These are the 5 biggest regrets everyone has before they pass away. A nurse who worked in care looked after patients who only had a matter of weeks to live. In that time, the people she was working with went through a variety of emotions. As you would expect, denial, fear, anger, remorse, more denial and eventually acceptance were all common. Everyone made peace before they passed away, but what they had to say about regret before they did will teach you a lot about life.
1. I wish I’d had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me.
This was the most common regret of them all. When given the chance to reflect on your own life, its easy to look back and realise all of the dreams you once had that never have been fulfilled, and never will. All because of the choices they had or hadn’t made.
2. I wish I didn’t work so hard.
This came from all of the male patients. They regret working so hard because they had missed their children’s youth and their partners companionship and love. It’s an important reminded that sometime life should not always be about chasing money and possessions, and that the most valuable thing in life is loved ones.
3. I wish I’d had the courage to express my feelings.
Many of the patients had spent their whole life suppressing their feelings in order to keep others happy. As a result of this, they had to settle for an average existence and sometimes one that they were not happy with at all. Because of this they never became the person that they were truly capable of becoming.
4. I wish I had stayed in touch with my friends.
Often they would not realise how important old friends are until it was too late. Many of them had become so caught up in their own lives from day to day that they had let some very special friendships gradually breakdown over time. There were a lot of regrets over not giving the friendships the time they deserve, as its when we are dying that we need our friends the most.
5. I wish that I had let myself be happier.
Many of them did not realise until the very end that happiness is actually a choice in life. They had wondered into old habits and patterns that they had convinced themselves they were happy in, and the fear of change had them thinking they were content with their lives, when really they just wanted a life full of more laughs and fun.
When one day its you on your deathbed, what others think of you and say about you is the very last thing on your mind.
Life is a choice, and its YOURS. Choose wisely, Choose honestly. Choose happiness.
via themindunleashed
