What's the ONE life decision you regret (the most)?

[MrsCobraBubbles]

Thankfully I got out after 2 years. But only after he tried to choke me.

I'm glad you got out. I was stupid and I stayed regardless of what he did to me, I only got the courage to leave when he hurt our son.

 

[mjkacmom]

Same. My biggest regrets come from buying and selling homes. Biggest way to lose money that I know of other than buying triple leveraged ETFs.

We bought my IL’s home in 1997, at first I was against it, but we were living as caretakers in a 300 year old little house, had a one year old and I was pregnant. We paid 170,000 for it, it’s now worth around $450,000.

 

[Hikergirl]

Wish I finished my college education.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

Wish we had used what little money we had as a downpayment on a house instead of having a wedding. So dumb. A wedding is for one day but a house is for a lifetime. And we knew that then. Somehow we lost track, though. I think it was something we thought we were supposed to do, and it was what everyone else was doing and what we thought was expected of us, etc. Ugh!

The thing was that home values where we lived doubled in the those years, and interest rates were up around 10.5% (ours was actually 11.5% because we put down less than 20% and we had to carry PMI). A lot of things would’ve been different, and easier for us in the long term. We love the home we did buy and haven’t moved, but financially it still would’ve been better to have gotten in earlier.

 

[PattnFmly]

I guess if I had to pick just one, I would wish that I kept myself in better physical shape. I am heavy, and out of shape, and it's just so difficult to lose weight now that I'm older. I do work at it sometimes, but would have been better off now if I'd never gained the weight in the first place.

 

[soccerdad72]

We should have jumped on an opportunity to buy the house next door to my MIL's place in Florida - it would have made for a pretty good investment and would have been nice to have a place of our own when we went to visit her.

 

[GrumpySue]

Giving up on my dad when his alcoholism got so bad. I didn’t speak to him for years and when he died suddenly (of alcoholism- surprise surprise) I regretted so much. He wasn’t a nice drunk though and I was young and angry at him. I couldn’t wrap my head around why he wouldn’t quit and took it personally. I don’t think I could have fixed it but I wish I wouldn’t have cut him out of my life for so long.

I have had several experiences like this with family members, they will never change unless they want to. There is nothing you could have done, and staying around probably would have led to more bad experiences than good. I'm sorry for your loss, it's a terrible disease.

 

[TikiTikiFan]

I have had several experiences like this with family members, they will never change unless they want to. There is nothing you could have done, and staying around probably would have led to more bad experiences than good. I'm sorry for your loss, it's a terrible disease.

Thank you for your kind words.

 

[FigmentSpark]

I have many regrets, some of them very big, but every single pain and regret in my life had an outcome I wouldn't give up, because I like how my life has come out. As a person of faith, I found that by "trusting in God" was what gave me the best life.

 

[LoveSpringsteen]

Gosh I have a few. I often second guess myself and worry about past mistakes even though the only thing I can do is learn from them. My Dad is very much like this and I picked up this trait.

My biggest regret is not finishing my bachelor's degree and really, not going to college right after high school. I took classes after I started working full time and only attended for 2 years. My employer, at that time, offered 100% tuition reimbursement and I should have finished my degree!

 

[scoutie]

Not moving out of Illinois. I had suggested it to my husband after a year of living here, but he didn't want to take the BAR exam in a different state. I didn't press the issue and it's one of my biggest life regrets, because now we are stuck here.

 

[flyingdumbo127]

Hugs, Mrs.CobaraBubbles. You are a courageous person!

FigementSpark, ITA. As a human, sure it would be nice to have made a couple bigger different choices than I did. But I am so Blessed and thankful to God through Him to be where I am now.

 

[wilbret]

Career choice should definitely be taken more seriously early on. Really help kids figure out their passion and true desire. Dabble. Experiment. I hope I can help my kids make good choices. Find something you like, but also pays the bills, and is portable! My skill set is so freaking specific, I can’t just move to any city I want. :-(

I started college in one direction and changed mid-way. I often think that was a mistake, but as others stated... if I hadn’t, I wouldn’t be where I am today, with the family I have.

 

[Nox]

I wish I had handled my dad differently in his last years of life. I should have visited him more, for starters. But what really nags at me is that back in 2016, we got in an argument. He was sending me multiple messages on Facebook insulting my husband (who had just lost his job) - he just wouldn't let up. "he needs to get over himself and go flip burgers if that's what it takes." "you can't be arrogant when you're jobless." "you're going to end up on the streets if he doesn't get his act together." It wasn't just one offhand comment, it was constant, and no matter how many times I said, "I know, dad. He's putting in applications. He's trying. He's looking," he wouldn't stop. I think he finally said something to the effect of, "he's never taken care of business like he should," and absolutely infuriated me. So I blocked him. And I left him blocked all the way up until March of this year, when he died.

I wish I'd gotten over myself and unblocked him after I'd cooled off. I could have been messaging him all those years. He was always home because he was disabled, and spent much of his time alone in front of his computer (he didn't do much phone talking, never did, but he liked messaging especially at the end of his life when he was too tired to stay awake long enough to hold a conversation in one shot - messaging gave him flexibility to return to it once he was awake). What I wouldn't give to be able to go back to 2016 and tell myself, you'll regret this when he's gone. Get over it and unblock him. Talk to him, because he won't be around much longer. I lost out on so much being a stubborn j-----s.

 

[BlueStarryHat]

I had the opportunity to go the Fashion Institute of Technology, FIT, for college, but I was only seventeen and terrified of moving to New York by myself. I was going to be a museum curator specializing in historic costume. So I went to a local tech that promised the same thing, but folded a year-and-a-half into my program leaving me with nothing but a lot of student debt. Nothing I could do...luckily I did eventually work as an illustrator and product designer for many years until my mental illness got the best of me, but I always wondered if I could have made a go of it as a curator. I adore museums and I still read everything I can get on historic costume and design. I wish I could go back and shake some sense into that seventeen-year-old kid sometimes.

 

[penn19]

I wish I had gone to college.

 

[ronandannette]

I wish I had handled my dad differently in his last years of life. I should have visited him more, for starters. But what really nags at me is that back in 2016, we got in an argument. He was sending me multiple messages on Facebook insulting my husband (who had just lost his job) - he just wouldn't let up. "he needs to get over himself and go flip burgers if that's what it takes." "you can't be arrogant when you're jobless." "you're going to end up on the streets if he doesn't get his act together." It wasn't just one offhand comment, it was constant, and no matter how many times I said, "I know, dad. He's putting in applications. He's trying. He's looking," he wouldn't stop. I think he finally said something to the effect of, "he's never taken care of business like he should," and absolutely infuriated me. So I blocked him. And I left him blocked all the way up until March of this year, when he died.

I wish I'd gotten over myself and unblocked him after I'd cooled off. I could have been messaging him all those years. He was always home because he was disabled, and spent much of his time alone in front of his computer (he didn't do much phone talking, never did, but he liked messaging especially at the end of his life when he was too tired to stay awake long enough to hold a conversation in one shot - messaging gave him flexibility to return to it once he was awake). What I wouldn't give to be able to go back to 2016 and tell myself, you'll regret this when he's gone. Get over it and unblock him. Talk to him, because he won't be around much longer. I lost out on so much being a stubborn j-----s.

Thanks for posting this. It's really something to think about. Condolences on your loss.

 

[wildride]

Marrying my first husband but not really because I wouldn’t have my wonderful son

I think it would’ve been cherishing my mother who I lost to Alzheimer’s

 

[slpeters]

I wish I had come out earlier. I came out right after college, in the early nineties, so I get why I didn't do it earlier. But I still wish I would have had more faith in the people around me earlier.

 

[Praying Colonel]

April 7, 2018. Weather guy said there might be black ice in the AM. I decided to go to my church's weekly breakfast/bible study, anyway. My car slid on black ice, I suffered a dislocated hip/fractured pelvis/internal bleeding/blood clots/post-op infections. 4 surgeries, 6 weeks in hospital/rehab, 4 months off work, 6 months before I could walk without a walker or cane, still have residual nerve issues.

I'm actually mostly back to normal, and I'm blessed compared to other folks I saw in rehab who had much worse injuries than I did. But I should've just rolled over that morning and gone back to sleep.