People Share The Most Unprofessional Things Doctors Have Said to Them

Author image for Emmy Pratt
Emmy Pratt • Senior Editor
Sep 4, 2023 7:00 PM EDT

If you've been to the doctor enough times, you know that they don't always know what's best for you. So many people in the medical profession take a cursory look at patients and say the first thing that comes to their mind, regardless of whether it's appropriate or relevant. I've heard more stories than you can imagine about people going to the doctor for flu-like symptoms and immediately being told by their doctor that they need to lose weight as if that has anything to do with having a fever and chills. Weight is one of those things that doctors fixate on, and while it's an important part of health, it's not normal for somebody to have extremely painful symptoms just because they're 50 pounds overweight. People who have been humiliated, dismissed, and treated poorly by doctors and nurses took to Reddit to share similar stories, and they are a doozy. 

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  • 01
    Font - r/AskReddit u/Monsah 17h ● What is the most doctor has said to you? unprofessional thing a
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  • 02
    Font - grannywanda • 15h That either I cheated or my husband did because that kind of cervical pain was always chlamydia. It was an ectopic pregnancy that ruptured and resulted in emergency life-saving surgery. But thanks for listening. (My personal OB happened to be at the hospital that night and came to tell me the news herself, giving him the angriest look I've ever seen in a professional setting). Reply 5.9k
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  • 03
    Font - Currentlyunsureatm • 14h (Not me but my older sister) had unbearable Gl issues for years growing up; pediatrician told our parents that "children get tummy aches" and to try peppermint altoids. She ended up having emergency surgery where they had to remove her entire large intestine because it was necrotic and had tumors. Permanent colostomy at 14 Reply ... 1.7k
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  • 04
    Font - kellygrrrl328. 16h I took my then 4 y/o daughter to a pediatric gastroenterologist. First he said she's just being dramatic. Then he said, well, she'll get married some day and be someone else's problem. That was 25 years ago, and it still shocks me! Turned out she had a partial bowel obstruction. ETA: I just looked him up and he's still practicing in Encino, CA. Reply 3.2k
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  • 05
    Font - Bite_me_23. 16h "That's normal in your line of work. Just ignore it, the pain will go away." I went in for shoulder pain, as my left shoulder would be killing me after a day loading trucks all day. This was an ongoing thing for weeks before I went to get it checked. Didn't examine my shoulder. Didn't have any x-rays done, catscans done, MRIs done, nothing. - didn't even have me take my shirt off. Turns out that I had a torn rotator cuff. Had another doc tell me that the stomach pain that
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  • 06
    Font - sadsledgemain . 16h I had severe cystic acne, and the conventionally attractive, young female doctor with perfect skin and a full face of makeup refused to prescribe me something, and instead told me that I shouldn't feel bad about having acne, because appearance didn't matter and personality is all that counts. :) It took me several years to find a doctor who took me seriously, got my hormonal levels tested and put me on spiro, but that one woman was by far the worst. I went home and cri
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  • 07
    Font - internet_commie. 14h I had cystic acne for years after being exposed to dioxins while in the Army. Every doctor I went to basically told me I wasn't worthy of effective treatment. They claimed they couldn't prescribe me Retin-A or Accutane because I'm female and might get pregnant and those medications are only for people who REALLY suffer! As if my pain wasn't worthy. One even told me that even without acne I wouldn't be pretty. It was almost lucky I didn't have health insurance so going
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  • 08
    Font - comebraidmyhair. 15h Resident doc interviewing me before regular doc came in to insert my IUD: any chance you are pregnant? Me: no Doc: how do you know? Me: I haven't had s since November (it was July by now) Doc (shocked): why haven't you have s ? Don't you live with your partner? Me: I don't have a partner Doc: then why do you want an IUD? Me: I'm really hoping the last time wasn't the last time! Reply7k
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  • 09
    Font - smolwormbigapple At 16 said they couldn't fill my prescription for birth control pills, which I'd taken from age 14 to help with my extremely heavy periods that caused blood loss and low iron. (Diagnosed now with endometriosis so there you go). 11h ● Reason? I didn't have a boyfriend. ... 1.4k
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  • 10
    Font - WanderInTheTrees - 16h I went into urgent care with mastitis (i'd had it twice before and it's very obvious to self diagnose when part of your breast turns red, hard, and hot to the touch while breastfeeding). The guy wasn't yet a doctor, but was doing some practice at the urgent care. When I told him I had mastitis, he looked at me and said "wow! That's an awfully big word! Where'd you learn that?!" I was 30. If I hadn't been very sick at that moment, I might have kicked him in the teeth
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  • 11
    Font - PrincessSummerTop. 16h "You're 27. I don't know what you have to be anxious about." (This was in the 1990s) ... Reply 1.3k
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  • 12
    Font - GrimeyScorpioDuffman. 15h Not said to me but said about me. I found out from my friend (who went to the same doctor) that he had told her things about my last appointment. What about patient/doctor confidentiality? ... Reply 565
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  • 13
    Font - didyoubutterthepan • 16h I was at the doctor for strep throat symptoms. I had just moved so I was seeing a new dr for the first time. He walks in, is looking at my chart, doesn't look up and tells me- you're 7 pounds overweight. You need to lose weight. I was 112 lbs. ... Reply 1.9k
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  • 14
    Font - Stars Going Out • 15h Back in college, I went to see the doctors at Student Health about an issue. It was a very nice, well- regarded university in the northeastern U.S. The doctor (it was a doctor, not a NP) was going to prescribe me 5mg pills of a medication, to be taken daily. He went to see if it was covered and was like "Oh, sorry, our insurance only covers 14 pills per month. Sorry, guess you can't take your medicine every day, unless you want to pay out of pocket." He then shrugged
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  • 15
    Font - The doctor then got quiet, paused for a moment, got REALLY weird, and said "You are suggesting insurance fraud. I will not continue this discussion. You need to get out of my office right now. If you say another word to me about this, I will notify the insurance company and will notify the police and would recommend that they press criminal charges." I have subsequently told this story to several doctors later in my life at cocktail parties. Nobody thinks it was insurance fraud. Everyone
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  • 16
    Font - Diasies_inMyHair. 16h "I don't have time to talk you about [health issue]. " He said this in an exasperated tone when I explained why I scheduled the appointment - and this is after entering the room 45 minutes after my appointment time (I was brought back and put in the room on time) and after he'd spent 20 minutes or so in the hallway outside the door talking football with the patient he saw just before me. Reply 1.3k ...
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  • 17
    Font - csudebate. 16h Broke a bone in my foot. Knew that I had broken a bone in my foot. Went to the doctor and he told me that I didn't break a bone in my foot but instead was suffering from gout. I'm not even in the realm of people that experience gout and had zero other signs that it could've been gout. He was going to refuse my request for an X-ray but I made him do it. An hour later, I'm in his office and he holds up the x- ray and informs me that I broke a bone in my foot. Reply 5.2k ...
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  • 18
    Font - pinkphysics 16h "You had a window kiddo" said to me after my epidural failed catastrophically during my c section and they just held me down and kept going. Reply 700 ...
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