I share this not for sympathy, but for perspective. Behind every success story you read about cryptocurrency millionaires, there are dozens hundreds of people like me. People who got in early but had to leave early too. People who missed the wave not because they were foolish, but because life pulled them in another direction.

In the earliest days of #Bitcoin long before the headlines, the billion-pound valuations, or the frenzy of media attention I held a small slice of the future. I was among the curious few who, either by accident or foresight, had a digital wallet with 0.1 $BTC

in it. Back then, Bitcoin wasn’t the revolutionary asset it is seen as today; it was merely an experimental currency, a whisper among tech circles and online forums.

I didn’t think much of it. It was 0.1 Bitcoin barely worth a few pounds at the time. The concept fascinated me, yes, but survival and day to day responsibilities often spoke louder than speculative dreams. I wasn’t a trader. I wasn’t a financial guru. I was just trying to make ends meet.

Years passed. Bitcoin’s value rose and fell, and with each surge in price, I became more aware of what I had... and what I might need to give up.

When you live on the edge, juggling rent, bills, and the unexpected knocks of life, sometimes you’re forced to cash out early. That’s what I did. A few pounds here to buy groceries, a bit more there to pay a late utility bill. Slowly, over time, that 0.1 BTC was chipped away, exchanged for fleeting stability, and before I even had the chance to dream big I had none left.

I watched as Bitcoin grew. £100. £1,000. £10,000. £50,000. Each headline felt like a stone in my chest. If I had simply held on, done nothing, that 0.1 BTC would now be worth thousands. If I had bought more when it was cheap just a little morevand held it, I could have been a millionaire. A #billionaire even, if I'd played it right.

But life doesn’t wait for "what ifs." Rent doesn’t pause because your investment might skyrocket in the future. Illness, family emergencies, job loss they don’t care about digital wallets.

It’s easy to romanticise the past, to daydream about a version of yourself that made all the right moves. I imagine that parallel life sometimes: a wealthy man, perhaps living somewhere peaceful, free from financial anxiety, with time to pursue what he loves. Maybe that version of me would have started a company. Travelled the world. Given back. Maybe.

But the reality is I didn’t have that luxury. I had to survive. And to survive, I let go of the one investment that could have changed everything.

Do I regret it? Of course. Sometimes bitterly. Other times, I remind myself that I made the best decisions I could, with the knowledge and tools I had at the time. Bitcoin wasn’t a guaranteed fortune. It was a gamble, and not one I could afford to take while trying to keep the lights on.

Today, I have no Bitcoin left. No #crypto #investments No hidden stash or backup wallet. Just the lesson of hindsight and a story to tell.

#Bitcoinchangedtheworld But for some of us, it was a brief glimpse of what could have been a spark that never got to catch fire.