It's National Honesty Day: Real Women Share Their Confessions

'Fess up. April 30th is National Honesty Day. It's time to tell the truth to others, be honest with yourself, and, well, spill the beans and finally be straightforward. What have you lied about or kept secretly to yourself? We asked Shine readers to share their honest confessions, whether it was awkward, dark, hilarious, or embarrassing. Tell us, in light of National Honesty Day, what are your confessions?

"I live an alternate life: during the day, I am a self-restrained, authoritarian who works as hard as I can to show professionalism, and on my own time, my husband and I are bikers. We spend several weekends out of the year and a week or two during the summer traveling on our Harley. Our kids love spending time at their grandparents, especially in the summer, so we take trips across the United States on our bikes. We take with us only what will fit on the bike, and we travel through several states at a time." -- Leeann Bailey, "Confessions of a Working Mom"

"My confession I make to myself every morning as my daughter stumbles down the hall in sleepy stupor. I confess that I harbor a very real fear that I may fail her. I confess a nightmarish fear that my own life and untold confessions might replay someday in the life of this sweet child given to me." -- Phebe Durand, "Life is Not a Judy Blume Novel"

"I use a fake name at Starbucks. My name is pronounced AY-shuh, but people don't always get it right the first time. When asked for my name after I've finished ordering, I give them 'Lisa,' or 'Kelly,' something simple that everyone knows how to spell and say. This saves the guy making my coffee from yelling out 'eye-EE-sha!' when my order is ready, and keeps me from leaving the establishment with a fake 'thanks a lot' smile plastered on my face." -- Aesha Walker, "Guilty as Charged: My Five-Part Rap Sheet"

"I am unreasonably terrified by alarm clocks. So scared, in fact, that every morning I wake up a solid hour before my alarm goes off and lay there waiting until my clock hits one minute before, so I can turn it off. I am legitimately afraid I will be so shocked out of my sleep that my heart will explode. I know, I have issues."
-- Kristin Vinagro,"My Deepest, Darkest (But Mostly Just Plain Embarrassing) Secrets"

"I do the dumbest photoshop photos. I loved Buffy the Vampire Slayer and couldn't help but be a part of it. I found a picture of myself goofing off with a friend on the porch. I thought I looked homeless. I cut and pasted myself into the fog and used a Buffy the Vampire Slayer poster. I use it every Halloween as my default picture on Facebook. My buddies think it's ridiculous but I've done more. The Wizard of Oz, He-Man, South Park and The Never Ending Story have also fell victim to my photoshopping ways." -- Risa Stewart, "My Top Five Embarrassing Secret Confessions"

"I'm addicted to romance novels. I completely blame this on the 'Fifty Shades of Grey' series. After I read those books, I was hooked and wanted more. I started searching for other romance novels. In 2012, I downloaded over 100 romance novels on my Kindle. For 2013, I'm making myself read other types of novels besides romance. I'm currently reading 'Mrs. Dalloway' by Virginia Woolf. It is a much slower read and not as enjoyable, but it's good to have variety." -- Shanna Dayton, "My Five Confessions for National Honesty Day"

"I didn't experience 'love at first sight' with my husband. We connected on eHarmony and exchanged several emails before going on a date. In his emails, he came off as slightly arrogant -- so I doubted if I should even meet him. I'm thrilled I took the chance, because in person, David was far from pompous. I quickly came to realize he was the sweetest man on the planet." -- Molly Golden, "Presenting Your Personal Invitation to My Confessional"

"I fantasize about my favorite video game characters. Sorry, Dracula and Lestat. The only coffin I want to wake up in is Vincent's (Final Fantasy 7). And, harkening back to my villain fetish, Sephiroth (Final Fantasy 7) may be psychotic and cause one of the most emotional upheavals in video game history, but there is something about him that makes my gaming thumbs twitch." -- Tania Staley, "Confessions for a Gamer Girl"

"I was a part of the Danielle Fishel fan club in the 1990s." -- Shauna Silva, "These Are My Confessions"

"I draw on myself sometimes when I'm feeling bored and creative. I just grab a pen and start doing math problems and doodling on myself (usually my legs), making make-shift, poorly-done tattoos. Sometimes, it doesn't wash completely off and I wear shorts anyway." -- Tiffany Grandstaff, "Woman Confesses to Things that Could Ruin Her Career"