30 People Who Turned Their Life Upside Down Share What It Was Really Like

I was 26 years old, divorced, and living in Saudi Arabia (my home country) with extremely religious (cult-like) family. As a woman, you can imagine what an absolute f'king nightmare that was. This was before any of the 'reformations' of dear MBS in the country. The guardian system made it near f'king impossible to break free from an abusive household. I didn't know what to do. I had a good degree. I spoke English like a native. I decided it was time to finally leave this hell hole. So on December 30, 2014, with nothing more than my legal documents, a suitcase, and a carry-on, I crossed the causeway to Bahrain with the help of friends and got on a plane to the United States. It's been over 6 years.

I was numb until I landed on American soil. Once I could breathe the air of freedom, I broke down. I was taken advantage of my first year in this country. I received death threats, hate mail, temper tantrums from my mom that finally culminated in her telling me that I was dead to her and to never contact her again. I couldn't work for a whole year. Even after, it took 8 months to find a job and it paid sh*t. I was homeless. I rented a room from a murderer (he did his time though). Lots of weird sh*t.

Then in the last 2 years my life really began. I found my hobbies. I found myself. I found a new family. My dog and I hike and travel a lot. Then I met the love of my life and he has joined our wonderful little pack. I miss family. I miss certain aspects of my culture. I feel bad for not trying to make more of a change. I feel like a coward sometimes, but I just wanted to live. I didn't want to be a 'hero' or a 'martyr' or a 'dissident'. I literally just wanted the freedom to be able to go out of my house whenever I wanted to without someone interrogating me like some kind of criminal. I wanted to be able to accept a job and not have to have my father give his 'consent' so I can work. I wanted to adopt a dog, go on hikes, travel the world, fall in love. I didn't want to stay in my father's house waiting until a man feels sorry enough for me to add me to his collection of wives. I was 26 and divorced. Women my age in my culture don't get single eligible bachelors. Those are reserved for the 16-21 year-olds.

I walked out on my abusive ex while he was in central booking with a single suitcase and a bunch of cats in carriers, took an uber five hours north, and totally started over. New name, new (claimed) birthday, new hair colour...

It was the most liberating experience of my life and, even though I still suffer residual effects from old injuries, being free of that bastard is a million reasons to be happy.

Four years ago I left my abusive ex husband who would beat, sexually abuse, and keep my kids and I malnourished and dirty. It got so out of hand one night he attempted take his own life While he was in surgery after the attempt (we both went into surgery cause we both got harmed but I got out earlier) I packed up my kids, dogs, cats and we all hopped into a Honda Civic coupe and drove as far as we could. Never looked back. Got a divorce, restraining order, went under a protection program for a few years and now the man is gone. Maybe he finally k*lled himself or maybe he ran off to be horrible to someone else. All I know is I’m writing this from my luxury apartment in the city of my dreams, about to take my healthy and happy kids to daycare, and can smell the sausage sizzling. My kids are still asleep.

In 2019, at barely 80 lbs and with a full blown prescription drug addiction, I decided to stop showing up to a job I had been working for over a decade.

With no plan B I traveled to New Zealand, got sober, then France, got engaged, Italy, Alaska, got married, and then the Maldives.

I'm living in the US and have a quiet & stress free 9-5, run an Etsy shop as a hobby that has been doing pretty well, and have been sober for 1 year and 1 month.

Well....Idk if this counts as "starting a new life" but when I was a young teen my single, disabled mother, me, and my little sister was living in a toxic house with someone while we were down on our luck. I mean the people we stayed with would lock us out constantly then scream at us when we knocked to come in, stalk the bathrooms and try to barge in on us so we had to all go together, and go to sleep at like 7pm and expect it to be silent after that. It was so bad that my mother finally decided she would rather be homeless than have to deal with that toxic place. So, in the middle of the night we slipped the AC out the window and snuck out the window and never looked bad. The 2 years that passed after that weren't much better. We slept in our car and had to bathe at the beach. It was hard working everyday and hiding we were homeless. But we finally got a place last year that we're all so thankful for. For anyone that is in an abusive, toxic household thinking of leaving but too afraid to: do it. It wont be easy at first but stay strong and keep faith, and never give up. Good things will eventually come out of it. Its worth the struggle to have peace, mentally and emotionally.

3 years ago I moved from London, UK to Alberta, Canada.

Best decision of my life.

London is a very lonely city, especially when you're introverted. I never made any real close friends, and it's so insanely expensive that even with a great job I didnt have much money left to go out and enjoy life. And I lived in a small, awful shared apartment where the only space to myself was a probably 20 sq ft room or smaller. It is an amazing city but it didnt work for me.

Since being in Alberta I've made some close friends and met the love of my life. I finally have savings and a realistic prospect of buying a house one day. I live in a huge, 2 bedroom apartment by myself. I live near the rockies so I do a good amount of hiking. I've been tubing and ice skating with friends. Pre covid I started going to a new gym and on the first session had people saying hi, probably could've been friends if covid hadnt hit. Not to mention it's so sunny. The cold is extreme but I will never miss the grey and rain of England.

I moved here with a 2 week airbnb reservation, $5000 to survive off and no real plan, no jobs prospects. Just the knowledge I could book a flight home if needed. Somehow it all ended up working out.

Went on a vacation 4 years ago with supposed friends and s/o. Didn’t know I was bipolar and had DID and went into full blown manic psychosis and had one of my “alters” show up. It wasn’t pretty. I checked myself into a psych ward and got diagnosed with both and I started mental illness program and got on medication. It didn’t matter though and I was still shunned by everyone around me even my husband. so I a separation from my husband, picked myself up, grab 3 suitcases, deleted all my social media and moved to Cali with another (fake) friend without telling anyone other than the people who stood by me through it. Moved out to my own house 3months latter and got me a service dog to help identify potential manic episodes. Been on my meds ever since and I’m proud to say I haven’t had a manic episode in 2 years. The alters are still there but “we’ve” worked it out lol.

Best decision I ever made and would do again if needed.

A year ago me and my partner were addicted to drugs living in a little room, depressed with no motivation so we just up and left. Today we are in our own place in the country with steady jobs and i have never been happier.

3 years ago USA to Japan.

Got a visa through a teaching company but they completely changed plans on me as soon as I arrived. I told them that I was assured before leaving that I'd be living in a particular place, and would not be happy in place B. I politely declined. Took all my money, about 3000, and went about searching for something else.

After blowing almost all my money I eventually met someone amazing who helped me get in the right direction. Eventually I was offered a job after many many applications and interviews, but didn't even have a place to live (was living in a capsule hotel). After securing the job I spent the rest of my money and maxed out my credit card on an apartment. It was a gamble but I never had failure in my mind. I spent the first month sleeping on my clothes until I had enough for a futon, then a bed. That amazing person who helped me and encouraged me to keep searching never stopped either, and is now my beautiful pregnant wife. I don't think I can win the lottery again.

My ex and I packed everything we could in our jeep, plus our dogs, and left Florida for Maine.

It went.... hey, I hate it here, don't you? Let's move far far away. One side trip to visit my parents, and about 35 hours of drive time later, we arrived to coastal Maine.

Shortly after, the ex and I broke up.... and life got really difficult and lonely. I was in the middle of a crisis and culture shock, having moved from Miami to small town Maine. I didn't have a single soul here. I bounced around a few jobs, and some days I would go home and cry on my dogs because I was just so alone. I asked myself daily if this was the right decision.

One day, I decided I didn't want to be sad anymore. I'd gotten over the ex, and got a new job. The job sucked, but there I met my now closest and best girl friends. I started to save a little. I found a nice house with a big yard to rent. I got new furniture.

April will be 6 years I am here, and though I struggled for about a year and doubted my decision..... sometimes hourly.... moving was by far the absolute best thing I could have ever done for myself. I left some toxic family, some less than ideal friends, and a state that I hate.

Now my winters are spent playing in the snow with my dogs, and my summers (pre covid of course) are spent working hard and having fun with my friends. I have a job I love.

I'm glad I stuck to my decision, despite the struggles I had.

I did this a year and a half ago. Best thing I've ever done. Moved from Western New York to Arizona! It was tough at first with trying to get on my feet, and when I did...the pandemic started. But it's easier to do than most people think. I believe most people dont do it because of the "unknown" and scared of change.

For me, I'm happier than I've ever been. I have a really good paying job. The best paying job I've ever had actually. And the first job I've ever had that I enjoy going to. I'm 34 so that's saying something! And to live where I live, views of mountains, beautiful weather....it's just a dream come true.

The shutdown pushed me to have a new life. I lost my job and my savings were only going to last less than 1 month. So I left and took my boyfriend with me. We volunteered on farms in exchange for a room and food.

We worked in Vermont first on this gorgeous 40 acre farm that had sheep, cows, chickens, and bees. Then we decided to drive across the country to Oregon to work on another farm. Then another farm in Arizona. Then my boyfriend proposed and we got married in Las Vegas. Then we both found amazing jobs in Oregon again.

A year ago I was a bartender and working two side jobs to make ends meet. I was barely surviving and I literally worked every day. I worked 50 plus hours and still didn't have a savings or medical insurance. It was exhausting.

Now, I'm working in a field I always wanted to get into. I married an incredible man. I have health insurance, and a freaking savings account. Also, since we didn't have many expenses, we used our stimulus checks to invest and we turned those checks into $20,000 and counting in profits.

We were scared to leave; we didn't know if we could make it. We were scared to invest our money; we didn't think we could turn a profit. We kept being afraid of change, but if we had given in to our fears we would be back home, miserable, broke, and jobless. I'm glad we left.

I did this 3 months back, shifted from Delhi my hometown where I lived with my parents and brother to Bangalore.

I had been depressed for the last 3 years. Worked in a very unsatisfactory job and did almost no work. Then in March this year had a manic episode of bipolar I where I spent all my savings on useless stuff, almost got married to a woman I barely knew and quit my job. I was jobless with no money and having panic attacks everyday remembering the sh*t I did and said when I was manic. Also thanks to covid every problem became 10x. I was suicidal most of the time. Months later I did get a job but the pay was meagre.

One fine day, 8 months later, I fought with my brother and I had had enough. So later that night packed some of my stuff and booked my flight to Bangalore and quit my job.

After two months of struggle I got a new job with almost thrice the income. Rented my own 2BHK flat all for myself. Threw all my old clothes and got new onces. Started 3 other things. Started learning boxing and lots more. All my friends live nearby and best of all I live in the best area probably in all of India.

Everything is so much better that sometimes I think it is all in my head and I am actually in coma from taking my own life attempt.

Tell me this is real. Idk how it will work for others but I think it is worth a shot.

4 years ago, I abruptly quit a job I had worked for 7.5 years that I finally had to admit was a dead end. I got a job at a lodge in a national park flipping burgers for minimum wage. I didn't know a single person there when I moved. But it quickly led to travelling to amazing places like Alaska and making lots of friends from all over the world. The experience gave me the confidence to really pursue my career goals, and last year I finally got my dream job! Nothing good happens in your comfort zone!

I was badly addicted to alcohol and some other drugs. After a few tries I became sober, went from 100 to 0, quit everything, alcohol and all the drugs. Left most of my "friends" behind and soon after moved to a new city. Got a new job there and found lots of nice people who are today good friends of mine. Still sober since 6 years and this city became my new home. Best decisions I ever made.

I was 18. The family was out. I put a note on my bed saying “I’m leaving. I’ll be ok” and left. That was 50 years ago. I’m super glad I did it.

Geez after reading some of these comments this is exactly what I did! I was 24, wasted college getting a degree I’ve never used, working a dead-end grocery store job and living with my parents. Started dating this 30-year-old woman with a 9-year-old kid, which was nuts to me even now. After dating for maybe only 6 months or so, she told me she was moving to AZ for a job and she’d like me to go with her. Taking a look at my life currently, I decided to say yes and here I am 15 years later, we are married with two of our own kids, careers and home-ownership. Some rough parts at times, sure, but I wouldn’t change a thing, except maybe trying to meet her a little sooner in life!

A 3 day bus ride from illinois to New York. I was so tired when I got there. I didnt see my future wife for almost an hour and felt that she got cold feet seeing as we had never met. We met, went to one of her friends house and got to know each other, and wound up making out on her couch. 20+ years and 3 kids later, I havent regretted a single day.

I did this last year. Granted I stayed in the same state, it was terrifying and exciting all rolled into one. I quit my job without having another one. Sold my house without having a home. Packed everything my son and I owned and moved 3 hours away. Best. Decision. Ever. It made me feel like I could do it again if I ever wanted too. The world is so big, so it was empowering.

Back in 2014 I visited Bali. My friends were getting married there, so I decided I'd make it into an extended holiday. I had no job, enough money for plane tickets and hostel accommodation.

Somehow I ended up being a freelancer living and working wherever. Get on a plane with a bag, find a place, stay for a month and if I liked it, stay on for as long as the visa allowed.

In total I spent just shy of five years across nine countries, just working on the internet and seeing the what there was to see.

This was in the before times, of course. Harder to do now.