Do most people have a terrible secret which could ruin their life?

[aurynne]

Yesterday my DH and I were watching an episode of The Honourable Woman, and I found myself thinking back to all the movies, novels and series in which it appears that every character is carrying a dark, terrible secret which would ruin their life if it came to light. Often there is someone in the plot who, at some point, says something like "Everybody has a secret to protect", and the main character nods wisely, as if this was widely known and accepted.

I know it's fiction, but do you believe this is mostly true? Do you have a secret which, if revealed, would affect your or your loved ones' lives in a significant way? Of course I am not asking you to reveal it here (although if you wish, please be my guest, I am very nosey!), but please just feed my curiosity by saying YES (I have a dark secret) or NO (I don't have any dark secrets).

Personally, I think I must be very boring. The best detective in the World could not really find anything juicy to blackmail me with. My family is not going to find any skeletons in my closet (perhaps just some dust balls). I obviously have parts of my life that I prefer to remain in the private arena, but nothing worth going viral for, nothing that would really shock anyone or turn my life upside down by far if I published it today in The New York Times.

What about you?

I married my husband because I was desperate to have children. He wanted them as well. We have nothing in common. He's unintelligent, lazy and filthy. We haven't had sex in 7 years. I can't afford to leave and it would devastate our children. I've had several flings. I'm currently having an affair with another woman. My sister and best friend know.

He either doesn't care about sex or he's seeking it elsewhere as he never brings it up (it was always stunning bad sex). I don't care which of these it is honestly.

Yes. Three things actually.

Yes, kind of. It’s my husbands really but it would rock our whole world

Yes: I'm the fourth generation of, with a secret! People who need to know, know. I have a story that is like out of a historical novel.

I've had to have alot of therapy and specialist recovery work to get to the place of peace I have. I have broken the chain of the past for my youngsters, my grandchildren and those to come

Secrets, lies, violence, blackmail, fraud, hidden illegitimate children, divorce in time it didn't happen, stories of twists and turns, Hollywood would love but aren't getting from a professional middle class background yada yada

Yes.

Yes, more than one.😕

Yes. It would devastate my soon to be ex-husband I think, one person knows as she helped me through it all but we’ve seen fallen out. It appears she was decent enough not to tell anyone though.

Yes

Yes. It would ruin several people's lives if it came out

I was recruited by a gang to break into houses when I was teen due to my small size. No one knows. I feel such guilt now but the threats against my life felt very real at the time.

I don't have one. Somebody once put a private detective on me and they found nothing, I am so boring. But I recently found out one about my family that had been kept under wraps for years and is quite big. I am pleased about it and think I always knew at some level - it also made a lot of things fall into place. The point of saying this is that I reckon if things are secret, often it is because people actually kind of know, but want to pretend they don't, in order not to rock the boat and spare feelings. (which is why, just in case, I'm not saying what the secret was/is)

Yes. Somebody would end up in prison but I’m still to scared to talk even decades later.

Yes

Yes, a couple. A few ppl know as some nasty Person broadcast it to shame me on something. Which was a lie they had concocted anyway! And another ive become embroiled in that apparently happens to many ppl,if ur in the know. Is that vague enough? 😆

@aurynne are you fishing for writing material? My apologies if I'm wrong but you don't sound real...

Yes, not enough to ruin my life, but my family and friends don’t know and I don’t want them to know.

No. But even if I did, my nervous over-sharing would lay waste to any secrets I was hiding

A couple of things that would cause significant upset, yes.

Yes definitely. Divorce on the cards and total upheaval of my current life

Yes

Yes, and I know a few other peoples' dark secrets that would destroy them- not necessarily because they are so horrible, but because they are perceived that way by the person who chose to confide in me.

Absolutely and so does every single one of my three best friends

None.

I did shoplift some sweets but I was caught and banned from the shop for a while (the same shop later gave me a paper-round though).

I snogged a few people while in a relationship but that was never remotely a secret (husband doesn't know all the details but is aware something happened).

I read my older sister's diary when we were 14 and 19. I knew she would be upset if she knew this, so I made absolutely certain she didn't suspect. I did tell her eventually, about 15 years later.

I once copied my friend's answer in a test because I couldn't remember it (the name of the house in Billy Liar... Hillcrest... never forgotten it since ). It wasn't an important test, but I was used to knowing all the answers. Okay, that one's a secret I have never told anyone before.

Good grief, didn’t realise we all had so many secrets. Alcohol has a lot to answer for sometimes