Very Ill Young Man Had the 'Best 4 Months' of His Life after Telling Wife He Will Die Soon

A terminally ill husband confessed to his wife that he would die soon. She was broken but decided to cherish his last wish. The two embarked on their vacation, and he claimed it was the “best dying wish” ever.

Redditor 500daystolive dealt with a medical condition for a while. He knew his life would be shorter than most. However, he was told he would make it to his 50s or 60s. Unfortunately, his condition went downhill, and his anticipation changed dramatically.

The doctors told him that he had 12 months to live, probably 16 at the max. They added that he’d have to live in the hospital after that. Though the Redditor was ready to put a brave fight, here’s where he had the dilemma—he didn’t want to tell his wife.

The Original Poster (OP) lived with his wife of four years. The couple had no kids. He anticipated his condition to worsen in ten months and didn’t know how to tell her. He explained:

“I haven’t had the heart to tell my wife the news. I don’t even know-how. We always knew I’d die younger than I wanted to, but we never expected it to be this soon.”

He didn’t want to complicate the situation for his wife. He wanted to cherish his last days and didn’t want them to be approaching doom. Just then, he recalled about their dream vacation.

The couple always talked about vacationing in Australia. However, they didn’t have the time and finances for it. The OP decided to fund their holiday with the money he’d saved for grad school. He said:

“When we get back, or maybe towards the end of it, I will break the news to her. I just wouldn’t want the trip to be ruined for us by constant reminders of me dying.”

The OP thought they could work part-time and enjoy the holiday. He wanted to give her the best memories and not merely of his time ticking down. However, he was confused about his approach and decided to ask for guidance on the Reddit forum. The response he got was beyond emotional.

Among several insightful comments, user MaryMaryConsigliere’s advice turned out to be an eye-opener for him. The person’s statement read:

“It would compound her grief tenfold to find out later that he’d hidden this from her and chosen to deprive her of the chance to process with him, to say the things she needed to say, and hear the things she needed to hear.”

The person explained how the delay in confessing the truth could emotionally wreak his wife. The OP agreed and rummaged through the comments. He mustered up his courage to prepare his wife ahead of time and told her everything.

The truth shattered her. He showed her his first post on Reddit and the heartwarming responses he’d gotten. The couple took time to process the news and flew to Australia to enjoy their best four months together.

The OP’s last update was a year ago about him and his wife watching movie franchises together. Nobody heard anything from him again.

The OP claimed that he couldn’t have asked for a better dying wish than this. After returning, he left some greeting cards in possession with a friend to give to his wife after his passing. He decided to keep it a secret as some of the events weren’t guaranteed.

He claimed that he could’ve done many things differently had he predicted his future. The OP said he made the best of his time and felt grateful for making it so far, considering his complications.

After reading his update, user creation_complex asked him how he handled processing the painful truth. The OP responded, saying:

“Definitely afraid, but less afraid than I would have thought I would have been 16 months ago. My biggest internal emotions are the regrets of how differently I would have lived my life if I had somehow known I would have only lived this long.”

He thanked the online forum for being so supportive with their kind words and advice. The OP’s last update was a year ago about him and his wife watching movie franchises together. Nobody heard anything from him again. While some hoped for a miracle, his fate remains unknown.

If you liked this story, you’d like this one about how a school brought graduation to the hospital to fulfill the dying wish of a student’s mother.