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For many of us, childhood is a time we remember as happy and carefree—playing outside, causing mischief with friends, and hitting little milestones along the way. And while there certainly were some rough moments, they usually didn’t seem out of the ordinary.
But for these Redditors, childhood wasn’t just scraped knees and bedtime tantrums. They went through truly disturbing experiences without realizing just how messed up they were until adulthood. We’ve gathered some of the most shocking ones below—just a heads-up, they’re not for the faint of heart.
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#1
In fifth grade, we had a guest speaker talking about science. The speaker took a particular interest in me, he asked me if I would like to meet with him after school the next day because I had such great insights. My teacher overheard this and insisted that she be there as well.
The meeting the next day was awkward and he left after a few minutes. I never saw him again.
When I was hella h**h in my twenties, that came back to me and I realized "wait a minute, fifth graders don't have great scientific insights."
Yeah, he wanted to f**k me raw.
Thank you, Mrs Truman, for recognizing this and making sure you were there.
RELATED:
#2
1980, Grade 10, I am walking home from school. Standing at a busy intersection waiting for the light to change, a kid ran by me, against the light and into traffic and gets hit by a car. I was only slightly aware of it happening, I heard the crash then turned my head to see him pinwheeling through the air. He landed perfectly upside down, with a sickening crunch, directly on his head.
I ran over to him where he was facedown in the street, rolled him over and cradled his head in my lap, there was blood pouring out everywhere. I recognized him as a popular Senior who was on several sports teams, but I didn’t know his name. He was looking up at me from these incredibly blue eyes, with a mixture of shock and confusion. As I watched, his eyes went from bright blue to medium blue to dull grey as the life leaked out of him. His lips moved wordlessly, he made a gurgling sound then he went limp.
Sometime later the EMT’s arrived and after quickly searching for a pulse, they announced him dead, and didn’t attempt resuscitation. When they picked him up to put him on a gurney, the back of his head opened like a trapdoor and some brain matter fell out into the pavement. The EMTs gave me some towels to mop up the blood I was covered in, the Cops took my statement and I was sent home.
As I walked through the crosswalk where it happened, I saw the kid’s Adidas sneakers, laces still tied, one pace apart, not even knocked over. When I got home my Mom was initially mad at me for ruining my pants until I explained what happened. We never really spoke of it again, I largely forgot about it. No one got counselling in those days.
1994, 14 years later, my wife and I are watching Star Trek:TNG and there is a scene where Geordi is connecting some cables to Data’s head and when he clicks a button a flap opened on his head…….and I f*****g lost it. I was sobbing uncontrollably and I scared the s**t out of my wife. I needed multiple counselling sessions to handle the emotions surrounding the event that I never dealt with at the time.
Lyone Fein 9 months ago
Random things unlock past traumas. I’m glad OP went to get appropriate help.
#3
My grandparents used to kiss us on our private parts to show how much they love us. My parents was raised in this behaviour too so it was normalized within our family. I also used to do the same to my younger cousins when we were kids to show how much I adore them. Imagine the horror when we I got older and realized what this really is.
I hate my grandparents.
#4
Pretty much 95% of my childhood. First clue, basic training everyone was crying and missing their family... All I could think was no one is hitting me, and I have way less to do here than at home.
Then when my MIL made food for my husband and hugged him I thought that's weird and creepy... Turns out parents do that for their kids, even after they're 8 years old.
And well a lot more.
Lyone Fein 9 months ago
So glad you survived that. Please know you are a worthwhile and lovable person.
#5
The way my father taught me how to "swim" .
He never wanted me! Parents divorced.
He pushed me in the pool and walked away.
My cousin went outside and luckily saved me.
I can't wait to laugh, dance, and p**s on his grave.
I told him as much the last time I saw him.
F**k that guy!
#6
My dad’s friend drove to the house when I was home, told me he had a Nintendo in his car, and invited me to check. I told him no thanks. When my dad got home he said he had no idea who that person was and he didn’t have any friends come by that day. Forgot about it until my dad brought it up a decade later and realized that could have been a lot worse. .
#7
At my local YMCA they would get all of the little girls (5-10) years old and have us gather in a room before swim class. We had to stand in a circle and undress completely and switch into our bathing suits. There was always a man watching us doing it. He was part of the staff but he was not the swim coach. When I look back, it seems like a fever dream.
#8
When I was 6, I saw my grandma fill a syringe with some sort of medication in a foil cap vial. She offered to give me some and said, "It doesn't hurt." Being a 6 year old kid, all I knew was "me no likey scary needles."
Now as an adult, I regularly ask myself what the f**k she was trying to do to me. Mary Ann, you are not missed!
Midoribird Aoi 9 months ago
My first thought was: "Maybe she had diabetes and was trying to be funny." My second thought: "WTF made me think that?"
#9
Mother wasn’t nurturing at all. One time when I was 6, I accidentally slammed my hand in the car door and it locked (I’m old) and I was crying and yelling because it hurt so bad. Mom was mad that I was making noise. Once she went back around and unlocked the door, she said we still needed to get groceries so I should grab some ice from the seafood section and put it on there.
There were multiple times where I’d fall rollerblading, bloody legs and crying, and she’d yell at me to get out of the house and not bring any dirt or blood in there. Never once hugged me after something like that.
It came to light during therapy when my therapist was like yeahhh that’s not super normal, would you yell at a 6 year old instead of helping them when they’re injured? Oof.
My dad is just realizing it now, decades later. He had a major surgery and can’t do much for himself. He said to me “your mother doesn’t have a nurturing bone in her body”……….yes dad, THAT is my entire childhood trauma in one sentence.
SweetCheesySpaghetti 8 months ago
Both my parents were like this. I always got in trouble when I got hurt - never nurtured. I was terrified I'd end up the same way - unable to show compassion to my child. Thankfully, I did not inherit that.
#10
Didn't think twice about it because I didn't find out about it until I was in my 40s. When I was an infant my mom, who was single, would put me to bed in my crib then go out to bars leaving me alone. She claims she always dreaded coming home to find me dead or the apartment on fire or something, but it didn't stop her from doing it repeatedly.
#11
My creepy uncle loved to tickle me until I peed my pants. He did this so many times that I was afraid of him. The problem is that I was punished afterward, because I peed in the chair or sofa I was on! No one ever once said a word to him! This happened from maybe age 4 to 8, by the way. I know other people saw what he was doing but not one adult ever stopped it.
#12
Not sure if it's f****d up, but I didn't realize how strange it was when I was in high school. My school had a dress code, and my freshman English teacher was a stickler for it. He was so concerned about girls trying to conceal spaghetti straps that he would make us take off our jackets/sweaters to show him what's underneath. It didn't occur to me until I was older that we were perfectly covered, why did it matter what we had on underneath?
#13
8 years old having to drive my father across a lake of ice via ice roads because he was too wasted to drive, thought it was awesome at the time but now that I have a kid of my own I would never have her do things like that
17 years old got in a fight with my father again and he threw a chair out the window and ran after me, never ran so fast in my life after that he had a three hour long rage fit inside his apartment until the cops finally showed up and tasered him.
F**k alcohol.
Nimitz 9 months ago
Yup. I remember my dad getting wasted while out with friends somewhere, then he would put me on his lap to drive us home. One time when I was about 7 or 8 I started to cry because we were in a 60km/h zone and he thought it would be fun to go over 140km/h. Then when I begged him to slow down he threw me aside and slammed on the breaks. He told everyone my black eye was from hitting my head while on the swings. Alcoholic boomer parents, f**k all of them
#14
I was 7 or 8 years old when my neighbour (a trusted friend of my parents) invited me over to "have a piece of cake" while his wife was out shopping. I was in his living room waiting for the cake when his wife came home early. He made me hide under the couch and told me to run home while he distracted her because she "hated little kids." I didn't even think about it until years later when my brother told me about how the guy would give him sweets for letting him touch his d**k.
#15
When I was young my brother and I were at the bus stop. We got jumped. One of them was holding me on the ground while the other grabbed the biggest stone he could and was carrying it over to drop on my head. My brother fought them off until one had him in a bear hug from behind, and as I was wearing steel toed boots I ran over and kicked him right in the tailbone as hard as I could. We fought for a short while longer but then everyone left. At the time it was just another day as the ostracized kids.
Now it is: They were going to k**l us but we fought like h**l and got out of it. Adrenaline kicks in even now thinking about it.
Jason Kennith 8 months ago
I knew a guy who said he used to be in a gang in high school. They asked him if he wanted to help them jump someone, and he said no. They brought him to the bathroom, beat him unconscious, then proceeded to stab him multiple times with a punch knife. Poor guy had already been through enough. I hope he's doing better now.
#16
My mom used to make me shower with her boyfriends, i was like 8 .... for a few years she had a steady stream of different men in her life, and she'd had me go take showers with them.... i thought this was normal till i was in my 20s.
#17
Not nearly as bad as a lot of people here, but I had to feed myself nearly everyday starting when I was around 15 or so. Family was well off enough but father didn’t care and stopped providing, mom was too tired all the time from working ridiculous hours saving up for the divorce that was coming. I taught myself how to cook in order to keep my sis and I fed, but for a while I didn’t have a car, only a bike, so it was hard to get groceries home. I ate at fast food restaurants most of the time.
One night when I was about to ride my bike to the fast food restaurant near our house, mom snapped at me with something along the lines of “you can’t just eat out every single night, it’s not healthy!” I asked her who was making dinner that night then… she was so busy all the time she hadn’t even noticed she stopped cooking for my sis and I a couple years ago.
At least now I have a huge passion for cooking, and everyone tells me I’m a pretty solid cook!
Gunný Petersen 8 months ago (edited)
I was 11 when I took over all of the housework alone + cooking for a family of 7 because my home was hell on earth and if not me then who?
#18
My dad kidnapped us when I was in 2nd grade.
We were supposed to be going to visit my grandparents (my dads parents) halfway across the country for a week with our dad. After being there for a couple of weeks (which we of course didn't notice being kids on vacation) we were informed my parents were divorcing, and we would be staying with our dad in our grandparent's basement until it was over.
What we didn't know is that my mom had NO idea he was doing this. He just... didn't bring us back. Then, she got served with divorce papers. The worst part is my older brother and I are technically his step children, and our sisters' half siblings, so he had no legal right to keep us from our mom. Somehow, nothing was done.
We ended up being there for nearly a year while my parents duked it out in court, and my mom eventually won primary custody of all of us and we got to move back home. I didn't find out the whole story until I was an adult!
Robert Cosgrove 8 months ago
Don't downvote him. Just ignore him, don't respond at all. He wants downvotes, give him nothing.
#19
A few years back, my cousin and I were reminiscing about how we lived together when we were 4 in a rough neighborhood and our moms would have us play a game of “who can play on the floor”. It wasn’t until that moment I realized it was because there were gangs in our neighborhood and they wanted to prevent us from getting s**t.
#20
My sibling was highly a***ive in every way. My parent chalked it up to sibling rivalry and I thought it was normal for your older sibling to wish you dead, even to attempt k*****g you because my parent would just brush me off all the time, even when I was 11 and told her my sibling tried to suffocate me with a pillow and then beat me for crying. I was always made out to be the dramatic one or the liar or the sneaky one. I didn't know what Golden Child was, we didn't have that term growing up and if we had, I wouldn't have thought it applied to my older sibling because they were punished for their misdeeds unless it involved a***ing me.
I jokingly started talking about this to two women I was friends with that were siblings and they looked at me like I had grown an extra head.
Brazen 9 months ago
I feel like I could have written this. One of my older brothers used to put his hand over my nose and mouth so I couldn't breathe...all because he said he hated the way I laughed/was happy. He did a lot worse than that, but I'm not going to write it all out. This just makes me incredibly sad to know someone else went through the same thing.
Beth Wheeler 8 months ago
My crazy b***h sister would do that to me after hitting me and making me cry so I feel your pain.
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Joanne Hudson 8 months ago
I don't know what a***ing is. Can someone give me the *** letters pls.
#21
I spent 8 hours a day locked in a dark closet for ~9 months when I was 6. Assumed it was normal punishment.
(It wasn't my parents that did this, but the school they sent me to. My parents did not find out about this until years later).
#22
When I was 11 (1971) a man snuck up behind me while I was playing pinball at my favorite arcade. He was standing real close and kept putting down dimes so I could play more games. He asked me multiple times if I could feel that. I didn't feel anything except that it was strange he was standing so close behind me watching me play. every once in awhile he would press closer and ask again if I could feel that. (No idea at that time what that was supposed to feel as I could not actually feel anything)
After some time I said It was my time to go home and he offered me a ride. As he dropped me off across the street from my house he asked if I wanted to go to disneyland tomorrow and to meet him at the arcade after school.
As a good kid should I told my mom (Single mom 4 kids) about this nice man I met. She showed concern and told me that if I ever see him again to run away and come straight home.
I was in my 30's when I thought about this one day and realized I was super close to being kidnapped by a stranger.
I do wonder why he didn't since he had me in his car but I am thankful that for whatever reason he chickened out.
I hope he never tried again.
Crystalwitch60 9 months ago
He did ! likely had before to once a pervert always one one hopes he’s dead now n rotting in hell !
#23
I thought only rich people had clean houses. because our house was filthy.
StrangeOne 9 months ago (edited)
That's one thing I'm thankful for, and wish I wasn't such a pain in the a**e to my mom for this, she cleaned like the Queen was coming over every week, and everything had to be spotless and put away. Sometimes we were well-off. Sometimes we were living off porridge. My daughter thanked me one day and said she's glad I keep the place clean for us, after watching Hoarders.
#24
Talking in chat rooms like club penguin or FarmVille on Facebook and realizing later I was clearly talking often to adult predators.
StrangeOne 9 months ago
I was suspicious of these sites. Even if kids kept the conversation only about the centralized topic at hand, I felt that was just too much information and too much room to let in the wrong people.
#25
I used to have this creepy uncle who loved tickle fights so much he practically invented them. It was like a game show—“How long can you laugh before you start questioning your life choices?” He'd finish and somehow we would both end up n***d. I just thought he was being goofy. Now that I'm older, I realize.........
#26
Watched the handlebars of a 4 wheeler go through the chest of a rider when it flipped on top of him. I rode my tricycle home and told my mom I saw someone die. She didn’t believe me till the helicopter showed up.
#27
Went on holidays with my dad and fell and broke my arm in the first hour. Dad refused to take me to the hospital all day and only the next day took me to confirm. I had snapped my arm. At the time I thought it was my fault but looking back I realise it was abuse.
Joseph Miller 8 months ago
Holy s**t! I am going to stop reading these. Too depressing. I'm glad that y'all made it out alive and some of you are going to therapy. Hugs!
#28
I had a doctor and a therapist both recommend that I start taking antidepressants and my mom talked me out of me, said that the idea of me taking them was 'scary.' I lived with pretty steady s******l ideation until I started taking anti depressants at age 34.
I also had a Dr diagnose me with ADHD and write a scrip for Adderall. After taking it for a bit, my dad pulled me aside once and said "you may have your mom fooled with this ADD nonsense but you aren't fooling me, we both know you just aren't applying yourself and trying hard enough in school." So I stopped taking the meds cold turkey without telling anyone.
#29
Teacher showed me her breasts. Didn't really register it at the time. It's like my little kid mind just ignored it. Remembered it the other day, I don't know how I feel about it. But does explain some things.
#30
In Junior High during gym I was going to get "pops" (corporal punishment) for "talking during gym class" (I was an easy quiet mark). The 2 coaches made me strip n***d and go in their office with huge plate glass window so every student could see. And beat me with a paddle with 3 hard wacks. This was around 1980 in Texas. Male student/2 Male Coaches. This is f****d up isn't it???
#31
I was definitely being groomed by a teacher in high school, but I was so shy I avoided him. Not because I wasn’t interested, but because I was nervous I would embarrass myself and he wouldn’t like me anymore. Years later, at 42, he married a 22-year-old.
Allen Packard 8 months ago
Gross. How can you be attracted to someone who is young enough to be your daughter?
#32
We used to keep lip gloss in the car for when we visited my dad in jail so that we could kiss the glass and he would kiss where the lip gloss mark was. We called it “jail lipgloss”😬.
#33
I thought it normal to get heavily beat up for not achieving academic expectations set by my parent and that it was a form of discipline.
Bobby McKee 8 months ago
I feel you on this one, my mom once beat me for bringing home a B on the report card.
#34
That my father brought me to the beach with a woman I didn’t know when I was 3. We were living in the middle of Illinois at the time. Turns out he kidnapped me and drove me nearly 2000 miles to his hometown. The woman turned out to be a 16 year old gf of his and he was married to my mom for over a decade at the time, he was 35. Him and mom are still together 24 years later and your guess is as good as mine as to why. My mom was telling me about this and told me the nickname the girl would call me and the whole thing flashed back into my memory.
#35
When I was 12 I stayed the weekend with some salt-of-the-earth, live-off-the-land, friends of my aunt and uncle in eastern Oregon (if you know the region, then enough said). They had many animals and all the animals had a job. The dozen or so cats kept the rodent population under control. There was one cat that apparently wasn't earning its keep and the dad had plans to k**l it. We went out with a rifle and caught it but unsurprisingly the cat freaked out and started clawing and biting and scratching the dad and all that and I watched while he proceeded to beat this cat to death by swinging it by the tail against a tree. I buried it with the son. Seemed like Farm Life at the time but it has found a way of creeping up in my thoughts later in life.
#36
I wasn't diagnosed with autism and adhd until last year, at the age of 53. There were times in my youth when I was yelled at and grounded for not doing homework or paying attention in class, poor performance, etc. Nowadays I'd have been diagnosed and treated by elementary school. I don't hold it against my parents because they couldn't have known, but a couple of my teachers were real d***s about it.
#37
When I was in 2nd grade, I overheard a female classmate talking about having had s*x.
It may have been bullshitting for all I know but at that age people don’t make up s*x stories to look big like how a teenager would. I don’t remember thinking much of it at the time because I didn’t know the implications, but I look back on it now realizing that I heard a 7 year old talking about being molested.
Makes me sick and sad.
SweetCheesySpaghetti 8 months ago
My son (6 at the time) went to summer camp with a kid who constantly talked about having s3x. I had to explain to him that it was likely the kid was just telling lies to seem cool. My husband and I were positive that there was something going on at that child's home, but when it was brought up to camp staff they said they couldn't do anything without actual suspicion, and bragging about s3x was not enough.
#38
I have a sister who was constantly in and out of the hospital and jail. In and out of gangs. Constantly lying and stealing. Has bipolar disorder and would have manic episodes where my mom would tell us to lock ourselves in our rooms and call the police while my mom was working. Police would show up like, “alright where is she?” Because they knew us and visited frequently. One time my mom and sister were arguing in the kitchen and my sister threw a knife that almost hit me by a little bit. I thought this was normal until I got older and visited friends houses where it was constantly calm whenever I visited. Then I was just too embarrassed to bring it up to my childhood friends when I found out it wasn’t actually normal to have these experiences.
#39
We lived overseas ( military). My parents ( mother and stepfather) were having major issues. We lived off base. My stepfather moved on base to barracks which sent my mother into a spiral. She threatened to k**l herself and ended up in the mental health part of the hospital. Which was also on base.
Let’s just say once their marriage fell apart my stepfather didn’t give a s**t about us.
My brother, sister and i lived alone for weeks. We were 16, 14 and 5( I’m the middle),
Nobody checked on us, nobody noticed. We would go to my stepfathers office to get money or have things signed. We visited my mother at the hospital. She told us not to tell anyone because she was afraid we would be taken away.
The only transportation we had was the school bus that took us from our house to our base school. So anything we needed on base had to happen during school hours, meaning skipping school.
Once we got dropped back off at home we could just walk to a local store if we needed something.
Once she got better she filed for divorce and we moved back to the states.
The deadbeat stepdad never once checked on us at the house. I’m SURE the only reason he gave us money is because when we showed up at his job he did not want anyone asking questions.
Peeka_Mimi 8 months ago
If his command had found out about that he would have faced an Article 15 and he should have.
#40
We used to go camping in far north Queensland every year and when mum and her boyfriend would go out in the boat they would chain me to a tree in camp so I wouldn’t run away while they were out….. area is known for large saltwater crocs and we always camped close to the water.
Huddo's sister 9 months ago
OMFG! If you have to chain someone up so they won't run away, you are already screwing them up enough to want to run.
#41
I thought everyone got beat by their babysitters.
Just a boring person 9 months ago
Nope, those are 'creatures who prey on sufferings of the innocents'
#42
My mom would drop me and my sister off at school (age 5 and 3) and not pick us up until the teacher had to call her because it was past closing time and we were the only kids left waiting for their parents to come pick them up. she’d be in a whole different city hanging out with friends, thinking that our teachers would take care of us. my parents were divorced and my mom had full custody, despite neglecting us for the majority of the time.
#43
Was at a boys and girls club, they had a big field behind it so they built this water slide thing. All the kids were allowed to use it (groups at a time) I went there from when I was 6 until maybe 11 or 12. This would have had to happen when I was on the younger side.
I was in my bathing suit and was running from the slide back to the beginning. A big older kid (weirdly I remember him being like the stereotypical neck beard looking guy) steps in front of me and I stop running. It’s just the 2 of us, I don’t see anyone else around. He goes “can I touch that?” And I said “touch what?” And he goes “That” and points in my general direction.
I just looked at him super confused and said “uh, sure?”
He reached down and touched my v****a. Ran his hands between my legs and gripped my v****a through my suit.
He then said “thanks” and ran off. I felt kinda weird about it but kept going on my merry way. Didn’t think twice.
Didn’t hit me until I was in my teens how f****d up that was, and how dangerous that was, and how I definitely should have told someone.
This was 20+ years ago so who knows where he is now!
#44
I didn’t know girls weren’t supposed to have internal exams done at the doctors when you hit puberty, i thought it was just something everyone had to do. Didn’t know it wasn’t until I told my therapist about it in passing.
Apatheist Account2 8 months ago
Brings to mind that disgusting US gymnasts' doctor who thought every injury (knee, back, ankle etc) could be diagnosed with an internal exam.
#45
Recently my husband looked at me and said, “Yeah there’s a lot of social things you clearly missed out on in your childhood and it shows.” This was after a family reunion we’d been at and we’d been joking around and he was telling me stories and such about when he was younger. It hit me pretty hard because I have very few memories of my childhood that have adults in them. Most I do are with my Grandma. I spent most my childhood chasing younger siblings making sure they were safe and having fun. But I mean I was six so where the heck were the adults. Then I remembered my first flight I was deemed to fly without a stewardess assist (I’d been flying solo with a helper since age three). I was 9 and my parents said I was good to go by myself. I flew out of Spokane, Wa (Dad dropped me off) had a 45 min layover in St. Paul, flew into Chicago with 2.5 hour layover with a connecting flight to Milwaukee where I met my mom. There is no way any of my own kids at 9 could’ve actually ended up in Milwaukee with two connecting flights. Plus I spent over three hours in HUGE airports by myself, it was terrifying at nine. I think I don’t have memories of adults because they weren’t there. I was just alone, doing my thing, making pb and Js and ramen to survive while my dad was driving semi and my mom was on benders. How freaking depressing is that?
Xenia Harley 8 months ago
How could the airlines even allow this? MANY people being neglectful here!
#46
My nursery school teachers would tape our mouths shut if we talked without raising our hands. It was the 70’s. Honestly more funny than f****d up.
#47
One day when I was maybe 12 years old, I was home alone, and hanging out down in our finished basement, as I often did. Upstairs, I heard the front door open, and was about to call out to say hi when I heard something that gave me pause. It was my father's voice, followed by an unfamiliar woman's voice. I don't know why, but something about it just felt off to me. I decided to just stay quiet downstairs. They eventually left, and when my father later came home alone, I greeted him as if nothing odd had occurred. A year later, I started to become aware of the problems in my family that would ultimately lead to my parents' rather hostile divorce another four years later. I relatively quickly forgot all about that strange occurrence, and I never told anybody about it.
Fast forward to one day when I was 21. I had just gotten into a massive argument with my father. (Now four years later, we still aren't on speaking terms.) He sent me a rambling wall of text messages detailing all the ways he seemed to think my older brother was the reason for the divorce. I showed the text to my mom and asked for her side of things.
She told me that several years before the divorce —and six years before I was even aware of any problems— they started having their issues. Eventually they started seeing a marriage counselor, and with his help, they decided to try an open relationship. They agreed to seven rules regarding that arrangement, and my mom said that my father broke four or those rules within the first month. One of them was that they would never bring their other sexual partners into our home, and she said he broke that one *while I was home.*
As soon as my mom told me that, I was reminded of that unknown voice I'd heard nine years earlier. It's impossible to say, but I just have this terrible gut feeling about how well those pieces fit together.
#48
I wasn't given affection, really. Then as I got older, I would see friends bring out their childhood photos. I'm talking these kids had ALBUMS. Memorialbilia. Baby books, with their hand and footprints on them. The worse my relationship became with my parents, the more I thought about the fact that they didn't take time to do those things that parents seem to do. One day I asked my mother and her not having an answer sent me into some sort of trauma rage.
#49
I did martial arts as a kid. There was some dude that also did it that was like, in his 30s or 40s. He was special needs and super sweet. Him and I got a long well because he was basically a giant 10-year old. One time, he put his hand on my thigh briefly. Long enough for me to notice, but not for it to really set off any alarms in my 10 year old head. However, after that, my mom had a talk with me about him and him touching me and the other adults seemed to be more, present, whenever he was hanging around us. To my knowledge, he never did anything bad. I like to think it was innocent and he is doing well because he was a really nice dude.
#50
I never saw my parents kiss or embrace in any way. They were married and loved each other until my mother passed and my dad is broken by it. They were so in love, he is still broken years on. I just never saw any visual or auditory affection. It has shaped the way I show love, which is muted and is a problem. I am not open, I try really hard to say it but I am bad at it. I come off as awkward and “forced”. My wife’s family is/was very open and she just does not get it.
The challenges faced by Buzz when trying to get his tattoo resonate with the struggles shared by some Redditors who later realized their childhood experiences were more extraordinary than ordinary skinned knees or temper tantrums. This parallel offers a glimpse into how individuals with different backgrounds often face unique barriers, whether it be in pursuing a dream or recognizing past trauma.
For those interested in how determination can overcome societal barriers, exploring the story of Buzz's meaningful journey might offer insight.
#51
When I was 9 years old, I was hanging out with some friends. It was late and there was a drunk guy walking home. One of my friends said something dumb (I don’t remember what it was). The drunk guy turned around, pulled a gun and pointed it us. He was within 5-10 fret from us. We froze for a second, he put the gun away and walked away. We then laughed about it and continued being kids. This was not in the United States. Now that I think about it, it was incredibly dangerous.
#52
I went into a local bar as an adult for the first time and knew the layout. I remembered it from when I was a kid. Would end up here every day dad picked me up from kindergarten. .
#53
My dad watching p**n in front of me.
I never thought about it too much then one day I was watching something with a bedroom scene and the penny dropped on how weird that was of him.
Feathered Dinosaur 8 months ago
When I was a kid in the 90s I was nosing around and found a stash of pörn magazines and videos my dad had thought well hidden in his closet. I was very curious about s**y stuff back then and of course had to look through them lol. I don't think it harmed me though
#54
I was 7 walking around with an entire football tumor in my abdomen. Check on your kids who don’t like to cuddle or be touched…we might be growing s**t.
#55
When I was in kindergarten/preschool my babysitter (14+ ish) used to have me stick things in her lady pocket. Vivid memories of it. One of them was a blue plastic thermometer from a literal kids toy doctor kit.
#56
Someone at some point told me worm reproduce by being ripped in half. So I spent a worrying amount of my childhood finding and ripping worms in half, thinking I was helping them.
Adults would ask me why I was ripping them in half, I would tell them, but no one, not a single soul, thought to tell me I was actually k*****g them.
When I grew up and asked why no one stopped me all I got were shrugs.
Huddo's sister 9 months ago
Probably thought it was normal little boy behaviour themselves. Slugs and snails and puppy dog tails, that's what little boys are made of.
#57
Thought my grandma was just eccentric growing up as she taught art for 30 years and loved shopping. Every room in her house was filled to the brim with junk to the point you couldn’t sit down. She was a hoarder. Now my parents’ house is getting messy as furniture “flippers” in their retirement and I’m growing concerned.
#58
I was supposed to be in bed. Parents had friends over. I came quietly halfway down the stairs and could see a lady sticking her nose into a pile of white powder on the dining room table. Went back to bed. .
Kalikima 8 months ago
I once found a mirror and a straw in the living room when I was 8. Didn't know what it was for, showed it to my mom who got pissed for no reason I could understand. Turns out when all us kids went to sleep, the adults (mom, moms bf, uncle, his wife, and friends) would all do coke after the kids went to sleep, and someone forgot to clean up afterwards. I spent most of my childhood thinking weed made you crazy cuz they openly smoked that in front of us, turned out my mom and family were all on coke (it was the 80s) and that's what was making everyone insane. I broke up with a nice bf when I was 17 cuz he smoked and it scared the hẹll outta me that he was going to act like them. It wasn't until I was 20 that a good friend I trusted told me it wasn't anything to fear, and got me to try it.
#59
I was 5 years old when a kindergarten teacher (close friend of my mom) kiss me in the mouth and use her tongue to play with mine.
#60
Watched my friends neighbors perform a ritualistic goat sacrifice in their front yard from the back of his dads truck. I will say I thought it was messed up as a kid too but I really think it’s f****d up now seeing as they had their kids with them.
#61
Catholic school beatings. Wasn't Catholic so I feel like they laid it on a little thick.
Crystalwitch60 9 months ago
Catholics are the worst for child abuse including pervert priests to n cruel nuns ! all in the name of religion like ok then nope it’s f**k all to do with religion it’s down to inhuman abusers.
#62
I went to the bathroom on Thanksgiving and saw my uncle in there with his hand in the toilet bowl and a brown stain around his mouth. I laughed at him and thought he was being a goofball like always. It wasn’t until years later that I realized he’d been eating turds someone else in my family had left in there.
Crystalwitch60 9 months ago
🤢🤢🤢🤢freak ! hate that word but sorry it fits perfectly here he so wasn’t right was he
#63
Getting kidnapped from our front yard by two teens who coaxed me and my older brother with video games and a puppy at their house. Was abandoned in a field a few hours later and found by police when we couldn't keep up with walking. Was four years old at that time.
Crystalwitch60 9 months ago
That happened to 2 yr old James bulger 20 odd yrs ago only he wasn’t so lucky his kidnappers where 10-11 awful awful thing to happen so glad you where found safe n alive x
#64
I was in my early teens, with completely unfettered access to the Wild West that was early '00s internet (think "A/S/L?" chat room days). I got into some SHADY s**t online. I was involved in things I wouldn't do *as an adult* but I was a dumb kid.
Xenia Harley 8 months ago
I was teaching in middle school during the 00's and 2010's. I had to talk to teens all the time about not talking to people on the internet and that they could not trust some "teen" guy wanting to meet them at the mall. Kids are very naive sometimes too!
#65
I thought everyone did d***s with the adults in their families.
#66
Ate glue, thought it was frosting.
#67
My gran undermined my mum constantly by giving me snacks and food when I shouldn’t have had them, and asking me not to tell her. Guess who got diagnosed with an eating disorder in their early twenties?
What do you think ?
Gavin Johnson 9 months ago
Some of these are so far out of my frame of reference that I almost can’t comprehend how messed up they are. I can’t begin to imagine how much they must have damaged the individuals involved or how evil the adults must be.
Crystalwitch60 9 months ago
Or me they are all bloody awful n just NO , n I thought my childhood was messed up seems I got away lightly with my father killing my mum when I was 8 mths old n blaming me all my life till I was 46 n found out the truth always hated him just never knew why till then but wow these are messed up big time
Load More Replies...
liam newton-harding 8 months ago
@BP, you might might want to reach out to Big Bear Buchko, that little boy is lashing out, and externalizing a lot of deep seated self-hatred, and fear, especially in an article devoted to childhood trauma. Really, you should extend a hand, and tell the lil’fella it’s gonna be all bright, and he can talk to the police, no matter what his abusive daddy tells him. Seriously, BP, help the scared lil’guy.
Little Bit 8 months ago
I was 11 when my uncle started SA me. He would invite me to sit on his knee and he would touch me in intimate places. When I asked him to stop tickling me he would say, "I'm not tickling you." I had been brought up to basically do as I was told so I knew I would be punished if I didn't do as he asked. He was a well known, well loved and well respected member of the community and although I knew it was wrong I didn't dare speak up for fear of not being believed. To this day none of my family know about this. When I was 16 I got a weekend job in a launderette. One day the boss took me into the back and S assaulted me. I remember it like it was yesterday and it made me feel so filthy and dirty. Again I didn't speak up for fear of not being believed. I have never told anybody about this. When I was 17 I met a guy who treated me like a princess at first, then abused me, beat me, r***d me. Because of what had happened to me in the past I just thought that all men must be like this and it
Little Bit 8 months ago
must be normal so for years I shut up and put up. I was in my mid 20s before I finally met someone who treated me like a human being and not a s*x object.
Load More Replies... Shane S 8 months ago
Church Camp took us to a YMCA-type activity center. The showers were round and a long line of kids filed out though the locker rooms. One man stood full frontal and made eye contact with us as we passed. Thought it was normal as a kid and he was just showering. Looking back, most people probably would have turned their back, ended their shower, or at the very least not make eye contact. Maybe in other places it would not be so awkward but in the Bible Belt of the US, any n*dity is highly s*xualized. I’m convinced he knew what he was doing and it wasn’t innocent.
Julia H 8 months ago
When i was growing up our main meals were boxed mac n cheese or bisquick pancakes...for dinner, because the food was cheap. While it might sound like a treat, it was almost nightly. My mother would always cook herself a steak, because she needed it. She also bought herself summer fruits that we couldn't touch. At the times when we got meat, she got the best part of the chuck steak. While I got the part with bone chips which were not cleaned off. I thought it was normal until adulthood. Kids should always come first. If there's special food, they should get the nutrition.
Ellinor 8 months ago
When I was going on vacations at my father's house (I was about 6/8 years old), I would spend most of the time alone in his apartment while he was working. But hey it was nice, I could eat all the cakes and nutella I wanted and never eat any vegetables, drink only soda, watch TV all day, never bathe or brush my teeth, I had no bedtime and could stay awake all night and play with his Ipad until 2 in the morning... I thought at that time that my father was the coolest and my mother was the worst. And now that I am an adult, I realise that he neglected me and that my mother was the one parenting.
Quarkbeast 8 months ago
I honestly could not follow all of these stories due to the censoring of certain words. Seriously BP, this is making the stories unintelligible and really getting on my nerves.
Rich Black 8 months ago
This to be the WORST bored panda ever. Was it created by some state sponsored troll?
Joanne Hudson 8 months ago
My mom kept our whole family isolated. I saw other kids for the first time when I sent to school. We were never abused or assaulted but sometimes I wonder why not. Saturdays I'd walk 3 miles into town along a highway and alone to see a movie then dad picked me up when it was over because it would be dark. I had to walk at least a mile over a different road with houses only on half of it to get a bus to go into town, then walk across town to wherever I needed to go. I think I have Asbergers because I never interacted with kids or adults. The other part was because I didn't know any better and I was older. Married 5 times to whomever asked. I guess I was lucky.
SkippityBoppityBoo 8 months ago
If you've been through any of the things discussed here? I'll try and add a few helpline links/numbers/site addresses for America and the UK. I'll add others for other countries if I possibly can, as in find out the numbers.
SkippityBoppityBoo 8 months ago
Samaritans UK - 116 123.... NACAP UK (childhood abuse) 0808 801 0331... ChildHelp National Child Abuse Hotline (America) - 800-422-4453.... https://www.childhelphotline.org/how-it-works/ ............
Load More Replies...
Gavin Johnson 9 months ago
Some of these are so far out of my frame of reference that I almost can’t comprehend how messed up they are. I can’t begin to imagine how much they must have damaged the individuals involved or how evil the adults must be.
Crystalwitch60 9 months ago
Or me they are all bloody awful n just NO , n I thought my childhood was messed up seems I got away lightly with my father killing my mum when I was 8 mths old n blaming me all my life till I was 46 n found out the truth always hated him just never knew why till then but wow these are messed up big time
Load More Replies... liam newton-harding 8 months ago
@BP, you might might want to reach out to Big Bear Buchko, that little boy is lashing out, and externalizing a lot of deep seated self-hatred, and fear, especially in an article devoted to childhood trauma. Really, you should extend a hand, and tell the lil’fella it’s gonna be all bright, and he can talk to the police, no matter what his abusive daddy tells him. Seriously, BP, help the scared lil’guy.
Little Bit 8 months ago
I was 11 when my uncle started SA me. He would invite me to sit on his knee and he would touch me in intimate places. When I asked him to stop tickling me he would say, "I'm not tickling you." I had been brought up to basically do as I was told so I knew I would be punished if I didn't do as he asked. He was a well known, well loved and well respected member of the community and although I knew it was wrong I didn't dare speak up for fear of not being believed. To this day none of my family know about this. When I was 16 I got a weekend job in a launderette. One day the boss took me into the back and S assaulted me. I remember it like it was yesterday and it made me feel so filthy and dirty. Again I didn't speak up for fear of not being believed. I have never told anybody about this. When I was 17 I met a guy who treated me like a princess at first, then abused me, beat me, r***d me. Because of what had happened to me in the past I just thought that all men must be like this and it
Little Bit 8 months ago
must be normal so for years I shut up and put up. I was in my mid 20s before I finally met someone who treated me like a human being and not a s*x object.
Load More Replies... Shane S 8 months ago
Church Camp took us to a YMCA-type activity center. The showers were round and a long line of kids filed out though the locker rooms. One man stood full frontal and made eye contact with us as we passed. Thought it was normal as a kid and he was just showering. Looking back, most people probably would have turned their back, ended their shower, or at the very least not make eye contact. Maybe in other places it would not be so awkward but in the Bible Belt of the US, any n*dity is highly s*xualized. I’m convinced he knew what he was doing and it wasn’t innocent.
Julia H 8 months ago
When i was growing up our main meals were boxed mac n cheese or bisquick pancakes...for dinner, because the food was cheap. While it might sound like a treat, it was almost nightly. My mother would always cook herself a steak, because she needed it. She also bought herself summer fruits that we couldn't touch. At the times when we got meat, she got the best part of the chuck steak. While I got the part with bone chips which were not cleaned off. I thought it was normal until adulthood. Kids should always come first. If there's special food, they should get the nutrition.
Ellinor 8 months ago
When I was going on vacations at my father's house (I was about 6/8 years old), I would spend most of the time alone in his apartment while he was working. But hey it was nice, I could eat all the cakes and nutella I wanted and never eat any vegetables, drink only soda, watch TV all day, never bathe or brush my teeth, I had no bedtime and could stay awake all night and play with his Ipad until 2 in the morning... I thought at that time that my father was the coolest and my mother was the worst. And now that I am an adult, I realise that he neglected me and that my mother was the one parenting.
Quarkbeast 8 months ago
I honestly could not follow all of these stories due to the censoring of certain words. Seriously BP, this is making the stories unintelligible and really getting on my nerves.
Rich Black 8 months ago
This to be the WORST bored panda ever. Was it created by some state sponsored troll?
Joanne Hudson 8 months ago
My mom kept our whole family isolated. I saw other kids for the first time when I sent to school. We were never abused or assaulted but sometimes I wonder why not. Saturdays I'd walk 3 miles into town along a highway and alone to see a movie then dad picked me up when it was over because it would be dark. I had to walk at least a mile over a different road with houses only on half of it to get a bus to go into town, then walk across town to wherever I needed to go. I think I have Asbergers because I never interacted with kids or adults. The other part was because I didn't know any better and I was older. Married 5 times to whomever asked. I guess I was lucky.
SkippityBoppityBoo 8 months ago
If you've been through any of the things discussed here? I'll try and add a few helpline links/numbers/site addresses for America and the UK. I'll add others for other countries if I possibly can, as in find out the numbers.
SkippityBoppityBoo 8 months ago
Samaritans UK - 116 123.... NACAP UK (childhood abuse) 0808 801 0331... ChildHelp National Child Abuse Hotline (America) - 800-422-4453.... https://www.childhelphotline.org/how-it-works/ ............
Load More Replies... You May Like People Are Sharing The Things They'd Learned Too Late In Life, And These 51 Ones Are Eye-Opening “Her Scream Has Been Imprinted On My Heart”: 40 Moments That Left Hospital Staff Shaken 50 Times People Had No Clue What Plant They Were Looking At, But The Internet Knew What It Was Right Away (New Pics)
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