Professional Opinions

"I was stung by a Tarantula Hawk once and it was 5 minutes of the most excruciating pain I've ever felt.”

“Like, it sucks so bad the official medical advice for getting stung is to lie down and scream until it's over so you don't accidentally hurt yourself."

-- TheSorge

When a Child Mourns it’s as Confusing as it is Sad

"Good friend of mine committed suicide. We were 13. Just walked into a dead quiet school. Seat next to me was empty in 5th period. Nobody sat there the rest of the year."

"Still have the sticker she gave me a few weeks before she passed. I miss her so bad still."

-- BeeboIsHigh

A Gradual Slipping Away

"Taking care of my wife as she suffered from Alzheimer's. She was beautiful to the very end." -- OldGeezer

"Your answer broke me." -- _i_want_to_go_home

"That's one of the most beautiful statements I have heard in my life.

"As an older guy myself, who has struggled w the thoughts of 'poor me, poor me,' it's uplifting to know there are people like you and relationships that exist, where love or commitment or compassion, last until the end." -- norfolk-gentlemen

First Sadness, Then Rage

"My best friend was murdered when I was a kid. He had a twin sister. We were like the 3 amigos."

"After he was killed I fell into a deep depression and started having sleep paralysis. Killer was caught and felt zero remorse at trial. I wanted to kill the guy."

"His sister and me never recovered our friendship."

-- dbeey270

Pragmatic, Often Unmentioned Details

"Pulling my grandpa's life support 2 days after Christmas. He gagged for air for 30 minutes until he died. My whole family was there."

"He had a massive brain hemorrhage in his sleep the night before. Brain dead on arrival at the hospital. Totally healthy until then."

"I had a shot of whiskey with him 2 days earlier."

-- westdan2

Plugged In and Powerless

"I woke up during an upper endoscopy while intubated. I didn't fully wake up, I just became conscious. Couldn't move or open my eyes."

"Had about 2 hours of feeling like I was suffocating while they finished the procedure."

"Had nightmares for a month and still don't sleep well."

-- SeriouslyCrafty

“Well I’ve Had Quite Enough of That.”

"I was on a fire department for a few years after high school."

"A decapitated 3yr old at a car accident, dad through the windshield, basically eviscerated, and the mother with barely a scratch but screaming bloody murder."

"It broke me and I quit a few weeks later."

-- KingBrinell

The Great Scism

"In 2016 I had a tooth removed in the back of my mouth and the hole got infected causing an abscess that pushed my teeth apart."

"When I went to the hospital they told me if I had waited a few more days it would have split my face and broken my jaw."

-- TheScrawnyBlacksmith

Dinner for Two

"5th grade, had a parasite for 9 months. Didn't know I had it or what it was, but it was just awful. I skipped nearly that entire school year."

"I didn't eat anything except an applesauce every other day or so. Barely any water. Always had an upset stomach but nothing to throw up, so I often threw up bile which made my throat and mouth feel all burnt."

"I didn't do anything but puke and try to sleep. Didn't talk, didn't watch TV, nothing like that. It hurt way too damn much."

-- LET-ME-HAVE-A-NAME

The Poison Cure

"Being diagnosed with cancer and going through chemotherapy during this pandemic. I am young, and was healthy and extremely active before all this. I never got sick."

"The cancer was tough enough, but now I can't even see my friends or family who kept my spirits up."

"I'm terrified I won't make it out of this mentally the same, if at all. Each chemo decimates my immune system. Even a regular cut that gets infected could be life threatening."

-- adventure_pup