Life is brimming with unforeseen twists that can catch us off guard when we least anticipate it. Though numerous surprises inject excitement and spontaneity into our days, occasionally life’s unexpected turns can carry much more profound consequences. We’ve collected 12 true stories revolving around revelations that totally reshaped people’s lives, plunging them into states of astonishment and confusion.
- My girlfriend of 2 years moved a couple of hours away to go to school. We saw each other most weekends. The weekend before Valentine’s Day, we were together, and it was great. The next weekend, on V Day, I go to see her at her parents’ home. I see through the window as I walk up to the house, her and her fiancé are showing her parents an engagement ring. © thecultcanburn / Reddit
- I met my biological dad when I was 23. He invited me and my toddler son to come live with him and his wife, as I was struggling financially. He wanted to put me in his will, but first, they suggested a paternity test “to be sure.” Six weeks later, the results came back that he wasn’t my dad. I got kicked out, became homeless, and dropped my son off with his father, who ended up getting full custody.
Two weeks after that, my biological dad’s wife flipped out and, in her moment of craziness, admitted to swabbing her own cheek and sending it under my name for the paternity test. We’ve since retested, and he’s my father. © Lunatyc84 / Reddit
- I met a man on the internet in a mutual interest group. We conversed for nine years. We finally decided to meet despite the distance. Turns out we are indeed perfect for each other.
I moved to where he lives, we got married, and he died 24 days later. I was still getting wedding cards when the sympathy cards rolled in. He was the love of my life. © KissTheFrogs / Reddit
- I had a best friend growing up who was also my neighbor. Siblings always said that I looked like him, and it would be funny if we did a DNA test. Years go by, and we are both in our late 20s when he, on a whim, does the Ancestry.com DNA swab. Turns out he matches with my family. He’s my half-brother, and dad had to explain a lot that day. © monstergoro87 / Reddit
- When I was in 8th grade, my school was doing something to help students get summer jobs. When I went to the school office, they told me I needed my social, but I hadn’t heard of such a thing. When I got home, I asked my mom why I didn’t have one, and she explained that we were illegal in this country. © marcos4196 / Reddit
- I’m a 911 operator. I was taking a standard call about a guy having a heart attack when I realized it was coming in from my sister-in-law’s number. Turns out it was my brother having a heart attack, and he died. He was my only sibling and my best friend. I never imagined living in a world where I wouldn’t have my older brother with me. © goingwylde683 / Reddit
- Up until I was 9, I thought my step-dad was my real dad. They got a divorce, and I was pretty torn up. I wanted to live with my step-dad, but I couldn’t, and my mom wouldn’t tell me why.
One day, I was going through my mom’s stuff and found a newspaper article for my father’s obituary. He died in a car crash when he was 24, and I was barely 18 months old when it happened. I still, to this day, don’t know why she lied to me about it, and I don’t even know if I should ask. © G0-Kart / Reddit
- I look on Facebook for the first time in a couple of days after a breakup. I see that my old BFF (of about 8–9 years) posted a new profile picture, and it had been some months since I spoke to her. I sent her a message, and her mother replied. She passed away in her sleep in the time I fell out of contact with her. © Unknown user / Reddit
- Happily married for 6 years. One day, my wife’s cat gets sick, and the vet says it has five days to live. Five days later, it dies, and she has a total breakdown.
She was always a little unstable, but this sent her so far over the edge that there was no coming back. She became a different person with a different personality and quickly found a different man. © bestmindgeneration / Reddit
- My older sister used to play our Disney read-along tapes to me every night while guiding me through the words in the books; she taught me to read this way. I didn’t realize until years later that she was using the tapes to cover the sound of our parents fighting downstairs. It saddens me that she never got to have a childhood. © Unknown user / Reddit
- My mother and father were happily married for 23 years. I always felt some amount of pride in their commitment, despite almost all of my friends’ parents being divorced.
About 3 years ago, my mother became depressed. When she started coming off of her medication, she slowly shifted into a dangerous manic state. There were small signs this was happening, but it was pretty late when we acknowledged it.
She spent 6 months in a psychiatric ward, divorced my father, never took medication, and fled the country to avoid hospitalization. © Arbawk / Reddit
- I already had two children when I married my husband. He thought he couldn’t have children, but we decided to try anyway. I was pregnant within three months.
However, halfway through the pregnancy, we learned that she never developed a brain and would die within hours of being born. We also learned that we couldn’t terminate the pregnancy in our state because we found out exactly one day too late. © sophiatheworst / Reddit
The most impactful and surprising turns in the story unfold when our young ones leave us without words by revealing recollections from their “previous lives.” The children in this article have shared chilling memories that genuinely prompt us to question our understanding of reality.