RE:
What does the term 360 and 180 mean when refering to someones actions or condition?
My parents and I hade a huge debate over what each of these terms mean. I think that a complete 360 means landing back to where you started. 180 means taking a whole new direction. Whose right between us?

To do a 360 means to end up where you started.To come full circle is another way to say it.

People do it all of the time.

You are correct for the most part.

A 180 means a half-circle, like you say, a different direction.

When trying to clean himself up, he made a 180 and was clean for a few months, but then he went a 360 and went back to using drugs again.

Mathematically and logically speaking, if you are northbound and do a 360-degree turn, you are then headed northbound again. In common parlance, however, people often say “360” when the more logically correct phrase would be “180”.