30 People Spill Their Most Intense, Private, And Most Heartbreaking Secrets Anonymously Online

Anonymous confessions have a way of cutting straight through the noise. One Reddit thread asked people to share the secrets they were carrying, and the answers ranged from painful to messy to deeply personal.

Some of the posts are about family, identity, relationships, health, and choices that have been kept hidden for years. A few are heartbreaking, some are shocking, and others are the kind of private truths people usually never say out loud.

Here are the secrets that stood out most, and the stories behind them.

1. "My depression hasn’t actually gotten any better, and if anything, it has gotten worse."

I felt so f*****g guilty any time I’d talk to one of my friends about the way I feel, and I couldn’t take it anymore. So now they all think I’m doing a lot better, and I don’t know what to do with myself.Edit: I should also mention I lost my job at the start of the year, and due to that, I no longer have money or insurance and can’t afford therapy or my prescription anymore. Thanks for all the advice and well wishes.Dmitry Schemelev

2. "I’ve found out my sister has had a baby and not told anyone in my family; she doesn’t know I found out."

The_Don23

3. "I really do care about it that much, but I’m 29 and still a virgin."

I was raised super religious, so dating was out of the question. I started losing my faith when I was 23 (another secret). I feel like I’m so far behind when it comes to dating that I never really found the courage to even ask anyone out.Anthony Tran

4. "I haven’t let a photo of myself be taken in years because I gained a bunch of weight."

So people who haven’t seen me in years still think I’m thin. I’ve actually lost 23 pounds, and I can’t be excited and tell anyone I haven’t seen in a long time because then they’ll know I was fat.i yunmai

5. "My girlfriend of three years just broke up with me right after Thanksgiving."

My parents expected her to come visit for the holidays, but I told them that she is spending Christmas with her family this year.Abhijith P

6. "My parents don’t know I’m gay."

If they found out, I’d end up homeless.Renate Vanaga

7. "I’m trans, and I’m starting HRT on Jan 2."

No one knows this yet except for my husband and three of my close friends.My family is nearly 100% unlikely to be cool about this, and I was looking forward to having one last birthday/Christmas with them where they didn’t know/reject me yet, but I got a virus on my birthday, and now I’m way too sick to get on a plane.So essentially, my last Christmas with a family that loves me got straight-up canceled. I’m super bummed, but way too sick and tired to have a nervous breakdown about it, so I’ve got that going for me at least.Kyle

8. "My family doesn’t know I walked out of my job nearly four weeks ago."

I had two solid interviews that fell through afterward, and I’m still looking. I think I’ll get a callback after the job interview I had today. I’m too embarrassed to tell them because I don’t want any more financial help from them. I’m late on rent and broke. The last time I went to my mom’s house, I stole a couple of rolls of toilet paper…ewanmcgregorisgod

9. "I was sexually assaulted as a high schooler and still blame myself."

Viktorya Sergeeva

10. "The operations manager at my work, who is a c**t to the core (her name is actually Karen, shocker), is under investigation for several incidents that should hopefully get that snake canned."

Also, I was the one in 10th grade who accidentally s**t my pants in class, and those were my boxers in the trash can in the bathroom.Raíssa Letícia

11. "My high school best friend was gay and sleeping with a man who was 15 years older."

He had a wife and four kids and was in the leadership of the local church for most of high school and a while after.Aaron Burden

12. "I am an atheist in Saudi Arabia, and no one knows."

Levi Meir Clancy

It’s a similar family blowup to the AITA case where someone revealed their cousin’s pregnancy secret to her parents.

13. "Well, I suppose I can’t keep it to myself forever, right? And for the record, I know what I’m doing makes me (I should say us) a horrible person."

My high school sweetheart of five years and I broke up back in 2012—a mutual breakup. We were madly in love together and still are madly in love after the breakup. Our relationship is very f*cked, let’s put it that way. We did part ways until about 2017 when we started talking again.However, the difference this time is that she actually got married to someone else during that time. But she and I clicked together so well that we immediately started dating again. Yes, she’s married and has a boyfriend (me). No, her husband is completely unaware. We’re both perfectly aware that what we’re doing is wrong. We’ve both agreed to meet each other in hell when the time comes.Cody Black

14. "I have a chronic illness, and I’m making myself worse by staying in the workforce."

It will not get better. But I get so much of my identity from my career that I just can’t leave it yet. I have a lot of self-judgment, which I would hold against absolutely no one else.Thirdman

15. "I went on a girls' trip last summer with my best friend, and she cheated on her boyfriend."

She immediately regretted it and is still with her boyfriend, but I’ve never told anyone.Dainis Graveris

16. "My daughter’s pet Beta fish, Pinky, is not the original Pinky. In fact, this is Pinky #9."

David Clode

17. "I joke a lot to family and friends, but I’m genuinely worried about my alcohol consumption."

I want to say I’m in like a pre-alcoholic state. I’m in the military, but I enjoyed drinking even before I joined. I drink, on average, either 10-15 beers or 3-4 glasses of straight Fireball (which is about 3/4 of a liter). And that is every single day—seven days a week. Before the night starts to come, I’m always wondering if I have enough alcohol and plan accordingly. I do everything I need to do in my job and personal life (girlfriend, family, etc.). But I like drinking more than I have a desire to stop. And I’m not sure where that’s going to lead me.Dzenina Lukac

18. "I’ve relapsed with my anorexia."

I ate 626 calories today and burned 394.I’m going to see a doctor tomorrow because I’ve convinced everyone I’m tired, bruising easily, and having joint pain because I might have Lyme again, but deep inside, I know it is probably my body struggling to stay alive. Doctors told me if I relapsed as badly as I was, my body probably wouldn’t be able to handle it again. I have a resting heart rate in the low 50s currently, and my heart rate drops as low as 40 randomly during the day. I feel like I’m going to pass out nearly every time I stand up. Burning off those calories tonight, I was literally doubled over, gasping for air, hands on my knees trying not to fall as the ground seemed to keep rushing up to my face, covered in growing black spots.I know I’ve relapsed. I know this could kill me. But it’s not enough for me to overcome the messed-up part of my brain that says, “at least you’ll die thinner.”Christopher Campbell

19. "I have an IUD, and I just found out I am pregnant."

F**k.Marco Verch Professional Photographer

20. "That I’ve been hallucinating. I don’t really know why; I’ve talked to some people over the internet about it, and they said it could be because of my antidepressants, but it started before I began taking them."

If it is my meds, I don’t want to be taken off of them since hallucinations are a sign of overdose. I have an IEP in school and will be starting college soon, something that my family is worried about. The hallucinations are getting worse, and I’m afraid that if I tell a therapist, they’ll tell my family. One of my biggest fears is losing touch with reality. The reason I take a high dose of antidepressants is that my depression was getting worse, and the doctor recommended it. I just want to go back to normal.Jakob Owens

21. "That, even though I’m still quite young, I’ve been in two pretty abusive relationships."

I love my current boyfriend more than words can describe, and I’m so lucky to have him, but I sometimes catch myself falling back into old habits when I’m around him (apologizing way too much for even the smallest things, frequently asking if he’s okay, not eating properly for days because I have phases in which I just feel ugly, flinching when he touches me unexpectedly, etc.). I will tell him eventually because he deserves to know, but I’m just not ready yet, and I want to work on myself first so I’m not too much of a burden to him.Milada Vigerova

22. "That I was a kleptomaniac."

Sometimes I still feel the urge to steal something, but now I can stop myself.Mike Petrucci

23. "I have a bad case of intrusive thoughts."

Ben White

24. "My buddy is planning on leaving his wife."

Mostly because he found out that his kid isn’t actually his, and he suspects the one she’s pregnant with isn’t either.Camylla Battani

25. "That the scars on my arm are from my cat."

I can’t believe that my parents bought the idea that the five parallel white scars are from my cat.Willian Justen de Vasconcellos

26. "My friend’s sexual assault."

She knows what happened to her was wrong, but doesn’t want it to get out and would rather simply go to therapy than also press charges. She doesn’t want it getting out, so I have to keep this dark secret no matter how much I want that a*****e to rot in jail.Liza Summer

27. "When I finish typing this, I’m going to get up and pack my things and leave this mother f**ker."

reyemanivad

28. "That despite being really, really happy and satisfied in my current relationship, I still have feelings for my ex."

The worst part is that my current girlfriend is really awesome, and I love spending time with her, but I’m scared that my feelings for my ex are keeping me from fully committing.Dương Hữu

29. "I’m soon to be homeless."

Nathan Dumlao

30. "I’m in a grad program. I’m pretty close with three people in my cohort."

One of the guys in our little group has been acting weird this semester. I got him to tell me what’s wrong.He told me he has cancer and will most likely die within a year. He asked me not to tell anyone. The other two friends in my group just think he’s going on medical leave and will be returning. They think it’s because he’s depressed since he didn’t specify exactly what was wrong. They have no idea that they may never see him again.I want to tell them, but he asked me not to… I feel awful about it.LOGAN WEAVER | @LGNWVR

Secrets spilled by anonymous people online can be eye-opening, and they truly help us digest the fact that life comes in many layers, and our decisions can always cause an inevitable domino effect that could also affect the lives of people around us. We hope that everything turns out well for most of them here!

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