14 Stories of Sudden Realizations That Crushed People’s Realities

Life can take unexpected turns due to a single hidden truth, an unexpected response, or a surprising event. Even though we may think we know our loved ones well, there are often hidden aspects that can surprise us and change our perception of reality.

• When I was around 11, my mom told me that my dad informed her she needed to lose 10 lbs before he would propose. Despite still having rose-colored glasses when it came to my dad, I thought I should ask him directly to get the full story. He confirmed it and laughed as if it was still hilarious. They weren’t good for each other, and it was probably one of the first things I was exposed to that showed me who my dad really was. © h0pper95 / Reddit

• My friend told me she married her husband not for love, but to one day become his widow and inherit his wealth. So, I told her it was okay, considering he was 20 years older, and she could take care of him when he got ill. However, she expressed that she wouldn’t care for him as she hated elderly people. I couldn’t believe what I heard from her own mouth; I was too shocked.
  A few years later, her husband divorced her, and she didn’t get a penny. © MastodonOld1960 / Reddit

• My mom admitted that my parents couldn’t afford to reverse my dad’s vasectomy, and my little brother is a sperm bank kid. I’m the only one, other than my parents, who have any idea. © samladyjam / Reddit

• I’m 37, and my dad calls me, saying, “Can you come over tomorrow? I need to talk to you about something.” I get there, and my parents sit me down, saying, “Fourteen years before you were born, and before we were married, we had a son. He was adopted by a family in Sweden, and he’ll be here in half an hour.” Cue the longest, strangest two hours of my life. © Smart_A**_Dave / Reddit

• My mom told me on her deathbed, three years after my dad passed, that he might not be my biological father. Apparently, they struggled to conceive me, so their doctor advised them to choose a donor, and then he would inseminate my mom. © NiciVac / Reddit

• A few years ago, I was chatting with my cousin, and he ended up telling me that right before my grandpa died, he told my oldest uncle that he had an affair, and the woman ended up having a child. Somewhere in my small hometown, I have a half-uncle my dad and his younger brother know nothing about. © swagpotato** / Reddit

• My mother’s ex (who I considered my “real mother” once upon a time) told me a few years back that she wanted to adopt me after my mother and she broke up. She claimed that my mother and stepmother kept me so they’d get bigger tax returns. The last part could be untrue, but I also know my parents were materialistic and kept up the appearance of being “good parents.” © blinddivine / Reddit

• My brother had his appendix out when he was about 13. 5 or 6 years later, he confessed to me that he made it all up to get out of doing some homework. He made all the right noises at the doctor’s surgery who sent him to hospital, where he fooled them again. After the operation, the surgeon spoke to him and said it was odd because there wasn’t any inflammation. © hudson2_3 / Reddit

• My grandma and her 9 siblings are very close. So when they each got a call saying a family member had died, and they had inherited a large sum of money, they thought it was a scam. Turns out their very strict father had a secret affair and an additional child, Marie.
  Well, Marie, now in her 80s, had passed away, and so had her husband. They had no children. So the closest relatives were my grandma and her siblings. And that’s how 10 people in their 70s and 80s (and I) learned their dad had cheated on their mom, and they had a half-sister they never got to meet. © Individualchaotin / Reddit

• When I was a kid and staying over at a friend’s house, his mother said she needed to speak to me in private. She sat me down and explained that just because I had figured out Santa wasn’t real, I couldn’t continue to go around school spoiling it for all the others.
  That wasn’t me. I hadn’t been doing that, and I still believed in Santa... © CodeExtra9664/ Reddit

• I always knew I was adopted. My parents told me that I came from a family that had already had all of their kids. They lived several towns over. It was a surprise.
  Three years ago, my wife decided to take a DNA test. I figured I would too.
  When the tests came back, we found out I had a first cousin. They had listed a public email. I emailed them, started comparing notes, and wham! I was in for quite a surprise.
  First, I was not born into a traditional family. Instead, my bio mom was single. Second, I was not a late addition. I had four sisters and one brother. I was the baby, but only by a couple of years. Third, almost all of them lived nearby. Finally, nobody knew I was alive!
  My biological mom had passed. She had kept the pregnancy secret from everybody else. Before she died, she had confided in one of my bio sisters that she had a baby a long time ago, and she had put the baby up for adoption. She told nobody else.
  When did my sister tell the rest of the family? They didn’t believe her! So when I finally looked them up, she was like, “See! All those years! I told you so! We have a baby brother!”
  I had no idea what I was getting into when I sent that DNA test off. © ExistentialismFTW / Reddit

• I found out my mother and father were not divorced. He never existed. She found out she was pregnant, bought a wedding ring, changed her name, and told the family that she had gotten married. She made up excuses every time she went to my grandparent’s house as to why her husband couldn’t also be there to meet them. On the 3rd visit, my grandfather told her to never wear that ring in his house again. I’m 53. © Traditional_Jicama72 / Reddit

• My partner of 11 years, with two kids from a previous marriage, came out as a lesbian. Yes, I know of the term “straight spouse.” It rocked my world. © InterestingPotato315 / Reddit

• My dad told me that he wasn’t laid off from his job. He just stopped going to work because his ex’s dad was working on the same ship as him. Instead of asking for a transfer or talking to the supervisor, my dad just stopped going.
  We lost our home back in ’05 or ’07, I believe, and he said he was laid off. I was 10 or 11 years old, and only recently did he tell me this. I’m 28 now, and I lost almost all respect for him afterward. © MrTumorI / Reddit

Another eye-opening experience that can profoundly affect us is when we notice something unexpected about our romantic partner that triggers a feeling of discomfort or unease. People in this article have bravely shared their encounters with such moments.