Winning a lottery can understandably make significant changes in one’s life; unfortunately, not always for the better.

This redditor told the AITAH community that for them, winning the lottery meant ending a relationship. Upon winning, the OP was excited to share the good news with their girlfriend, but far less excited to learn she wanted roughly three-fourths of the prize. The woman started pressuring her partner to share the money, but they chose to break up instead.

Winning the lottery can bring not only money but chaos, too, into one’s life

Image credits: YuriArcursPeopleimages (not the actual photo)

This redditor decided to break up with their girlfriend after she demanded that they share their winnings

Image credits: Mehaniq41 (not the actual photo)

Image credits: GunJammedUp

Winning the lottery might be followed by changes in life that are not always positive

Image credits: Waldemar (not the actual photo)

Winning the lottery is often associated with all sorts of things that become doable and affordable, be it helping others or building a dream home for yourself. So, overall, people tend to view it as a happy occasion. (I guess, who wouldn’t?) But the OP’s example is far from the only one when after winning the lottery, some things turn sour all of a sudden.

Unfortunately, for quite a few people, winning the lottery didn’t bring the fantasy life they likely hoped for. For instance, for Lara and Roger Griffiths, who won over $2.7 million back in 2005, it eventually led to a divorce. Before going their separate ways, they reportedly used the money to travel the world and buy an expensive barn-converted house, but it ended up burning just five years after the lottery win and significantly draining the family funds.

Back in 1998, Gerald Muswagon won $10 million Canadian dollars only to spend them on expensive cars, a party house, gifts to his friends, and investing into a business that didn’t make it. Eventually, Muswagon had to take a job doing heavy lifting at a friend’s farm in order to support himself financially.

Another $10 million win in Canada just six years later took a similar route, when a single mom, Sharon Tirabassi, reportedly spent all her winnings on cars, designer clothes, trips, and handouts to her loved ones, leading her back to a part-time job and a rented home in less than a decade. She did, however, put some money into trust funds for her kids before spending it all.

Such examples show that receiving a mind-boggling amount of money can encourage some people to make rash or not-so-sensible decisions. That’s why before going on one’s first shopping spree or buying a luxury car, it might be best to sit down and think long and hard about the best way to put that money to use.

It’s important not to make rash decisions when it comes to spending the lottery winnings

Image credits: Alexander Mils (not the actual photo)

The sudden wealth financial advisor Robert Pagliarini explained that obtaining a large sum of money out of the blue can feel somewhat euphoric; that’s because in the very beginning, winners enter what he calls the “the honeymoon stage of sudden wealth”. But dealing with such wealth is a roller coaster ride, where the highs tend to be followed by sudden lows.

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In order to avoid the financial and emotional ups and downs that might follow winning the lottery, the expert pointed out that it’s important not to let the money define who the recipient is as a person or change what they used to enjoy about their life before the win.

“One of the best ways to feel in control of the money rather than be controlled by the money is to get very clear on how much you have, where it is, how much income it will produce, and to develop a strategy for responding to loan requests from friends and family,” Pagliarini suggested.

Even though the OP’s win wasn’t in the millions, it was still an amount that could significantly alter one’s life. Luckily, the redditor seemingly had a plan for what to do with the money, which involved investing in their future and taking care of their family. It didn’t, however, involve giving most of it away to their girlfriend, which was what she was hoping for and what she was criticized for by the online community.

Fellow redditors shared their reactions in the comments, the OP replied to some of them

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