New Year’s Eve is supposed to be about new beginnings. A blank slate. A fresh start that helps us reprioritize and focus on living a truly good, healthy, and happy life. However, fate—if it exists—seems to have a twisted sense of humor. And bad luck doesn’t care much about what day it is.
Our team here at Bored Panda has collected some of the most painful photos from all around the net of people’s New Year’s celebrations gone wrong. Fires, floods, and dishes gone disastrously wrong are just the tip of the iceberg. Scroll down for a reminder about why it’s important to be grateful for what we all have, even when things go very wrong.
Meanwhile, Bored Panda reached out to therapist Eve Menezes Cunningham, a senior accredited supervisor at the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy and the author of ‘365 Ways to Feel Better: Self-Care Ideas for Embodied Well-Being.’ Read on for her insights about emotional resilience and bouncing back after unfortunate events.
#1 New Year's Photobomb
Image credits: surelyknott
#2 Our Sweet 7-Year-Old Dog Has A New Fireworks Phobia Thanks To The Neighbor Who Just Had To Shoot Illegal Fireworks Off Above Our House
Image credits: freebaer
#3 New Year's Eve Again. Never Forget
Image credits: lyncreddit
A recent Forbes Health/OnePoll survey showed that 48% of adults in the United States aim to improve their level of fitness in 2024. 38% of respondents want to improve their finances, 36% said the same about their mental health, while 34% want to lose weight. Furthermore, 32% of respondents said they want to have a better diet.
On the flip side, some of the least popular resolutions include traveling more (barely 6% of respondents mentioned it), meditating (just 5%), drinking less alcohol (3%), and doing better at work (3%).
#4 Don't Forget To Wear Your Seatbelts This New Year's Eve
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#5 My iHome Is Still Drunk From New Year's Eve Partying
Image credits: DPerman1983
#6 Friend Accidentally Bought These Folding Chairs Online For His New Year's Eve Party. Only 5 For $8
Image credits: FeelsRightDesign
Though 62% of the people who participated in the survey said that they feel pressured to set a resolution for the New Year, a whopping 80% felt confident that they’ll be able to reach their goals. A mere 6% of respondents felt like they lacked the confidence to do so.
Of course, making resolutions is far easier than fulfilling them. What we’re essentially doing is creating new habits. And it can feel like we’ve ‘messed up’ if things do not go as well as we’ve imagined at the start. The important bit here is to stick with it, even when things are hard. Especially when they’re hard.
#7 Because I'm Not Buying A New Glass Every Year
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#8 How I Rang In The New Year
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#9 Instead Of 2 A's And 2 E's, We Got 4 A's In This Happy New Year Balloon Pack
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We’ve covered on Bored Panda recently that it takes around 3 weeks to develop new behavior patterns when you change your diet. It takes around 3 months in total for this behavior to stick and turn into a lifestyle change.
Meanwhile, it takes an average of 6 months to establish a new exercise routine. So if you’re struggling, you’re not alone. Your body and mind are changing. Slowly.
#10 Happy New Year. Watch Your Step On That Ice. Broke In 3 Places. I Live Alone In The Woods
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#11 Celebrating New Year's Eve By Myself
Image credits: Dobby1234
#12 In Celebration Of New Year, People Like To Shoot Bullets Into The Air In Pakistan. One Managed To Go Through My Window
Image credits: Gr8_DrWrecker
Therapist, author, and BACP member Menezes Cunningham was kind enough to share her thoughts about cultivating emotional resilience when things never seem to be going the way people would want them to.
“Give yourself a break. Allow yourself some time out. Let yourself wallow and grieve but give yourself a timeframe to do so,” the author of ‘365 Ways to Feel Better: Self-Care Ideas for Embodied Well-Being’ told Bored Panda via email.
#13 The Amount Of Rubbish Left In Times Square After New Year's Eve
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#14 Got This Gem At About 10 PM Last Night, Hours Before The New Year
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#15 My Friend Got Home After Work Around 2 AM To Find His Neighbor's Son After Too Much Of The New Year's Eve Celebration
Image credits: yarddriver1275
“Emotional and mental pain activates the same parts of the brain as physical pain so it's helpful to do something physical like giving yourself (or getting) a big hug, letting yourself FEEL the disappointment,” the therapist explained to us.
“Maybe putting on a cozy top or grabbing a hot water bottle. Wrap yourself up in cotton wool a little and know that it will pass,” she shared some practical advice on how to deal with difficult situations.
The mental health expert noted that it’s important to set a time limit for how long you allow yourself to indulge these feelings. It’s essential that you don’t get stuck at this stage.
“It might be 30 minutes. It might be a month! Think about the time you might require to process this disappointment or embarrassment,” she said.
#16 I Work 3rd Shift At A Hotel. For Ten Minutes, The Guy Argued He Was Staying In 227. We Don't Have A 227. He Was At The Wrong Hotel. Happy New Year
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#17 Happy New Year! What A Great Start To 2022
This happened when we were going back home in a bad snowstorm. My buddy was driving, he was drifting towards the ditch, and when he corrected to straighten out, the tires lost all traction and grip, we slid and rolled. Just happy we didn’t hit anyone and my dog is okay!
Image credits: TophrTheTrppnTravelr
#18 How I’m Spending This New Year’s Eve
I have Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV). It’s a condition that makes everything feel like it’s spinning and I feel dizzy and nauseous all the time. It worsens with any head movement. I’m currently unable to walk on my own and can hardly even see due to blurred vision. It’s not supposed to be too serious, but it sucks.
Image credits: reddit.com
According to Menezes Cunningham, when we allow ourselves to feel these feelings, from sorrow and shame to mortification, we actually get them out of our systems “far faster than pretending to be fine immediately if you're not.” On top of that, physical movement can help us get out of this funk, too.
“Welcome ALL your feelings and share how you feel with people who you trust to support you,” the BACP senior accredited supervisor suggested to Bored Panda. She also noted that if things seem really bad and if you seem to be stuck in a negative spiral, you may want to consider reaching out to a coach or therapist. There is nothing shameful about asking for help when we need it.
#19 This Is Not Very Comforting
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#20 4-Year-Old Girl Hit In The Shoulder With A Falling Bullet While Enjoying Fireworks
Image credits: callel55
#21 Every New Year I Make Apple Pie From Scratch. 7 Kinds Of Apples, Buttery Crumb Topping. This Year It Promptly Exploded When I Took It Out Of The Oven
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Bored Panda was interested in how people can recover more quickly after suffering a series of unfortunate events or a bout of awful luck. Comedy, according to the therapist, is one powerful but nuanced tool in our arsenal.
“Laughing things off can be brilliant,” Menezes Cunningham said. “But if you're not feeling it, it might compound your pain and embarrassment—don't offer yourself up as a laughing stock if you're feeling vulnerable about it.”
#22 Wanted A Special Mountain Lake New Year's Eve With The Wife, Even Upgraded To A Room With A View
Image credits: f_me_blue
#23 Happy New Year. Shower Screen Shattered At 1 AM First Day Of The Year
Image credits: Even_Moose6853
#24 On New Year's Eve, After People Started Going Home From The Party, A Friend Of Mine Passed Out. We Decided To Have Some Fun By Stacking 12 Cans On His Head
Image credits: diffies
Journaling can also help you process your feelings. The therapist also suggested looking into embodied journaling: “Record yourself talking about the event so you can watch back and see more about your body language and tone of voice. Are you aware of extra tension? Fighting back tears? Don't attempt to fast forward through your feelings but GIVE yourself some space to feel it all. Learn from it.”
According to the BACP member, when you feel ready, ask yourself how the moment or event has shaped you. “This is NOT to attempt to fast forward natural feelings or brightside/toxic positivity yourself.” The therapist pointed out that at some point, we might recognize that as painful as the series of events was, it did make us stronger and perhaps something else, too.
#25 Had Two Stray Bullets Hit My House Just After Midnight On New Year's Eve. Through A Shower And Garage
Image credits: khanbob42
#26 Stuck In Walmart During A New Year's Tornado Warning
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#27 Stepped Into The Ocean And Straight Onto A Fish Hook Stuck In The Rocks, On New Year's Day, In A Small Town, With No Doctor On Duty
This is the hook after a doctor in a nearby town removed it. 1 week later, it's healed and I'm fine.
Image credits: ChrisMelb
Something else that can help you bounce back after failure is connecting with a future version of yourself. “Imagine yourself a week, month, year, decade in the future. What are you likely to remember from this event then? It's possible that these events helped you make some beneficial changes,” the therapist told Bored Panda that there’s usually a silver lining in these situations.
Even a bout of bad luck might have helped you find friendlier friends. Or it might have been a wake-up call that helped you set your priorities right.
#28 New Year's Eve Accident In Somerset, Kentucky
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#29 Family Has Covid, House Hasn't Had Power For 8+ Hours, And Fridge Is Spoiled. Happy New Year
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#30 Sounds Like We Come From The Same Kind Of Family
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Happy New Year, Pandas! How did you ring in 2024? Did everything go according to plan? What resolutions did you come up with this time? Have you ever had New Year’s celebrations go as wrong as in the photos featured in this list? We’d love to hear from you, so feel free to drop by the comment section to share your thoughts and experiences.
#31 Chipped My Teeth 30 Minutes Into The New Year. Still Smiling Tho. Unfortunate Thing Is No Dentist Till The 2nd
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#32 New Year Party Goes Wrong
Image credits: Kubatay
#33 Well, I Guess There Will Be No Pork And Sauerkraut To Start The New Year
Image credits: Tmf24406
#34 It's 10 PM And These Party Hearties Are Done
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#35 Great Start To The New Year. Stepped On A Sewing Needle Which Broke Off In My Big Toe
Image credits: Hey_Mongo
#36 My Neighbor's Mercedes-AMG GT 63 S Caught On Fire On New Year's Eve
Image credits: K0NGO
#37 Right When The New Year's Ball Dropped, My Cat Broke Her Tooth While Playing With My Other Cat. Happy 2023
RIP my wallet. Thankfully she’s eating and drinking just fine and doesn’t seem to be in pain, but she will need it removed on Monday.
Image credits: milquetoast2000
#38 Our Apartment Flooded At 12:05 On New Year's Eve
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#39 I Was Almost Done With Work, Then Someone Made A Mess All Over The Floor. I Had To Stay Late To Clean It On New Year's Eve. I Missed My Reservations For My Date
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#40 New Year's Eve At Work A Few Years Back. Was Refilling The Stock On The Bottom Shelf And The Whole Thing Collapsed, Almost Caught My Arm
Image credits: Mrbrettwet115
#41 Happy New Year To Us. Someone Smashed Our Brick Mailbox
Image credits: Embarrassed_Map1112
#42 When Complaining About Fireworks On New Year's Eve And Someone Decides To Decorate Your Apartment Wall With AK-47. What A Start Of The Year
Image credits: Mister1two
#43 First My Car Gets Rear-Ended On New Year's Day. Now Godzilla Decided To Rip A Hole In My Door
Image credits: jdawg114
#44 Neighbors Were Too Lazy To Properly Clean Up After New Year's Eve, So They Just Swept Their Trash Into The Corridor
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#45 New Year's Eve Brings Out The Best In Us All
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#46 New Year's Eve Parties Always Result In A Casualty. Someone's Idea Of A Good Time Is Pushing Our Grill In The Pool
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#47 If You Start Cooking Beef Wellington At 23:30, Your Pan Will Crack At Exactly Midnight Of The New Year
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#48 New Year’s Shenanigans. Taken In North Philadelphia
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#49 A Great Way To Finish Out The Year. My TV Broke On New Year's Eve
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#50 When You Leave The Old Year In Style. This Just About Sums Up 2021
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