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It only takes one foolish act to tarnish a good reputation built over decades of hard work. In the same way, it only takes one horrible, ill-advised decision to ruin one’s life forever. 

Today, we’re covering the latter. We’ve picked out a handful of stories about people making a single wrong move that altered the course of their existence in the worst ways imaginable. Some, unfortunately, took a fatal turn. Ultimately, all of these could have been avoided. 

These accounts are from different corners of the internet. Scroll through, but a few are distressing reads, so proceed cautiously. If you have similar stories, feel free to share them in the comments below.

#1

Hands holding a pregnancy test, illustrating a life-changing moment with a single choice. Tl;dr: fake pregnancy scam involving basically everyone she knew.

My brother broke up with his girlfriend when they were both 21. On the surface it looked like an amicable breakup- he even volunteered to move back in with our parents temporarily so she could keep the flat they were renting. About a month later, she sent him two pics, of an ultrasound and a positive pregnancy test, and told him she didn't want him to have anything to do with their baby but if he'd give her a few thousand now to help her through the pregnancy and to get ready for the baby's arrival, she'd release him from any future obligation to pay child support. She really laid it on thick that it was going to be a very hard pregnancy since he'd left her and she now had to pay for the flat alone, and even hinted he'd known she was pregnant when he broke up with her.

When he ignored the message, she then sent it on to *everyone* - her family, our family including parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles, his employer, his colleagues, some old college teachers they were still in contact with, and their friends (they met in school so almost all of their friends were mutual). She even posted it on her Facebook for good measure.

He *then* replied - to her, and to everyone he knew of that she'd sent the message to, and also on her Facebook page - with two screenshots, showing that the pictures she'd sent him were literally the first that came up with you googled "ultrasound" and "positive pregnancy test". She didn't lose her job over that, but did a few months later, and most of their friends cut ties with her.

She set out to extort a few thousand off him and instead outed herself as crazy to basically everyone she knew.

MerylSquirrel , Curated Lifestyle/unsplash Report

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Snazzy Smurf
Community Member
1 week ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

She got what she deserved. She set out to extort and ruin him, but Lady K(arma) had the last laugh.

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    #2

    Man in hospital bed with an oxygen mask, illustrating the impact of a wrong choice on one's life. A 19yo guy in Sydney ate a slug for a dare. Got Rat Lungworm disease. Went into a coma for 18 months, woke up a vegetable confined to wheelchair needing 24 hour care. Died about 10 years later. From eating a single slug.....

    Worried_Blacksmith27 , Curated Lifestyle/unsplash Report

    #3

    Person lying in a hospital bed holding hands, symbolizing support during a difficult choice. Guy I want to high school with was diagnosed with testicular cancer when we were about 25. For months, maybe years, I would see update posts about the progress he was making with treatment. Then one day he posted on Facebook that he was cancer free. The next day he was dead. He'd gone out that night and got absolutely wasted, fell down a flight of concrete steps outside his flat in the early hours of the morning and by the time he was found in the morning he was gone.

    vicki5150 , Kateryna Hliznitsova/unsplash Report

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    LakotaWolf (she/her)
    Community Member
    1 week ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    That must have been an unbearable tragedy for his family :( I don’t judge his joy at beating cancer and his urge to celebrate in such a way, I only wish he’d had others with him who could have prevented the final tragedy.

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    #4

    Officer standing by car, writing on a tablet in a bright outdoor setting. In college, my ex’s friend was pulled over for speeding. He had d***s and alcohol in his system and when the cop reached in his truck to grab the keys, he panicked and took off, thinking the cop would let go. The cop did not let go, and was dragged for quite a ways before eventually falling to the ground and hitting his head, resulting in his death. My ex’s friend was charged with capital murder and sentenced to 20 years in a Mississippi state prison. 21 years old and ruined his entire life in 1 night.

    eroofio , Ahmet Kurt/unsplash Report

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    #5

    Father and child enjoying playful time on a couch, illustrating tender moments and life choices. A friend of my parents was a good family man who loved his family. One day he was playing with his toddler and was playfully tossing her on the bed. She would get back up giggling and he would toss her again. In one of the tosses he threw her a bit too far and she hit a bed post. She lived but became bed bound unable to even talk. Not quite vegtable but close. He went to jail on child abuse. Lost his wife, his job and his little girl would bever be the same. The guilt was so much he ended it as soon as he could.

    IIVIIORTAL_K , Getty Images/unsplash Report

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    Earthquake903
    Community Member
    Premium
    1 week ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Due to a series of bad decisions by my 8 year old self and my poor mother, my baby brother died in a house fire. My mother and I were indirectly responsible for it. It was horrible and my mother never recovered. Neither have I really. Edit: thanks everyone for your kind words. This event happened in May of 1980. It has hung over me heavily ever since. My mother has since passed but she was a wreck for the 29 years following my brother's death, understandably. She got help but it only helped to a point. I didn't get help until my early 40's but I'm ok, therapy helped me a lot. I still think about him, Jasen, and I know it wasn't my fault or my mom's. It was just a series of events due to ignorance and inattention, my mom was doing a whole bunch of things at once and had 3 young kids to watch over and it only took a moment for tragedy to strike. I wish it on no one.

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    #6

    “Stood In The Wrong Place”: 30 Ways People Wrecked Their Lives With Just One Awful Choice I did. Some drugs are fun with little to no consequence, while other, harder drugs completely take over and then theres drugs that fall everywhere in between.... I was a straight A student, Junior in Highschool, was going to prom with my first serious girlfriend in just a few weeks. Everything was going great, except.... I couldnt get any pot at all in the neighborhood I just moved to. After a few days without my normal tree smoke, I finally took the recomendation from a "friend" I just made in the new neighborhood, and purchased what narcotic they were selling. Just to try... figure it might hold me over till i get some green. My FIRST thought right after taking that first hit from the pipe was "How much $ could I sell ALL of my stuff for?" I kid you not, one hit, I WAS COMPLETELY DESTROYED It took a little more than 12 yrs to kick my accidental crack habit. No job, No HS Diploma, no family, no friends, no possessions at all and 12 yrs just gone. And looking back... I really had no choice but to be a crackhead. There was no way I could stop, impossible.... No one wants to be a crackhead... it is the devils drug and I feel so bad for anyone who has ever crossed its path, because I promise... they can not make the choice to stop, no matter how bad they want to.

    Working-Upstairs8727 , Pablo Merchán Montes/unsplash Report

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    Always Malfunctioning
    Community Member
    1 week ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    As a recovering addict of 8 and 1/2 years, I honor you for kicking this habit 💕 One day at a time my friend. This is YOUR journey!

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    #7

    A woman sitting on stairs, looking contemplative, suggesting the impact of a wrong choice on her life. Pushed his girlfriend down a flight of stairs in front of almost everyone he knew seconds after she announced to everyone that she was pregnant with his kid.


    I ain't sure if she miscarried or if she just decided not to have that psychos kid, but he spent a few years in prison over it and he ain't welcome anywhere no more.

    She walks with a cane at 30.

    HillInTheDistance , Vitaliy Rigalovsky/unsplash Report

    #8

    Person on phone while driving, illustrating an awful choice that could lead to wrecked lives. Near me there was a serious traffic collision. Several cars and 2 trucks. 3 people died when one truck ploughed into stationary traffic at around 50mph. The crash and resulting fire was so horrific 2 people were only identified by their dead dog on the carriageway (it was microchipped).

    It was on the BBC news and have been documentaries about it.

    The truck driver was on his phone. He was charged and is now in prison.

    Tabby_Tibs , Alexandre Boucher /unsplash Report

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    Snazzy Smurf
    Community Member
    1 week ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Distracted driving is more common than we care to admit. With various technology at our disposal in our vehicles, paying attention to the road becomes secondary.

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    #9

    Red fire alarm on wall, close-up view, a symbol of making one awful choice. Some kid in our senior year of high school pulled the fire alarm every day. He was getting away with it for a while. The school had town officials and the chief of the fire department and police come in and talk about the dangers. The town would send trucks and be without them if there was another emergency. None of that worked. When they offered a reward the kid’s friend’s ratted him out. His family had to pay for all those calls, he was expelled from school and didn’t graduate.

    JediMasterPopCulture , liam ward/unsplash Report

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    Enuya
    Community Member
    1 week ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Good reaction from the authorities. My mum works in a high school and *every year* someone calls for firefighters during The Most Important Exam In The Country. Sometimes it's a fire, sometimes it's a bomb. The idiot(s?) does it so badly that as for now Important Exam was never disrupted but it's annoying af for everyone involved. And yet the authorities never did anything more serious than checking if the call is true

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    #10

    Man in purple sweater focused on computer screen, illustrating a life-altering decision. I'm 49 years old, that context is relevant. When I was in college, a friend of mine started a company with a professor. This company was basically the first social network, I won't list its name here. This was in the early 90s. He offered me a job as employee number 4 or 5. I didn't know what the hell the internet was, let alone understand the concept of a social network. I knew he wasn't going to pay me much. I turned him down.

    Three years later, that company was sold for $190mm. They still only had a few employees. Every employee had equity and every employee made millions by age 25, including several other friends. I was a junior employee at an insurance company when I heard. Gah.

    Several of those people have gone on to very successful careers in technology and private equity. They were all basically set for life because of a quick decision they made at age 21. I've had an excellent career so far, I haven't "destroyed my life"... but I think about this frequently

    hiro111 , ThisisEngineering/unsplash Report

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    #11

    “Stood In The Wrong Place”: 30 Ways People Wrecked Their Lives With Just One Awful Choice Some teenagers got drunk and ran over a gas station employee when he tried to stop them from stealing gas. They dragged him a few km's. The blood stained the roads for weeks. They were all tried as adults and got the maximum sentence of 25 years. I think they were charged for second degree homicide.

    anon , Andi Ikmal/unsplash Report

    #12

    “Stood In The Wrong Place”: 30 Ways People Wrecked Their Lives With Just One Awful Choice One of my childhood bullies joined the military immediately after graduation. Soon after that, he got drunk and dove into shallow waters. He broke his back and is now permanently paralyzed, as well as completely unable to do his dream job. He was always a miserable piece of s**t who always picked on people he deemed less than him, including disabled people. Karma is a raging b***h.

    dybo2001 , LOGAN WEAVER | @LGNWVR /unsplash Report

    #13

    Musician plays cello on stage during an orchestral performance, focused expression, spotlighted in dimly lit setting. Guy on our school band was crazy gifted. Like, full ride music scholarship, guys in the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra basically recruiting him/hiring him/whatever they do out of highschool.

    Got drunk, got stupid, punched a brick wall, and broke most of the bones in his hand. He managed to keep the scholarship because he could also sing, but AFAIK never played an instrument on that level again.

    Sorcatarius , Kael Bloom/unsplash Report

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    DinsdalePiranha
    Community Member
    1 week ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Read about Ben Folds. He broke his hand in a fight standing up to someone bullying his roommate, and had to play a juried drum recital the next day. He lost his scholarship and threw his drum kit in a lake.

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    #14

    Person holding a credit card and smartphone, illustrating impactful financial decision-making. Friend of mine from a wealthy Middle Eastern country/family didn’t quite ruin his life but f****d it up for a while. Was in Canada on a student visa but was working after graduating and had applied for permanent residency. Got rejected, so he took out every credit card he could find and ran them all up because he was leaving the country forever that week. Tells his parents he is coming home and why - mom makes a few phone calls and turns out the kid had screwed up some paperwork, and it was no problem to get it fixed up and approved. That was 15 years ago and he still lives here, but his credit card debt was more than his annual salary and his parents (correctly) told him he was an idiot and to pay it himself. He also lost out on a job opportunity the next year because his credit was such a disaster.

    mrdannyg21 , Getty Images/unsplash Report

    #15

    Casino roulette table with players, chips stacked, highlighting the impact of one awful choice in gambling. Old coworker went to Vegas, felt really good about his odds due to the liquor and ended up betting his entire life savings on roulette and lost. He ended up losing his house, his wife, kids, and from what I've seen he lives in a tiny apartment and works a min wage job.

    Dire-Dog , Ben Iwara/unsplash Report

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    sturmwesen
    Community Member
    1 week ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I once went to a casino because my BF wanted to (he bet a fixed amount, and won and quit). I told him I would bet 20 at the slots and that I know I have issues quitting. Then I bet 25 and he told me I went over my limit. I stopped but I got that addicted feeling and I hated it. I KNOW I am prone to addiction even if the only one I have is smoking. Be careful if you can't set and keep your boundaries.

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    #16

    I ran into a former middle school football teamate at Wal-Mart a couple years ago and he gave me an update on his life.

    In 7th grade he was considered an up and coming prospect locally. He was defensive end, big guy, nice guy overall, didn't do drugs, stayed out of trouble, decent grades.

    In the 90s, for some strange reason "pantsing" was a big thing. I don't know why, but it was hilarious to run behind someone and pull their pants down. It happened a lot in hazing, I myself was pantsed a couple times. It was stupid. But it was really a trending thing.

    Anyways one day while we were running our football cross country run on a long path that circled the school out to the wooded area, we ran by a couple girls from the track team sharing the path.

    A different player dares the lineman to pants one of the girls. The moron does. He reacted so quickly I couldn't even tell him not to. It was seconds. Well this girl was the daughter of a lawyer. As he ran away laughing she was screaming at the top of her lungs that she was touched. I remember the police showing up and handcuffing him and I thought to myself, wow why are the police here. It didn't occur to me at that age what was happening at all I thought it was a prank that she just didn't like. He was arrested for sexual assault, convicted, and spent the rest of his teenage years in juvy.

    When I bumped into him at Wal Mart he was picking up shopping carts. I had forgot all about him and that whole situation. He started to tell me that after juvy he was marked for life, a registered sex offender, he couldn't get into college, he couldn't find work. He lived in public housing and Wal Mart was his first job but he had to lie on his application. He begged me not to mention his past to anyone there because he was about to commit suicide before he landed this job.

    He said that every day he goes to sleep and remembers that prank and every night he considers putting a gun to his head for it. That shit hit me so deep. Thousands of pants were pulled down that school year and this dude picked the absolute worst person to target for a cheap laugh.

    After he was arrested I remember all the pantsing stopped instantly. And the kids moved on to hitting people in the chest and yelling "open chest'.

    [deleted] Report

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    Sue User
    Community Member
    1 week ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    This is why I disagree with how the sex registry works. There is no difference between " i was a minor and had sex with my gilfriend who was also a minor" and " i kidnap little kids and have my way with them for years".

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    #17

    “Stood In The Wrong Place”: 30 Ways People Wrecked Their Lives With Just One Awful Choice Me! I didn't believe my mom she said she'd kick me out at 18, so I never bothered to get a part time job to save money. My 18th birthday came around, and I said "nope" to her when she asked if I'd gotten a job or had living arrangements figured out. The next day, I came home from a friend's place to a laundry basket of clothing at the door. She drove me to a homeless shelter and never let me come back home.

    AkKik-Maujaq , Nathan Dumlao/unsplash Report

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    Mike F
    Community Member
    1 week ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    That's gonna be a fun conversation when it's time for her to go to a nursing home.

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    #18

    Person in a wheelchair near a window, symbolizing the impact of wrong life choices. I had a classmate who tried to OD to end his life. He survived. He was in a coma for like a year, then when he woke up he couldn't talk or even remember who he was. He's getting better slowly but he's now mentally disabled. Just so brutal. He's only 22. I know the brain is an amazing thing, so hopefully he'll get to some sort of normal eventually, but he's never going to be the same.

    now_you_own_me , Getty Images/unsplash Report

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    Snazzy Smurf
    Community Member
    1 week ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    This is heartbreaking. Sadly, his life ended in a sense, but not the way he intended.

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    #19

    Blurry car speeding down a forest road, illustrating a bad decision at the wrong place. My brother got into the car with his friend, whom he knew had drank too much. He quite literally ruined/ended his life. I'm not looking for attention or condolences, but just remember that it's not just being the drunk driver that you have to think about.

    AlwaysNipping , Maxim Hopman/unsplash Report

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    BannedFromABoatShow
    Community Member
    1 week ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    The drunk driver always survives. It’s the people they hit who die, get maimed, or end up with a steel spine and femur like my cousin and the drunk got probation for it.

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    #20

    Construction worker in a safety vest climbing a ladder indoors, illustrating a risky choice in a work environment. He didn't properly secure a ladder on a building site. He then fell off said ladder and fractured three vertebrae. Lucky enough not to be paralysed, but he spent nearly 2 months in hospital and then three months in a body cast from his armpits to his arsehole. His missus took this opportunity to leave him for a yuppie scumbag, taking his kids with her. He's been battling with depression and chronic pain for over a decade since then.

    seefith , Getty Images/unsplash Report

    #21

    Man using a white cane walks confidently outside, representing life choices and personal journey. My dad once saw a patient who was a seemingly normal, well-adjusted family man in his early 40s with no major health issues and in good physical shape. He was in town for a business trip and had suddenly gone blind. Come to find out, while out with his colleagues, he had tried coke for the first time in his life. It was cut with a something that created a blockage in his optic nerve and now he’s blind forever. This caused him to lose his job. He had a wife and kids and was the sole bread winner.

    eroofio , Natalia Blauth/unsplash Report

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    LaserBrain
    Community Member
    1 week ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    These d***s should be legal, regulated and quality controlled just like aspirin, and available at the corner drugstore. People have an innate desire to get high in some way or at least try it out. His blindness is the fault of the self-righteous people who made up the whole idea of Prohibition and enforced it, and they should be in jail.

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    #22

    "Jim", a kid I went to high school with, gave a bunch of other kids a ride home in his pickup truck. The other kids rode in the bed as he drove each of them home.

    You can already see where this is going, I think.

    Anyway, Jim tried to make a light but he came up way short. Traffic on the opposite side already had a green light. Jim's truck hit a car in the middle of the intersection sending the kids riding in the back flying through the air.

    Two of the kids died from their injuries while one of the other ones got helicoptered to the ICU.

    Making matters worse, the car he hit was driven by "Erin", a girl we went to high school with. All she did was proceed through the intersection when the light turned green. Like, literally nobody blamed her at all. But she was only 16 and had just started driving. But she never signed up to be involved in a crash where people *f*****g died*. The incident sent her over the edge. She had a nervous breakdown and I never saw her again.

    Life wasn't easy for Jim after that. The other students in school were merciless to him. He obviously felt horrible about what happened. But self-flagellation was apparently not enough for the other students. Eventually, Jim had to leave the school because his safety was legit in danger.

    Jim's situation might've been exacerbated by some VERY forgiving parents [of the deceased teens]. One of them said words to the effect of "He's already suffering and he'll suffer even more in the future. I can't bring myself to add to his pain." I don't think the other kids took kindly to the parents just letting it go. But I can't prove that.

    I have no idea what Erin or Jim are up to these days. But I hope they're both better.

    tl;dr- There's no such thing as driving "too safe". The life you save could be a teenager who can't cope with the trauma.

    EDIT- For clarity.

    EponymousTitular Report

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    Bec
    Community Member
    1 week ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    A highschool classmate of mine died messing around while riding in the back of a friend's truck. They were afraid to take him to the hospital because they had been drinking. He was the first from my class to pass away. So all the posts with 'we rode in the back of trucks when we were kids and were fine! ' always bother me.

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    #23

    “Stood In The Wrong Place”: 30 Ways People Wrecked Their Lives With Just One Awful Choice Kid down the street had his best friend over, and his friend, being a 12-13 year old boy was being a total d**k head. Kid picks up a shot gun his brother left lying around in the dining room and aimed at friend. Friend taunted him. Kid pulled the trigger and filled his friend's head full of buck shot.

    Two families instantly devastated. Kid went to jail. I occasionally see the friend when I go out for a walk. He's a grown up now, but is intellectually maybe 4-5 years old, and will be taken care of by family for the rest of his life.

    [Found an article on it.](https://www.kgw.com/article/news/police-id-oregon-city-boy-shot-in-head/283-73534858)

    Yes the friend lived -- though with a lot of brain damage.

    thiscouldbemassive , Curated Lifestyle/unsplash Report

    #24

    “Stood In The Wrong Place”: 30 Ways People Wrecked Their Lives With Just One Awful Choice Guy I knew in uni was inebriated and decided to try and clear a very tall spiked wrought iron fence. He impaled his balls and did not get to keep them.

    raginghappy , Wade Lambert/unsplash Report

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    #25

    Surveillance camera installed in a dimly lit room, focusing on choices impacting lives. I have an acquaintance that was always overconfident, approaching arrogance.
    I could tolerate him as he was charismatic and not far into arrogant territory.

    One day he thought he could keep something he found at work. Cameras everywhere. The owner knew where it was and was able to track the item to him.

    Fired when the investigation showed him carrying it out. 30+ years with the company.

    Sadly it wasn't the first time his ego got him in trouble.

    Rabid_Dingo , Alex Knight/unsplash Report

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    Snazzy Smurf
    Community Member
    1 week ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    His being a thievery is what got him into trouble that time.

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    #26

    Person in handcuffs sitting at a table, representing an awful choice with serious consequences. Friend was having a beer in a tavern. Some guys came in and started messing with my friend. He moved seats twice and then got up to leave when one of the guys threw a punch. My friend threw ONE punch back and the guy he hit landed in the ICU and wasnt expected to live. Friend was sitting in jail waiting just waiting for the guy he punched to either die or recover.

    Turns out the guy he punched recovered. Friend took a reduced charge of aggravated assault...a felony. One punch.

    Noelle305 , Curated Lifestyle/unsplash Report

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    #27

    Person in a hospital bed, connected to a monitor, illustrating consequences of bad choices. The daughter of a friend of my mom. This was quite a few years ago, but "coma drinking" was for whatever insane reason really popular with the youth here. And yes, it is exactly what the name implies, you drink until you black out. She actually did go into a coma and from what I understand, suffered minor brain damage.

    Cleverbird , Alexander Grey/unsplash Report

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    David
    Community Member
    1 week ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I don't know why anyone would TRY to get blackout drunk. Someone I once cared about used to black out when drinking. Not every time but too often. Some highlights... getting 86'd from a bar for a public three way, waking up naked next to a dumpster, getting raped on someone's boat (she likely pursued it at the time), a mutual friend finding her toddler wandering around the street alone because she was passed out. Having to physically restrain her from going naked to the hotel roof where she planned to jump off. Those are all separate instances and there are more. My point is it brought pain and regret and isn't anything to seek out. Ugly business.

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    #28

    “Stood In The Wrong Place”: 30 Ways People Wrecked Their Lives With Just One Awful Choice Guys got drunk in HS, drove off the highway, didn’t make the turn at 90 mph, five dead.

    Healthy_Radish7501 , Charles Postiaux/unsplash Report

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    David
    Community Member
    1 week ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    We lost two of ours our senior year in a similar way. Got drunk, got stupid, crashed. And they were pretty well liked so our whole class was sad / sort of in shock that Friday they were there in school with us and by Monday we all knew they were dead.

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    #29

    “Stood In The Wrong Place”: 30 Ways People Wrecked Their Lives With Just One Awful Choice Had a friend from high school who decided to “opt out” by jumping off the roof at his mom’s house.. he landed in such a way that he survived, but is now paralyzed from the chest down - as in: can’t even breathe for himself and fully reliant on home health aids and his mom, whom he despised and named as the reason he wanted out of life (it’s fair that she was a full blown heroine addict at this point and was a s**t show herself)..

    EndlesslyUnfinished , Getty Images/unsplash Report

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    #30

    “Stood In The Wrong Place”: 30 Ways People Wrecked Their Lives With Just One Awful Choice She decided she didn't want to be a wife and mom anymore after having 4 kids (all under age of 14). Left her family and moved in with a guy on parole for assaulting a young teen. Kids want nothing to do with her. Rest of family and community have had it.

    spiralizerizer , Andrej Lišakov/unsplash Report

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    Earonn -
    Community Member
    1 week ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    it's hard and she definitively handed it poorly. OTOH, people would be much more forgiving if the Dad ran away. I don't doubt that it happens, but I have yet to meet the man who gets shunned by all of his family and the "community" for abandoning his family to f**k his younger girlfriend.

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    #31

    Old friend of mine relapsed and ODed on fentanyl 3 days ago. Opioids have ruined my area. I’ve lost 4 or 5 out of 70 classmates I graduated with 10 years ago, all gone from over dosing.

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    #32

    Guy I knew, married and with two kids. He'd been adopted as a baby and reconnected with his bio family, including his 10yo sister who he was excited to get to know.

    She came to visit him planning to spend a few weeks with his family. Her first day there, he tried to molest her. She got away from him, ran to the bathroom and called 911.

    He lost his job, most of his friends, and (we thought at the time) his wife. She took him back when he got out of prison, though.

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    Snazzy Smurf
    Community Member
    1 week ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Well,.that escalated in a perverse way. Thank goodness she got away from that monster! I wonder if he preyed upon his own kids or did he prefer his baby sister.

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    #33

    Really great friend in high school huffed glue in her bed room one night and died. It was really weird bc no one knew she was doing inhalants, and she didn't fit the glue huffing stereotype: she was extremely social and well liked; extremely smart, athletic, she was the head chair in band in her section, and really into jazz band; but at night, she'd huff f*****g glue.

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    LakotaWolf (she/her)
    Community Member
    1 week ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    There's no "huffing stereotype". Addiction is addiction. Those of us who are addicts aren't always from poor families/the streets/etc. Sometimes we have traumas and stresses that we do not let others see that result in our decision to use substances. I started because it was the only way I could silence the bad thoughts/bad feelings in my brain. I was in my late 30s. I've been clean for 3+ years, but an addict remains an addict. We have to make sure we fight to stay clean.

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    #34

    “Stood In The Wrong Place”: 30 Ways People Wrecked Their Lives With Just One Awful Choice My father…

    Years ago he started a trucking company with his best friend at the time. The HQ of the company was in a neighbor state, a six hours drive or about 40 minute flight. And for some reason, my dad just wouldn’t visit his company. Even with my mother pressing him to actually take care of his business, he would alway say he trusted his friend and since he only did the accounting for the company he only needed the reports his friend would send him. Long story short, his “best friend” scammed him out a million bucks, driving both their company and my family to complete bankruptcy and fucked off to live in some tropical paradise

    [deleted] , Ian Schneider/unsplash Report

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    Earonn -
    Community Member
    1 week ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Who wants to blame someone for trusting their best friend? Was it stupid in hindsight? Sure. But lets blame the c**t who stole the money, not its victim.

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    #35

    “Stood In The Wrong Place”: 30 Ways People Wrecked Their Lives With Just One Awful Choice Worked in Seattle Airport and a coworker decided to take his own life by stealing an airplane, fly it in loops around the Pacific northwest air space while being chased by the airforce untill finally going nose down...

    ----xxxzzzzzzzzz , Daniel Eledut/unsplash Report

    #36

    “Stood In The Wrong Place”: 30 Ways People Wrecked Their Lives With Just One Awful Choice A co-worker of mine who had a very successful management-level job at a big corporation paralyzed themselves from the waist down after trying to climb up a rain pipe on a drunken dare.



    They couldn't work for almost a year, returned in a very junior position, and were basically making minimum wage. Their life savings disappeared in a couple of months despite them being amazing at saving and last I saw them they were made redundant when COVID hit. no idea what their situation is now.

    Cold_Hour , Getty Images/unsplash Report

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    Enuya
    Community Member
    1 week ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    USA? In my country people with disabilities are often prioritized during job hunt as employers have some benefits from hiring them. And I'm pretty sure that it's illegal to fire someone because of their disability (or that you'd win a case trying to prove that it was a discrimination)

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    #37

    Actually I have one of these, but it's a terrible story. It was someone that I knew but not well. He and his wife had a small kid. The wife was driving the kid to care, forgot the kid was in the car and went to work. The kid died in the heat of the car. It was on the news, they showed aerial photos of where car was and stuff.


    Posting this from an alt as I don't want people joining the dots on who that is.

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    Andreea Ghita
    Community Member
    1 week ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Read 'Autopilot' on r/nosleep. It's a heartbreaking dramatization of this case.

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    #38

    Middle management type man where I used to work, came into the office every other day. He was known to be a stand up guy, good family man, even a good boss (as good as it gets when it comes to management at least).

    He got caught having sex with the new hire. Lost his job, his marriage, and his kids stopped talking to him. That was two years ago, last news I got he's living in a studio apparemment with a mattress on the floor, and already spent half his savings on alcohol.

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    #39

    My uncle basically ruined his life by banging a coworker. He was a security guard and got caught banging a nurse at work. He lost his job and got blacklisted or something because no one else would hire him. Now he's eating tramadol everyday in a basic apartment with a dump vehicle. Its sad because he's a good guy actually.

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    Enuya
    Community Member
    1 week ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Was he fired for sex at work or for having a relationship with a coworker? If for the former, fair enough (though I'd reconsider firing if up to this point he was a good employee). If for the latter, then it's stupid - we spend 1/3 of our life or more at work, it's obvious that there will be relationships in a workplace.

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    #40

    I was supporting my ex and our baby. We had borrowed a car from my parents, because we were down to one car. There spare pickup died and they needed their car back (they both worked). My ex said "no." I packed almost all my and my daughter's stuff into the car I was returning and moved in with my parents with the baby. I stopped supporting him and his life went downhill super fast.

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    #41

    A friend's daughter was riding her motorcycle on a backroad she'd lived on for most of her life. She blew through a stop sign going about 90 and t-boned a Jeep. The impact shattered nearly every bone in her body. Last I heard she was wheelchair bound and the doctors still weren't sure if keeping her leg was better than amputation. She's in PT, and probably will be for the rest of her life. Apparently they're optimistic, but she'll never be the same. Plus she had three small kids with a deadbeat, stoner ex.

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    Donald
    Community Member
    1 week ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Riding like the roads are empty is like walking into the African savanna with your body covered in zebra meat. Its only a matter of time before something horrible happens. Ride safe, be proactive and follow traffic laws. Bikes are already dangerous, no need to try and get yourself mangled.

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    #42

    He had just turned 19. Summer after senior year. Dad owns a very lucrative lumber sales and construction company. He got a brand new truck for graduation, and was going to start his job after summer ended with his dad. Train to be a foreman, and basically be set for life on a path to retire extremely comfortably by the age of 55.

    He decided to take a bunch of pills and ran a red light. T-boned a car killing the driver instantly and crippling the passenger for life. He got off with vehicular manslaughter because his dad forked out big money to get the charges lessened. He served 13 years and got out last year. He just walks around the town now because he can't get work, own a license or vehicle.

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    Cee Cee
    Community Member
    1 week ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    So 'justice' can be bought? Good grief what an appalling state if affairs.

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    #43

    Had a choir teacher at my middle school who was accused of inappropriate behavior with a student. Before charges were even made, he took his life that evening after he left school. I remember them playing the dispatch call of himself telling the police where they'll find his body.

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    #44

    Dude I met was 18. Had been drinking. Driving down a rural road. Lost control of his car, flipped it. Killed his passenger, who was his best friend.

    He was charged with a felony DUI and manslaughter. He was really messed up by this and knowing that he killed his friend haunted him. He was also an avid hunter and had to give that up because he was banned from owning firearms as a felon.

    He was in his 30’s when I met him and he was pretty messed up.

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    Alexandra
    Community Member
    1 week ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Yes, well, it sounds heartless, but it's generally known that drinking and driving kills people. So why would he take the risk, especially with his best friend in the car? Let's not forget that he deprived a family of their son, so not hunting is not that big a price to pay.

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    #45

    He cheated over his girlfriend of 7 years. People found out 2 months after their engagement. His family is slowly disowning him.

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    #46

    I once worked as a personal assistant for a person who broke his neck due to diving into snow that was a little too hard.

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    Enuya
    Community Member
    1 week ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Something similar happened to my uncle. Jumped head-first into a lake. Lake was too shallow, ended up paralysed from neck down (it was almost 20 years ago and he regained some of arms movement but he's barely able to eat without help despite it). He was only in his early 30s, not much older than I am now. But what always hits me the hardest is the fact that it wasn't his stupidity - he knew the place, he did it before, what he didn't know was that the ramp he was jumping from was moved 2-3 meters since his last visit there.

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    #47

    “Stood In The Wrong Place”: 30 Ways People Wrecked Their Lives With Just One Awful Choice One of my mom's clients fell for a scam and lost $100,000.

    Orange_Motors , Guillaume Issaly/unsplash Report

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    #49

    Gambling. All their savings, the house, a motorbike. She walked out - eventually - got her life back. Him? Who knows.

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    #50

    “Stood In The Wrong Place”: 30 Ways People Wrecked Their Lives With Just One Awful Choice Had a friend who was a compulsive spender. Buy a $9000 sports motorcycle. Spend $1200 getting it customized. Trade it in 9 months later for $3000 towards another new one. Guy could probably have a house and be ahead on mortgage with all of the money he's spent on stuff he was stupid about.

    Well, one day, he must've put his credit card number into a "Hot Singles In Your Area" scam. Woke up and his bank account had been cleaned out. Needed to move back into his parents' house and declare bankruptcy.

    Also borrowed $1000 from me that I never saw a cent of before he ghosted me. Sad thing about the situation is, even though I did want the money back, I had no intention of disowning his friendship.

    anon , Mohamed hamdi/unsplash Report

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    Fat Harry (Oi / You)
    Community Member
    1 week ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Your bank account can't be cleaned out by putting *credit card* information anywhere. The worst they can do is rack up a credit card bill.

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    #51

    I won’t say ruined but friend in high school who always got better grades than me went to college, joined the kind of frat where there’s never not dried beer on the floor, flunked out of school, briefly married and divorced someone he just met and is now just kind of crazy and alone.

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    #52

    We’ll ask my sister she got arrested for embezzlement and computer fraud in the same day then 12 days later got arrested for domestic violence in another county. She did a really good job of ruining her life because she confessed immediately to the embezzlement. She’s not very bright, I swear. The crimes were bad enough but confessing gives no leverage to plea bargain. Invoke your 5th amendment right to remain silent, request a lawyer, don’t just confess. Then to be out on bail and commit yet another crime I just can’t with her.

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    Briards Are Best
    Community Member
    1 week ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    If she was guilty of the bank fraud and embezzlement then I would applaud her for not clogging up the court system trying to deal or be acquitted. As for offending again, well that's just plain stupid.

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    #53

    Got married to an idiot.

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    Pandemonium
    Community Member
    1 week ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    At least I'm good-lookin' and charming so your friends and family all like me. It's not always important to be, umm, what's the word? Oh yeah. Smart.

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