Most of us have fantasised about winning the lottery at one point, but an unexpected windfall won't necessarily change every single thing in your life.
Timothy Schultz – an Iowa Powerball winner who won $29 million in 1999 – made the revelation ahead of the the $1.9 billion Powerball draw this Saturday (12 November).
The winner of what would be the largest lottery prize in history could walk away with a staggering $782.4 million in their wallet if they take the cash option.
Schultz wrote in an email to Fox News Digital: "When you win the lottery, the exhilaration is through the roof; it’s one of the most potentially life-altering things that can happen.
"One minute you have one life," he said, and then 'your world is turned on its head'.
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The winner stressed that while there is an inevitable rush and 'euphoria' from winning, 'it eventually subsides'.
He explained that while money can solve a lot of life's problems, it does not solve all of them and it 'doesn't change who you are as a person. If you were unhappy before, you might be unhappy after.'
"There are some very wealthy people in the world who are extremely unhappy," he asserted. "Money can be positive, but it doesn't necessarily fix all problems."
Schultz also revealed that new-found wealth can create problems too, and admitted that after his big win, 'it was much more difficult to trust people.'
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"Most people were supportive and happy for me, but I did receive stacks of letters from people asking for money.
"It was difficult to trust new people - that they didn't want me for the wrong reasons. It felt like some people viewed me as a walking, talking ATM machine."
While the lucky winner said that he shared some of his good fortune with others and did 'quite a bit' to help, he knew he had to 'live within a means'.
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"Thankfully, most people wanted me for the right reasons, but there was a learning curve in how to deal with that sort of thing," he said.
The man who won millions stressed that money means nothing in the face of a devastating health diagnosis and said it 'can't fix everything'.
Although it is extremely rare to win millions, Schultz made a good point which could have many of us thinking that we are lucky to be breathing at all.
He said: "It's astonishing. You have a better chance of winning the lottery a million times over than of being born.
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"Our health should not ever be taken for granted," he stressed. "Money can certainly help, but it can't fix everything."
Topics: News
Emma Guinness