Going to the doctor isn't always the most enjoyable experience, and what makes it worse is when the medical professional you're supposed to trust says something completely out of line.
Earlier this week, women started sharing their awful experiences with doctors when Reddit user u/sherlocked776 asked, "What's the most absurd thing a doctor/medical professional has said to you?" and the responses are infuriating.
So here are the most infuriating responses:
1. "The doctor asked, 'Are you sexually active?' I said no. Then they asked, 'Have you been sexually active in the past?' I replied no. Then they said, 'You're too pretty to be a virgin.'"
2. "I had the same boyfriend all throughout high school. I am very close to my mom and had told her that I slept with him. She went with me to get my first pap appointment, and the doctor started asking about my sexual history. The doctor asked if I was a virgin, and I said no. Then they asked, 'How many partners have you had?' Just one. The doctor looks at me and my mom, then rolls her eyes, and says that she is going to have to ask my mom to leave so that I will be honest."
3. "I was sick with no apparent cause. I was tired all the time, had weight gain, night sweats, and my hair was falling out. The doctor diagnosed me with 'boy trouble' when in fact my thyroid had stopped functioning."
4. "I went to the doctor about not having my period for two years, and his response was, 'You should really think about trying to have one.' Like I have an on and off switch."
5. "My doctor said, 'You don't need a pap smear if you're only sleeping with women.' Not true doc! An old HPV infection could choose to become cancerous just now; also, maybe I don't want to tell you I'm actually bi and might be sleeping with different kinds of people."
6. "I called my OB's office when I was seven weeks postpartum, telling them that I was nearing a total mental breakdown because of postpartum anxiety, insomnia, and panic, and I needed help. They told me, 'That's par for the course. Just wait for the Zoloft to kick in.'"
"I went to my PCP the following week, and she told me I should make a formal complaint. You don’t tell a mother who says she needs help that those feelings are 'par for the course.'"
7. "My doctor said, 'Who cares if you have herpes — everyone has it. No need to cry about it.' I was 18 years old and on the verge of a breakdown over what turned out to be just a ruptured cyst."
8. "I was 14 and my doctor asked, 'Have you been stressed lately?' I said, 'Yes, schoolwork,' and they continued with 'Sure... Work... Girls your age only get stressed about one thing.'"
"I said, 'And some friend trouble (my friends were suicidal, but I couldn't say that because my mom was in the room) and college. I don't know where I want to go, and I should know that by now.' They just said, 'Sure... No need to lie just because your mother is here. You had a breakup, didn't you?'
I felt like crying. I had bigger things on my mind than guys. I was panicked about college applications, internships, whether my friends would live or die. I'd NEVER had a relationship or even a lasting crush then."
9. "I'm autistic and was telling my therapist about how I've had a very bad mental health day the previous day and how I had felt so angry and overwhelmed and the noise from the children playing downstairs had been unbearable. He replied, 'Well, we live in a city, in a society. If it bothers you so much, what do you want to do? Go live in the forest. Then, the silence would bother you even more.'"
"I felt so bad and upset by his answer. Especially since I wasn't fully back to myself after that bad mental health day."
10. "I went to the doctor because I had a really bad cold sore break out from being sick, and the fucking doctor said, 'Oooooh, I know where you got that from,' and winked at me. I was 13 years old."
11. "I was struggling mentally and talked to my doctor before getting a meeting with a psychiatrist. A news article was released the same day, referring to an unknown side effect of the pill being depression. I was trying to make sense of my mental health and asked my doctor if this could be the reason. She answered, 'You're going to be a lot more depressed when you have to get an abortion for a baby you don't want.'"
"Without knowing anything about me, my life, if I wanted kids, or anything."
12. "While I was getting my physical during the beginning of my senior year, my high school nurse asked, 'Have you ever been sexually active?' I answered no, and they said, 'What's with that?'"
13. "My sister had shingles show up on her forehead in college. The urgent care doctor insisted she must have gotten drunk, slipped, and hit her head. She tried to explain that was impossible considering she didn't drink, but because she was a college student, he said she just must not remember and sent her on her way."
14. "I was told that I didn't need an STD screening because I was a lesbian. I insisted on it throughout the whole appointment, and she rolled her eyes and said fine but ignored my reminders about it. Later I realized I never got blood work done, and I never got a call with my results. I don't think she ever did the test."
15. "I explained that when I get my periods, it's like I stop living for a week because more often than not, I'm in terrible pain to the point where I couldn't attend online classes because I couldn't get up from the bed. She looked at me and said, in a very condescending tone, 'Oh really? Sounds bad. Well, take the pill and it'll be fixed.'"
"I decided to get a second opinion, and this time when I mentioned the exact same thing the new doctor actually took it seriously."
16. "I was hospitalized for suicidal ideation, and I was talking to the hospital psychiatrist about self-harming. He said, 'I don't know why this is an issue for you — just stop doing it?'"
"This man had a whole-ass medical degree!"
17. "My mother had a couple of spots on her face that she wanted to check for skin cancer. The first dermatologist she was referred to took a very quick glance and said, 'If that's skin cancer, then I'm Tom Cruise.'"
18. "My male OB-GYN said that my reduced libido wasn't due to being menopausal and that I just wasn't attracted to my husband anymore."
19. "I went to an addictions counselor to help me treat my alcoholism. I was spiraling and needed help to quit drinking. The addictions counselor asked me if I was 'sure' that I was an alcoholic because I didn't look like one and 'still had a job.'"
"Yes, I was sure! I hadn’t been a day without being drunk at work, home, etc. in months. I left her office and reported her to her boss."
20. "My mom has been having trouble swallowing and has pain in her neck that started over a year ago. The doctor told her back then that it was because 'she talks too much' and should get speech therapy. Clearly, she wasn't going to do that as she knew that wasn't what was wrong. Turns out she has Hashimoto's."
"She was diagnosed by a different specialist. We saw the same rude doctor from a year ago yesterday; doctor confirmed the thyroiditis but also wrote in her notes that she’s 'non-compliant' for not going to speech therapy."
21. "He asked, 'Are you planning on having children someday?' 'Someday I would like to have children.' The doctor replied, 'Well, you're a beautiful woman; you'll make beautiful babies.' He said this while he was performing my annual pap smear."
22. "I had a male doctor tell me to reconsider birth control and think about 'my parents.' He was initially adamant about not giving me the prescription until I told him I didn't care about his opinion."
23. "I had a weird rash all over my mouth when I was about 13–14 years old, and the nurse said it was because I was sexually active and had an oral herpes outbreak... I was a virgin with a mango allergy."
24. "They once said, 'Wow, full bush. You don't see many young women with those anymore.' Obviously, I changed doctors."
25. And finally, "I went to the doctor once when I was about 18 or 19 because I felt my anxiety was getting out of hand and I wasn't coping well. I was having panic attacks, severe insomnia, etc. The doctor wrote in my notes that I was 'immaculately dressed and wearing makeup' so I couldn't really be that anxious in his opinion."
Women, do you have any wildly inappropriate things that have been said to you by a doctor/medical professional? Feel free to leave it in the comments below.
Note: Some responses have been edited for length and/or clarity.