What’s one moment where your life changed course in a split second?

Breast cancer diagnosis. All plans went out the window and now it's just doctors, procedures & medication. Praying they got it all during surgery & no return.

Mid-80s, I'm a college student taking a programming class in the summer. I'm on my Commodore 64 and modem logged into the CUNY network. Most of the people logged in that night who were from my school (our username identifies which school) were from my class because the professor was nuts. I started a conversation with a classmate that night who had a similar computer setup on her kitchen table. This morning, I texted her that I'd be home late for dinner.

Weird one - grew up with kinda "sub-optimal" parents, surrounded with violence, beatings, mental illness, attempted suicides; they could also be really sweet and loving. In my 30's, long after their deaths (they were in their 50's when they had kids) I had reacted poorly to a situation and thought "why did I react like that?" A little voice in my head said "don't think about it, don't go there, you've done a great job surviving...". For the first time in my life I "heard" the voice and questioned it, realized any time I thought about my behavior I got this little rationalization "not to look deeper" - it was more like a "smell" than a thought. Within an hour I realized that much of what I did and said was a response to traumatic experiences leaving me with a belief that deep-down, I was worthless. And yet I had amazing kids and fantastic friends, was considered funny and very talented. I totally re-mapped my response to people and the world, just sitting on my couch and thinking with the phone turned off. I didn't need that shit anymore. If I were religious, I'd say "god touched me then" - I don't know why that specific moment I caught myself repeating a pattern I'd had for decades. Absolutely a time where my life changed massively in one moment. It was like getting hit with a board.

One night in September 1987, in a single wide traiker in bumfuck Oklahoma, my father murdered my mother. I was a baby, who he left alone in my crib to run- honestly, knowing him I'm surprised he didn't kill me too. I'm so sorry, mama.

2017…. I caught the flu as a healthy 40 yr old woman. I was athletic, active, and healthy. I catch the flu and almost immediately developed pneumonia. When I had a chest xray at the er I only had a quarter sized spot of pneumonia in my right lung. 18 hours later the advanced life support ambulance is bringing me back to the er in full respiratory failure and septic. I then spend almost 2 weeks fighting for my life! Honestly I spent longer than that fighting to survive but after being neglected in the hospital (I was developing a bed sore because they hadn’t even turned me) I told them I was going home because if I was going to die I wanted to be at home with my family. So I had made a deal with the dr that once my white blood cell count dropped below 35,000- I was leaving! I agreed to coming back in the morning for another blood cell count which I’m happy to report had dropped down to around 29,000…. And continued to drop from there. I went from hiking daily with our dogs at the state park to having to carry a portable nebulizer just to leave our home. I now only have the lower lobe on my left side and less than a liter of capacity. I also now rely on a wheelchair if I have to walk more than 20-30 ft. So that’s that unfortunately.

After my dad died. I had a job at a UPS store. No good education or anything really. Never thought I’d amount to much. Then two days after my birthday, he dies. We were supposed to have a drink together. I wanted to drink that weekend because I didn’t have work. A few months after he died, I got my GED, got a job in a union and I’m on track to finish my 2nd year apprenticeship. As it stands I’m making more money than I have ever. I still miss him every day. Told him through tears to “save a drink for me. We’ll have a lot of catching up to do.” As long as he makes it, I know it’ll be a good one.

I spoke to a coworker when I worked with them at gander mountain a long time ago. I mentioned how I had mixed feelings about how alcohol made me feel and I was worried I was going to develop a drinking problem at an early age. This coworker talked me into quitting while I was ahead and I quit drinking after the Super Bowl of 2017. Since then I’ve been sober for nine years.

Leaving a DV situation.

When the doctor came in the room and said “I’m sorry, we did all we could. She’s gone.” My wife of 34 years had passed away unexpectedly. I lost my compass and anchor in that moment. It’s been 2 years and the fog is just beginning to lift. I have family and friends but it’s not the same without her.

Yesterday when I received an automated email that my employment has been terminated. F*** you Larry Ellison. People reached out to me on my personal phone and LinkedIn because my access was taken away so quickly.

I found a box of love letters that my (now ex)wife had received from her boss.

A best friend of mine died suddenly one night. She was like a sister to me. Really fucked me up for a long time. This happened 8 years ago and I feel like I’m just now putting the pieces back together.

Almost dying in war, RPG passed me, I got only recoil but shit was close

When I looked at my cell phone records and noticed that my wife was texting her ex boyfriend 50-100 times a day for the past several months. This was about two weeks after she accidentally told me that she was concerned that she was pregnant and about 6 years after I had had a vasectomy. She is now my ex wife and my life is totally different.

This guy bumped into me in the street. Married him :)

I used to be a self-destructive a******. The night the world was supposed to end (you know, back in 2012) I had been at a friend's house until 2:00 a.m. or so. I got in my car and was driving home. In the middle of the road ahead I saw a large trash can and I decided I was going to destroy it with my car. I started to speed up and as I approached it I had an epiphany about how I treated the world and the people around me. Something about that moment of thought made me change course and I swerved away. As I turned I realized it was not a trash can. It was a large piece of concrete pipe that had rolled off from a nearby construction area. I almost completely destroyed my car and probably myself, and now I'm only sometimes an a******.

Got drunk and decided to really take a swing at the one who got away 10 years after i broke her heart in college. Still marred.

The moment I decided to apply for a dream job that I thought I had zero chance of getting.

I have had a lot of moments that changed my life. The first was when my nephew was killed by his dad. He was six months. I was 5 at that time. I remember him being someone I loved so much and then he was dead. I heard from my sister that during an autopsy they found out he had several broken bones and his dad claimed he had fallen off the couch a month prior and he had been crying constantly. I guess he went to give him a bath and the water was super hot, his bones were broken and he claimed he could stop himself from shaking the baby because he wouldn't stop crying. My nephew was born with a heart issue and he became unresponsive. The father was never charged because it was ruled an accident but he did go to jail for 10 years for robbing houses during that same investigation. It was a very painful experience and still is if I think about it. When I was 5 I realized I could die at any time. Which has never been helpful to me but yes.

The first time I jumped out of an airplane. I did not expect to love it as much as I did and I proceeded to obsess over the sport for 3 years with 500 jumps multiple licenses and eventually ended up in a wingsuit

ok wait this is kinda embarrassing but— mine was literally deciding to reply to one random message instead of ignoring it like I almost didn’t… it felt pointless… but I did anyway and that one convo turned into a connection that changed my whole direction for a while (where I lived, who I hung around, everything) it’s weird how it’s never the “big planned decisions” it’s always some random 2-second choice that ends up rerouting your entire life lowkey makes me wonder how many alternate timelines I missed just by not answering texts 😭

I can remember the SECOND the doctor told my brother he had stage 4 cancer. I Lost 40 pounds. Then my mom died. All of a sudden, it’s constant panic attacks, weight loss again, and weirdly, I have a super difficult time leaving the house. Not sure how or if I’m ever getting through this. This season of my life sucks.

I've had several near misses with life threatening incidents, but the thing that changed my life? The moment I met the girl I'd go on to marry. We've backed each other up while we individually pursued degrees. We raised two successful sons both with college degrees. We've owned two homes, new cars, traveled the world, worked till we retired and now we're grandparents. I'm not sure any of that would have happened had I not met her 48 years ago.

I found out I had a brain tumor almost a year ago. Turned my world upside down. It was extracted in May and was benign. My neurosurgeon is my new male crush.

November 10 2025, my wife called, the hospital had just called her; a donor liver was ready for our two year old. Been staying home with him since while he recovers and his immune system learns not to mess with the new kid in town. Reaaaaallllllly looking forward to going back to work soon.

Missed a flight by like 5 minutes once because I overslept. Ended up rebooking, sat next to someone on the new flight who later became my boss. Completely changed my career path. Still feels weird to think about how random that was.

Caught my ex husband discussing our private life with his female friend

The day I finished my degree in a field I’m passionate about I flew home to visit my family before I was to start my dream job. That day I watched my mom have a seizure and we soon found out she had terminal cancer. I moved (far) to take care of her until she died, and nothing has ever been the same. Unfortunately everything is much worse and despite therapies of all kinds, supportive people, and a lot of effort on my part they still seem to be getting worse 7 years on. I miss my old life so much.

Moving in with my friends during college about 20 years ago. At the last minute we let a girl move in with us because she needed to get out from her boyfriend and his mom’s house. We weren’t close friends but we were sympathetic to her situation. The day we all moved in, her family came to help her move, including her very funny and handsome brother. Anyways, her brother and I have been married for 14 years now and have an 18 month old.

The moment my husband stepped off the escalator to meet me for our first date.

Getting one unexpected “yes” after a long string of rejections, that single moment completely changed my direction.

After the death of my granddad, he was very important for me not only as a family member but as a person, touched by the WW2 and loosing 3 of his siblings. Even though I don’t feel it today, it changed me as a person for the better I perceive live and treat others differently.

When my husband died unexpectedly. My brother flew in from across the country the next day and started fixing my house, that husband promised would be completed three years ago. Five days after he died I got a job that I applied for eight months ago. Was out of debt within a year.

Too many. Deaths mostly, but also when I found out my husband had been having an affair.

I royally messed up in uni. It is a long story, but I manged to evade a subject that was supposed to be in my first year of my bachelors. I had finished my full bachelor AND master degree including the thesises. Because my marks were around 90-80% of the total scores I was allowed to get to this point. And I am pretty convincing apparently. But of course I could be given neither degree without this one subject. Legally you can fail 3 times. But through a f- ton of loopholes I got about 6 chances. Failed all of them. My 7th and absolutely last chance... I was in tears while looking it up. On the phone with my best friend. My whole life plans and 6 years of studying were on the line.  And I passed!  By a 1 point margin out of 95 total points.  I probably should have quit uni the first semester when I went into that subjects course on my very first day and realised that I had no chance. But staying really made my life so much better on the long run.  Not passing would have destroyed my already mangeled mind so much though... I'm really too scared to think much about that "what if". It wouldn't have been a good ending.  Don't do stupid stuff like that guys.  It was college analysis. I came from a culinary school and while we did have algebra and analisis there due to an economy specialisation and I had straight A's... I totally failes at grasping Bolzano-Weierstraß and Lipschitzstetigkeit. Just nope. I aced statistics and algebra at uni. But analysis melts my brain

went to grab coffee before my flight instead of boarding when they called my name. missed the plane. met my wife in the rebooking line. still drink too much coffee.

Not really split second, but deciding to have unprotected sex with a girl I literally just met, because we both were teenagers too horny for our own good, was the one of the best decisions I ever made (surprisingly enough). Everything I now have and now am I owe to that one moment.

In 1979 I registered for a class on how to enjoy being single at a private college chatted with a man there during the class break who gave me 23 years and two sons before we divorced amicably

Hearing my father say "I'm sorry, maybe I failed as a father" after a few years of dumb shenanigans from my end. This was my first wake up call and I'm glad it happened at an early age. Was able to get my life together. Had another hit when he lost his job a few years later and I had to take care of the entire family since a young age. Learned a lot. It's not easy being "the man of the house" at such a young age, but still making sure that despite "the unfortunate" your parents do not feel as too much of a burden and still act as parents all whilst your younger sibling does not feel "any less".

A friend called me out on some patterns I didn’t even realize I had. Not dramatic in the moment, but walking away thinking, “oh… I can’t keep living like this,” completely shifted my mindset.

Two pink lines

The whiplash is too real here, some dude thinking he changed his life because of a job application versus some dude almost turning into a red mist from an RPG hitting him directly really puts things into perspective.

In high school my friends started messing around with pills, we always had drinks and a little weed but the pills were an alarm for me. Well those pills that were for fun became life ending for my 2 best friends and others had to move far away for treatment and never came back. I’m so glad I never started doing pills, they are a real b****.

When I confirmed the cheating and how long it had been going on.

In my early 20's I used to stay out late at friends houses, go out late at night, party, ect. I dropped out of school and worked a minimum wage job. My friends were all kind of bums, unemployed or no goals. We were in our early 20s so I thought I had time. I still lived at home with my mom, she was a single mother who only had me. Our family was kinda aweful so we made our own way. I was an adult so she didn't have any "rules of the house". I came and I went as I pleased, mostly no communication. It was 3am and my friend and his girlfriend got into a MASSIVE arguement. He was driving, she was in the passenger, i was in the backseat. I was pretty high, her was sober and she was very drunk. Out of nowhere she jerks his wheel into oncoming traffic. He was able to sweve out of the way at the last moment before crashing. We all pulled over to take a deep breath. I realized in that moment if I had crashed my mom would have no idea I was even gone, if anything happened to me, and would have lost her only family. I sobered up reslly quick, called my mom to come get me. I It felt like I woke up. I reapplied for school that night. I went back to school, got a degree, did not party as often, spent time with my mom, drifted from bad friends and made entirely new relationships. Felt like my whole life changed

Getting rear ended at a red light changed everything for me. The other driver got out crying and apologizing because she'd been texting. We ended up talking for an hour waiting for police and became best friends. That was eight years ago and she's still my closest friend.

I randomly flipped open a media business trade magazine one day at my dead end job and saw a small ad in the back from a former publisher looking to find a new magazine project. Called him up with my idea and he committed to a trip to a trade show to try and sell some ads with just a folded sheet for a presentation. Turned it into a highly profitable publishing house with four titles, a major awards event, over two dozen magazine awards, and bought the competition out. Many of our young staff went on to achieve great things. We sold after 20+ years of success and profit. The company just resold recently provided it as an enduring brand that survived the magazine slaughter.

When my Mom and Dad showed up at my house and told me he had stage IV pancreatic cancer.

After moving abroad and before

Weird, but being held back in 4th grade. I always wondered how my life would have been if I wasn’t.

When I was laid off from a job I absolutely HATED! I then found a job I loved-best job of my life!

When the results arrived of a DNA test I took for fun.

I got fired from a job for something I was actually supposed to do, according to regulations. I was fired from a company with no HR (lesson learned here) by a toxic boss who had no issue lying about any and everyone. And she was very vocal about how arrogant she thought I was for returning to school to get my premed science credits to pursue a path to become an oncologist. That job was where I worked with the docs who were planning to write the letters of recommendation for me to get into med school. Bc she was such a pathological liar, I couldn't count on the docs writing good letters, which I needed bc my science GPA wasn't where I really needed it to be. I didn't sit for the MCATs. Didn't apply to med schools. Fought through the deepest pits of depression that I've ever experienced. Met the man who became my husband. I would have completed fellowship in 2025, but I probably wouldn't have met and married my favorite person.

20 years ago a girl walked into a party at my friends apartment and I thought to myself "wow, she's cute".

When my sibling died (very sudden and tragic death as a teen), I lost my ability to miss people. It’s like their death just broke my ability to care about others. I don’t think about people when they’re out of sight and I haven’t mourned for any of our other loved ones when they died… that’s been a weird but nice fallout, I guess. 

When I was younger, around 19 years old I went on a road trip with a newer friend that just got his license, I remember my mom saying before we left to “drive safe with my son, I know you just got your license” well fast forward and we are on our way home about 3 hours away and he’s driving really fast on the highway and it’s raining and we are pulling a trailer with a snowmobile on it. Well we come to an on ramp to another highway and he’s going to fast and all of a sudden we start sliding sideways and the trailers pushing us more and more sideways as he slams the breaks which cause us to jack-knife and we slide sideways about 100 feet the whole time seeing what we are going to hit, the start of a guardrail, the metal part to cushion the impact, we crunch that whole thing in and get to the concrete part which tosses us way in the air and flips 2 times in air and then we land on a big embankment and flip 5-6 more times and the whole time I’m awake as the trucks inside box gets smaller and smaller around me, we finally stop 10 feet from a deep pond. I crawl out and I’m walking around fine and then fire department and everyone shows up and all of a sudden I collapse in horrible pain as my adrenaline wore off and my back, neck and shoulder are all in excruciating pain. I get stretchered to the hospital where they declare I need surgery and since then I’ve had multiple surgeries and have lasting affects! Spent years going from surgery to surgery… I was the only one hurt in the truck.

Dad died when I was 8 - left with an emotionally immature, volatile, sometimes sweet & humanist sometimes abusive mom who married much older. Fam business was a B&B so we had the wake at our house. Open casket in the front foyer and my mom said "I'll close the door, you take your time". Looked at my dad's body as my brain rewired while I thought how nothing is going to be the same and accepting that I have no idea what's going to unfold. I grew up in that instant and developed a lot of self-awareness over the coming years. It puts what matters in life into perspective, but also carriers a lot of anxiety, insecurity about the precarity of having 1 parent (who can't "parent"), and made it hard to be a kid/relate to people. I find that there's a language of trauma that people who've been/worked through it can speak. I appreciate who I am but it's hard to be who I am - hypersensitivity to potential red flags to protect my vulnerability can lead to being overly critical, although I see connections & behaviours that many others miss. Also hit a point in my adulthood where I didn't need to be the man I thought my dad may've wanted me to be. Rather, the focus became seeking internal validation and being enough for myself. The guy died over 23 years ago. Don't live for the dead, live for yourself on terms that you respect and admire. If you do that, anyone who ought to have loved and/or respected you would do so, but it's just a healthier mental frame. Serendipitously I wound up working in an area similar to my dad in gov't despite not knowing what he did.

The birth of my child 3 years ago. Then the current biggest one the death of my girlfriend, my child’s mother. I was full of hope and excitement for the future with my child and the times it would bring it taught me a lot about myself. The death of my girlfriend caused a big hole in my chest. I feel broken like the light I had for this world is gone. I feel like I can be happy, I would possibly want another relationship one day but i know it’d never be the same or even how I would navigate that. The weird thing I was always was fine if my girlfriend and I broke up and I would have to see her with someone else potentially. But we would still be co parenting. This is just something different for me, we were on such good terms before she passed.

When i found out my husband died

I wanted to go to the small, private college instead of the State school. Couldn't afford it, so I went with my second choice. Friend on my dorm hallway was going to join orcestra & concert band and since I played bass, I went along. Married to the trombonist for 29 years this June with the two most amazing kids on the planet. Sometimes the choice you think you are disappointed in is the choice you were supposed to make all along.

❤

After winning the race, the organizer handed me a trophy with a strange smile. When I opened it...a whirlpool appeared and pulled me in and within microseconds I was thrown into the human world

Back in 2009 I was running a sales outfit and needed to hire some salespeople as well as a receptionist position. This gal had come in and applied for a sales role, I was living her along but she called me before training to tell me she was declining the role. Something in me was just like don’t hang up, so I immediately offered her the receptionist role.  Our wedding anniversary is next month. 

I had an okay job. Paid enough to be comfortable, I was really good at it, and I enjoyed it. The company got bought out by a bigger company. Three months later, they pull me into the office and say they're cutting my pay by 1/3 saying I was getting overpaid compared to the industry average. Mind you, I was one of the best at what I did in what was then a niche industry. So, I decided right then I was going to get an engineering degree. Now I'm making more than I ever thought I would and love what I'm doing. If they hadn't cut my pay, I probably would've kept doing that job forever. It was a bit of a dead end job even if I was really good at it. I never would've made what I earn now, but I was comfortable.

For me I was 12 well before in the internet and was waiting on my mom to come pick us up after spending Halloween night with my best friend. She came in crying as it turns out my dad was cheating with his best friend's wife. In one fell swoop relationships blown up and we ended moving 3 hours away which resulted in more blown up relationships.

Getting that random job

A grenade exploded just inches from the top of my foxhole spraying dirt and debris all over me. Didn’t really think about it until later just how lucky I was

Wednesday 6th October 2004 - the day my grandad, my best friend, my biggest support & just my soul, died. The day I was going to visit him. I can still remember the smell of toast & how my mouth was acrid.

Moved out of my hometown on a whim in 2018, and my life has gone upward ever since. Met my husband, left my old job for my dream job, bought a small farm, and we're thriving. Old me would honestly never think all of that was possible.

Being diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. I didn't know it at the time but it's one of the best things that ever happened to me. I used to be insular, stay in my room all the time, never speak to anyone, not go out, etc. I was 21 and took the news pretty badly. Freaked out for a few months, then realised I was 21 and possibly going to be a wheelchair soon, so I got busy living. Turned into a completely different person - outgoing, meeting people, doing stuff outside. I have been very lucky that my MS hasn't progressed very quickly, but without it, I would probably still be sitting in my room alone.

Got a flat tire on the way to a job interview. Missed it. Was devastated. The mechanic who helped me told me his shop was hiring. Took the job ‘temporarily’ and ended up meeting my wife there.

When i finally decided to leave my wife. The only thing keeping me there were my kids.

My mom had some really bad nausea and started vomitting a lot right before we went to set up my birthday party so my dad took her to the doctor while a family friend helped set up. That was the last time I heard her voice and spent the next 4 years watching her deteriorate in a hospital bed in a vegetative state

When my daughter passed away unexpectantly. That moment, that day changed my life forever.

I was on my bike, minding my own business, crossing at an intersection with priority and all, then BLAM! I was sent flying by a car.

Walking into the doctor’s office to get my blood test result. 3 days later and an er visit. I get the lovely diagnosis of becoming type one diabetic at the age of 28. It was just a domino effect from there after finally getting some insulin in my body. Whole life changed in so many crazy ways following that diagnosis. Happiest I’ve ever been though so it’s all good. Life gives you what you can handle

Meeting my first boyfriend at a drunken teenage party….. meeting my second boyfriend standing outside in the street draped around a lamppost….. being thrown from a horse and getting a lot of injuries. Not sure which one was worse.

Organ transplant 

Got knocked up. Age 20

Got into a really good university and also a less prestigious one but got a full tuition scholarship to it. I had the form to accept the full tuition scholarship and was ready to sign it, pen in hand, while my parents tried to assure me they could afford to help with the more prestigious school’s cost of attendance. I had to make a decision in that moment whether to sign the one offer and mail it in or not. I don’t know *how* that decision changed my life, since I can’t know what would have happened if I made the unchosen choice, but I do sometimes reflect on the fact that my whole friend group and probably even career path would be different if I did. I wouldn’t even be aware of the existence of some of the most important people in my life and, conversely, there are people out there I’ll never meet who I would have formed super valuable and meaningful bonds with.

Interestingly, I got a call from the HR manager at 8 at night when it was heard I was looking for other places because their supervisor was a piece of shit. I aired my grievances, they took them down, he was removed (not just due to mine, he was bad to everyone except the woman where he was trying to get in her pants). I was more visible than I had been. I’m now in charge of that location and a core concept of our business.

When my mum jumped in front of me to stop my rapidly increasing momentum as I decided to run down a hill near the precipice of a huge drop. If she didn’t block me I’d be dead. So I would say that.

When I looked for a job and then I founded one, heaven knows I’m miserable know lol Jk asides that was a huge change for me

When my partner killed himself in front of me. My life ended that day too.

The moment I decided to say f*** it, called the ex-girlfriend of an ex best friend to see how she was doing. Over the years I saw how big of a d*** my friend was to her, saw how amazing of a person she was and girlfriend she was to him. We had become pretty good friends via double dates and a few ski trips over the years. I decided to say f*** it because I knew in a few weeks we'd head back to our colleges, I'd meet girls she'd meet guys and we'd probably never see each other again. I really had nothing to lose, my friend had gone nuclear on or friendship, said really shitty things, and besides it would be cool if at the very least her and I stay in touch. Turned out she very happy I called her. We got back to our schools and continued to talk, eventually flirt, then I asked if she wanted to see me. She came up a few weeks later. I was so freaking nervous driving to the airport, what if she was just trying to be nice. The second I saw he clear security, I knew it was on. She looked stunning, we had a huge hug, I grabbed her bag and we drove to my place. On the way she made a comment on how her ex would just pick her up at the curb when she came in town, I guess he really set the bar low. The weekend was amazing, as lame as it sounds, we were in love. I remember thinking at one point "I could marry this girl". The rest is history, did the long distance thing until we graduated, moved back to our home town and moved in together. Eventually got married, started a family. The ex-friend / ex-boyfriend did find out we were dating, sent her this long ass letter in the mail reminiscing about all the good times they had together and ended it by saying we were both trash, he was happy we were out of his life, we were only dating out of spite and we'd never last. We got a good chuckle out of it. Been together for 25 years, married for 23.

Getting diagnosed with an autoimmune disorder right after taking the covid 19 vaccine.. I am on steriods and other meds just to get by. It f****** sucks.

After my dad died I dgaf anymore. I live on a day to day basis

I still remember one moment very clearly. I was walking on the road when a small puppy came up to me and started acting friendly. Just then, a car came from behind at a very high speed. It hit the puppy, and the driver didn’t even stop. The puppy died right there on the spot. That was the moment my life changed in a split second. Whenever I think about it, I still get goosebumps.

Wrestling with my buddy, he was wrapped around my leg and drove my knee into the ground. Bent outwards 90°, dislocated my knee tearing my ACL, PCL, MCL AND LCL. Can’t bend my knee more than 100° now which actually affects a lot of activities. Here’s to getting a TKR eventually,

When I actually "heard" & "listened" to this quote... then used it for the rest of my life! **IF YOU ARE TALKING, YOU ARE NOT LEARNING**

Got a stage four breast cancer diagnosis back in June. I'll never not have cancer ever again, this is my life now. A lot has changed.

Hearing, " you start dialysis now. Or die". Kidney failure bit me hard and the work to stay on this planet include 3 days a week at freaking dialysis. Hate it, alternative is worse

About 12 years ago I was pissed off at my mom, and decided to crash on the couch at a house that my friend was watching. He invited his two friends over to hang out. I clicked with one of them, and when they went to leave I decided I can deal with my raging mom tonight to be able to talk with him more. He lived across the street from me(our whole lives). Our daughter is currently passed out on my lap as I type this.

23 when I had a stroke, responded to a fb status about a friend who resigned herself to going to America alone, told her I would come with and met my now best friend on the tour. Moved to Australia for a year on a working holiday visa and now live permanently in New Zealand. Its been almost 15 years since it happened and I tell people its the best worst thing to ever happen to me.

The minute I crossed the line when my teenage hormones dictated my thoughts and feelings on my body.

The day my father refused any more treatment at the hospital. Never forget his response when my sister asked what is going to happen if he goes home. The "Yeah" with the crack in his voice and trembling lip. Home Thursday, died Monday.

I’ve got two. One: where my older (trans MtF) sister decided at 13 years old that I, at 8 years old, looked like a prime candidate to molest. One choice she made when we were just chilling on the couch wrecked my life. And it lasted for 3 years. Secondly: Taking a job interview that was shared with a guy. He ended up being the person who introduced me to my now husband, who is extremely good to me and we’re expecting our first child any time now ✌️.

At 46 I woke up in a room after my first colonoscopy. I was a daily exerciser, all my blood work, vitals, and physicals had been basically perfect so I assumed standard regular old preventative procedure. I groggily said "how'd everything look doc?" I won't forget the pause and then his response "Let's wait for your wife to come in before we discuss anything." Like I said was still a bit groggy but I sure as f*** knew that wasn't a good response. They spotted a tumor of course can't tell you 100% without biopsies if it is cancerous or not but I was chilled to the bone. It was cancer however I was lucky, only one tumor and all surrounding lymph nodes were unaffected. All MRIs and CT scans have shown all my other organs looking normal. It was a terrible summer but that was 2024, actually I have a follow up appointment this Friday

I became a bilateral below-the-knee amputee, and everything shifted overnight. I went from being independent to struggling with basic things—working, paying bills, even taking care of myself. Being wheelchair-bound and homebound made the isolation and depression hit even harder. For a long time, it felt like I had lost everything. But over time, it forced me to see life differently. I realized how fragile everything is—the things we assume will always be there can disappear in an instant. I stopped taking things for granted and started focusing more on my well-being and what actually matters. I try to live as fully as I can now, even with the limitations. You really don’t realize how much you have… until you don’t. Hope this inspires someone. (If anyone’s curious how things have been going since, I shared a bit more on my profile.)

When my mom kicked me out at 21 years old

First time I laid eyes on that girl. 12/01/2011

Im 32, only spoke English same routine everyday. Randomly took a trip to Japan with discord friends. Now i speak japanese (poorly but im getting there) have a japanese girlfriend, feel loved and love like i never have experienced before. 100% see my future with this girl. Everything has changed, will she move here, will i move there. My life trajaectory has completely been upturned and i couldnt be happier

When I was 29 years old, I got a phone call from an old college friend. He was calling me to tell me that a dear friend of ours had passed away in another country. I was devastated - I had lost older family members before, but never someone of my own cohort. I always had a kind of default assumption that we would all keep growing up together and would have many more good years to spend together. It was an extremely painful time for me, but I learned something valuable from it. Nothing shows you what's really important in life like getting hit with something that just immediately dwarfs all your other worries and concerns. I made a lot of changes to how I lived my life, prioritizing friends & family over my career, and putting my own health & happiness first, because I know that's what he would have wanted. And you may not be able to change the past, but you can learn from it, so I try to do the things I think are important now instead of waiting, since you never know how many more chances you will have.

Was volunteering at a charity shop when I was 19. I got on well with the assistant manager, who was the same age. A couple of months of knowing each other, we met up on her birthday and she told me she had fallen in love with me. We started dating, I moved in six months later, and this year is our 25th anniversary, 20 of which have been married. I went from an unemployed friendless teenager living at home with two alcoholic parents who kicked the c*** out of each other to having a gorgeous, intelligent girlfriend out of nowhere.

In my 20s , when i realised that your entire value is based on your financial status and this is strongly judged especially people in your family .

I was at medical school and not especially social. I saw something advertising a youth volunteer group and went along on a whim. I met a nice girl there and we are celebrating our 43rd wedding anniversary this year. Our sixth grandchild was born on Friday.

High school: I was the socially awkward, semi-athletic nerd who never drank or did any drugs. Very soft-spoken, kind, and shy. Was never going to be popular. College: go to my first real house party and some random dude hands me a joint. I internally say why not and then I proceeded to spend the next 5 years as that weed burnout, alcoholic who was somehow still passing his classes whilst getting high/plastered every weekend. I regret a lot of my college time.

Shortly after eating breakfast on my 28th birthday, I started feeling really sick. My heart rate skyrocketed, I almost passed out, I started shaking, vomiting, and couldn't move for over three hours. After the fact I barely had the strength to get myself to the bathroom from bed. These episodes started happening almost daily, and soon left me housebound and dependent on mobility aids. That day ended up marking the onset of hyperandrenergic POTS and the beginning of my life with disabilities. I went on to develop several other chronic conditions over the next several years. Some are managed at this point, others aren't, but nothing has ever been "normal" since that day.

I just turned 18 and I didn't know what I was going to do after high school so I signed a contract for the Army