[Serious] Is there a moment in your past, for good or for bad, that you can pin point was the pivotable moment for where and who you are today? If so, what was it and why?

When I was 15, my mother convinced my teacher to forcibly draft me on to the basketball team. This was in a small town, and I was a tall teen; they thought I would be naturally talented and learn to enjoy it. I did not.

On the drive home from our first game (a town several hours away) I broke down in front of my mother and cried. I explained that I hated every aspect my life and everything I was doing. I told her I felt scared that I was losing touch and would hurt myself. I was scared of my stepfather. I was scared of the future. More than anything, I was scared of waking up in the morning. I asked to see a therapist. She laughed in my face, then told me to stop trying to get attention.

I've since worked in a lot of customer service jobs, and I've gotten yelled at and berated aplenty. Those words are the only ones to ever hurt.

That was a rough time. In one of the few moments of my life when I needed someone to sincerely care about me, I felt completely abandoned. It took a part of me away that I'm only really finding again now, so many years later.

In a weird way, she saved my life that night. I realized that I was not around people who had my best interests at heart, but a small part of me wanted to know what it felt like. I didn't want to leave until I could love someone who loved me.

I know you'll never read this mom, but thank you. If you hadn't hurt me like you did, I wouldn't have been able to put down that knife.

/r/AskReddit Thread