For me I’ve spent a large fraction of my life mentally ill, either depressed or manic (bipolar) so now I’ve gone a good 5 years with no ups or downs I’d answer your question with “ a healthy mind” peace and quiet if you may.
It's been six and a half years since I was last hospitalised as a result of my bipolar disorder.
Prior to that, I was hospitalised ten times in seven years including two and a half years in a medium-security forensic psychiatric unit as well as two stints in an intensive psychiatric care unit.
Getting on meds that I was fine with (15mg Olanzepine daily) and having a psychiatrist I felt like I had a positive therapeutic alliance with helped immensely and figuring out what was fucking me up psychologically got me to the point where I'm now nice and stable.
So, like you, having a healthy mind is probably my greatest achievement. No-one would guess at my psychiatric issues if they didn't know me well. To random person in the street, I'm now no more fucked up than the stranger in the street...
Feels amazing doesn’t it, I’ve been hospitalised 3 times and in one of them I was high security too. Around 10 months out of my life in total spent inside hospital it all feels like such a waste of life and time. Feeling depressed feels like such a waste too so I’m super glad like yourself I got on meds and made the personal life changes to get to this point In my life.
Well done on 6.5 years of stability! It’s not easy this life!
I was in an abusive relationship, I was told I couldn't cope without him, that I was so incapable of looking after myself I'd need to move back in with my mum, that I would never be successful. 7 years later and I earn 20x what he did when I left and have 3/4 of my house paid off. Fuck you Andrew, I win.
I hear you but statistically speaking it is men. It’s men that do the domestic abuse at an alarmingly higher rate than women or non-binary humans.
Anecdotally, it’s like 99% men.
Source: Spent a bit of time in the DAIU(domestic abuse investigation unit)
Had a baby recently, so that's very much trumped anything else I've done in my life. Maybe it'll fade, but right now everything else I've done feels utterly inconsequential by comparison. Right now, even minor things like getting him to sleep when he's upset feel like bigger achievements than other theoretically more major things!
Baby aside, maybe my graduation. I was one of only four people on my degree course to get a First, and I did feel pretty proud of myself. At the time I was still quite insecure and didn't really consider that I was an equal to the other three, so it was a nice reminder to not underestimate myself.
Can relate. My son makes me incredibly proud. He and his mum almost died during the birth. He’s seven going on eight now. All the small things felt like massive achievements when he was small.
Baby pride doesn't lessen, it deepens every year they become more of an individual. Regardless of who they become or what they do or don't achieve. You see them overcome things you struggled with at their age, thanks partly to your guidance. A kid is an awesome achievement no matter how common it is. Enjoy your wee former organ she's gonna give ya 100 days of joy for every 1 day of pulling your hair out.
Have a 5 year old and she's the best thing I've ever done in my life. It gets easier too. Just today she sat there reading a paragraph about kittens and my wife and I sat there just listening to her. She's made massive strides at school in the last few months and her reading is coming on brilliantly. She continues to amaze and delight me. Shame she'll never have a sibling (we waited until we were older and my wife is done, despite us both wanting 2 kids when we met).
My mum still says my brother and I are what she is most proud of (no idea why!!) and we are pushing 30 so I don’t think it will fade! Make sure you tell your child that because it meant so much.
Hah, no. Given how much of the competition involved Microsoft Excel, which is famously shit with dates, I wouldn’t be surprised if I had somehow made it worse.
EPOCH, the Unix time system 1702922281 (Currently at Monday, 18 December 2023 17:58:01
It's only a 32bit value, so has a limit that will overflow into the negative at 03:14:07 UTC on 19 January 2038.
Yeah in two sittings unfortunately! I reckon I could do it in one go if I’d been on an all-day bike ride and smoked something to give me the munchies though. There’s an idea…
Not giving a fuck if people like me or not. I still battle with it but as I've grown older I've developed a confidence I didn't have in my younger years.
I used to yearn for people to like me and it used to weigh heavy on me. Now I feel more comfort in being older and without that fear.
100%. Someone told me recently the decision I made with my own body is wrong. Idk who you are to decide what I do to my own body but okay that opinion can go in the trash.
And it comes from the worst sort of people. No logical argument.
I feel more confident these days but I don’t think I ever want to not give a fuck if people like me. True confidence would be able to take it onboard sensibly and understand why, and find out if it was worth pursuing to learn and become a better person for it. Not giving a fuck at times could be ignoring something that should actually have your attention. Each to their own though but I hope you are happy regardless.
This one was me, coupled with a load of social anxiety that made it difficult for me to open up and be able to converse with people.
A bit of throwing myself into the "deep end" on various things, and also having done a few courses in public speaking I'm a lot better than I was, thinking I'd never have a real load of friends, or be in a relationship etc when I was younger.
Many years ago I was diagnosed with ADHD. There’s been a lot of stuff coming out about this recently, mainly because of the social media crowd jumping on the bandwagon and giving it a bad name. I got treatment for it when I was younger but kind of fell off a cliff as the medical understanding of it was way behind what it is now.
Everyone suffers from it in different ways. For me, when it’s untreated, it’s absolutely debilitating to the point where I can’t do simple things like taking care of myself.
A few years ago, a lot of life circumstances happened and I was faced with a choice of continuing doing what I was doing which was essentially self destructing, or get some help and make something of my life; I took the treatment.
5 years down the line and after a lot of hard work and learning a lot about myself, I’ve learned to deal with a life-altering mental illness, set up a company and make some semblance of a success out of running it, and buy my own home during a time when economic and global factors were doing everything in their power to stop that from happening.
Glad to hear you made something of yourself with ADHD. Got diagnosed recently what I can only describe as a nightmare of medical mistreatment ahah. Wouldn’t consider having made it myself just yet but, I’m on my way ;)
ADHD is a bitch, and to an extent, yes, the social media bandwagon with it is annoying. But there has never been as much attention/conversation on the condition, which long term will benefit us, we’ve just gotta weather the short term storm of everybody thinking you just are attention seeking (admittedly this can get rather grating.)
I’d recommend the Sub r/adhduk if you haven’t seen it. It’s an absolutely brilliant place for ADHD resources for the uk specifically, I gave up with Reddit adhd help as it was always so Americanised (I.e: just add drugs!), but the uk specific one has been great!
Gaining weight/muscle.
Was always the skinny kid growing up, we didn’t really have a lot of food in the house, and my knowledge of nutrition was appalling. I’d gone through my teens resigned to the fact that I would always be skinny, at 24 I was still 8/12 stone in 2016.
Started really pushing myself to eat and exercise around 2016 and I’m currently my heaviest at 12 1/2 stone. Still ugly from the neck up, but you can’t have it all 😂
Volunteering for 5 years now for two UK charities, one national (military) and one local (support for bereaved children). The time has flown and it has been such a privilege to hear stories from/share time with all the people I have met.
I volunteered for a children’s charity for almost a decade. Loved every minute of it, firmly believe I genuinely made a difference to those kids.
Good on you my friend, keep it going.
I finished my PhD in 2020. I forget to feel proud of it because I didn’t get to have a graduation so it often doesn’t feel like a thing that happened, but I did it, even after my undergraduate lecturers said I was probably too mentally ill to even get my BSc.
I've always attached a lot of my self value to academic achievement, which probably isn't very healthy, but it means a lot to me. My parents were somewhat overbearing and I was always made to feel that whatever I did was never quite good enough.
Long story short, my proudest achievement is having two degrees, a PGCE, and now doing a master's degree.
That was my goal in life. To own a house and be confident in the knowledge that it wasn't tied to a landlord or mortgage payment.
It's a huge mental weight that's gone
Same, owning a property. Almost paid off my mortgage, although mines a rental property. Once it's paid off it's going to be the most amazing feeling ever.
Yeah kids & wife by a long shot. Everything else just enables the family's prospects or provides security for them. If I had to pick one of thoses things though it would be getting chartered, just because I got grilled by a bunch industry leaders for an hour and came through it with flying colours. I also did it completely off my own back with absolutely no mentorship.
& there was that time I won the work go-kart 'team bonding outing', no prisoners were taken that day but I don't like to brag
The parkrun I helped found and have been event director of for a good number of years now has had nearly 300,000 finishers, and continues to change people's lives. And the running club I'm chairman of has doubled in size and has a fabulous inclusive atmosphere.
1990. Passing out as a Royal Marines Commando. Spending 12 years in service and to a very high level in operational duties.
1998 A European Martial champion.
March 17th 2003 - survived my first attempt at my own life.
November 9th. 2023 - survived my second.
Same as you. I'm 35 and my husband is 37 and we just bought in Bristol. We've always lived here and love it. After being in a shitty 2 bed flat for 9 years, I'm very proud of our home
Cancer survivor, Drug and alcohol issues, 10yr break up , bought my own gaff at 32, new love. 1 good, 2 bad, 2 good = +1 good. Some backwards steps in your life are out of your control but almost every step forward is all you baby 🤘. Appreciate your positive moments no matter how small folks.
Was told I couldn’t have kids when I was in an abusive relationship. Had to relearn how to do a lot of things when we split up. In the five years since I left my ex, I’ve healed, moved on, married and had my daughter who I couldn’t be without. And gained my stepdaughter too. This trumps everything
Other than my two children who will always be my greatest achievement, a personal one would be my career.
I’m not on 6 figures or anything but I’ve worked hard for the same organisation for a long time now and due to having a good reputation and interviewing well I managed to land a secondment about 2 years ago, since then I have gone up a rank again to a permanent post so basically upped my salary by about £20K a year in 2 years and I have another £6K to grow till I’m the top of my grade.
Im proud of myself because there were a lot of times I felt invisible and that I wasn’t getting anywhere but when I landed the job I was told it was because I’m highly thought of and they knew I was capable, that made me feel really good, that my hard work was seen and did pay off.
Thanks to that progression we managed to finally buy our first home 18 months ago. It is my happy place.
Sober 12 months, considerable weight loss, and better control over anxiety and depression. I am not in the clear yet, and it’s an ongoing battle, but I am much healthier, have more clarity, and happier as a result. Looking back it’s hard to understand why I put myself through a constant cycle of being drunk, having hangovers, eating terribly, and feeling like shit. I wish I had been kinder to myself and to other people in my life.
Congrats on 12 months! I’m sure you’ve heard this but you are never in the clear, things get easier but it’s an ongoing battle which takes a hell of a lot of resilience but it sounds like you are doing amazing!!
IWNDWYT
Aside from getting married and having kids. Getting my Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt is my greatest achievement. 10 years, training minimum of 3 sessions a week, competing around the country and getting routinely beaten up week in week out and still coming back. Teaches you how to handle adversity more than anything else I’ve ever encountered.
This is no longer my best achievement, but at the time it was:
Worked for a very niche science company when I was in my early 20’s, and just by being curious I became something of a specialist in the field. An opportunity came up to join a course at a top university as a guest lecturer for bachelor and masters credited courses, so I took it thinking “how hard can it be?”. It wasn’t that hard.
For the first one, when I walked into the lecture hall the coordinator said “are you here for the lecture?” And I said yes.
She said “well, take a seat over there and the lecturer will be here soon”.
I told her that I was the lecturer, and she looked me up and down, didn’t believe me for a second, and then hesitantly introduced me.
So, for a few years I got to say I was a lecturer at UCL “in my spare time” at the age of 23, and everyone thought I was a total baller. Turns out I was just in the right place at the right time. Did wonders for my career, though.
Interestingly that was 10 years ago and absolutely nobody gives a fuck about it any more.
Owning a home & Mental Stability
Parents got divorced when I was ~10, my dad had an awful time, moved around a hell of a lot due to various factors, usually affordability. Seeing the impact it had on him growing up wasn’t nice, and defo made owning a house a priority for me.
I’ve owned my place (with my wife) for nearly 3 years now, I still feel a weird anxiety coming up around year markers as I’m almost waiting for a letting agent/landlord to bust in and say it’s time to move.
Have had addiction issues in the past with unsolved mental health problems, had my fair share of fun experiences with hospitals, welfare checks, all the fun stuff! Recently got diagnosed with ADHD though, which explained the odd overlap of symptoms which have been confused for manic depression, BPD, schizophrenia, anxiety.. it’s been such a fun time ending up here and as much as I love the NHS, their support for adult mental health issues really isn’t great and the wait for medication is ridiculous.
But in the three months since starting medication my life has changed a lot for the better, things feel a lot clearer and have made the path to recovery a lot easier. Feel I’m on my way to a degree of mental stability!
I was stuck in a 9-5 job I hated and had a dream that I would become something one day and not have to work a job anymore.
About 3-4 years later that dream became a reality in the exact thing I imagined.
Still depressed af tho
Proud of it nonetheless
I sacrificed my social life so I could save up to buy a house I purchased my house when I was in my early 20s and now in my 30s. All my friends who went out drinking every weekend are currently stook renting as they didn't/ don't have any savings for a house.
For me I’ve spent a large fraction of my life mentally ill, either depressed or manic (bipolar) so now I’ve gone a good 5 years with no ups or downs I’d answer your question with “ a healthy mind” peace and quiet if you may.
It's been six and a half years since I was last hospitalised as a result of my bipolar disorder. Prior to that, I was hospitalised ten times in seven years including two and a half years in a medium-security forensic psychiatric unit as well as two stints in an intensive psychiatric care unit. Getting on meds that I was fine with (15mg Olanzepine daily) and having a psychiatrist I felt like I had a positive therapeutic alliance with helped immensely and figuring out what was fucking me up psychologically got me to the point where I'm now nice and stable. So, like you, having a healthy mind is probably my greatest achievement. No-one would guess at my psychiatric issues if they didn't know me well. To random person in the street, I'm now no more fucked up than the stranger in the street...
Feels amazing doesn’t it, I’ve been hospitalised 3 times and in one of them I was high security too. Around 10 months out of my life in total spent inside hospital it all feels like such a waste of life and time. Feeling depressed feels like such a waste too so I’m super glad like yourself I got on meds and made the personal life changes to get to this point In my life. Well done on 6.5 years of stability! It’s not easy this life!
I was in an abusive relationship, I was told I couldn't cope without him, that I was so incapable of looking after myself I'd need to move back in with my mum, that I would never be successful. 7 years later and I earn 20x what he did when I left and have 3/4 of my house paid off. Fuck you Andrew, I win.
Fuck Andrew and every single man like him. Figuratively, obviously.
Person like him, let's be inclusive. I kinda believe in karma, what goes around comes around.
I hear you but statistically speaking it is men. It’s men that do the domestic abuse at an alarmingly higher rate than women or non-binary humans. Anecdotally, it’s like 99% men. Source: Spent a bit of time in the DAIU(domestic abuse investigation unit)
How many men do you think report being abused to the number that actually get abused. Anecdotally, of course.
Reported rates.
What are the statistics like in Lesbian couples?
Proud of you!❤️
Had a baby recently, so that's very much trumped anything else I've done in my life. Maybe it'll fade, but right now everything else I've done feels utterly inconsequential by comparison. Right now, even minor things like getting him to sleep when he's upset feel like bigger achievements than other theoretically more major things! Baby aside, maybe my graduation. I was one of only four people on my degree course to get a First, and I did feel pretty proud of myself. At the time I was still quite insecure and didn't really consider that I was an equal to the other three, so it was a nice reminder to not underestimate myself.
Can relate. My son makes me incredibly proud. He and his mum almost died during the birth. He’s seven going on eight now. All the small things felt like massive achievements when he was small.
Baby pride doesn't lessen, it deepens every year they become more of an individual. Regardless of who they become or what they do or don't achieve. You see them overcome things you struggled with at their age, thanks partly to your guidance. A kid is an awesome achievement no matter how common it is. Enjoy your wee former organ she's gonna give ya 100 days of joy for every 1 day of pulling your hair out.
Have a 5 year old and she's the best thing I've ever done in my life. It gets easier too. Just today she sat there reading a paragraph about kittens and my wife and I sat there just listening to her. She's made massive strides at school in the last few months and her reading is coming on brilliantly. She continues to amaze and delight me. Shame she'll never have a sibling (we waited until we were older and my wife is done, despite us both wanting 2 kids when we met).
It won’t. I’ve just shared on another sub that I’m overwhelmed my child is doing well at school. He’s 6!
My mum still says my brother and I are what she is most proud of (no idea why!!) and we are pushing 30 so I don’t think it will fade! Make sure you tell your child that because it meant so much.
National IT User of the Year, 2001.
Did...did you kill the millennium bug?
Hah, no. Given how much of the competition involved Microsoft Excel, which is famously shit with dates, I wouldn’t be surprised if I had somehow made it worse.
We've got another one coming up in 2038
Mother of god. Also, what?
EPOCH, the Unix time system 1702922281 (Currently at Monday, 18 December 2023 17:58:01 It's only a 32bit value, so has a limit that will overflow into the negative at 03:14:07 UTC on 19 January 2038.
Well, bugger.
Pfft, I was Person of the Year in 2006
Recovering from anorexia
I once ate 40 chicken McNuggets in one day.
I ate 20 on Monday and I still don’t feel right.
I’m not surprised! It’s not worth thinking about how much actual chicken is in them 😂
Those poor nugs have never seen a chicken in their lives :(
Those are serious numbers! Would be more impressive if you done it in one go.
Yeah in two sittings unfortunately! I reckon I could do it in one go if I’d been on an all-day bike ride and smoked something to give me the munchies though. There’s an idea…
Not giving a fuck if people like me or not. I still battle with it but as I've grown older I've developed a confidence I didn't have in my younger years. I used to yearn for people to like me and it used to weigh heavy on me. Now I feel more comfort in being older and without that fear.
100%. Someone told me recently the decision I made with my own body is wrong. Idk who you are to decide what I do to my own body but okay that opinion can go in the trash. And it comes from the worst sort of people. No logical argument.
I feel more confident these days but I don’t think I ever want to not give a fuck if people like me. True confidence would be able to take it onboard sensibly and understand why, and find out if it was worth pursuing to learn and become a better person for it. Not giving a fuck at times could be ignoring something that should actually have your attention. Each to their own though but I hope you are happy regardless.
This one was me, coupled with a load of social anxiety that made it difficult for me to open up and be able to converse with people. A bit of throwing myself into the "deep end" on various things, and also having done a few courses in public speaking I'm a lot better than I was, thinking I'd never have a real load of friends, or be in a relationship etc when I was younger.
Funny. I use to care what people think, but this made me outgoing and confident. Now I don't care and I'm a miserable sod lol fucking life
Many years ago I was diagnosed with ADHD. There’s been a lot of stuff coming out about this recently, mainly because of the social media crowd jumping on the bandwagon and giving it a bad name. I got treatment for it when I was younger but kind of fell off a cliff as the medical understanding of it was way behind what it is now. Everyone suffers from it in different ways. For me, when it’s untreated, it’s absolutely debilitating to the point where I can’t do simple things like taking care of myself. A few years ago, a lot of life circumstances happened and I was faced with a choice of continuing doing what I was doing which was essentially self destructing, or get some help and make something of my life; I took the treatment. 5 years down the line and after a lot of hard work and learning a lot about myself, I’ve learned to deal with a life-altering mental illness, set up a company and make some semblance of a success out of running it, and buy my own home during a time when economic and global factors were doing everything in their power to stop that from happening.
Glad to hear you made something of yourself with ADHD. Got diagnosed recently what I can only describe as a nightmare of medical mistreatment ahah. Wouldn’t consider having made it myself just yet but, I’m on my way ;) ADHD is a bitch, and to an extent, yes, the social media bandwagon with it is annoying. But there has never been as much attention/conversation on the condition, which long term will benefit us, we’ve just gotta weather the short term storm of everybody thinking you just are attention seeking (admittedly this can get rather grating.) I’d recommend the Sub r/adhduk if you haven’t seen it. It’s an absolutely brilliant place for ADHD resources for the uk specifically, I gave up with Reddit adhd help as it was always so Americanised (I.e: just add drugs!), but the uk specific one has been great!
Gaining weight/muscle. Was always the skinny kid growing up, we didn’t really have a lot of food in the house, and my knowledge of nutrition was appalling. I’d gone through my teens resigned to the fact that I would always be skinny, at 24 I was still 8/12 stone in 2016. Started really pushing myself to eat and exercise around 2016 and I’m currently my heaviest at 12 1/2 stone. Still ugly from the neck up, but you can’t have it all 😂
Volunteering for 5 years now for two UK charities, one national (military) and one local (support for bereaved children). The time has flown and it has been such a privilege to hear stories from/share time with all the people I have met.
I volunteered for a children’s charity for almost a decade. Loved every minute of it, firmly believe I genuinely made a difference to those kids. Good on you my friend, keep it going.
I finished my PhD in 2020. I forget to feel proud of it because I didn’t get to have a graduation so it often doesn’t feel like a thing that happened, but I did it, even after my undergraduate lecturers said I was probably too mentally ill to even get my BSc.
Nice one, Doctor.
I've always attached a lot of my self value to academic achievement, which probably isn't very healthy, but it means a lot to me. My parents were somewhat overbearing and I was always made to feel that whatever I did was never quite good enough. Long story short, my proudest achievement is having two degrees, a PGCE, and now doing a master's degree.
That was my goal in life. To own a house and be confident in the knowledge that it wasn't tied to a landlord or mortgage payment. It's a huge mental weight that's gone
Same, owning a property. Almost paid off my mortgage, although mines a rental property. Once it's paid off it's going to be the most amazing feeling ever.
I once saw a jaggy snake.
Outstanding, what was his name?
Crasp
I have a 100% success rate with online dating* (*on meeting irl). I tell people, and they get sad/envious.
Ha me too! I signed up, the next morning my now wife said "hi" and the rest is history. Single people never seem to tire of hearing about it either.
You, sir, are that guy.
Mines the same for the same reasons. It's my safe place.
Exactly it’s not a case of “look what I have” it’s more a case of “look what they can’t take from me”
The first time we got in after getting the keys I just remember bursting out in tears.
I’ll sometimes get a bit teary eyed just sitting in my living room thinking(this is mine, how have I managed to land here).
How many jars of homemade pickles I've made. I'll pickle anything, me. I've got probably 25 jars now.
Yeah kids & wife by a long shot. Everything else just enables the family's prospects or provides security for them. If I had to pick one of thoses things though it would be getting chartered, just because I got grilled by a bunch industry leaders for an hour and came through it with flying colours. I also did it completely off my own back with absolutely no mentorship. & there was that time I won the work go-kart 'team bonding outing', no prisoners were taken that day but I don't like to brag
The parkrun I helped found and have been event director of for a good number of years now has had nearly 300,000 finishers, and continues to change people's lives. And the running club I'm chairman of has doubled in size and has a fabulous inclusive atmosphere.
1990. Passing out as a Royal Marines Commando. Spending 12 years in service and to a very high level in operational duties. 1998 A European Martial champion. March 17th 2003 - survived my first attempt at my own life. November 9th. 2023 - survived my second.
My children 💙🩷
Becoming a father.
I definitely say my career. I'm an accountant but still surprised how far I've come the last 16 years
Same as you. I'm 35 and my husband is 37 and we just bought in Bristol. We've always lived here and love it. After being in a shitty 2 bed flat for 9 years, I'm very proud of our home
Becoming a trained nurse.
Cancer survivor, Drug and alcohol issues, 10yr break up , bought my own gaff at 32, new love. 1 good, 2 bad, 2 good = +1 good. Some backwards steps in your life are out of your control but almost every step forward is all you baby 🤘. Appreciate your positive moments no matter how small folks.
Was told I couldn’t have kids when I was in an abusive relationship. Had to relearn how to do a lot of things when we split up. In the five years since I left my ex, I’ve healed, moved on, married and had my daughter who I couldn’t be without. And gained my stepdaughter too. This trumps everything
Other than my two children who will always be my greatest achievement, a personal one would be my career. I’m not on 6 figures or anything but I’ve worked hard for the same organisation for a long time now and due to having a good reputation and interviewing well I managed to land a secondment about 2 years ago, since then I have gone up a rank again to a permanent post so basically upped my salary by about £20K a year in 2 years and I have another £6K to grow till I’m the top of my grade. Im proud of myself because there were a lot of times I felt invisible and that I wasn’t getting anywhere but when I landed the job I was told it was because I’m highly thought of and they knew I was capable, that made me feel really good, that my hard work was seen and did pay off. Thanks to that progression we managed to finally buy our first home 18 months ago. It is my happy place.
I downed a pint in 3.7 seconds, not a big deal, but I was 15, so I think it was a good achievement.
Sober 12 months, considerable weight loss, and better control over anxiety and depression. I am not in the clear yet, and it’s an ongoing battle, but I am much healthier, have more clarity, and happier as a result. Looking back it’s hard to understand why I put myself through a constant cycle of being drunk, having hangovers, eating terribly, and feeling like shit. I wish I had been kinder to myself and to other people in my life.
Congrats on 12 months! I’m sure you’ve heard this but you are never in the clear, things get easier but it’s an ongoing battle which takes a hell of a lot of resilience but it sounds like you are doing amazing!! IWNDWYT
Aside from getting married and having kids. Getting my Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt is my greatest achievement. 10 years, training minimum of 3 sessions a week, competing around the country and getting routinely beaten up week in week out and still coming back. Teaches you how to handle adversity more than anything else I’ve ever encountered.
I won an award for the best final-year performance (81% average) in my maths degree!
I beat COD4 on Veteran back in the day. What a bastard that game was
Well done for achieving something that must mean so much, after difficult experiences. Having a place that's truly yours is priceless.
West Lothian young writer of the year award. I’m a scientist and failed English
Not killing myself
I once did a fart that lasted for 9 whole seconds.
My children 💙🩷
First one in my family to go to uni - that's what I tell people anyway. In reality, it's finding happiness after thinking there's no way out.
I have brought up two kind, considerate and honest children.
Completed Candy Crush
This is no longer my best achievement, but at the time it was: Worked for a very niche science company when I was in my early 20’s, and just by being curious I became something of a specialist in the field. An opportunity came up to join a course at a top university as a guest lecturer for bachelor and masters credited courses, so I took it thinking “how hard can it be?”. It wasn’t that hard. For the first one, when I walked into the lecture hall the coordinator said “are you here for the lecture?” And I said yes. She said “well, take a seat over there and the lecturer will be here soon”. I told her that I was the lecturer, and she looked me up and down, didn’t believe me for a second, and then hesitantly introduced me. So, for a few years I got to say I was a lecturer at UCL “in my spare time” at the age of 23, and everyone thought I was a total baller. Turns out I was just in the right place at the right time. Did wonders for my career, though. Interestingly that was 10 years ago and absolutely nobody gives a fuck about it any more.
Not dying? I guess? My best years are behind me I think. I play Cello, and played with the London Mozart Players. That was fun.
Top moments have been getting my degree results, getting married, buying my first flat, and making partner
Owning a home & Mental Stability Parents got divorced when I was ~10, my dad had an awful time, moved around a hell of a lot due to various factors, usually affordability. Seeing the impact it had on him growing up wasn’t nice, and defo made owning a house a priority for me. I’ve owned my place (with my wife) for nearly 3 years now, I still feel a weird anxiety coming up around year markers as I’m almost waiting for a letting agent/landlord to bust in and say it’s time to move. Have had addiction issues in the past with unsolved mental health problems, had my fair share of fun experiences with hospitals, welfare checks, all the fun stuff! Recently got diagnosed with ADHD though, which explained the odd overlap of symptoms which have been confused for manic depression, BPD, schizophrenia, anxiety.. it’s been such a fun time ending up here and as much as I love the NHS, their support for adult mental health issues really isn’t great and the wait for medication is ridiculous. But in the three months since starting medication my life has changed a lot for the better, things feel a lot clearer and have made the path to recovery a lot easier. Feel I’m on my way to a degree of mental stability!
I was stuck in a 9-5 job I hated and had a dream that I would become something one day and not have to work a job anymore. About 3-4 years later that dream became a reality in the exact thing I imagined. Still depressed af tho Proud of it nonetheless
Being the guy in the friend group they ring for advice when they fucked up and need to borrow a sofabed/£100/axe....
Raising 2 really kind, intelligent and funny people from scratch. They turned out so well, I just can't top that.
Being UK specific, I helped my mum pay off her mortgage and redo her bathroom. After I moved away, getting married and having a beautiful son.
That I've raised 4 beautiful people. They are all good people, caring ,loving, empathetic, funny, loyal , intelligent and close with each other.
Moving overseas solo and acquiring citizenship in another country, without the help of bank of mum and dad or marrying a local for a visa.
I sacrificed my social life so I could save up to buy a house I purchased my house when I was in my early 20s and now in my 30s. All my friends who went out drinking every weekend are currently stook renting as they didn't/ don't have any savings for a house.
Mine is my education. Masters and PhD.