We’ve all told a little white lie, at least once. Maybe it was to dodge a boring party, impress a date, or avoid admitting you still don’t know what “deductible” means. But sometimes those tiny fibs grow legs, put on shoes, and start running your entire life.
That’s exactly what one Redditor explored when they asked: “What’s a lie you told, that spiraled and eventually became ‘this is my life now’?” The answers? Hilarious, heartwarming and occasionally heartbreaking, but deeply relatable.
More info: Reddit
#1
When I was a teen, I tried a carrot cake my friend made when she was learning to bake. I don’t like carrot cake, but to be supportive and encourage her, I told her it was delicious and my absolute favorite.
Somehow word spread to my mother and other friends that I love carrot cake, so whenever they’d bring desserts, they’d bring carrot cake.
I thought I’d escaped it when I moved states, but when I introduced my then-girlfriend (now-wife) to my old friends, somehow the topic got onto foods and they told her I love carrot cake. Now she often bakes carrot cake.
Her children / my stepchildren have noticed this, and now they buy me carrot cake slices from the grocery store sometimes.
I really do not like carrot cake at all, but I still eat it anyway and say thank you. I’ve accepted my carrot-cakey fate.
#2
This one is harmless and funny but I told my mom I knew how to crochet and make blankets. I did not. I thought it would be easy. Let me tell you, it is not. It took me 5 months. But it got done. Now I can knock one out in a few weeks. Best lie ever.
#3
My narcissistic parents bought a dog they couldn’t afford. They knew my grandma would be mad at them for their frivolous spending, so they lied and said they “found the puppy in the trash out back, on garbage day – can you believe that!!!”
Grandma, of course, believed it and invited all her friends over for a baby shower for this “miracle dog who barely survived being sent to the dump to die.”
She spoiled that dog more than any of her kids and grandkids combined.
No one wanted to break her heart, so the lie went on until Grandma passed.
Why do people lie? Have you ever wondered that? What makes us tell these snowball lies that start as harmless fluff and morph into personality traits? Well, the pros say people lie for all sorts of reasons—protection, image management, convenience, justification, or simply to avoid conflict.
In fact, most people lie at least once or twice a day. Not all of them are malicious, though. Many are what researchers call “prosocial lies,” designed to protect others’ feelings or smooth social interactions. And that checks out. Who wants to correct someone who’s been calling your dog the wrong name for years? Sometimes, it just feels easier, and funnier, to ride the lie into the sunset.
#4
I hid my debts, finances and academical situation from my parents out of pride, and this blocked their support. So, instead of doing a PhD in a field I love, I chose a career that would allow me to make money in the short term. I am okay now, but sometimes I think “what if”….
#5
My dogs name is Lana, my neighbor called her Luna by mistake and i didnt correct her. 8 years later she still calls her Luna, i feel like it would be so awkward to correct her now and live in fear that someone will tell her the truth.
#6
I never think about my age. In boot camp a DI scream-asked me and I blurted so fast I gave the wrong age. I wasn’t about to tell her I messed up so I’ve been a year older than I really am ever since .
While some level of dishonesty is normal, some folks lie compulsively or pathologically, and very often, despite not having a good reason for it. But sometimes, small fibs become part of our daily lives, when over time, the lie feels more like truth, or when we just don’t want to deal with the awkwardness of coming clean.
Psychologists refer to this as self-consistency theory—people want to behave in ways that match their self-image. So, if you’ve told people you’re a crochet queen, like one Redditor did, or a beef enthusiast, you start becoming one, just to keep things tidy.
In some cases, the lie actually leads to real growth. That Redditor who lied about crocheting? Now they’re a blanket-making pro. The accidental dog-name switch? Honestly, it’s just kind of adorable now. But in other cases, like faking your career readiness or hiding your financial reality, those lies can quietly derail life goals, create emotional distance, and cut people off from help they really needed.
#7
I had a hard time understanding my new landlord so I told him my French wasn’t very good.
I am fluent in French and had just moved to Quebec, that made for an awkward few months, one day I forgot to switch over to english and he remarked that my french was getting very good.
#8
“I can afford that”
Yeahh nooo.
#9
“I’m straight”
A lie I told myself and as a result lost my first true love in the process because my feelings scared me so much.
Lies, especially ones rooted in pride or fear, can create invisible walls between people. Lying can affect intimacy, trust, and how we connect to others. Over time, people may feel isolated even in close relationships because they’re performing a version of themselves that isn’t real.
Redditors echoed this too. One person said they hid their academic struggles from their parents, which meant losing out on support and changing their entire career path. Another went along with a name misspelling for years, and now lives in quiet fear of correcting it.
#10
I became a vegetarian at age seven (child’s vision of animal rights).
When I was twenty, I worked on a political campaign out of state where a family provided me with housing as a way of supporting the candidate. My hours were long and they went to bed early, so we rarely saw each order.
I had the evening of 4th of July off so they asked if I’d join them for dinner. After I said yes, they told me they always make beef tips for the 4th of July. Not wanting to mess with their tradition, I ate the beef tips and told them they were delicious.
At the end of the summer, I decided to head back home rather than continue on the campaign until the November election. When I let the family I was staying with know I’d be leaving, they said, “It’s been great having you here. We’d love to give you a goodbye dinner and we know how much you love beef tips…”
I’m now in my late 30s and those are the only two times I’ve had beef since I was seven.
#11
I told my husband that I like to mow the yard. I probably did when I was in my 20s and a workout freak, but I’m in my late 60s now, and our yard is bigger. But I’m still mowing. At least he does the trimming.
#12
When I was about 11 I got a Barbie with a pony for Christmas. I loved it! When I went back to school after the holidays, my friend asked me what I got. I said a Barbie and a pony. She was like “wow, a pony?” And was asking questions about it’s colour and if it had a long mane etc… I was telling her about it. After a while (when she asked if she could come ride my pony), I realised that she thought I meant a real pony. By this point, I’d told her so much about this pony, that I didn’t know how to tell her it was plastic. So I just went along with it.
It’s all fun and games until someone throws you a surprise party with a cake that says “Happy 30th” and you’re actually 29. So, should you confess? Honestly? It depends. If the lie is harmless and has turned into a cute quirk or a fun story, no harm done. But if it’s eating at you or affecting your relationships, it might be time to fess up. Most people are way more forgiving than we expect.
#13
I got very sick several years ago over the Jewish high holy days. I am not Jewish. My doctor was Jewish, so I just went to an urgent care. Also of note – VERY few Jews where I live and very little awareness of Judaism.
He was not happy with my care at the urgent care, “Why didn’t you call me?” I said, “It was Rosh Hashanah!” after which he said a bunch of I think … Yiddish words mixed with English and in horror I thought, “Does he think I’m Jewish?!” Not because I’m an antisemite – but because I’m not… Jewish and he is.
So… I never brought it up and he retired. Best doctor I ever had.
#14
Not me but my mother. She didn’t like going out with some of her coworkers for lunch. She thought telling them she was vegetarian would discourage them from inviting her. Mind you this was over 20 years ago when restaurants didn’t have vegetarian options often.
Anyway she ate vegetarian for 7 years while working at that company unless she was home.
#15
That I have a twin. So it started when I met a girl I really couldn’t stand at the mall, and she walked over to me. In a panic I just pretended to not know her, and acted like I was my own twin. I told her that it happened often and that I would tell “my twin” she said hi. I’m in college now and all of my friends still think I have a twin called Janice, and yes that is the name I came up with in a panic bc I’m a friend’s fan.
If you’re still stuck in a snowball lie, just know you’re not alone. We’re all just out here doing our best… even if sometimes our best means pretending we love beef tips.
If you’re struggling with guilt from an old lie, instead of focusing on what you did wrong, focus on what you’ve learned. It’s okay to grow from your past missteps.
So go ahead, live your truth, or your adorable web of lies. Either way, it makes for a great story.
#16
“I’m good for this job”
I never was and never will.
#17
When I was 10, I attempted to play softball despite being truly awful at all sports. During the first practice, I thought that I was supposed to throw the ball with the hand wearing the baseball glove. Somehow, the coach interpreted that as me *actually* being right-handed even though I’m a lefty. He told my parents and they had to go get me a glove for my other hand. I played the rest of the season with the wrong hand because I was too embarrassed to tell the coach that I really just had no idea how to sport.
#18
I started hanging out at the bar and drinking at 18. The legal age is 21 where I live. I became a regular at a particular bar quickly and stayed a regular for a decade. For years and years I continued to tell people I was 3 years older than I am. Anyway I have 5 years sober now.
#19
My nail tech is convinced she knows a friend of mine. I have absolutely no idea who she is referencing and got tired of trying to figure out who it was so now whenever i get a pedicure and she asks how my friend is I just make up some story about said friend. It makes her happy.
Tech: how’s your friend?
Me: oh she’s good. She’s going on vacation soon.
T: oh! Tell her to come see me!
M: I will!
#20
It’s not a lie I told, I just never corrected her and now it’s years down the line.
My name has an accent over a letter, like Chloé. We have a close family friend, someone who I consider a second mother who used to just spell my name without the accent (and i never corrected her because it wasn’t that big of a deal to me), until she saw me write my own name. She asked me about it and then made it a point to always use that accent. Although she accidentally got the letters switched and spells my name like Chlóe.
It’s been almost 10 years now. I can never tell her.
#21
I was working through some problem in my head and I was just really unaware of my surroundings, which included my gf at the time. Unbeknownst to me I was apparently talking to myself under breath.
Out of nowhere she started “Aww’ing” and gave me a huge hug. Apparently something i said sounded like “Mi amor” and she thought it was my way of saying the “L” word to her for the first time. She changed her contact in my phone for her to Mi amor, she started signing messages with it, she shared the story constantly and made comments about the excitement of dating a latin man(I do have some heritage but my Spanish is from SoCal immersion).
I have no idea what she heard me say. I completely lost my train of thought when she started “Aww’ing” at me and I have no idea what I had even been thinking about or the problem I was working through at that moment. Only thing I do know is that I absolutely did not say “Mi amor” and I never corrected her .
#22
That I don’t really study well and that I didn’t like biology that much but I actually was a great student and loved bio. Later I just stopped studying. I’m getting back on my feet now though.
#23
I complemented a friend on her purse. I actually thought it was the most heinous bag I had ever seen. She bought me one, and I felt obligated to have it any time we hung out. We didn’t hang out much after that.
#24
So, not a lie I told, just one I had bear witness to for 7 years. My daughter is very shy, and at her first softball practice when she was six, as the coach was going down the roster he pronounced her name Briana (her name is Brianna and he was using what I would consider to be the fancy version of Anna with the ah sound). She did not correct him. When the first game happened and I heard him say her name I was confused. I asked her why she didn’t correct him. She said she didn’t know. I told her to just politely let him know how to say it and she was like “I can’t now. It’s been too long and it would be awkward and that’s what my teammates call me too”. So, for 7 years she let these people call her the wrong name, and begged me not to correct them because she’d be too embarrassed by the fact that she hadn’t done it in the first place.
#25
I pretty much can never eat anything sweet ever again unless in private.
When I started dating my now husband I was quietly trying to lose weight. He loves chocolate etc and after I turned down the third or fourth sweet thing offered he asked why. Slightly embarrassed of my diet I told him I hated the taste of “sweet.”
A few days later my now step son offered one of his sweets and husband let him know I don’t like sweet things.
Well, weeks turned to months, months turned to years. My friends and immediate family I quietly got to play along with a few “Grandma, don’t you remember, princessflubcorn hates sweets”. Etc. cake -less birthdays came and went. Halloween candy became a thing to admire through shop windows. When we went out to eat the cheese board replaced the cheese cake.
Well, the oaf only went and proposed and I said yes. It was then I realized I was in too deep, the day I said my vows was the day I waved chocolate, ice cream and sugar in my coffee away for ever.
Yes. I am an idiot.
#26
In middle school someone one time randomly asked me if I was Jewish, I’m not, but I said I was to see what their reaction would be.
Like a decade later lots of people still thought I was Jewish, including Jewish people. Totally absurd and hilarious.
#27
I cannot stand any sort of fish/seafood but a lot of my friends love sushi and would constantly try to get me to eat it, so I just said I was allergic so they’d stop. Fast forward 10 years and I have to be very careful not to eat anything with seafood in it or they will freak like I’m going to die. It’s way too late to come clean now.
#28
Not me but someone in my family. They pretended to be pregnant, give birth, and then lose the baby almost immediately after. The only pictures of this baby are ones found online (from like infant loss websites), they won’t share the birth or death certificate, and have shown no proof when the photos were recognised from their original sources. Only a few immediate family members know and no one else. She still, almost ten years later, considers this her first child (she has 2 real children now). She has a tattoo and “remembers” the baby on its fake birthday.
It was a whole thing she overshared online so I know at least publicly she cannot come clean but she won’t privately either. It destroyed her relationships with those who know and it’s frustrating seeing her still pretending.
#29
I told my group of trivia night friends that I had a master’s degree, even though I only have bachelor’s. That was 12 years ago, and one of the people from the group (I don’t feel comfortable sharing her name at the moment) still sends me job applications with a master’s requirement.
I desperately want to come clean, but the friend I mentioned, though very sweet, is the kind of person you don’t want to cross too much if she’s had a bad day.
If only I could adequately prepare myself for the hard conversation I know I’m going to have to make. Perhaps some sort of rehearsal might help me.
#30
I can be a good parent.
#31
Being attracted to my ex husband.
#32
I made a joke that I had russian origins because my name is russianin high school. Before I knew it the whole school thought I had a Russian even though that’s not even close to true. Tip from me never go along with a lie jus tell the truth as fast as possible when you get a feeling a lie becomes to big.
#33
I hid a lot of stuff from my father, he is single and I’m an only child, I’m 17 and I have bad friends. But back a year ago, i met a girl and she was super nice, my friend tried to sleep with her but she knew kung fu, she beat him and told me. I forgave him but we never hang out anymore.
2 weeks ago, accidentally I met her father, he was an old man with a big smile, I opened the door for him while I was going into the mall, he sparked up a conversation about how his daughter (my girlfriend) would be the perfect girl for me. He invited me to his house, my girlfriend heard and she acted along, we went to the mans house and had a dinner, a talk and even a fatiha, he basically got me married not knowing I dated his daughter.
#34
I told everyone I’m Bisexual
So, yeah. When I was in fourth grade(I was 10 at that time) we had to make a pencilcase at arts class. I didn’t have ANY ideas, so I just painted a Bi flag on it.
Everyone started to call me a lesbian and I hated that. WELL TWO YEARS LATER I was like. ‘Ayo, everyone thinks I’m gay for my best friend, so why not get a girlfriend?’
We broke up a month later, and everyone in my class thought I’m lesbian until last month I fell for a guy.
Everything is so random, but I went from becoming an ally to being bisexual.