23 Tragic Medical Moments From “Grey’s Anatomy” That Always Make You Weep

People keep telling you, “It’s only a show,” but then why does your heart hurt so much?

1. When Cristina has an ectopic pregnancy and she loses her baby.

ABC

And then you're crying because watching Cristina Yang cry is like watching your own parent cry. And then you realize that you've accidentally eaten all of the mac 'n' cheese and everything is sad.

2. When two strangers get impaled by a pole and they find out only one of them can live.

NBC / BuzzFeed

NBC / BuzzFeed

And your tears are choking you and you can't breathe anymore because it's so unbelievably sad that these two human beings have to decide who is going to live and who is going to die. And then you have to take a deep breath because your tears are starting to mix with your wine and no one wants to see that.

3. When the homemade bomb kills the bomb-squad member.

ABC

ABC

ABC

ABC

And you're like, "No! Not Kyle Chandler! Kyle Chandler can't die! He's a good guy! He's Coach Taylor, for god's sake!" And then your mom is like, "You know that's not Coach Taylor, right?"

4. When Denny dies after his surgery and Izzie can't let go of him.

ABC

ABC

And you want to fall to the floor because your heart hurts so bad because her heart is breaking and you can feel it. And then your doorbell rings, but you can't get up because the person at the door is going to ask what's wrong and you don't want to see their face when you explain that you're crying over a fictional man's death.

5. When Meredith almost drowns and Derek saves her.

ABC

And you're yelling at the little girl, "I KNOW THAT YOU'RE IN SHOCK RIGHT NOW, BUT YOU HAVE TO HURRY UP AND TELL DEREK THAT THE LOVE OF HIS LIFE IS AT THE BOTTOM OF THE OCEAN. K, THANKS, BYE." And then your mom's like, "I think your taking you're aggression out on the wrong person — she's just a kid."

6. When the two paramedics are trapped in the crashed ambulance.

ABC

ABC

And you know that Stan is going to die because he keeps on asking for his wife and then his wife is there and they both obviously know he's going to die and you want to look away but you can't. And then you call your siblings to let them know that you love them, and they're like, "It's 3 a.m. — what's wrong with you?"

7. When Alex finds out that Izzie has cancer.

ABC

ABC

And you see the fear, panic, sadness, and helplessness take over his eyes and you want to grab him and hug him forever. And then you call your best friend to tell her that you'll be by her side no matter what, and she's like, "What?"

8. When Bailey spends her whole day holding a dying child.

ABC

And then you start to question why you just watched an entire episode where you knew the ending was going to be nothing but terrible, aching sadness. And then you go to WebMD and look up "Can hiccups from too much crying kill you?"

9. When you realize George O'Malley is John Doe.

ABC

And you yell at Meredith through the TV that her best friend is about to die and that she needs to save him, but they don't and everything is the worst because the sweetest man has died. Also, you realize you're out of wine and that your mom's shoulder is wet from your tears.

10. When Izzie almost dies.

ABC

And you see her join George in the elevator and you're sobbing because two of the main characters are obviously greeting each other in heaven and it's so beautiful and sad. And now your head is on your mom's lap and you're asking her how Shonda could think it's OK to even think about killing off two main characters in one episode.

11. When the gunman enters the hospital and kills Reed.

ABC

And you can't stop the tears from rolling down your cheeks because you know that if he killed Reed without he blinking an eye, he's going to hurt someone you really love on the show. And then you ask your mom if she'll hold your hand and she says no.

12. And when Alex is found bleeding out in the elevator.

ABC

And the tears keep on coming because you know the episode isn't even halfway over. And then you google "elevator deaths" to figure out if you should ever get in one again.

13. And when Mandy Moore and Bailey hide from the shooter.

ABC

ABC

And you're hysterically crying while Mandy Moore's character is holding her breath and pretending she's dead and while Bailey is being pulled out from under the bed. And then you realize you don't know what's going on because your blanket somehow ended up over your face.

14. And when Derek is shot by the gunman.

ABC

And you scream as Meredith screams and now you're uncontrollably crying because Meredith is pregnant and they were finally going to be happy together. But because you don't have a Cristina to hold you back from running to Derek, you're now at your TV holding it for comfort and your mom is like, "Seriously, calm down."

15. When Mandy Moore's character dies months after the shooting.

ABC

And you're like, "Come on, Shonda. She survived a gunman and now you're going to let her die after her surgery? For shame, Shonda, for shame." And then you decide you're going to write a letter to Shonda and you get out a piece of paper and a pen.

16. When Callie and Arizona get into a car crash.

ABC / Via keep-calm-and-love-calzona.tumblr.com

And your heart stops for a second because Calzona doesn't need pain. And then your mom is like, "Wait, why is everyone singing right now?" and you're like, "Listen, no one knows the answer to that."

17. When Lexie dies from the plane crash as Mark tells her he loves her.

ABC

And you're like, "WHY, SHONDA, WHY." And then your mom pulls the pen and paper our of your hands and tells you to think about what you're doing.

18. And when Mark finally dies from the plane crash.

ABC

And your heart feels tricked because you thought he was going to make it and live a beautiful life but really Shonda was just setting you up for tears. And now your mom is like, "What's wrong with you? You keep on saying 'McSteamy' over and over again." And you're like, "You don't understand — YOU'LL NEVER UNDERSTAND."

19. When Richard is electrocuted in that pool of water.

ABC

And you're like, "Holy shit, this could be it. It's Season 9 — they could totally kill off a really big character that we have grown to love." And then you ask your mom if she thinks he has really died, and she's like, "Seriously? I have no idea."

20. When April and Jackson hold their baby as he dies.

ABC

And your heart is about to explode out of sadness because it's personal when a Grey's Anatomy couple goes through this kind of pain, and also, you don't understand why Shonda hates you. Then your mom informs you that Shonda definitely was not thinking about you when this episode was created and that she was just trying to make good TV. And then you're like, "No, she hates me."

21. And *sob* when *sob* everything *sob* happens *sob* with *sob* Derek.

ABC

And all your years of TV watching lets you know that reaching for your phone in a car means that something bad is about to happen and then it does and you can't breathe. And then your mom hands you a glass of water because she says she thinks you're getting dehydrated from crying so much.

22. And then watching as those ~stranger~ doctors try to save Derek.

ABC

And you're screaming at the TV, "Someone figure out that this is Doctor freakin' Shepherd and save his goddamn life," while tears blur your vision. And now you're on the floor, inches away from the TV, trying to touch Derek's face, and your mom takes a photo of you so "you'll know how crazy you looked while watching fictional characters on a TV show."

23. And, finally, when Meredith unplugs the love of her life.

ABC

And you throw your TV out the window because love is dead, and then you regret your decision and open Netflix on your computer and start watching the series all over again.