Health

People Share their Worst Doctor Visits

5. When a doctor gives you 40 Vicodin for a sore throat. “Last year, I went to the doctor for a really bad sore throat, but… Trista - April 9, 2021

Everyone would agree that going to visit the doctor is rarely fun. Most people don’t like going in general, whether they are sick or for some other reason. Maybe they don’t like waiting in those little offices where everyone is coughing. Perhaps it costs too much money. Whatever the case, no one wants to have a bad experience when attending a doctor’s appointment. Nevertheless, these Reddit users share stories about their worst doctor’s visits.

Did you have a terrible time once? From cranky nurses to strange doctors, it could be a plethora of factors that led to your horrible experience. Not to mention the range in doctors from gynecologists to dentists — can really make things uncomfortable. With that being said, you can imagine some of the insane stories you are about to read. What would you do if you went to your doctor’s appointment, and these crazy things happened to you, your spouse, or your children?

20. When an OB didn’t tell the gender out of spite.

“Today was my appointment for 20 weeks. My husband couldn’t take me to the appointment this time, so I went alone. I was bummed about it, but he can’t go inside with me anyways. Unfortunately, I ended up getting lost; I’ve only been in this town for a short time and don’t know my way around yet. I was 10 minutes late. The nurse lectured me on being late and told me they wouldn’t have time to do an ultrasound and tell me the gender as they had to work me in.

I started crying, trying to explain and apologize for why I was late, and she just had no expression on her face. She asked if this was my first kid and then said, “I thought so.” They told me they’d see me in a month and MAYBE then tell me the gender. I’m upset and ashamed for crying and getting lost. I wanted to know the gender and was so excited to find out today.” –HootBear This behavior is definitely not how someone should be treated, especially while pregnant.

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19. Don’t be afraid to speak up and say no!

“I really, really love my doctor. But today, he brought a med student in to observe. He did ask, but I didn’t think enough about it to say “no,” and it would have been so impolite… But so it was already uncomfortable enough to talk to him about what was going on in front of this stranger, but then he pointed out my self-harm scars. He then proceeded to ask me several questions, and I answered most of them (and answered honestly every time I did answer). In retrospect, I wish I would have asked the med student to leave while I talked about it, but I didn’t.

I let myself be violated by sharing with a person to whom I didn’t feel comfortable sharing. Furthermore, with someone who did not deserve to hear my story. And, to top it all off, two nurses made comments on my scars, too. One tried to relate by showing me accidental burns she had on her hands. The other tried to comfort me by saying, “it will all get better.” I appreciate the attempts. However, I wish they just would have ignored the scars or asked what they were and dropped it. I just felt like I was violated left and right. I did nothing to stop it. It feels crappy.” –kpatable

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18. Therapists can make things worse.

“I’m much better at going to therapy than the doctor, so I’ll do those. My first therapist was very young. She was nice, but she seemed like she was my age, and everything she said was very textbook. Which is all well and good, but I didn’t feel like she was telling me something I couldn’t Google. The hardest thing for me is to stop going because I feel a weird sense of obligation, but once she forgot to schedule me for a next appointment, and I didn’t push it and didn’t go back.

My next therapist, I really hated. She was rude and seemed more like a tough love kind of person. She did not (in my opinion) listen well. I was very upset after the first appointment. I wanted to just skip the next one (instead of canceling, I really hate canceling), but I just couldn’t do it. But I got lost on the way there and eventually found my way home and just never went back. My current therapist is great. He really listens and is super experienced and non-judgmental. When I panicked about street parking and having change for the meter, he was super understanding and told me about when cars stopped getting ticketed and alternative safe places to park.” –RoseofLaurel

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17. When the doctor doesn’t believe you.

“So three months ago, I went to the emergency room for pain on my right side and was told that I needed a CT scan. I do 2 CT scans and book an appointment to see a doctor. I’m in college, and I live far from my hometown, so I’ve never seen this doctor before. I came in and handed him all my documentation and told him that I am in pain and it won’t go away and that I don’t sleep because the pain is so bad. He looks at me and says I am too young to have an ostomy (I’m 20) and kept asking me why I hadn’t reversed it.

I move past the why I haven’t reversed it and ask him how he can help me because the pain is limiting my daily activities. He responds by looking at the report from the CT scan and highlighting the word small. He says, you see? It is a small hernia, so it should not be hurting you so much. If it’s hurting you so much, then you clearly need something to calm you down. I was so shocked by this that I didn’t know what to say. It’s been over an hour, and I can’t get over what an awful appointment that was.” –Thilda2020

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16. Sharing needles is a big no-no.

“So, when going in for my annual checkup, the office’s new nurse was assigned to take my blood to run some tests. She put in the needles perpendicular to my vein, and no blood came out, so she continued to slap my arm and vein to see if some blood would run through. Not only did she treat my arm as if it was a broken remote control and slapping it until it worked, but she also continued to take the needle out and put it back in my arm, making multiple punctures.

THE SAME NEEDLE. DO YOU KNOW THE DANGERS OF THAT? OMG, IT’S SO UNSTERILE AND THE RISK OF INFECTION OH MY! (I was a nursing major, and that microbiology class material was vividly going through my brain). I started having a panic attack and almost passed out, and the doctor came in running, telling the new “nurse” (Idk what to call her I can’t function, omg) to stop. They got about a tablespoon of blood and went ahead and tested that even though test results would come out highly inaccurately as I was obviously in shock and freaking out and low key having a breakdown.” –mimiminimon

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15. When your doctor is rude enough to give you a panic attack.

“Two come to mind. The first was when a doctor berated me in front of a nurse for being rude to her. To clarify, I have PTSD and a lot of social anxiety from that. Eye contact can shut me down. I had taken to carrying around a DS and just walking in Animal Crossing so that I could talk without eye contact. When the doctor came in, I didn’t lower my DS to introduce myself. I had never met this doctor before, even though she had been my doctor for probably two years. When she came into the room, she immediately sat down in front of the computer and started typing and chatting with the nurse.

She wore plain scrubs like the other nurses. I thought maybe she was the Resident IT Nurse there to fuck with the computer. She went all kinds of off on me for being a rude young person. I cried and had a panic attack. The second is when I had an MRI scheduled with my vascular specialist, and I tested positive for pregnancy. My whole day was set back two hours while they retested my blood twice. The doctor wouldn’t let my mom back in the room with me because he thought I was some 16-year-old girl who’d gotten knocked up and not comes clean about it yet.” –LucyOfDorne

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14. Leave religion out of the doctor’s office.

“I have a friend that is now a doctor here in NYC but was working under another doctor in the Midwest for a few years. This doctor was super religious and didn’t prescribe birth control or provide abortion services. One day a couple came in for a checkup for their pregnancy, and the doctor had to inform them that the child had Down syndrome. They decided right there they wanted to abort the pregnancy; big drama breaks out. My friend, who is super liberal and pro-choice, had to settle the doctor down.

And he begins to call in a nurse in the office that has a daughter with DS. The couple was pissed and finally got out of the office. I still can’t believe gynos and obgyns would even dare bring religion in when it comes to a woman’s body. Yuck.” –YourJewishMom Religion should never be brought up by a doctor. Furthermore, anyone else working in that profession to a patient for any reason unless the patient asks about it themselves. Let’s see what others have to say about their experiences at their doctor’s offices.

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13. Part 1: Acne as an adult is no fun.

“I still can’t get over how dehumanizing today’s doctor’s visit was. I went to my doctor, whom I have seen since practically birth, to get a blood test because I’m supposed to start Accutane soon. My doctor immediately turned hostile and started questioning why I would even consider such a dangerous medication. I told him I already discussed this with my dermatologist and had time to think this through (which I do not think is dangerous btw). He started asking me if I tried other solutions for my acne, which was fine. However, I wasn’t coming in to discuss alternatives because I already made my mind up.

Then, he asked me if I take any other medication, to which I said the birth control pill. The doctor once again was shocked and appalled. He told me that the pill is also dangerous, and one day, I am going to want children and will be infertile because of it. He said gynecologists give out the pill because it’s a moneymaker, not because it’s good for women’s health. I was getting obviously frustrated because I was not here to talk about that. Really though, that wasn’t the worst. The worst came when he asked if I am sexually active. I hesitated but told him, yes, and that was clearly my mistake believing that I could disclose that and not be judged.” –lawschoolkat To be continued…

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12. Part 2: When the doctor shames you completely.

“The first question he asked me was if I was married?! Or if I am planning on it soon? Err no, and I am not? He then proceeded to ask if I have single or multiple partners, which that should be a fine question to ask a patient, but I knew he was prying to keep judging. I told him I’m in a stable relationship. Then, he goes on to give me a long lecture about how I should not be having premarital sex. I AM 22. At this point, I burst into tears because I felt humiliated and powerless to do or say anything. The doctor continues lecturing me, saying that if my boyfriend truly loves me, then he would not sleep with me.

He also talked about divorce rates and that my sleeping with my boyfriend is jeopardizing our chance at a stable marriage in the future. This guy then begs me to rethink my stance on sex and not do it anymore until I am married. I was biting my lip the entire time because I was ready to explode and walk out of there. I started lying to questions, such as if I slept with multiple people throughout my lifetime. Also, how many years I’ve been having sex because I felt so ashamed. I no longer could be honest with him.” –lawschoolkat If you really want to feel ashamed about another medical-related thing, check this out. It is the unhealthiest drinks you can order from drive-thrus. How many have you indulged on regularly?

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11. Is your doctor just in it for the money?

“Went to a doctor to examine a hernia. I’m obese as well, so she wanted to test me for diabetes. However, I didn’t want to take the blood sample unless I made a separate appointment for that. The most she wanted to do was refer me to a hospital to have an MRI done. So I went, and it was expensive. By the 2nd appointment, she finally took the blood sample to test for diabetes. But then wouldn’t tell me the results of the MRI unless I made a third appointment. So the 3rd appointment comes around, and she tells me she still didn’t look at the MRI and didn’t test the blood sample.

Instead, she just kept asking about my insurance and saying that if I wanted to know the results, I would have to make yet another appointment. I told her to go fuck herself and never went back. And tbh, I should’ve known she was just milking my insurance money by how she would always try to rush me out the door. Plus, she ignored most of my questions. And I don’t want to try again given how the US healthcare system is profit-based, and there’s no protection against doctors who try to get as much money as possible out of people without actually helping them.” -Anonymous

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10. Going to the ER at 2 am on a Saturday is never fun.

“I had a tonsil infection, throat swelled shut to the point where I could barely breathe, so I went to the hospital at 2 am on a Saturday. They take me in, and the nurse goes to draw blood and completely blows the vein. It’s cold as ever in the room, and despite being February, they offer me no blanket, so all I have is my coat as the nurse spikes the vein and sends a fountain of blood all over my clothes. She grabs some gauze, throws it at me to hold onto the wound, and she leaves.

About 10 minutes later, a lab tech comes in with the nurse, looks at me, looks at the nurse with this “Freaking, seriously?!” look, and taps three test tubes off my other arm like it’s nothing. He shakes his head as he leaves the room.” –0xD153A53 Some people in the medical profession don’t seem to have much experience, whether it’s with the job itself or with hospitality and helping outpatients to make them feel as comfortable as possible. Continue to read on to find out more stories of people and their bad experiences while at the doctor.

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9. Teeth can bring the worst pain ever.

“I went to the dentist to have three molars removed and was warned that I could have a perforated sinus if I didn’t keep pressure on the area. He also said he e-scripted pain meds and antibiotics to my pharmacy. I got there, and I was dying. The stuff they gave me for pain had worn off, and I really needed something. Get the meds, and it’s Motrin and antibiotics. I called his office and asked why they only gave me Motrin. They said that I didn’t need opiates. Motrin would be fine.

I was literally in tears. The whole side of my face was swollen and throbbing. On a 1 to 10 scale of pain, I was a solid 8. I walked over to my primary care physician for an emergency visit and told her what had transpired, and she just wrote me a script for three days worth of Percocet and stitched up the perforation in my gum. The last time I went to that dentist, thankfully, the one I use now is a lot more reasonable.” –MadLintElf This person learned that just because one experience was horrible doesn’t mean the next will be somewhere else.

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8. She wants the husband, not the wife!

“Well, when I was younger, maybe about eight or nine, my dentist turned out to be a quack. He had flunked out of med school but had learned enough to somehow scam his way to a medical license for dentistry. He missed my sister’s need for a retainer and braces until it was too late to completely realign her jaw. Thankfully I was young enough when we learned that mine could still be fixed. My next dentist was my dad’s, and I don’t know how he’s been going to that dentist for so long.

The office was run by a husband and wife combo, and I always prayed I would get the husband and not the wife. She was an absolute psychopath. Instead of waiting for freezing to kick in properly, she would start working within on cavities within seconds of injecting the Novocain, and if you complained, she would inject more. I once got six injections for one cavity.” –Iokuas Yikes! It sounds like some people should just not be dentists, and it’s amazing how some people are still in business. Keep reading to hear of other horrible experiences with doctors.

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7. Beware of fake doctors and complete scam artists.

“I went to a new dentist for the first time in a new city. They told me I had periodontitis and that it was basically the same as having cancer. Then they told me they could treat it with something called Arestin, and it would be 3,000 dollars. I was like: “Okay…” Fully planning on just leaving and never going back there. Most dentists set up a new appointment for procedures, and I was just gonna cancel that. But all of a sudden, they come busting into the room with all this stuff, ready to do this thing right then and there.

I was like: “Um yeah, I’m gonna have to think about this.” Then I got the hell out of there. Saw another dentist later on who never even mentioned me having periodontitis and actually had a coworker whose husband I found out went to the same guy. They told him exactly the same thing, and he actually fell for it and paid the money….” –iWatchCrapTV It really sounds like that dentist was nothing but a scam artist. Thank goodness this person went and got a second opinion. Some people aren’t so lucky and don’t think to do so.

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6. Sometimes, the nurses are better than the doctors.

“I was 12 weeks pregnant with our first child when I suddenly experienced heavy bleeding and clotting, and I was terrified of miscarrying. We were out of town and went to the local ER. The doc, while examining me, said that my “fetus isn’t considered viable anyway” with a rather nonchalant attitude. That’s not something you tell a panicked pregnant lady, no matter if it’s scientific fact or not. He was a rather young doc and didn’t say it only once to me. He went on about early pregnancy and that my fetus wasn’t viable.

I wasn’t there to be schooled over his callous factoids; I was there because I wanted to know if my baby was still there or not. It turned out my placenta had a tear of the uterine wall, but we would be okay. The little guy was alive and well. The nurse did a fantastic job calming me down and was the only reason I didn’t end up going totally bonkers over that idiot doctor. A few months later, I received a survey from the hospital over how well I received treatment. I ripped that doc a new asshole and made sure to thank the nurse.” –tarantulawarfare

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5. When a doctor gives you 40 Vicodin for a sore throat.

“Last year, I went to the doctor for a really bad sore throat, but my regular doctor was on vacation, so I saw somebody else. When he walked into the exam room, he was already in mid-sentence (but talking to me), explaining the difference between a viral and bacterial infection. He then rambled on, and on, and on, and on about nothing for long enough that I was surprised that the clinic could even run efficiently enough to stay open. Then he went, to paraphrase, “Now I know sore throats can be painful, and I don’t want you to be in pain it could keep you up at night, and that’s not good, so I’m going to prescribe you some Vicodin.

It’s going to be more than you need, but hey, you know what, someday you’re going to fall and hurt your ankle, and you’re not going to need to come to see me; you’re just going to need some Vicodin!” So then, without me even mentioning that I was in pain, he prescribed me FORTY extra strength (7.5/750) Vicodin. I almost started laughing when he handed me the prescription. Not that I am complaining about this, but damn. All I could think was, for someone with an MD, you sure are stupid.” –ten000days

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4. Small breasts equals bad service?

“After having breast reduction surgery, I wasn’t even awake before they were making me stand to get in a car to drive home. I was home a couple of hours when I started to notice the redness on one side. I snapped a photo for my plastic surgeon, who said it was nothing—fast forward 5 hours. Fever is now setting in, tenderness and swelling at the surgical site. The fever reaches 102, get a drive to the hospital. They dismiss me and tell me to go back to the surgeon on Monday (it was Friday). Fever Reaches 104, and I feel like I have been hit by a truck.

With my ride gone, I have to call an ambulance. They take me to the hospital, the triage nurses berate me and ask why I didn’t get a drive and why I would dare call an ambulance. Dr. McNoob tries to cut the surgical tape off me and cuts part of my skin off too. I spent the weekend in a hospital bed on morphine, and on Monday morning, I went to my plastic surgeons, where he jammed an unconscionably large needle into the wound and siphoned off almost a quart of stale bloody liquid. (pressure released, I healed, it felt better).” -Anonymous

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3. Always get a second opinion.

“When I was about 18, I began to experience pains in the middle of my chest. It would be horribly uncomfortable, but nothing I felt the need to seek treatment for. When I was 21, I had a very intense attack. It was so painful I couldn’t breathe, and I kept throwing up. I was convinced that I had a heart attack. My friend rushed me to the ER, and I couldn’t do anything except cry and gasp for breath, asking for help. The nurses got me registered and hooked up to monitors and then left me in the room alone. I laid on the bed and cried the best I could through broken breaths and truly believed I was going to die.

About 10 minutes later, the pain subsided. About 15 minutes after that, the ER doctor finally strolled in. He ran some tests and diagnosed me with a spasmodic esophagus which was essentially not preventable and incurable. I spent the next seven years suffering these debilitating attacks, during which all I could do is curl into a ball, cry, and pray that the pain would subside soon. After a particularly horrific attack during which I was in pain for a solid 8 hours, I finally went to see my family doctor in hopes he could at least prescribe pain medication for such times. It was then that he told me it’s not my esophagus, rather it was gallstone attacks and that I needed to have my gallbladder out.” –Cherpyderp

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2. Blood went everywhere.

“My worst was right after I got in a horrible car accident. I went in just for a checkup to see if my ribs were broken. The appointment had several X-rays, cat scans, MRIs, and an ultrasound. While doing these, the nurse decided I needed morphine for the pain and had a tech come to put in my IV. The tech put it in wrong several times. Then when he finally got it in my arm right; the line had a hole in it or something and wasn’t pumping just morphine, but air as well, when I started to feel sick. Plus, still in pain.

I mentioned it, and the tech told me I didn’t know what I was talking about and to be quiet. He was concentrating. When I finally got in to get the MRI, the tech in there told my other tech that my IV was in the wrong spot. So, she ripped it out without so much as a warning. Blood went everywhere, and they all blamed it on me (i could hear them whispering about me). Then when she put it back in, I told her to put it in my hand instead, and when she did, the tech told her she did it wrong and made her do it again. Which hurt like heck.” –EmeraldEyedMonster

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1. When a doctor acts highly unprofessional — after brain surgery!

“I had brain surgery eight years ago and a week after had crazy blurry vision, couldn’t read. I went through a lot of work up for inter-cranial pressure, which was marginally high, all these meds to get it down. 8-day hospital stays with a lumbar drain to drain excess cerebrospinal fluid. My neurosurgeon sent me to a neuro-ophthalmologist for further workup. The neuro-ophthalmologist (older male) does a piss poor exam and tells me in front of my mom, “everything is normal. You just need reading glasses” I was 23. “I think the real issue is you exaggerating symptoms because you’re afraid to live on your own and start your life again.”

He said, “You want to be taken care of.” My mom lost it on him, and we left crying. A few days later, I went to an optometrist. Maybe I could get some info. She takes one look at me and says, “how long have you been wearing that scopolamine patch?” I had had it on since surgery like a month ago at that point, for my nausea. My eyes were crazy dilated from the patch, and a day after I removed it, my vision was normal again. We wrote to the chief of ophthalmology, and he called us and formally apologized.” –stinkspiritt

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