this post was submitted on 26 Jan 2026
335 points (99.4% liked)
me_irl
7348 readers
950 users here now
All posts need to have the same title: me_irl it is allowed to use an emoji instead of the underscore _
founded 2 years ago
MODERATORS
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
view the rest of the comments
This is legitimately me.
Everywhere I drive right now, whether it's the grocery store or a medical appointment or otherwise - I'm constantly anxious about cars following me for too long, or weird SUVs parked near me, or what have you.
I've taken tripley long routes to normal places just to make sure I can monitor what people or vehicles are sticking by.
I've parked at my destination and then pretended to get a call and leave and then just circle around for awhile until suspicious vehicles leave.
I'm not special and many have it far worse, but this is my life now and I'm probably like a 5% on the scale of shit others have to deal with.
This dude thinks he can shake us
It's not so much escape as strategically position.
Are you alright? I can't imagine it's easy to live like that.
I'm currently fine. Will probably continue to be fine (60/40? 70/30?). There are many that need our support. Appreciate you.
Hey man, how long has this been going on? This sounds familiar to me, kind of like paranoid schizophrenia or other mental health conditions that can continue to worsen if you don't get professional help. I can't imagine living life like that is easy. I'm sorry you have to deal with that and I hope you get the support you need to get to a point where you can feel safer and less scared constantly ❤️
ICE has a presence in my area, it's not paranoid schizophrenia. We've had neighbors disappeared. Nearby farms have lost their entire paid, employee workforce. A local small business basically closed one day due to an ICE raid and hasn't recovered. I'm sure there are plenty of other situations that I never even hear about.
Oooh shoot. I'm sorry man you're right, thats totally valid fear, not paranoia at all. Its so awful you have to deal with that. I didn't even consider that as a factor as I'm not from the US.
You're good! That you were concerned and spoke up is awesome. The world needs more of you.