Patients say the darndest things. Often doctors may believe they're hearing is off. But, sometimes it can all seem very run of the mill. Everyday in the ER is not an episode of "Grey's Anatomy" so medical professionals feel like normal is the.... normal, until it's not.
Redditor u/poppyoxymoron wanted to hear from the doctors of the world to discuss a few things by asking.... Doctors of reddit, what was the most shocking case of "oh I thought that was normal" you've seen in a patient?
WTH?!
GiphyFormer nursing student here. I grew up watching bugs bunny cartoons, and whenever I saw a closeup of the inside of the mouth there was always a large and dangling uvula (the thing hanging down at the back of one's throat) - just like mine. So naturally I assumed EVERYBODY had one like that. Fast forward to nursing school and I began looking inside people's mouths and seeing nub after pathetic nub of excuses for an uvula. I'm like "what the hell is that?" I suddenly realized I had a stalactite of a uvula in the back of my throat. mishymc
The Stroke.
My best friend is a doctor and he had a patient who couldn't move her arm but didn't even bother to mention it or seem concerned.
He checked blood pressure and various routine tests, then asked her to lift her arms to start doing some kind of neurological test.
"Oh sorry I can't move my left arm at all"
"This is a disability you have had for some time right?"
"Oh no just since this morning"
Turned out she'd had a stroke. Alsoamdsufferer
Brush Away.
Not a doctor and it not completely related but. I was in the dentist's chair and I heard an exchange from the next room over.
Aid: So why'd you come in today?
Patient: hey, yeah my teeth have been hurting and flaking off.
Aid: Well let's take a look.
(A minute of silence)
Aid: yes it looks like you have a very large amount of plaque built up on your teeth.
Patient: Oh is that what keep flaking off when I brush, cause I was worried it was my teeth falling apart.
Brush your teeth daily people. DarkestTimelineEvals
I'm on the opposite end of this. I used to think it was normal when I would go #2 in the bathroom my heart would race and I would break out into a sweat with my face turning bright red. My mom thought I was straining too hard. Saw a doctor and my blood pressure was through the roof, he suggested I had the symptoms of a rare condition. He was right, I had a tumor on one of my adrenal glands called pheochromocytoma. It got removed, I now poop normal. Kings_Daughter
Check Ups.
GiphyDuring my short time as an acting physician at a hospital a middle-aged man walked in. I took my check-up tests and and he had testosterone levels at least 65% lower than average. When I asked him about it, he said that he thought all men felt like he him (low energy, infertility, sleep apnea, etc.) CardioInquisition
A Little Extra....
(Medical student) While chatting with a few friends who are fully fledged doctors and dentists I heard about this one:
Dude had, not one, not two but FOUR extra teeth in his mouth. Now this isn't exactly super rare or shocking on its own, but when asked about it, he said "Doesn't everyone have those...?"
The guy was also a medical student that we knew. Granted he was studying to be an optometrist (sorry opthalmologist**, english isn't my first language :D) so it's out of his field of study but still. AskingMartini
Be Fitbit.
Well, a doctor listened to my heart and lungs the other day and asked if I was nervous. I said no and showed him my Fitbit data of a daytime resting heartbeat between 90-120 and uh, yeah turns out I'm gonna need to get that checked out. agnathastone
Rescue Me.
I thought my tears stinging like hot acid when crying was normal, and that feeling a pain in your nose when crying was normal. Apparently it's not?
Conversation went something like this: watching sad dog rescue video with sibling Me: "Ah no I'm about to cry, I can feel the pain in my nose." Sibling: "????????????" Me: "y'know the pain in your nose when crying?" Sibling: "eeeeh that's not normal." Me: "pffft. And I guess tears feeling like acid isn't normal either? Silly. That's why you end up crying!" Sibling: "...." ViolentPuppy
Diagnosis.
I diagnose diabetes all the time. Many of my patients come in super sick. All have a history of drinking a lot and peeing a lot, but don't actually think it's a big deal until I ask and explain why people with diabetes pee so much. mvenus929
Unique.
GiphyNot a doctor, but I was a combat medic. A dude came in describing puss leaking from between his legs. So I took a look, and under his penis and balls his taint wasn't fused together. So essentially he had a vagina, and it was infected. I let him know about his uniqueness, and he said "I thought everyone had that."No-collusion-suck-it
The Low.
Not a doctor, but a nurse. I was taking vitals during a routine physical of an older woman, her pulse was fast and very thready, and her blood pressure was shockingly low. Normal bp is about 120/80, hers was a mere 80/40. I asked her how she was feeling, she said fine. It turned out she had always had atrial fibrillation and knew about it but never thought to mention it to us, she was having an attack that day. luna8913
Vomit Machine.
I'm not a doctor, but I thought it was normal to immediately vomit food that you didn't like when you tried to eat it. Somehow, no one around me found it alarming that I immediately vomited every time I would try to eat a vegetable until my best friend pointed out that that's not a normal thing. I got a test as an adult, and yep, it turns out I have a rare and severe allergy to vegetables. SecretlyFBI
The Flesh.
GiphyI've learned that skin pain isn't normal. Like, when someone touches my skin, it feels like they're rubbing sandpaper on me. I thought everyone had that. I'm getting tested to figure out what it is. chickadee35
Poop Storm.
Not a doctor, a patient that thought periods were supposed to immobilize you and that you basically pooped what looked like hair pulled out the shower drain out your vagina. Apparently I have blood clots and endometriosis. Had it since I was 11. Reddit
All the Toes.
Patient here! Didn't know it wasn't normal for toenails to just hurt. You know, all the time? Ingrown toenails are a pain if you ignore them!! My Mother noticed my obviously infected big toes, both of them. Holy crap, doctor, DON'T LET INGROWN TOENAILS GET SO BAD THEY'RE GOING THROUGH YOUR TOE!!!
Also learned that day that the way my toes grow (all 10 of those appendages) are shaped in such a way that I can't have toenails without ingrown toenails. Ever. At all. Someday in the next few years I have to get the rest of my toenails removed! Might dig out the picture of the removed big toenails if there's interest. Foodcity
Get it on Tape.
I heard this from my elementary teacher. There was a kid in her class years ago. He kept moving in class, and even keep dropping books and pencils around his table. Other kids couldn't concentrate, so she called his parents and told about him. The parents didn't believe her, saying she was framing their son. So, she filmed what's happening in the class. However, the parents insisted that the teacher edited files, sending only bad moments.
So, she told them to come, and see what's happening in her class. The mother saw, and cried after class, saying she didn't know her son. Then, the parents brought their son to a children's psychiatrist, and the psychiatrist surprised, asking how the parents could endure him. It was about a decade before the notion of ADHD became popular, and that time, saying others to bring their kid to a psychiatrist was the same as saying f-letters to others in my country. Ampluvia
The Migraine.
Patient, not a doctor. I started getting these headaches in 7th grade. Massive stabbing pain, light sensitivity, sound sensitivity, pain with cold and weather change. I tried taking ibuprofen but it didn't work so I stopped. 7th grade me was worried about getting addicted. The headaches came every single day, and would usually get worse throughout the day. I didn't think it was abnormal because everyone gets headaches, right?
I finally figured out it might not be normal and talked to my GP my sophomore year of college. Saw a neurologist, turns out I have chronic migraine. After some trial, and painful, error, I have some awesome medication that works a majority of the time. walks_into_things
One Drop.
GiphyApparently it's not normal to have a drop of blood pressures and almost pass out whenever you stand up. I mentioned it to my doctor and he said it was normal but i looked it up and it apparently isn't. Weird. Havox04
The Internists.
Oh, it's my time to shine. I'm not a doctor, just a patient who hangs out with their doctors A Lot.
I got diagnosed with ehlers-danlos a couple years ago. Horrified a couple internists with how easily and casually I could partially dislocate bits of my body, while thinking it was regular flexibility from my dance background as a kid. I have one foot that can curl inward, like a fetus in the womb (courtesy of no ATF ligament, thank you,). Also have a shoulder that will not stay in joint - most of the time it hands out, visibly misplaced. There's a couple fun things I can do with my tendons that shouldn't be technically physically impossible and that my doctors can't figure out without further, very expensive imaging. creampunk
Screwy Genetics.
Not a doctor, but when I was 13 or 14 I went to the doctor for a physical. They were doing the pushing on the stomach routine when it hurt and listened to my stomach. The doctor asked me when my last BM was and I said it was about 2 to 3 weeks ago. They had a horrified expression and asked if they was normal. I said yeah sometimes I don't have a BM but once a month. That's when they prescribed me 3 doses of miralax a day and 50 grams of fiber daily.
Who knew you should poop everyday???
PS . When this happened in my household it became a running joke, until my father said, "well yeah if you poop once a day it means you are eating too much." We then realized it was a genetic issue. butteryourmuffin69
Redditor bluewings23 wanted to hear about all the eccentric things we do at parties to keep the attention focused on us, so they asked:
"What’s your party trick?"
Gone
Homer Simpson Burn GIF by Dallas FuelGiphy"Disappearing."
saello
"You say hello to the host, go to a corner and play with your phone for a while, then walk out the door when no one is watching and text the the host 'sorry, I have an emergency. Thank you for the invite.' Works like a charm all the time."
Mariuxpunk007
Cherries
"If there are cherries at the function, I typically tell ppl I can tie a cherry stem into a knot, in my mouth, in under 10 seconds. I have won betting money doing this a number of times. And it's as simple as tying a knot in a cherry stem and putting I try in my cheek before ever mentioning that I can do it."
"Then I just swap 'em out and pull the one with the knot out. No one has ever noticed me take the second untied stem out of my mouth."
Owen_Bundles
Cubed
"I solve a Rubik's cube that I find around the house without anyone noticing, and then I never admit to solving it. Sometimes nobody notices. I'm like a crazy party animal obviously."
fishintheboat
"My buddy used to leave an unsolved cube at parties we would go to. He would wait until he saw people messing with it, or around it and would be like 'Oh cool, can I see?' and solve it in like 10 seconds. Obviously he crushed massive amounts of sex."
shartnado3
“Read my friend's mind”
"Me and my friend have a trick we call 'black magic.' I leave the room, and the other partygoers tell my friend an object in the room. I then come back, and state that I can 'read my friends mind' and guess the object they told her. My friend starts listing items in the room, and I answer no until the actual object comes along."
"It usually takes people hours to figure out the trick. They think it’s always the third object, or that it has to do with intonation or a sign of sorts. So we repeat the trick excluding that tell. Makes them go nuts."
"The trick is in the name. The right object is the one mentioned after a black object."
PomegranateRules
One Shot
Giphy"In college, my party trick was to fill a red Solo cup with vodka and take it as a single shot. Probably killed a bunch of brain cells doing that."
Robertsonforget
Oof. College party tricks. Yikes. I remember nothing.
Duck and Roll
Rolling In The Deep GIF by AdeleGiphy"I am double joined on most of my body, I just say 'autobots roll out' and twist my body in terrifying ways into a small cube."
crappy-mods
Pistols at 14
"I got shot in the wrist by a jammed CO2 powered BB pistol at my 14th birthday party. We thought that we had gotten it out or it fell out but it had not and healed over quite quick. Twenty years later I have the power to hang magnets from my wrist that look like magic and set off very sensitive metal detectors!"
Butt-Spelunker
The Unusuals
"Opening beer bottles and wine bottles without their typical openers. ie using an empty can or lighter to open a beer bottle or banging a bottle of wine off a wall to get the cork out. Or getting out the cork of a wine bottle that’s been pushed completely inside the bottle."
"Useful party tricks are always the best and often needed!"
Alternative-Public32
Magic
Justin Willman Netflix GIF by CameoGiphy"Card tricks. It’s been years and someone still wants to know how I made their card appear."
Strong-ishninja
Play Turkey
"I often go to bonfires or scaled down versions where a fire is present. I can hold my hands in the fire for a much longer time than most people due to my job working with molten glass. It’s a fun way to shock people when you reach into the flames and grab a half burnt piece of wood or something like that. I have yet to play chicken with someone but I think it’s a credit to the people I hang out with that they aren’t dumb enough to try"
coderedmountaindewd
I gotta try a few of these.
Who am I kidding?
I'm too old.
Do you have any tricks that leave guests astounded? Let us know in the comments!
Redditor Ntoxide wanted to hear from people who have come across the dead, so they asked:
"People of Reddit who have found dead bodies what was your immediate reaction?"
Reactions
Toy Story Goodbye GIFGiphy"As a nurse aide in a nursing home that happened more than I'd like to remember, and tearing up was always my immediate reaction."
TroublesMuse
School Zones
"So when I was about 15 I went to school to take my final exam. I was late due to my bus being in traffic and had to walk through a few streets after getting to my stop, at around midway there this guy crossing the street gets hit by a car going 50 in a school zone (the primary school was to the side of my school). He went over the car and feel on the ground with a crack, car drives away."
"At that point I went to check it out and was already panicking he was still breathing for a while after the crash for about 5 minutes and then he just died. I called 112 and tried to explain the situation as I was hyperventilating. Apparently he had broken his spine and had a lot of internal bleeding, I did not do the exam."
Mobile-Paint-7535
Last Breaths
"Was beside my mum's bed when she died. I just somehow knew it was close so I stayed there and waited. After her last breath, I just sat by her for a bit thinking she was now in peace and past the pain and struggle of a body that was progressively shutting down from old age. Called out for the nurse to come in and confirm she was gone."
"My dad, I found on the floor at our old family home a couple of days too late, almost five years later. Called my wife and then the authorities and sat on the front step feeling guilty, a bit lost and finally annoyed. I was angry and frustrated that he always point blank refused to have one of those medical alert pendants and I hadn't been there over the weekend. I'm still dealing with the remnants of that 15 months later."
djjrrr
Being 9...
"Found my mom's body, I was 9, I thought she was sleeping, I understood when my sisters started crying."
kalarm2
"That's wild. My mom died when I was 9 too, Christmas night from breast cancer. My dad just kinda walked in my room and went 'Hey, let's go downstairs.' I was still at the age where I knew she was dead but I didn't fully understand what was happening until the guys with the hearse showed up to take her body. That's a weird age to accept death at."
darkpinkEFcancer
911
"I didn't realize he was dead and tried to wake the guy up gently. Honestly, I thought he was passed out drunk or high. I was about to check his pulse when two city workers came along told me not to touch him and called 911. The ambulance came, and I went to work. Never actually thought about it again until I saw this post."
tryoracle
Finding the dead is aways a shock to the body.
Farewell
animation goodbye GIFGiphy"My first dead body was a sweet old woman. I got a phone call from her husband at 3am. Apparently she went to the living room to watch TV. I went there. Cold and unresponsive. Hugged the guy and held his hand. Called 911. Called the family. Helped out with whatever I could."
"Second one was very sweet as well. I helped someone transition peacefully and comfortably. There was an order to administer morphine every hour. Around 6am his wife told me he passed. Since he was on hospice I got to interact with them. The family was awesome."
TheRealDannySugar
Crashed
"I was watching a movie with my girlfriend, and suddenly heard a loud crash. I used to be trained in first aid and CPR, so I jumped up and walked outside to try to see if there was anything I could do."
"I wasn't the first on the scene, but I was the first to check out if the driver was ok. I noticed that the glass on the windshield was cracked at about head height, and no seat belt was worn, nor were the airbags deployed."
"Nothing felt right, and there was a feeling of dread that I can only describe as 'empty with a side of heavy.'"
"The man was slouched over to his right, appeared to be about late 50s early 60s, and the primary thing I noticed that confused me was that his veins in his arms looked as though he was still flexing. There was nothing I could do, as there was no pulse, no breathing, and a clear traumatic brain injury that even had he been alive, it wouldn't have looked great long term."
thundervagious
'I love you'
"Called 911. I was hysterical. I loved her very much, and I couldn't believe she was dead. It was like a nightmare I couldn't wake up from. I tried my best to stay calm until the cops and paramedics showed up. It was one of the worst days of my life that I still replay in my mind over and over and over again."
"I flash to the disagreements we had and how many times I could have said 'I love you' more and what I could have done in the last 30 years to have changed everything. That's why saying I Love You is so important, and if something happens, call 911."
"I'm much better now, but that was one of my first reactions."
HumanMycologist5795
High Seas
"Sailor, on one of my first patrol’s we found a dead body in the ocean. We called a man overboard and the nerves of trying to figure out who it might have been was so gut-wrenching and surreal. Turned out it was a Japanese man who had been dead for about a week just floating in the Pacific. Never learned more about it, but still think about it time to time."
lo-squalo
The Body
Comforting Big Hero 6 GIF by SkyGiphy"I told the med tech, and then, because she wasn't on home health or hospice, I washed her body and teeth, brushed her hair, changed her brief, and dressed her in some nice clothes."
Bao-Babe
Saying goodbye to a person and seeing death is never easy.
Do you have any similar experiences? Let us know in the comments below.