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What’s the worst thing you’ve ever done?

957 replies

shehardlysleeps · 20/04/2026 17:18

I’m in a reflective mood, and it’s got me thinking about something I did a few years ago which is probably the thing I’m most deeply ashamed of.

There was a coworker who really rubbed me up the wrong way. I was very unhappy at the time, and going through an awful time personally. She would make snide comments about me, do things with my family members (who were colleagues too) which really got my back up, I felt like she judged me harshly and was pretty rude. Along with another colleague they made three or four very nasty comments which still stick with me.

Instead of raising a grievance, which I should have done, I took to posting about her on another website (along the lines of Mumsnet), not realising she used it too. She saw the posts and reported me, and I ended up facing a meeting with HR and a senior partner of the firm I was working in. It damaged my reputation within the firm forever and I ended up leaving after not being offered a promotion. I still feel ashamed of it now, nearly half a decade on, and feel like it’s tarred me forever.

Whats the worst thing you’ve ever done?

OP posts:
CoffeeCantata · 29/04/2026 08:57

cheekynamechang3 · 28/04/2026 23:12

Loomis. They said we were all getting het up over nothing ... the poster posting about her daughter is clearly trying to wind us up and rage baiting... then she goes and agrees with the poster saying we wouldn't know what we would do in that situation.

Responding to pps like Loomis is like playing chess with a pigeon!

I must NOT play pigeon chess.

cheekynamechang3 · 28/04/2026 23:12

ainsleysanob · 28/04/2026 19:26

Which part is rage baiting?!

Loomis. They said we were all getting het up over nothing ... the poster posting about her daughter is clearly trying to wind us up and rage baiting... then she goes and agrees with the poster saying we wouldn't know what we would do in that situation.

CoffeeCantata · 28/04/2026 22:26

Loomis · Today 22:08
CoffeeCantata · Today 19:35
I mean - possibly in emergency situations, such as someone being injured and having to give First Aid, or call an ambulance, but not in a situation such as Tredadt found themselves.
That would need planning, manipulation, manoeuvering and deception...so not an impulsive scenario at all. I think most people do know how they'd behave in those circumstances - it's something you'd need to plan for and implement that plan over over a period of time.
Show quote history
Just think people are naive if they think that sort of thing doesn't go on constantly. Why do you think Hollywood is full of Nepo babies?

??

I was responding to your point that people don't know how they'd behave in hypothetical situations until they happen. It depends, as I've said.

I don't think anyone here is being naive. Expecting honourable behaviour in public office is not being naive. I've worked in lots of settings (public and private sector) and conflicts of interest and opportunities for nepotism were guarded against very rigorously. Also, the people I've worked with respected those rules. Maybe I've been very privileged.

I'm aware of dodgy practices, sure, and especially in the media, but I think those fields are a) much harder to police and b) attract narcissistic and less scrupulous people.

Loomis · 28/04/2026 22:08

CoffeeCantata · 28/04/2026 19:35

I mean - possibly in emergency situations, such as someone being injured and having to give First Aid, or call an ambulance, but not in a situation such as Tredadt found themselves.

That would need planning, manipulation, manoeuvering and deception...so not an impulsive scenario at all. I think most people do know how they'd behave in those circumstances - it's something you'd need to plan for and implement that plan over over a period of time.

Just think people are naive if they think that sort of thing doesn't go on constantly. Why do you think Hollywood is full of Nepo babies?

Feezbrock · 28/04/2026 22:02

Lampzade · 28/04/2026 18:03

Can’t believe the number of posters who slept with their friend’s boyfriend / husband/ fiancé .

Many of these might be fantasies...

CoffeeCantata · 28/04/2026 19:35

Loomis · 28/04/2026 16:26

I mean it's very easy to say you wouldn't do X or Y but ultimately meaningless unless you've been confronted with that exact same situation.

I mean - possibly in emergency situations, such as someone being injured and having to give First Aid, or call an ambulance, but not in a situation such as Tredadt found themselves.

That would need planning, manipulation, manoeuvering and deception...so not an impulsive scenario at all. I think most people do know how they'd behave in those circumstances - it's something you'd need to plan for and implement that plan over over a period of time.

ainsleysanob · 28/04/2026 19:26

cheekynamechang3 · 28/04/2026 18:24

Now who's rage bating?

Which part is rage baiting?!

cheekynamechang3 · 28/04/2026 18:24

ainsleysanob · 28/04/2026 17:41

I think most of us have been confronted with bringing our children up properly.

Now who's rage bating?

Lampzade · 28/04/2026 18:03

Can’t believe the number of posters who slept with their friend’s boyfriend / husband/ fiancé .

ainsleysanob · 28/04/2026 17:41

Loomis · 28/04/2026 16:26

I mean it's very easy to say you wouldn't do X or Y but ultimately meaningless unless you've been confronted with that exact same situation.

I think most of us have been confronted with bringing our children up properly.

ainsleysanob · 28/04/2026 17:40

Dkkdd · 28/04/2026 15:58

And it violates to many internal policies.
I'd give my DC interview prep but I wouldn't do such a big conflict of interest. Gosh

It’s not even the conflict of interest that’s so bad. It’s the fact she’s failed her daughter and can’t even see it, she thinks she’s done her a favour instead it’s the exact opposite.

Britainisgreat · 28/04/2026 17:09

LackOfSpace · 26/04/2026 20:35

I just want to say I am sorry you experienced this.
Almost word for word, this happened to me too, except mine also took my virginity.

Got drunk after going out with office girls on last day in a job. They lined vodkas up and felt bad as they'd paid for them so knocked them straight back. Out in fresh air omg. Collapsed on toilet floor, my regular lift refused to take me home in his car, and I told boss to drop dead and asked one of the girls if I could sleep with her!! Also wouldn't let boss take me home. We'd fallen out when I took a day off to go for an interview and prospective new employer rang that afternoon for a reference. Uh-Oh. Awful hangover next day. Never again.

Loomis · 28/04/2026 16:26

I mean it's very easy to say you wouldn't do X or Y but ultimately meaningless unless you've been confronted with that exact same situation.

Dkkdd · 28/04/2026 15:58

ainsleysanob · 28/04/2026 15:38

No, I wouldn’t, because I have the integrity that you lack. My son, also, will have been raised to have integrity of his own and I won’t fail him by spoon feeding him throughout his life.

And it violates to many internal policies.
I'd give my DC interview prep but I wouldn't do such a big conflict of interest. Gosh

ainsleysanob · 28/04/2026 15:38

Tredadt · 28/04/2026 06:54

@SDTGisAnEvilWolefGenius @CoffeeCantata @Dkkdd @tnorfotkcab
I withheld training as I wanted the best chance for my daughter to get that role. If I trained everyone else up too, she'd have much more competition and highly likely she wouldn't have been successful. I'm looking after my daughter- I have no obligation to the other members of the team. She is good at the job and it fits her skillset and personality.

As I have said previously, I suspect she is on the spectrum and struggles socially. She tried getting a job after uni but just couldn't get anything and this was too good an opportunity to miss. I know she will be okay here. The other team members are really nice. They will look after her. She is bright and brilliant and as a mother, I'm just giving her a helping hand and secure her future. You would all have done the same.

No, I wouldn’t, because I have the integrity that you lack. My son, also, will have been raised to have integrity of his own and I won’t fail him by spoon feeding him throughout his life.

OnGoldenPond · 28/04/2026 15:15

iamfedupwiththis · 20/04/2026 18:58

In a very secluded wood, up a hill behind a gate, no one could see me, I was an hour away from the car, I would never have made it back, I was on my own, I covered it in grass.

Very embarrassed, I do have IBS ( I don't make a habit of it )

That’s not so bad, standard hiker’s procedure! Smile

Loomis · 28/04/2026 14:41

CoffeeCantata · 28/04/2026 13:12

For me, that post actually caused a physical sensation - nausea! I'm not exaggerating. You might find it tedious, but I found it shocking in its brazenness and lack of remorse. We're all different.

I'm neither shocked nor bothered by people's sexual indiscretions - only by cruelty and in this case, callousness and corruption.

And the reason some of us have returned to it is because Tredadt is adamant they did nothing wrong - when the whole point of this thread is recounting things people know were/are wrong, and most people regret them.

But that's it as far as I'm concerned.

Bit hysterical.

CoffeeCantata · 28/04/2026 13:12

Loomis · 28/04/2026 08:50

Why are people still going on and on about this incredibly tedious confession, it's by far one of the least interesting on the thread.

For me, that post actually caused a physical sensation - nausea! I'm not exaggerating. You might find it tedious, but I found it shocking in its brazenness and lack of remorse. We're all different.

I'm neither shocked nor bothered by people's sexual indiscretions - only by cruelty and in this case, callousness and corruption.

And the reason some of us have returned to it is because Tredadt is adamant they did nothing wrong - when the whole point of this thread is recounting things people know were/are wrong, and most people regret them.

But that's it as far as I'm concerned.

SDTGisAnEvilWolefGenius · 28/04/2026 12:49

Very good advice, @NewspaperTaxis. Dsis and I had LPA for my mum, and dh and his brother had it for their dad (my dad and his mum both died without needing them), and while we didn't need to use it for my mum, because she was living independently right up until her death, it was useful for dh and his brother when they sorted out my FIL's care, towards the end of his life. It made it possible for them to deal with his finances and to get him into a care home quickly and easily, once he'd decided it was necessary. It also meant that things were organised and tidy, so that when he did die, sorting out his estate was easier for them.

NewspaperTaxis · 28/04/2026 12:44

Thanks @SDTGisAnEvilWolefGenius - really I'm just tipping people off on what goes on, because these kind of stories don't go in the papers.

Will also add - please arrange for a parent to grant you Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) in Health and Welfare (and Finance) well in advance because otherwise you are not in charge of them once it is deemed they have lost mental capacity - and that is a very vague area. The Council were legally allowed to give us hell because they found out that while we had LPA in Finance, we didn't have it in Health and Capacity, so even though we were self-funding, they were in charge. Nice! They even tried to get themselves the Deputyship of her, according to the notes, so they could put her where they wanted - again, they're all still in their jobs.

LPA is like travel insurance, you have to get it in advance, not when you find out you need it, by then it's too late. Your parent has to have mental capacity to agree to it, the signature have to be witnessed by folk known to them by a few years and in the right order, it costs about £80 etc

cheekynamechang3 · 28/04/2026 12:28

Loomis · 28/04/2026 11:43

That's called rage bait and you're all falling for it.

Very true, I'll have to not reply to her.

She clearly pressed my buttons!

SDTGisAnEvilWolefGenius · 28/04/2026 12:27

That is appalling and terrifying, @NewspaperTaxis - I am so sorry you and your mum had to go through such an ordeal.

NewspaperTaxis · 28/04/2026 12:08

JJkate · 28/04/2026 10:29

@NewspaperTaxis I'm not clear what happened, did the care home deliberately dehydrate your parent so that they died?

It's a long story. She did nearly die - she was admitted to Epsom Hospital and on the third night her BP went down to something like 35 over 18, I mean that's end of days stuff, she was there for a month and a half and we arranged her a place at the Reigate Beaumont on fast-track NHS Continuing Healthcare. It was around this time of year, April.

Nobody got into trouble for it - and despite the Hospital saying they were dropping like flies at the other care home, and the CQC having visited (but nobody was informed about this) the care home had a 'Good' record from the CQC for half a year, til I phoned them up to complain - the bloke informed me, oh, yes, they'd been failed on all counts since their visit in Feb! So I took it to the press, around October that same year.

While it took a long time for it to dawn on me that the reason the Reigate Beaumont had it in for us that Christmas was because Surrey County Council had set us up, and were trying to get back at me via Mum at the new care home, it seems it was also because I'd noticed they weren't giving her sufficient drink, we had to come in daily and do it ourselves. Basically, it's the Liverpool Care Pathway, which was meant to be phased out that year. If they can guesstimate the elderly person has less than 3 months to live, I understand, then they can kill them off via dehydration. My understanding is that 'passive euthanasia' is legal though undertstandably the don't advertise that.

So if you ever read these stories in the tabloids of relatives being barred from the care home for 'abuse and intimidation' it's most likely because they've been raising concerns about poor care, little realising that if it's been secretly assessed the resident has less than 3 months to live, they won't get good care anyway, and that includes daily fluid intake.

It looks like Barchester's Reigate Beaumont were scared I'd figured out what was going on (I had, but didn't realise the low fluid thing was deliberate) and was going to take it to the press. So in a state of alert they contacted the Safeguarding team at Surrey and they arranged a hit job - this isn't actionable btw, it all came out in a Subject Access Request but the press couldn't run it. The aim was to have my sister and me barred from the home after some trumped up charged so they could do as they pleased; we got her out without their permission and she lived another three years pretty much.

A story in the Telegraph in Feb this year about a Barchester care home mentioned 'dehydration' - that seems to be a newspaper's way of tipping off those in the know about what is really going on.

You can take it to anyone you like - the CQC, the NMC, your local MP, the Police - nobody will ever be held to account and they all seem to know what's going on and will be keen to mess you about.

Compared to all this, someone on the Council pulling a few strings to get someone a job seems very small beer!

Loomis · 28/04/2026 11:43

Dkkdd · 28/04/2026 08:51

Because she's bragging and laughing about it.

That's called rage bait and you're all falling for it.

Dkkdd · 28/04/2026 11:18

Differentforgirls · 28/04/2026 11:17

Proud of it too.

Proud of holding other back in her team. What a great leader.