For some, life on the road may seem idyllic. After all, it sounds like the ultimate adventure. Your office is the great American wilderness. Your view is ever-changing. Each day brings something new for you to experience.

Photo taken on the road by a former truck driving instructor and Reddit user. (Reddit user PM_me_Venn_diagrams)

But according to Reddit user PM_me_Venn_diagrams, a former truck driving instructor who traveled more than 750,000 miles in 48 states, life on the road is not all it’s cracked up to be.

In a recent AMA, the former instructor shared a harrowing fact: Truck driving is considered one of the world’s most dangerous jobs. In fact, “trucking kills more workers than the worst year in Iraq.”

“Ive been hit three times, had one of my own co-workers roll his truck over in front of me, and one of my former co-workers was murdered by his own student,” the driver said.

Although some drivers stay in the profession their entire lives, around half of all new truckers will quit within the first two months, he says.

Trucking can be stressful and especially hard for new drivers. And it’s not a recommended career for those who are mentally unstable already.

One of his co-workers was killed by an unhinged new student.

“[My co-worker] had been reporting that something was ‘off’ about the guy, who was actually a full grown middle aged man, not some kid. He was going to drop the student off for some disciplinary reason and the student stabbed him in a rest area in front of all the other truckers. The poor guy was on his last student before retiring from teaching, and was going to tour the country with his granddaughter, who just got her CDL [commercial driver’s license] before it happened.”

But this is a unique case. The majority of students go on to lead successful careers as truck drivers. He describes the experience of teaching as “rewarding.”

Although he prefers to remain anonymous, the truck driver provided this proof of his work. (Reddit user PM_me_Venn_diagrams)

In fact, most of the dangers are because of car accidents rather than crazy murderers.

“There are an increasing number of women getting into trucking, and since all truckers require federal background checks and many have security clearances, it’s generally very safe,” he says.

Interestingly, many couples are joining the truck driving world together. Couple salaries are higher than single truckers, averaging over 100 thousand dollars a year.

“The couples are often some of the happiest couples I’ve ever met,” he said.

For the redditor, however, the best part of the job is not the salary.

Trucking is about seeing the sights. It’s about the constant change. It’s about trying those last surviving ma and pa restaurants still scattered in rural areas that are only frequented by truckers.

Reddit user PM_me_Venn_diagrams