Single men who are ready to leave their bachelor lives behind and pursue relationships may have one obstacle they're not quite ready to face—rejection.
That prohibits most of us from having the courage to ask someone out. Some people's egos are way too fragile.
So how do you encourage someone to throw caution to the wind and take a chance on love? Just tell them to go for it. Besides, what's the worst that can happen?
Apparently, it turns out there are some worst-case scenarios as experienced by these single cisgender males who were turned down and drop-kicked to the curb after asking a girl out.
Curious to hear about their shattered self-esteem, Redditor JadenYuki15 asked:
"Dear boys of Reddit, we all know the whole, 'the worst thing she can say is no,' and that its bs. What's the worst rejection you've ever received?"
Stingers
The zingers here really dented these Redditors' self-esteem.
Harsh Dis
"I asked a girl out in high school and she just looked at her friends, said eww, and walked away. It crushed my self esteem for months."
A Horrible Person
"There was this girl I was on good terms with. Good friends for a number of years, always had a crush on her but just decided I was done hiding that. So I asked her out."
"You'd do much better asking a face surgeon for a consultation. I'm going to take a shower. Bye."
"Yeah...I mean, we were good friends, a simple 'no' would have sufficed. Unsurprisingly our friendship didn't last much longer because boy oh boy she turned into a horrible person. And by that I mean she started hanging with some really f'ked up people, and when I did actually end up in a relationship, she got super jealous (the f'k) and tried her best to end it. And she succeeded."
– We1tfunk
The Punchline
"At a bar with a friend, I asked a girl for her number and she said, 'I have one but not for you.' I went back to my friend and we laughed and got drunk."
The Bad Insult
"I asked someone out and she said she'd pardon my language: never go out with a 'retard.' I have borderline intellectual functioning but she called me that because I was in special Ed classes. Here I am at 27 and haven't asked anyone out since high school."
Awkward Red-Faced GIF by moodmanGiphySalt On The Wound
In addition to being rejected, more humiliation was to come for these poor guys.
Sorry, J.K.
"I went to school with a girl I ended up nicknaming JK."
"Her initials were actually JK, so she never thought much about it, but I called her that because she was always 'just kidding'."
"She would flirt with you nonstop, making you think she really had a thing for you, until you built up the courage to ask her out. Then she'd laugh and say she didn't think about you like that."
"Weeks later she'd start flirting again, really pouring it on that she wanted you, rinse and repeat."
"Wasn't 'the worst' rejection or anything but man was it aggravating to keep falling for it!"
The Popular Girl
"I asked a girl out privately in highschool, she rejected me politely but told everyone at school that I asked her out. That would have been fine but she is a popular girl in highschool while I am an ordinary, unnoticeable student. Every boys that liked her bullied me until the end of the year for confessing to her."
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"Making small talk at a bar with a girl and offered to buy her a drink. She said 'nooo, I'll buy you a drink!' Can't argue with that, I thought, and accepted."
"She got me a gutter shot... Apparently she was dating the bartender and it was a thing they did whenever she got hit on."
"Ninja edit: a gutter shot is when the bartender scoops up a shot glass full of whatever spilled drinks ended up in the trough behind the bar. It's disgusting and probably not sanitary. Anyway, she was a b*tch and that bartender was an a**hole. I left without paying and never went back."
Twisting The Knife
"I told a girl in high school i had feelings for her and then she completely ignored it and told me about how she was f'king her personal trainer and proceeded to send me pictures of them together."
Height Prejudice
"She laughed in my face and said, 'Oh, you were serious? I don't date short guys.' I'm 5'4."
"6 years later I'm doing very well, she is couch-surfing."
"Saw her at a bar recently and she didn't recognize me, partly because I grew a beard and partly because she was so sloshed."
"She tried to hit on me, and I'm actually proud that I just said no thanks, but I'm flattered."
"Proud of myself, sad for her."
Scorned Dance Partner
"Girl I was in to in middle school, who was supposedly into me to. We used to dance at the dances, kind of. At the end of one, everyone was pairing up for the next dance, so I asked her if she wanted to go to the next dance with me. No hesitating, she just said no. Hurt like hell. But I still had feelings for her and it ruined a possible relationship later because I couldn't let that girl go."
The Shallow Date
"A friend set me up on a date with a wonderful woman and we got along well. But when I took off my hat and revealed that I was bald, she gasped and walked briskly to the bathroom."
Lies
The passive aggressive type of rejection cuts deeper.
The Excuse
"I met this girl at a Metal concert (specifically Gwar), she came up to me and was scared because of the mosh pit, and insisted I hold onto her because I was the biggest guy there (6'5" and 250lbs), she was cute so of course I did. After the show ended I forgot to get her number but gave her a drumstick of one of the opening bands. Fast forward a few days later I get a message on Facebook asking if I was the guy who gave her the drum stick, and I said yes. We ended up hanging out, a few times, got lunch, and I asked her out, I was told she does not date younger guys (she I guess was 25, I was 20 at the time), Fast forward a few days later, I find out she was dating an 18 year old so surprised me with a curveball."
Presumed Single
"I bought a girl a few drinks at a nightclub in my early twenties. After about 3 drinks, I asked her if she wanted to come hang with my friends and I. She leaned in and gave me a kiss on the cheek and says 'Thanks for the drinks I have to get back to my boyfriend now.' My guy friends were laughing their a**es off."
– RAM_592
The Prom Date
"Asked a girl to our prom in high school. She said someone already asked her. She came with her brother."
Based on these responses, it seems some rejections are no worse than any of the others.
Although it may still sting, "I'm just not that into you" is better than a cruel punchline harsh enough to annihilate a dude's self-esteem, stomp it to pieces, and pour acid all over it.
The good news is, the ones who have the capacity to insult you at a vulnerable moment are the ones you would not want to take home and introduce to mom.
Don't give up hope, gents. There's definitely a keeper out there somewhere for you who will be worth the wait.
Experiencing death is a fascinating and frightening idea.
Who doesn't want to know what is waiting for us on the other side?
But so many of us want to know and then come back and live a little longer.
It would be so great to be sure there is something else.
But the whole dying part is not that great, so we'll have to rely on other people's accounts.
Redditor AlaskaStiletto wanted to hear from everyone who has returned to life, so they asked:
"Redditors who have 'died' and come back to life, what did you see?"
Sensations
Happy Good Vibes GIF by Major League SoccerGiphy"My dad's heart stopped when he had a heart attack and he had to be brought back to life. He kept the paper copy of the heart monitor which shows he flatlined. He said he felt an overwhelming sensation of peace, like nothing he had felt before."
PeachesnPain
Recovery
"I had surgical complications in 2010 that caused a great deal of blood loss. As a result, I had extremely low blood pressure and could barely stay awake. I remember feeling like I was surrounded by loved ones who had passed. They were in a circle around me and I knew they were there to guide me onwards. I told them I was not ready to go because my kids needed me and I came back."
"My nurse later said she was afraid she’d find me dead every time she came into the room."
"It took months, and blood transfusions, but I recovered."
good_golly99
Take Me Back
"Overwhelming peace and happiness. A bright airy and floating feeling. I live a very stressful life. Imagine finding out the person you have had a crush on reveals they have the same feelings for you and then you win the lotto later that day - that was the feeling I had."
"I never feared death afterward and am relieved when I hear of people dying after suffering from an illness."
rayrayrayray
Free
The Light Minnie GIF by (G)I-DLEGiphy"I had a heart surgery with near-death experience, for me at least (well the possibility that those effects are caused by morphine is also there) I just saw black and nothing else but it was warm and I had such inner peace, its weird as I sometimes still think about it and wish this feeling of being so light and free again."
TooReDTooHigh
This is why I hate surgery.
You just never know.
Shocked
Giphy"More of a near-death experience. I was electrocuted. I felt like I was in a deep hole looking straight up in the sky. My life flashed before me. Felt sad for my family, but I had a deep sense of peace."
Admirable_Buyer6528
The SOB
"Nursing in the ICU, we’ve had people try to die on us many times during the years, some successfully. One guy stood out to me. His heart stopped. We called a code, are working on him, and suddenly he comes to. We hadn’t vented him yet, so he was able to talk, and he started screaming, 'Don’t let them take me, don’t let them take me, they are coming,' he was scared and yelling."
"Then he yelled a little more, as we tried to calm him down, he screamed, 'No, No,' and gestured towards the end of the bed, and died again. We didn’t get him back. It was seriously creepy. We called his son to tell him the news, and the son said basically, 'Good, he was an SOB.'”
1-cupcake-at-a-time
Colors
"My sister died and said it was extremely peaceful. She said it was very loud like a train station and lots of talking and she was stuck in this area that was like a curtain with lots of beautiful colors (colors that you don’t see in real life according to her) a man told her 'He was sorry, but she had to go back as it wasn’t her time.'"
Hannah_LL7
"I had a really similar experience except I was in an endless garden with flowers that were colors I had never seen before. It was quiet and peaceful and a woman in a dress looked at me, shook her head, and just said 'Not yet.' As I was coming back, it was extremely loud, like everyone in the world was trying to talk all at once. It was all very disorienting but it changed my perspective on life!"
huntokarrr
The Fog
"I was in a gray fog with a girl who looked a lot like a young version of my grandmother (who was still alive) but dressed like a pioneer in the 1800s she didn't say anything but kept pulling me towards an opening in the wall. I kept refusing to go because I was so tired."
"I finally got tired of her nagging and went and that's when I came to. I had bled out during a c-section and my heart could not beat without blood. They had to deliver the baby and sew up the bleeders. refill me with blood before they could restart my heart so, like, at least 12 minutes gone."
Fluffy-Hotel-5184
Through the Walls
"My spouse was dead for a couple of minutes one miserable night. She maintains that she saw nothing, but only heard people talking about her like through a wall. The only thing she remembers for absolute certain was begging an ER nurse that she didn't want to die."
"She's quite alive and well today."
Hot-Refrigerator6583
Well let's all be happy to be alive.
It seems to be all we have.
Trying to lose weight is a struggle understood by many people regardless of size.
The goal of reaching a healthy weight may seem unattainable, but with diet and exercise, it can pay off through persistence and discipline.
Seeing the pounds gradually drop off can also be a great motivator and incentivize people to stay the course.
Those who've achieved their respective weight goals shared their experiences when Redditor apprenti8455 asked:
"People who lost a lot of weight, what surprises you the most now?"
Redditors didn't see these coming.
Shiver Me Timbers
"I’m always cold now!"
– Telrom_1
"I had a coworker lose over 130 pounds five or six years ago. I’ve never seen him without a jacket on since."
– r7ndom
"140 lbs lost here starting just before COVID, I feel like that little old lady that's always cold, damn this top comment was on point lmao."
– mr_remy
Drawing Concern
"I lost 100 pounds over a year and a half but since I’m old(70’s) it seems few people comment on it because (I think) they think I’m wasting away from some terminal illness."
– dee-fondy
"Congrats on the weight loss! It’s honestly a real accomplishment 🙂"
"Working in oncology, I can never comment on someone’s weight loss unless I specifically know it was on purpose, regardless of their age. I think it kind of ruffles feathers at times, but like I don’t want to congratulate someone for having cancer or something. It’s a weird place to be in."
– LizardofDeath
Unleashing Insults
"I remember when I lost the first big chunk of weight (around 50 lbs) it was like it gave some people license to talk sh*t about the 'old' me. Old coworkers, friends, made a lot of not just negative, but harsh comments about what I used to look like. One person I met after the big loss saw a picture of me prior and said, 'Wow, we wouldn’t even be friends!'”
"It wasn’t extremely common, but I was a little alarmed by some of the attention. My weight has been up and down since then, but every time I gain a little it gets me a little down thinking about those things people said."
– alanamablamaspama
Not Everything Goes After Losing Weight
"The loose skin is a bit unexpected."
– KeltarCentauri
"I haven’t experienced it myself, but surgery to remove skin takes a long time to recover. Longer than bariatric surgery and usually isn’t covered by insurance unless you have both."
– KatMagic1977
"It definitely does take a long time to recover. My Dad dropped a little over 200 pounds a few years back and decided to go through with skin removal surgery to deal with the excess. His procedure was extensive, as in he had skin taken from just about every part of his body excluding his head, and he went through hell for weeks in recovery, and he was bedridden for a lot of it."
– Jaew96
These Redditors shared their pleasantly surprising experiences.
Shopping
"I can buy clothes in any store I want."
– WaySavvyD
"When I lost weight I was dying to go find cute, smaller clothes and I really struggled. As someone who had always been restricted to one or two stores that catered to plus-sized clothing, a full mall of shops with items in my size was daunting. Too many options and not enough knowledge of brands that were good vs cheap. I usually went home pretty frustrated."
– ganache98012
No More Symptoms
"Lost about 80 pounds in the past year and a half, biggest thing that I’ve noticed that I haven’t seen mentioned on here yet is my acid reflux and heartburn are basically gone. I used to be popping tums every couple hours and now they just sit in the medicine cabinet collecting dust."
– colleennicole93
Expanding Capabilities
"I'm all for not judging people by their appearance and I recognise that there are unhealthy, unachievable beauty standards, but one thing that is undeniable is that I can just do stuff now. Just stamina and flexibility alone are worth it, appearance is tertiary at best."
– Ramblonius
People Change Their Tune
"How much nicer people are to you."
"My feet weren't 'wide' they were 'fat.'"
– LiZZygsu
"Have to agree. Lost 220 lbs, people make eye contact and hold open doors and stuff"
"And on the foot thing, I also lost a full shoe size numerically and also wear regular width now 😅"
– awholedamngarden
It's gonna take some getting used to.
Bones Everywhere
"Having bones. Collarbones, wrist bones, knee bones, hip bones, ribs. I have so many bones sticking out everywhere and it’s weird as hell."
– Princess-Pancake-97
"I noticed the shadow of my ribs the other day and it threw me, there’s a whole skeleton in here."
– bekastrange
Knee Pillow
"Right?! And they’re so … pointy! Now I get why people sleep with pillows between their legs - the knee bones laying on top of each other (side sleeper here) is weird and jarring."
– snic2030
"I lost only 40 pounds within the last year or so. I’m struggling to relate to most of these comments as I feel like I just 'slimmed down' rather than dropped a ton. But wow, the pillow between the knees at night. YES! I can relate to this. I think a lot of my weight was in my thighs. I never needed to do this up until recently."
– Strongbad23
More Mobility
"I’ve lost 100 lbs since 2020. It’s a collection of little things that surprise me. For at least 10 years I couldn’t put on socks, or tie my shoes. I couldn’t bend over and pick something up. I couldn’t climb a ladder to fix something. Simple things like that I can do now that fascinate me."
"Edit: Some additional little things are sitting in a chair with arms, sitting in a booth in a restaurant, being able to shop in a normal store AND not needing to buy the biggest size there, being able to easily wipe my butt, and looking down and being able to see my penis."
– dma1965
People making significant changes, whether for mental or physical health, can surely find a newfound perspective on life.
But they can also discover different issues they never saw coming.
That being said, overcoming any challenge in life is laudable, especially if it leads to gaining confidence and ditching insecurities.