user asked: </p><p><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/k3t53e/what_are_some_things_that_a_teenager_should_avoid/" target="_blank">What are some things that a teenager should avoid?</a></p><p>and undeveloped brains were actually one of the reasons that came up when talking about why some of this should be avoided. Like one person said, we're not all "squares" we've just been there and dealt with the consequences. </p><p>That was possibly the squarest thing I've ever typed, and I fully stand by it. </p><p><br></p>
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Life Already Started
<p>Addiction, debt and pregnancy are the big ones. But avoid waiting for life to begin. It already has. Go in some positive direction even if you're not sure it's the exact right one.</p><p>- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/k3t53e/what_are_some_things_that_a_teenager_should_avoid/ge56i3i?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">picksandchooses</a></p><p><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/k3t53e/what_are_some_things_that_a_teenager_should_avoid/ge56i3i?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank"></a>One easy way to start this is to do one thing that's new, or makes you feel uncomfortable each day.</p><p>Even if that's walking into a store and saying "hi'' to the cashier before they say it to you. Or go out in a shirt that you wouldn't normally do.</p><p>Or post something anonymously on Reddit about how YOU are starting to write a cyberpunk book, even if it's only for you and no one else will ever read it.</p><p>One small step each day. Never skip the day, always take that one tiny, almost immeasurable step. Because in a month, you'll be able to look back and see that you've actually made a ton of progress.</p><p>- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/k3t53e/what_are_some_things_that_a_teenager_should_avoid/ge60m5p?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">Weary_Enthusiasm</a></p><div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_36" style="min-height:280px"></div>
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The Dentist
<img lazy-loadable="true" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDg1NjI0NC9vcmlnaW4uZ2lmIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY1MjU5NTI2Nn0.LfcnZgDp8fNnrcrBCyLYrxdRwHKYnXOP_z1Yjt6hdCE/img.gif?width=980" id="62c23" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="f7c073c30eb8340f189b2eeda3547996" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" data-width="460" data-height="259" />ryan reynolds dentist GIFGiphy<p>Avoid skipping the dentist. Even if money is tight professional cleanings and preventive maintenance will pay dividends later in life.</p><p>- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/k3t53e/what_are_some_things_that_a_teenager_should_avoid/ge4z2tc?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">GrowBigBuds</a></p><p>A horror story to prove the point: I caught a bad bad spell of depression some years ago and stopped taking care of myself in many ways, including flossing and going to the dentist.</p><p> I ended up having to have surgery to hollow up and fill out a completely rotten tooth, costing insane amounts of money. I was in so much pain. To make matters worse, there was a SURPRISE NERVE in one of the roots of my teeth meaning they nearly drilled while the area wasn't completely anesthetized. </p><p>I've brushed my teeth religiously since, but sometimes we still find surprise holes from that time where I couldn't take care of myself for a few months. TAKE CARE OF YOUR TEETH!</p><p>- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/k3t53e/what_are_some_things_that_a_teenager_should_avoid/ge5d89c?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">RustyCopal</a></p><p>30F here and I've got two fake teeth on a partial denture from neglecting my teeth and not going to the dentist in my late teens early 20s. Biggest regret in my life 100%</p><p>- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/k3t53e/what_are_some_things_that_a_teenager_should_avoid/ge5oo1p?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">wwlddarm7</a></p><div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_2" style="min-height:280px"></div>
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Don't Wait To Figure It Out
<p>Procrastination. Not as big as the other ones but my God, procrastination can get so bad and affect you so horribly if you let it get out of hand.</p><p>- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/k3t53e/what_are_some_things_that_a_teenager_should_avoid/ge53i89?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">Sw3at3rboi</a></p><p>Yes. Teenagers need to hack themselves and figure out their own personal formula for productivity. Pays off bigtime.</p><p>- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/k3t53e/what_are_some_things_that_a_teenager_should_avoid/ge5miek?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">pastdense</a></p><p>Yes. Nip this one in the bud <em>now</em>. It is so much harder to develop a work ethic as an adult.</p><p>- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/k3t53e/what_are_some_things_that_a_teenager_should_avoid/ge5h368?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">dahhhkness</a></p><div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_3" style="min-height:280px"></div>
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Approval Online
<p>Social media and seeking others approval. That sh*t will destroy them for years.</p><p>Cyber bullying can leave a huge emotional impact on teens that give them mental health issues or body image issues. I know people that have taken into their thirties to recover from these kinds of things.</p><p>- <a href="Cyber bullying can leave a huge emotional impact on teens that give them mental health issues or body image issues. I know people that have taken into their thirties to recover from these kinds of things." target="_blank">bigtrav118</a></p><p><a href="Cyber bullying can leave a huge emotional impact on teens that give them mental health issues or body image issues. I know people that have taken into their thirties to recover from these kinds of things." target="_blank"></a>This terrifies me about my two kids. I was bullied as a kid in elementary and then high school. I had the ability to go home and forget about all of them and escape by playing video games.</p><p>F*ck me, kids these days don't get an escape.</p><p>- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/k3t53e/what_are_some_things_that_a_teenager_should_avoid/ge5wgqx?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">Blahyaddayadda24</a></p><div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_4" style="min-height:280px"></div>
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<p><br>YES. I'm 28. I've had to get off of all social media aside from Reddit because of this.</p><p>My life took a drastic turn a couple of years ago. I've struggled since but have managed to find a small apartment for myself and my daughter. My boyfriend moved in right before covid hit and it's cramped.</p><p>Watching friends my age or younger close on their homes, go on vacations, lose weight, get married, etc. has done a number on my mental health. I compare myself constantly and it's driven me to completely hate myself.</p><p>Shutting out a lot of social media has helped a little because I'm not constantly shoving these things into my psyche, but there's a lot of things I have to undo mentally in order to be comfortable with myself.</p><p>I remind my 17 year old sister all the time that it's awful. Coincidentally, she is actually doing a paper on it right now and has "interviewed" me in order to have a real life source.</p><p>Thank goodness she isn't that big on it. It really is like mental poison.</p><p>- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/k3t53e/what_are_some_things_that_a_teenager_should_avoid/ge5xlas?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">gnarlybetty</a></p>
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No Drugs ... Yet
<p>Drugs. absolutely Drugs. Teenage brains aren't developed enough to handle that kind of dopamine</p><p>- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/k3t53e/what_are_some_things_that_a_teenager_should_avoid/ge4x113?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">nargakenzo</a></p><p>I'm pro-weed, pro-psychedelics, pro-legalize everything; and yet I still want the recreational age for all of that to be 21.</p><p>Brains need to fully developed before you start soaking em in fun juice.</p><p>- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/k3t53e/what_are_some_things_that_a_teenager_should_avoid/ge50uj2?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">AmbivalentAhole</a></p><p>As someone who did harder drugs as a teen this one would be at the top for me. </p><p>It permanently f*cked me up, body, mind and all. It's been 8 year since I quit and I've actually continued to decline even more since I stopped. </p><p>We're not being squares. A lot of us have been there and done that already. I wish I'd listened. </p><p><br></p><p>- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/k3t53e/what_are_some_things_that_a_teenager_should_avoid/ge526x6?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">DreamApocalypse</a></p>Hearing Loss Sucks
<img lazy-loadable="true" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDg1NjI0OS9vcmlnaW4uZ2lmIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY0NDk4NjU0MH0.hBRqXQeL1uC0xHNUt6w_NDTjp1MzKPRv7c8qAZZIjBE/img.gif?width=980" id="c92e3" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="6f2e11f360e0cf90764f21a810a0a09b" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" data-width="400" data-height="224" />Deaf GIF by memecandyGiphy<p>Really loud music, I mean the kind at a concert front row loud. Tinnitus really sucks.</p><p>- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/k3t53e/what_are_some_things_that_a_teenager_should_avoid/ge5a8k0?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">iamacomputerperson</a></p><p><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/k3t53e/what_are_some_things_that_a_teenager_should_avoid/ge5a8k0?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank"></a>And not only tinnitus. I damaged my ability to hear certain frequencies when I was a teenager by going to loud punk gigs. It makes it really hard to hear people speaking over background noise. Doesn't sound too major, but it makes socializing in a pub or club or public place that bit more challenging. I guess I lost the frequency range that distinguishes speech from general noise.</p><p>When you're a young adult, you do a lot of your socializing in such environments, so don't add an extra challenge to your social life.</p><p>- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/k3t53e/what_are_some_things_that_a_teenager_should_avoid/ge5yuzb?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">99thLuftballon</a></p><div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_6" style="min-height:280px"></div>
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Don't Fall For The Fakes
<p>Fake friends. It's honestly better to have no friends than people who gossip about you and make snide remarks to you. I know everyone says this but you will find your people.</p><p>- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/k3t53e/what_are_some_things_that_a_teenager_should_avoid/ge50hg0?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">upsidedownaliyah</a></p><p><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/k3t53e/what_are_some_things_that_a_teenager_should_avoid/ge50hg0?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank"></a>I agree with you... but to a teenager, no friends is infinitely worse than bad friends. Sitting alone in the cafeteria or in the hall?</p><p>Transferring from one group to another is hard.... but that's the key.</p><p>- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/k3t53e/what_are_some_things_that_a_teenager_should_avoid/ge5msfa?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">pastdense</a></p><p><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/k3t53e/what_are_some_things_that_a_teenager_should_avoid/ge5msfa?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank"></a>As someone who put up with being the butt of my "friend"-group's jokes for years... I can say that cutting out the toxic people in my life has helped me out tremendously.</p><p>Keeping a small group of high quality friends, is so much less stressful.</p><p>Work and hobbies will help you find like minded people in my experience.</p><p>- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/k3t53e/what_are_some_things_that_a_teenager_should_avoid/ge6fc81?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">WindJDM</a></p><div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_7" style="min-height:280px"></div>
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You're Probably Pretty Average
<p>Avoid self destructive attitudes is a good one. </p><p>Probably 95% of people alive are decently attractive. You can lose that extra 15 pounds, you can shave those unwanted hairs.</p><p>If you look in the mirror and think you are below average.. you are probably closer to average.. which is fine! Average people are perfectly good looking enough. </p><p>If you look in the mirror and think you are absolutely hideous.. maybe you are slightly below average.. but truly ugly people are rare and more often then not they have 13 out of 10 charisma and it makes up for it.</p><p>You're Fine.</p><p>- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/k3t53e/what_are_some_things_that_a_teenager_should_avoid/ge68ksa?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">Bolsmackie43</a></p><div data-conversation-spotlight style="min-height:90px"></div>
Time Gives You Time To Discover
<p>My mom found her dream job in her thirties and my current stepdad in her fifties. </p><p>Don't be too concerned with whether the things you're doing now is gonna be forever. Do what you can to open doors for yourself, but don't feel forced to think you need to know who or what you should spend the rest of your life with <em>at this point. </em></p><p>Time gives you time to discover more things. Discover more things, and eventually you'll find your way - even if you didn't realize it. Stop thinking in today and forever. You got all the time to figure it out. Just get yourself a solid foundation and explore.</p><p>Except for drugs. Don't explore things that you could get addicted to for the rest of your life.</p><p>- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/k3t53e/what_are_some_things_that_a_teenager_should_avoid/ge5dpi7?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">RustyCopal</a></p><div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_8" style="min-height:280px"></div>
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Image by Sergey Gricanov from Pixabay
High school, well adolescence really, is a super confusing time. Emotions that you don't quite understand hold you in their grasp. More often than not it can lead to some "questionable" behavior. Let's just be real.... high school is a hotbed of crazy and a social soap opera. Bad behavior can run amok. But the stories are fascinating to tell decades later.
Redditor u/humbert-ridingLolita wanted everyone to fess up and share some salacious tales about the good old days by asking.... What's your wildest high school secret?<div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_1"></div>
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Hey Jack
<img lazy-loadable="true" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDc2ODcxMS9vcmlnaW4uZ2lmIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYzNDY1MjAzMH0.ozSquCWKZIwrwdEDUA_1mtVcumBTT94YFUR7iUmlbls/img.gif?width=980" id="65edd" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="daaab9133f7e728c80a0c3bacbfc0504" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" data-width="500" data-height="281" />Happy Hour Reaction GIF by CheezburgerGiphy<p>There's still a good pint of Jack Daniels hidden inside the ceiling from 10 years ago. I checked last year day when my nephew was graduating. </p><p><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/jna2wt/whats_your_wildest_high_school_secret/gb15d9x?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">chazcollabs</a></p><div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_36" style="min-height:280px"></div>
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A+ Sir
<p>I was at a party in my senior year of high school. I didn't know the guy who lived there so I didn't investigate when I smelled pot coming from the back of the house. But I did notice that among the half dozen or so teenagers coming out that room later, a couple of adults were with them. One of them was my chemistry teacher who seemed rather surprised to see several of his students in the room. He quietly left the party. </p><p><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/jna2wt/whats_your_wildest_high_school_secret/gb0dc7f?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">BaconReceptacle</a></p><div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_2" style="min-height:280px"></div>
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Muddled
<img lazy-loadable="true" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDc2ODcyMi9vcmlnaW4uZ2lmIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY1NTc0ODE2MH0.uQvo3-cyjGeG7UH2jxfqamoSIxp7zivyt7Xtaxka2oM/img.gif?width=980" id="9d467" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="21b0f6f23895ef3b9a565d5d037e1964" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" data-width="465" data-height="303" />poop GIFGiphy<p>I pooped myself freshman year and then fell in mud on purpose and made sure everyone saw so I could say it was all dirt. </p><p><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/jna2wt/whats_your_wildest_high_school_secret/gb0wgst?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">guitarnxc</a><span></span></p><div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_3" style="min-height:280px"></div>
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Never waste TP!!
<p>Our boarding school mascot was a tree (lol) that was on the campus in a prominent spot. On Mischief Night, I had study hall with two other students; we were all sociable but not close friends with one another. We decided to completely TP the school tree, and stole loads of rolls from the library bathroom. We snuck out of our dorms after midnight, absolutely covered this massive tree in toilet paper, and snuck back in.</p><div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_4" style="min-height:280px"></div>
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<p>We didn't know the next morning was when all the new incoming freshman visited, starting with a tour under the school tree. It also rained, so the tree was dropping globules of wet paper for days. The deans of the school flipped and assumed they knew who did it (notorious senior pranksters) but couldn't prove it or punish anyone.</p>
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<p>Twelve years later, I mentioned in passing to my BFF from high school that I was the TPer, along with these two other random people. He was shocked, and had never for a second thought it would be any of us. Not the most wild crime, but it is satisfying to have gotten away with it! </p><p><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/jna2wt/whats_your_wildest_high_school_secret/gb0lqmv?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">boatyboatwright</a></p>
The Bad Seed
<p>A kid at my high school ended up lighting his house on fire and killing his dad, brothers and some of his sisters I think? I remember his mom and one sister were alive. His one brother who I was kind of friends with was over at his friend's house for the night.</p><p>It was completely intentional. They found him at the hospital trying to kill his mom and sister. Maybe not a secret but it was still wild. </p><p><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/jna2wt/whats_your_wildest_high_school_secret/gb16gwy?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">Phan2112</a></p><div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_6" style="min-height:280px"></div>
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It's a Soap Opera
<p>The school has had 4 microwaves blown up, over the course of 4 years.</p><p>The first time I told a guy to put in a pack of raisins, explosion.</p><p>The second time, some freshman put in bag of sour patch kids, explosion.</p><p>The third time, a senior put in 8 bags of popcorn into the single microwave, explosion.</p><p>The fourth time, someone put some sort of metal thermos in it, explosion.</p><p>Also, there have been 3 sexual encounters in only one bathroom in the 4 years I've been here</p><div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_7" style="min-height:280px"></div>
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<p>Watched the school roof get set on fire</p><p>Shooter threat</p><p>Some kid got stabbed outside the school</p><p>My astronomy teacher fired for saying the N Word 13 times in one class<br></p><p>5 of our band directors over the schools history have gotten fired for having relationships with students. </p><p><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/jna2wt/whats_your_wildest_high_school_secret/gb0ugwz?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">Charming_Use_223</a></p>
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The Heck
<img lazy-loadable="true" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDc2ODgyNy9vcmlnaW4uZ2lmIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYyODQ1MzAzMH0.LqciQIdmhM6PD9WRGsRD30rbI13VlnqQmt37chCHAW4/img.gif?width=980" id="04d35" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="2e5637997c30bf3fadb9adbdb58fbeb6" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" data-width="380" data-height="190" />mood GIFGiphy<p>Before school started us marching band kids would have "heck week" where we practice marching band stuff all week so we were ready for the first games of the season.</p><div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_8" style="min-height:280px"></div>
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<p>School picture day was also that week. That day I had gotten so stoned with the sousaphone player that I passed out waiting in line to have my picture taken. Someone's nurse mom rolled me out on a chair and gave me some water, and to this day everyone involved thinks I had heat exhaustion or something from marching all day.</p><p><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/jna2wt/whats_your_wildest_high_school_secret/gb0m6m8?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">quietlyre</a></p>
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In the Cabinets
<p>My friend's mom was a math teacher. The summer before I was in her class I had the brilliant idea to find notes or tests or whatever to cheat with because I was terrible at math. Whenever I was at their house I'd try to stealthily look around.</p><p>After a few visits I was getting frustrated at finding nothing and expanded my search zone eventually leading to the parents' bedroom once when everyone was outside. </p><p>I didn't find any math notes, but did find a drawer with lingerie, toys, lube, etc. The horny part of my brain took over and I snatched a pair of lacy underwear, shoved them in my pocket, then went outside and made an excuse to go home.</p><p>On the first day of school I realized, obviously, she kept all her schoolwork in the locked filing cabinets in the classroom. </p><p><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/jna2wt/whats_your_wildest_high_school_secret/gb0h9fc?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">elevenghosts</a></p>
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It's on Y'all!
<img lazy-loadable="true" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDc2ODg1NS9vcmlnaW4uZ2lmIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY2MDMyMjQwMX0.sFvB9emmO9JlJg2gclbbVDTT11g-Mi7zxG9G_jjQm-8/img.gif?width=980" id="1ff3c" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="cf6a84c144f5a4a6e9f5ecc0a12d204d" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" data-width="500" data-height="281" />high school teacher GIFGiphy<p>It's sounds so stupid now, but in chemistry class we had a student teacher who was absolutely awful. </p><div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_11" style="min-height:280px"></div>
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<p>I was actually pretty good at chemistry but all my friends were struggling really bad with D's and F's and the real teacher would be gone the whole period in the gym or whatever talking to his friends so he was never around to help when student teacher wasn't making any sense. Like we wouldn't even see the real teacher for 2 weeks straight. So I made a fake email account and pretended I was an anonymous parent and emailed him threatening to report him not being in the classroom and leaving the clueless student to teach other clueless students.</p>
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<p>He did not take it well at all and wrote back a nasty email & sat the whole class down and said we are all responsible for our grades, but he did remain in the classroom and helped for the rest of the semester. None of my friends ever told anyone (that I know of) but I can remember trying to act so calm when he was berating the classroom.</p><p>Now I can't believe I even did something so stupid like that but I wanted my friends to pass.</p><p><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/jna2wt/whats_your_wildest_high_school_secret/gb1bze4?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">carlyi14</a></p>
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Down the Pipes
<p>We went on a school trip to Germany and the hostel we stayed at had windows that could be completely taken out in fire emergencies. So me and my friends would take out the window at night and use the drain pipe to scale down the building (was only like 2 floors up) and go take in Germany's night life, nothing like coming back at 4am and drunkenly climbing the pipe. </p><p><span></span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/jna2wt/whats_your_wildest_high_school_secret/gb0zbhf?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">Legit_Data</a></p><div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_14" style="min-height:280px"></div>
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Hidden
<img lazy-loadable="true" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDc4MjQ0OC9vcmlnaW4uZ2lmIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY1NDc1MzE3OH0.sKU-LeHC3BpBHDpP-Ny21k3kflV-WhcoJn6sRifAZkg/img.gif?width=980" id="fd6b5" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="ce6d25b879561f84b6dfe5a95a476728" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" data-width="500" data-height="275" />pregnant beyonce GIFGiphy<p>I managed to hide my pregnancy. I had her 2 weeks after graduation. No one in school knew. Thank God for hoodies and being a very small woman, even when pregnant. It helped that there were 5 other pregnant girls that year for people to focus on. </p><p><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/jna2wt/whats_your_wildest_high_school_secret/gb12i4e?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">MNJane</a></p><div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_15" style="min-height:280px"></div>
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Re-skinned....
<p>In the 90's, the school districts and local liberties all used the same BBS software that was just re-skinned to their specific use. This software was also used in a lot of local boards. There was a pretty know backdoor that that allowed you to gain admin rights if you hadn't applied the appropriate patches. </p><div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_16" style="min-height:280px"></div>
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<p>They of course had not applied the appropriate patches. For a fee I would go in and change your grade for the report card print. I would change it back after they were sent. I didn't want the exploit discovered. I made a grip for about two hours work every semester.</p><p><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/jna2wt/whats_your_wildest_high_school_secret/gb0vy03?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">tdasnowman</a></p>
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In Colorado
<p>I went to a small school in Colorado. In 8th grade our pottery teacher fell asleep with a lit joint or something and his house burned down. The cops found his stash. He had to give a really cringey "I have been living with my secret drug addiction" speech to all of us in class.</p><p>Thing was most the teachers in that town were doing a lot worse drugs then pot. We had math teacher come to class trippin' crazy on acid one day. </p><p><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/jna2wt/whats_your_wildest_high_school_secret/gb03l4k?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">larvistar</a></p><div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_18" style="min-height:280px"></div>
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Bottoms Up
<p>brought a 1 liter of coke to school, 50/50 mix of bacardi and coke.</p><p>put it down in the center of the lunch table and the underclassmen around me all took swigs and passed it around. i was 18 at the time and they were all minors.</p><p>vice principle even walked by us a couple of times but didn't stop to investigate. </p><p><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/jna2wt/whats_your_wildest_high_school_secret/gb0rl0o?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">iclimegud</a><span></span></p><div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_19" style="min-height:280px"></div>
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When in Club
<img lazy-loadable="true" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDc4MjQ2MS9vcmlnaW4uZ2lmIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY1OTA5MDc1Mn0.CHAikJfoi2zLmxVrMYlTxlOVkL9qdEFieEc7jcYku5o/img.gif?width=980" id="08f94" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="f2a2906c550d09d3d2dd9f98bc9b8bf7" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" data-width="500" data-height="349" />brad pitt GIFGiphy<p>All those cuts, bruises, grass stains, cracked ribs, and broken teeth weren't from playing football. Sorry mom.</p><p>There was fight club at school with like 30 members and we did not go easy on each other. I guess it can still be a secret if it's a shared secret. </p><p><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/jna2wt/whats_your_wildest_high_school_secret/gb0le9q?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">PM-me-Sonic-OCs</a><span></span></p><div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_20" style="min-height:280px"></div>
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Lucky Strike It
<p>The 'wildest' thing I did in high school was the time I snuck into the library during the afternoon pep rally. Now at the time, I was running the gaming club, so I had the then brand new nintendo switch, its dock, and a copy of breath of the wild in my bookbag. Our school also had these giant touch-screen monitors with HDMI support in every classroom, including the library's computer lab. </p><div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_21" style="min-height:280px"></div>
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<p>So I pulled up the most comfortable chair, plugged that bad boy in, and played about two hours of BOTW: Giant Screen Experience. By the time two thirty hit, I packed up my stuff and bailed before the librarians could ever figure out I was there.</p><p>Probably my favorite high school memory. </p><p><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/jna2wt/whats_your_wildest_high_school_secret/gb0zsqx?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Luckyrabbit1927</a></p>
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keys to the kingdom....
<p>I went to boarding school.</p><p>Over the course of about a month, I reverse-engineered the school's master key system and cut myself a master copy. So when everyone else was locked in their dormitories sleeping I could go wherever I wanted. I explored the whole campus. The IT building, the gym, the decommissioned building that had all the asbestos in it (not the best idea, in retrospect). </p><div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_23" style="min-height:280px"></div>
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<p>There was an enormous smokestack on the far side of the athletic field and I climbed it. There was also an observatory on the roof of the science building. The telescopes were stored in a room locked by the master key. One night I got some friends together and at 2 AM we had a party in the chancellor's office.</p><p>Those were good times. </p><p><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/jna2wt/whats_your_wildest_high_school_secret/gb1v1gq?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">mnemonicsloth</a></p>
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Finals
<p>The principal likely used her connections with local and regional politicians to cover up a huge scandal involving cheating during the finals.</p><p>Some seniors managed to send one of their parents (a lawyer, no less) infos about the exam's topic and the mom put the answers on the school's bathroom windowsill. </p><div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_25" style="min-height:280px"></div>
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<p>The students went to the bathroom and got the answers, but the exam supervisor got suspicious about the unusual coming and going, checked the bathroom and found the papers.</p><p>They called the cops, the finals were suspended but eventually went on as scheduled with the kids involved getting top marks.</p>
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<p>Later on there was a trial for fraud, but to nobody's surprise, they were all acquitted for some reason.</p><p>The kicker? They were all upper-class kids and the principal was a staunch Communist back in the good old days... But I suppose class struggle took the backseat to the school's and the principal's good name... </p><p><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/jna2wt/whats_your_wildest_high_school_secret/gb0vv9i?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Kalle_79</a></p>
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2 Lives
<p>i lived a double life in high school. My home life was spent manufacturing amphetamines while i played nice at school. None of my friends knew for years that i was a cook. I gave my friends weed to keep them away from the harder drugs. Once i got older about 17-18 i realized the people who raised me were messed up and manipulated my loyalty. </p><p><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/jna2wt/whats_your_wildest_high_school_secret/gb0f2dc?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">GoopConsultant</a></p><div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_28" style="min-height:280px"></div>
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For the "A"
<img lazy-loadable="true" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDc4MjQ2OC9vcmlnaW4uZ2lmIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYyODk5NTAyNX0.vIqUkHp5ibeTC3_12_9Eucfhx64LzB85wH0RAKmzBpQ/img.gif?width=980" id="00126" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="a649c492cc51be8afd2ec4fb61d0ed30" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" data-width="245" data-height="142" />emma stone GIFGiphy<p>Senior year, i got directed by a Janitor to grab some towels from the Janitors Closet to clean up a spill in my classroom, to get to the closet I had to pass by the teachers/staff break room. I saw an open teachers edition algebra book and no one around.... Easiest year for math. </p><p><span></span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/jna2wt/whats_your_wildest_high_school_secret/gb10h6q?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">kingly434</a></p><div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_29" style="min-height:280px"></div>
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<p>Want to "know" more? Never miss another big, odd, funny, or heartbreaking moment again. Sign up for the Knowable newsletter <a href="https://mailchi.mp/knowable/knowable-newsletter-in-content" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">here</a>. <br></p><p><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/jna2wt/whats_your_wildest_high_school_secret/" target="_blank">REDDIT</a></p>
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Image by Free-Photos from Pixabay
At around age 5 or 6, we begin to attend school.
On a personal level, that is the day that we begin to make years-long friends, develop interests, grow more comfortable with adults, and learn how to function in society.
But if we take a bird's eye view, that is the day we become one individual student shepherded through a massive, complex, and influential institution.
<p>Whichever country someone lives in, the Education System is profoundly important. And it is very likely full of flaws as well. </p><p>Creating a common system meant to educated millions of complex human beings that all arise from different biological, economic, social, and cultural backgrounds is extremely difficult and almost impossible to not be reductive. </p><p>Some Redditors shared how their school systems' flaws impacted their lives personally.</p><p>Wingless_Draco asked, <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/jo3et7/how_did_school_fail_you/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">"How did school fail you?"</a></p>
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Extrinsic Motivation
<p>"By the time I got out of elementary school I'd gone from a smart kid who was wide-eyed and in love with learning to a kid who just wanted to get easy A's, be done with school, and play video games all day."</p><p>"I've found that in general the US public schools accomplish the remarkable feat of sucking the love of learning out of children."</p><p>-- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/jo3et7/how_did_school_fail_you/gb61396?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">ParkityParkPark</a></p><div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_36" style="min-height:280px"></div>
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Glossing Over the Big Ones
<p>Mostly in English. It did shock my college professors when I genuinely asked, 'How do you write an essay?', 'What is/How do you do a citation?', and 'What's a Shakespeare?'" -- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/jo3et7/how_did_school_fail_you/gb5k4m9?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">SonicXE21</a></p><p style="margin-left: 20px;">"I thought I was the only one completely flabbergasted by how you write an essay. Like 'Intro middle conclusion' is <em>not</em> helpful." -- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/jo3et7/how_did_school_fail_you/gb6wcw1?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">nerdprincess73</a></p><div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_2" style="min-height:280px"></div>
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Setting the Wrong Tone
<p>"Made EVERYTHING fun not fun, and told me I was stupid. I've spent the last decade rediscovering how cool all the things that school made shi**y are (e.g. all sports, all learning, languages, math, art, dancing, socializing, etc, etc)."</p><p>"So much time wasted not having fun and learning everything. Also the message school gave me, directly or indirectly, was that I was fundamentally not an intelligent person and therefore should maybe not try do things reserved for smarter folks."</p><p>"I carried this for most of my life, until at some point in the last few years I started to figure out that I'm actually not (at least not entirely) an idiot."</p><div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_3" style="min-height:280px"></div>
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<p>"This has really opened up the possibilities for me and I feel like I've come alive. I'm chasing med school now and while it is killer, I'm crushing it."</p><p>"How would I have lived the last 10 years if I hadn't been operating under the assumption that my potentially was extremely limited?"</p><p>"A lot of people really loved school, but for me it robbed me of not only the time I spent there (which was a nightmare, and anything of any significance that I learnt was from somewhere else or self taught) but also much of the value of the years afterwards."</p><p>"One of the reasons that I don't want kids is because I don't want to have to put them through that."</p><p>-- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/jo3et7/how_did_school_fail_you/gb5ojk2?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">Throwaway2536476756</a></p>
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Bureaucratic Realities
<p>"Cut the funding to the point we had no electives and that we had to have the least experienced teachers."</p><p>"Our principal was forced to retire in shame because he was trying to help our school."</p><p>-- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/jo3et7/how_did_school_fail_you/gb5q4ev?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">illogicalfuturity</a></p><div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_5" style="min-height:280px"></div>
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A Relentless Emphasis on Results
<p>"School didn't teach me to try and get better at anything. They just taught us to separate the kids that were good at something from the kids that weren't and then move on."</p><p>"Take gym class for example. If we were in the basketball unit we were all just thrown together and the kids that were already good at basketball just destroyed kids like me and I didn't even want to try anymore."</p><p>"Do you think that taught me a healthy love of competition? Or that if I worked hard I could get better at something? No. It just reinforced the idea that they were good at it, I was bad at it and that was the way it is."</p><p>"Imagine if instead I had been shown how to dribble or shoot, I had my technique adjusted by someone and been allowed to practice, practice, practice."</p><p>"By the end I might not be as good as the jock kids but at least I went from not even being able to dribble to being able to. I would have been shown that with hard work and practice I could at least get better at something."</p><p>"Unfortunately that never happened and to this day if I'm not immediately good at something I have to fight really hard to not want to just quit."</p><p>-- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/jo3et7/how_did_school_fail_you/gb5f7of?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">Cheese464</a></p>
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An Ironically Named Policy
<p>"Thanks to the 'no child left behind' bill, school didn't even try to help some of the struggling students. It was up to the teacher/administration to help the struggling student which was rare."</p><p>"All the school did was move students along and force them to learn useless info for the standardized testing that none of the students have studied/prepared for."</p><p>-- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/jo3et7/how_did_school_fail_you/gb5klcy?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">Cheetodude625</a></p><div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_7" style="min-height:280px"></div>
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What Could Have Been...
<p>"I have a mental disorder making it difficult for me to do computational math in my head, but I grasp conceptual math very well. In school I was driven away from the mathematics world because 'you won't have a calculator in college/the real world.'"</p><p>"Had I not been I probably would have pursued a 'proper' higher education, and not gone for an art degree."</p><p>"Don't get me wrong, I like my current field, but I think I would have gotten more out of life had I not been pushed away & had ended up as an architect, engineer, or physicist."</p><p>-- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/jo3et7/how_did_school_fail_you/gb5n7hk?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">PFreeman008</a></p><div data-conversation-spotlight style="min-height:90px"></div>
The Real Lessons
<p>"It taught me that what mattered were scores and that relationships were things that happened to you. That my humanity was entirely dependent on people with no investment in my success or lack thereof."</p><p>"It taught me that nothing was fun and that I always need to be ashamed. At least, that I did learn there."</p><p>"Also it failed to teach me how to inflate my resume. I had to learn to polish that turd on my own."</p><p>-- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/jo3et7/how_did_school_fail_you/gb5v45s?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">Electronic_Ad5481</a></p><div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_8" style="min-height:280px"></div>
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Not a Sure Thing
<p>"They lied to me and said college would be able to place me in a job afterwards." -- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/jo3et7/how_did_school_fail_you/gb5djmw?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">Beginning-Smoke-5965</a></p><p style="margin-left: 20px;">"I think it's partially because teachers and school staff have never been exposed to the outside world. They go from school, to more school (college), back into the school setting."<br></p><p style="margin-left: 20px;">"They have no idea what the real world actually looks like. Maybe they worked a retail or fast food job in HS/college, but 90% of their life experience exists within a school building. And these are the people who prepare our children for 'life.'" -- <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/jo3et7/how_did_school_fail_you/gb75aly?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3" target="_blank">iforgottowearpants</a></p><div class="ad-tag" data-ad-name="In_Content_Responsive_9" style="min-height:280px"></div>
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