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In 2022, 38% of Americans said they or a family member skipped or delayed medical care because of cost, according to a poll from Gallup.
27% of respondents said the treatments they passed over were for "very" or "somewhat" serious conditions or illnesses, while 11% percent reported neglecting to pursue care for non-serious health issues.
However, as one recent Reddit thread shows, forgoing treatment can result in substantial consequences and can compound costs down the road.
Started by platform user Prudent_Tip4118, it asked people to share the "normal" symptom they had that ended up being an actual medical problem. Here are some of the replies.
This post may include affiliate links.
#1
Not me, but one of my brother's friends in high school.
This friend was a goober; always making silly but friendly jokes that make families laugh as a whole, all and all a genuinely funny person.
One day he took my sister's glasses and was "acting like her" only to pause for a moment and then say "wait...is this how things are supposed to look?"
My man needed glasses and found out from f****n around. I'm glad the universe leaned towards him in a positive way as far as that went!
Jeremy James 8 months ago
I found out recently that street lights and headlights aren't supposed to look like starbursts. I thought it was like that for everyone.
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#2
A random sharp pain above my right ear and my tongue curling slightly. I thought it was just old age. Doc recognized it instantly as something wrong with my tongue. The cancer has been cured for seven years.
#3
Depression. Apparently losing all hope and being numb to joy isn't just a part of growing up.
R.C. 8 months ago
I dealt with severe clinical depression for 9 years. It came on slowly enough that I didn't recognize that something was wrong until my first s*****e attempt. I thought it was just part of being a moody teenager. It messes with you so much. When my doctor was trying to regulate it with meds, I'd go in after being on a certain med for a few months and he'd ask if I felt normal and I'd have to tell him that I didn't remember what normal felt like. I could only tell him if I felt better or worse than the day before.
#4
It took my lungs collapsing at 17 years old before doctors realized I wasn’t breathing in deeply enough to expand the bottom half of my lungs for basically my whole life. They asked why I never complained about shortness of breath. I never knew breathing was supposed to be easier than what I was experiencing.
#5
When I was about nineteen, I randomly heard on NPR that it takes the average person around 20 minutes to fall asleep and I went "oh s**t" because apparently my bar for having sleep issues was way, way too high. To me, a good night sleep meant I fell asleep within two hours of going to bed and it wasn't "trouble" until I hit three hours. And once I communicated this to my doctor and was finally able to treat my crippling insomnia with medication, my depression and anxiety suddenly got way more manageable as well.
#6
I thought I pulled a muscle playing with my dogs one day. One week later I finally go to the hospital because the pain is getting worse. Turns out I suffer from a genetic blood clotting condition and had a two foot log clot in my leg and multiple pulmonary embolisms on my lungs. Doctor was legit surprised I was alive.
#7
General stomach pain that I dismissed as perhaps constipation, but which would - every few years or so - send me to emergency worrying that it was my appendix. I was kicked out of emergency departments at different hospitals multiple times, because it was not.
I moved to a new city and was lucky enough to score a decent family doctor who took it seriously. She told me she was rather impressed with the amount of "referred pain" I was having and that I should go straight to emergency. I replied that there was not a hope in hell I would subject myself to that kind of humiliation again. No way.
She sent me for a CAT scan and lo and behold, it WAS my appendix. She referred me to a surgeon, and on the day of my surgery no one in the hospital seemed particularly interested in my condition, I think most of the medical staff thought I was having unnecessary surgery though, curiously, they were MUCH nicer to me afterward. I recall a lot of people standing over me in the recovery room.
The surgeon called me to come in for a meeting a couple of weeks later, and when I walked into his office he had an odd expression on his face. He told me my appendix was many times the normal size, probably because it had been infected and healed over the years, building up scar tissue. He asked me if I minded if he wrote it up in a medical paper or a textbook (I can't remember exactly which - he taught at the university). I gather at the time "grumbling appendixes" were a bit of a unicorn and there had been much debate over whether they were real. So I guess my appendix settled that argument in the medical community once and for all.
#8
After 40+ years it turns out I'm not just weird or liked things most didn't. Finding out you have Autism that late in life is hard. Knowing that 40+ years of life could of been easier if I only knew is very upsetting.
Geoffrey Scott 8 months ago
I, at 61 am wondering about this. One of my earliest memories (less than 5) is going somewhere that was full of down syndrome kids, don't get on well with people. Have been called aloof and unemotional. Wonder how folks connect with each other when I cannot. Diagnosis won't do a damn thing for me now, fixing to retire. Mom died in 96, would have been handy info to ask about it.
#9
My family told me I would randomly “space out”, although I never remembered, all thought it was normal. Turned out, I was having “absence seizures”. We only found that out at a routine doctor’s appointment, just conversing with the doc, when I guess I just came to and the doctor said she wanted to get a bunch of tests done. Been an epileptic for almost 17 years now. Edit: I was shocked, tbh to see how many of has or had what I have. Unfortunately, my Epilepsy has evolved into tonic-clonic seizures, I rarely have absences anymore, but had one focal back in November. For anyone who has friends and/or family who has seizures and Epilepsy, thank you for being there for them. Just know, that we appreciate you all. For all that HAVE seizures and Epilepsy, UNITE!!!
laura lee 8 months ago (edited)
Oh s**t is that what I have? I've been told I zone out or im ignoring since I was a young child. They called it day dreaming or spacing out. Sometimes in kinda aware, like I feel like I need to stare off in some random direction for while. Like I'd tell ppl I'm not staring at you i just need to be like this for a minute, all monotone like. Guess I ought to get that checked out
KimB 8 months ago
My dad had epilepsy but he had grand mal (full body) seizures followed by extensive postictal (confusion) periods. Thankfully I only witnessed one. Scariest thing I'd ever seen I was 10 at the time.
BannedFromABoatShow 8 months ago
My daughter’s very first memory is me having a grand mal when she was 3. Talk about mom guilt.
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BeepBoop is Lonely (she/they) 8 months ago
I have epilepsy, people say my seizures are scary. I have absence seizures, focal seizures, and tonic clonic seizures. I've been epileptic for four years now, and it's been a /journey/
Carla Phillips 8 months ago
My husband has epilepsy. He had a seizure the other day for the first time in a few years. I hate them. It's terrifying to watch and feel like they last forever
Bec 8 months ago
We had a student have a seizure in the library, he kept insisting he just dozed off, and we were like, no, you were 100% having a seizure and we aren't letting you drive yourself home.
Nikki Angulo 8 months ago
Wow, if he has epilepsy he shouldn’t have a license!
Load More Replies... Nikki Angulo 8 months ago
When I was in University, there was a girl I heard about (she was in high school) who had epilepsy and decided she wanted to have a bath. She had a seizure. She was dating someone in my brother’s circle of friends. Who I was teaching overseas, one of my kindergarten students had a seizure. Turns out he had febrile seizures but it wasn’t well communicated by the parents. Thankfully it only happened once, but it was scary!
Jenna Kay 8 months ago
My sister thought that her random "short pauses" were something everyone experienced. One day she had a grand mal in the middle of one of her college classes. She went and got checked out and it turns out she's been having petit mals since she was an infant. For context here, she got very very ill when she was only a few months old and had a number of seizures that resulted in her being hospitalised for a few weeks.. back then nobody realised that they should be looking for signs of seizures after she was discharged from the hospital. Sadly, her seizures have gotten worse and she's now on a pretty tough medication. I always worry that one day she'll be driving down the road and something will happen. - be safe out there people, and if something seems off with your child, please don't just chalk it up to them being a kid who doesn't listen.
Nikki Angulo 8 months ago
How can she have a license when she has a history of seizures?
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Huddo's sister 8 months ago
Two of my brothers had epilepsy. Mostly tonic-clonic seizures. I remember doing an epilepsy foundation fundraiser quiz at primary school, I knew most of the answers! We were still calling them grand-mal and petit-mal seizures back then though, so I often have to correct myself before I say something about them. They had other disabilities as well, but the seizures were usually the scariest for me. I failed a unit at uni because I stayed home from class one day because one of them had been having seizures all night and I didn't want to leave him, and I had already reached the max absences allowed. I would have been fine if I had asked for special consideration, but I was never good at that, felt like I was blaming him somehow. It was around this time I began the official carer training for him, which included seizure management. Unfortunately I didn't finish the training before he died.
cerinamroth 8 months ago
My dad used to frighten me by telling me I had this when I was simply daydreaming as a little girl.
#10
That it was completely normal to have about 10 to 20 or so mostly creative hobbies that one purchases a bunch of tools and supplies for and randomly dabbles in on and off for several years if not the rest of one’s life, or completely drops out of sudden disinterest. After all, my great great grandparent potentially did it, my great grandmother did it, my grandpa did it, my parent does it, and I do it.
Turns out the ADHD runs *very strong* in my family.
#11
My mom convinced me as a kid that I was always just being a “big baby” about my period cramps. I’m talking like curled up in the fetal position on the floor crying type pain. Then when I had an ACTUAL baby, and the contractions weren’t as bad as some of my worst cramps, I finally realized she was just a dismissive POS.
Upstaged75 8 months ago
I was told by an actual doctor that I was being a wimp about my cramps. I went untreated for years because no one believed me. Turns out I'm riddled with endometriosis and it had wrapped around my tubes and basically destroyed them. It's all over really - at the moment it's glued my uterus to my bowels. It doesn't show up on any tests though - the only way to confirm it is surgery. I still want to punch that doctor who said "some women just have rough periods". :(
#12
As a kid I had anxiety and my heart would race. Fast. It felt like a hummingbird in my chest and would abruptly pause and resume a normal pace after a few minutes. At age 23 I had a bad reaction to a tricyclic antidepressant called imipramine and was rushed to the hospital. They ran an EKG and that rapid heart rate was a congenital defect known as Wolfe Parkinson White syndrome. Basically I had an accessory or 2nd electrical system in my heart that would cause a “short circuit” occasionally and my heart rate would skyrocket. It was cured via a procedure using radio waves to form scar tissue around the accessory node because the impulse could not conduct through the tissue. No problems since.
#13
Losing weight suddenly got a little easier, and I assumed it was due to my efforts. Happy with my success, I buckled down harder (funny how it's easy to keep "being good" when you're actually seeing results). I lost more! It actually got to be almost easy. I thought I was doing such a great job! Turns out it was cancer. I guess I should have known something was up, but I honestly thought I was just doing a really great job with my diet and exercise. Had 4 surgeries and treatment and I'm doing well. Now I'm on meds with all kinds of side effects, including weight gain. Yay. But I'm alive, and so much better off than many others. I've only gained a little bit back, despite working really hard not to.
#14
Had a slightly sprained ankle that just blew up in a day and split the skin. Turns out, not a sprain but Pyoderma gangrenosum, a rare skin inflammation condition that acts like gangrene. Nobody could tell me what it was that made my ankle flesh explode.
Within a week they were talking to me about amputation. Then Nurse Molly came back from vacation and identified it as she’d seen it once before. Still have both my feet and nearly full mobility.
Grateful for teaching hospitals that draw professionals from all over like Nurse Molly ❤️.
#15
Not sleeping or eating for days but still feeling great and having more energy than your average athlete. Turns out you're bipolar!
Natalie Kelsey 8 months ago
I didn't find out I had ADHD and bipolar disorder until I was 31 and had four kids. Thought I was just annoying and easily irritated. Things are a lot better with meds and therapy
#16
Sharp, excruciating pain in my hand. Thought it was arthritis, it runs in the family.
Nope. Bone tumor, thankfully non-malignant, slowly eating its way through my hand.
Two surgeries (one to remove the tumor, one to get bone graft from my femur) done at once, some cadaver bone, lots of excruciating physical therapy and a gnarly scar later—no more pain!
UpQuarkDownQuark (he/him) 8 months ago
Well, sh*t. Now I’m worried about my excruciating hand pain that my doctor can’t figure out.
#17
Inattentive ADHD. Got diagnosed at 54 and my life all suddenly made sense.
It was like riding a bike with a flat tire and wondering why peddling appeared to be so much easier for everyone else. Being told I'm sometimes too lazy or a dreamer, etc. Then learning at age 54 the existence of tire pumps and being able to keep up. Game changer.
Still annoys me that all along, this medication was available and could've helped decades ago.
bas moelard 8 months ago
That's a very sound explanation. I feel that. I was diagnosed at 38. Without medication it's like a kindergarten without the teacher present in my head. With the medication, everything is as it 'supposed to be'. You're awesome like you are. Don't be annoyed by the past. It shows that you're a badass MF! You somehow made it work for you all along. You're a fighter. Be proud of that.
#18
Massively heavy periods in my 40s. I thought it was just perimenopause. Turns out it was adenomyosis.
Disgruntled Pelican 8 months ago
Friggin adenomyosis is crippling. I regularly black out from blood loss. First time I passed out from it was when I was 12.
#19
Until I was 16 I thought everyone got stomach cramps a few times a day. Turns out I'm lactose intolerant. .
Zenozenobee 8 months ago
When we were kids my sister hated milk with passion but we were forced to drink some during breakfast and in the morning recess in kindergarden. She stopped drinking milk as soon as my mother gave up the fight. We all know whe doesn't drink milk and that was it. Then, I became a mother. my youngest was 5yo and got really sick one afternoon and the same repeat the next day. I realised that both times she had a chocolate milk less than an hour before. Got her checked and... My daughter can't drink milk anymore. Cheeses, yogourts and cakes are OK but not milk. I warned my family about it and my sister had some questions for my little one, recognised why she was refusing to drink her milk as a kid. Turned out she was also lactose intorelant.
#20
You know how you get all congested after excercising, and wheeze for a bit before everything settles down again? No? Yeah, that’s because most people don’t have excercise induced asthma. I was in my 30s before I knew that was a problem and not normal.
Geoffrey Scott 8 months ago
Daughter has that. Was diagnosed in middle school. Couldn't figure out why she was coughing constantly, especially after a basketball game
#21
Burn-out.
I remember saying it was too much and just.. continuing. "Guess it was fine"
*he was in fact, not fine*
That moment when your psychosomatic issues get so extreme you can no longer leave the house. And recovery is so slowwwwwwwww.....
Still going through it. Doing much better than before but nowhere near good enough.
-infinite/10 experience, do not recommend. Take care, y'all, too much is too much.
#22
I almost cried the first time I tried medication for ADHD, my mind was so quiet and peaceful
EDIT: There’s a lot of questions in the replies. I’ll try to answer a few here. I’m also on mobile so sorry lol.
When did I get diagnosed and how?
I think I was like 20?
I was able to strongman my way through an associates degree without knowing I had ADHD. This was during covid. My career started shortly after.
A few months later, I hit the worst period of burnout in my life. I was so forgetful I was terrified I was developing early dementia, I took so many naps I was scared I had narcolepsy. I straight up did not see other cars when I was driving. I lost things frequently and I couldn’t keep up with laundry or dishes for the life of me. I was miserable.
Oh and my great new job? 8 hours a day at the computer, work from home. Trying to make myself get something done was almost physically painful. I just kept wandering away from my desk.
I was so distraught I finally mentioned it to my doctor. I had originally made the appointment for something else, but as our time ran out I decided to throw it out there.
I was worried she’d think I was stupid given how many people try to self diagnose via the internet, but I had really identified with a lot of content I saw online. She gave me a referral to see the psychiatrist.
I had heard a lot of stories about people who had to fight for their diagnosis, but my appointment with the psychiatrist was great. We just kinda talked for a bit about the symptoms I was experiencing and she was like “yup that’s adhd”.
She also said that she sees cases like me all the time, kids who do okay undiagnosed until they reach their tipping point and just completely fizzle out. Especially girls/women.
What medication do I take?
I’m on 30mg of Vyvanse now, while it has been life changing, there’s some side effects I’m going to bring up at my next appointment. I’m not sure if I’m on the right medication or dose.
To my understanding, medication should just make you feel like “you but more productive”, but I’m having problems with irritability and my husband accidentally let it slip that I’m “more fun” when I don’t take it, and he’s not wrong. Sometimes I miss my pre-vyvanse personality. He still supports me 100% though, medicated or unmedicated.
Anyways, if you made it this far thanks for reading. I don’t have access to a therapist so typing my experience here is kinda therapeutic.
Tempest 8 months ago
The having to “fight for a diagnosis” part is so frustrating. You’re so incredibly lucky that both your GP and psychiatrist actually listened to your proposed diagnosis. I have some annoying mental health struggles which, after suffering on my own for over 10 years, I successfully self-diagnosed. I was actually so relieved to know what I have because that actually made me understand why I was the way I was. Last month for the first time in my life I consulted a psychiatrist and without even asking my full medical history, she discredited my self diagnosis. I myself am a graduated medical student so I know the hows and whys of psychiatric diagnoses but my psychiatrist just doesn’t want to admit that her patient can be right. It’s so frustrating. I’m waiting to just go ballistic on her at my next appointment because the antidepressants she simply prescribed me aren’t exactly helping me out fully and it’s making me miserable.
#23
I thought I had bad period cramps. Then I thought I had acute food poisoning. Turns out I had ovarian torsion and my ovary was slowly dying over the course of a few days.
Tempest 8 months ago (edited)
Ovarian torsions (and testicular torsions) are extremely painful and if not treated promptly (they’re usually considered medical emergencies), you could lose the ovary/testicle which will obviously significantly affect your reproductive health. If you suspect you have a torsion get to the ER ASAP!
#24
Was always told periods are painful (ex: cramps). So for years I thought my incredibly debilitating period pain was me being a little b***h about it.
Turns out I have both PCOS and endometriosis and, of course, fertility issues. FML.
Edit : word.
Natasha Arruda 8 months ago
PCOS here as well, which was a big cause of my obesity as a child/teen and made school hell, especially with the abnormal hair growth too. Got a gastric in 2013 though and have been at a normal weight for a long time. Still have irregular periods but that's not a concern to me.
#25
Bent over to pick something up and felt a twinge in my groin (I’m male). I thought perhaps it may be a hernia. I wasn’t too concerned about it then things started to ache a bit. I went to the doctor only to find out I had testicular cancer. Fortunately after we cut out lefty and got all the results back from pathology it was staged at 1A seminoma. Meaning the surgery alone was all the treatment I needed.
#26
I thought I was constipated for a few days. Hurt like hell. Turned out to be diverticulitis and a perforated colon. My wife called the ER and they brought me in without triage and sent a chaplain. I lost a foot of my large intestines and almost died.
#27
That pulled muscle was actually a collapsed lung. After days of hot baths, massages, trying to relax-nah, nothing helped. No wonder.
Tempest 8 months ago
Two years ago when obtaining an X-ray for a general health checkup, I discovered that part of my right lung is basically non-functional. The radiologists had no idea why there was a shadow (consolidation) in part of my lung. They kept repeatedly asking if I have or have had some infection and kept making me change position and adjust the hospital gown in case they were causing the issue. In the end when no one could figure it out they just asked me to consult a lung specialist and present the X-ray. He made me obtain a chest CT scan. And that’s how I finally found out that I have a rare congenital (from birth) heart condition in my early 20s. That part of the lung which is basically useless receives oxygen as normal but the vein that should drain it into the left side of my heart instead drains into the right side of the heart, essentially wasting the oxygenated blood from that part of the lung. I never experienced any significant symptoms and I still don’t have any issues.
#28
I'm likely not articulating correctly, but I thought my not going outside and fear of people was me just adjusting to living in a new country. Turns out I have CPTSD from my childhood. I've been living in the new country for a decade and if anything, I have gotten worse. A visit to my parents last year after many years away kind of "broke" me, in a sense, and long story short I am seeing a psychiatrist in a few months (he comes very highly recommended so there is a wait) to try and get this fixed.
To anyone reading who has kids and is living in domestic violence: this is one possible outcome. I don't talk to my parents anymore. I know it's hard to leave, but please think of your children and their well-being. If you can't think of your children's well-being, please consider whether you want a relationship with them when they're adults.
#29
I kept telling my OB I was worried about my legs/ankles swelling in the later part of my pregnancy. They dismissed it—told me all pregnant people experience it.
At 39 weeks I got sent to the hospital for extra monitoring on the baby due to an irregular test . She ended up being fine but my blood pressure was crazy high. I was induced that night and then given an emergency C-section due to severe preeclampsia.
Not a fun start to my baby’s life but she’s here and healthy so I can’t be too upset.
#30
It was retroactive, but when I wore prescription glasses back when I was 24, the first thing I said was "people are supposed to see this?"
Everything looked like the sharpness meter on my vision was maxed out. I just kinda thought nobody could see details in things past 20 feet lol.
VOTE if you live in the USA 8 months ago
I got glasses in 6th grade after the encouragement of one of my teachers. The first thing I said when I put them on was "there are leaves on the trees!" My mom cried.
#31
Used to drop my makeup all the time when I was getting ready in the morning. Ugh, so clumsy. Ended up being myoclonic seizures.
LakotaWolf (she/her) 8 months ago
My dog has full-body myoclonus from neurological damage from having distemper as a puppy. Not quite the same as the seizure form, as his are nonstop. I can only imagine how terrifying it must be for a human to have myoclonus/myoclonal seizures!
#32
I'd have these really minor facial twitches, like a single small muscle in my upper lip or eyebrow. Nothing even severe enough to be visible by others. However, they'd last for a few weeks straight, even while I was trying to sleep.
I didn't think twice about it. They always went away on their own, after all!
After I suddenly went blind in my left eye and got diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, I connected the dots.
Edit: Facial twitches are normal! Just because you have twitches often doesn't mean you have a problem, especially if you don't have any other reason to believe you have multiple sclerosis or any other disease. My twitches were CONSTANT for WEEKS. And even then, there are other, less serious (and probably more likely!) things that can cause that. Please don't let my comment stress you out.
Nadine Debard 8 months ago
A multiple Sclerosis relapse is characterized only if the symptoms are permanent during at least 24 hours. And there still are many, many other explanations other than MS.
#33
Apparently your belly button isn't supposed to hurt. It was an umbilical hernia. :(.
Peter Trudell Jr 8 months ago
I didn't know there was a problem when I went from an "innie" to an 'outie' until the wife noticed. You're not supposed to be able to push in your belly button like that. Surgery took care of it, no strangulation, thankfully.
#34
I didn’t realize other people didn’t hallucinate. When people would say “did you say something? I thought I heard someone say my name.” I thought it was the same thing as me hearing voices. Apparently when people think they heard a voice that wasn’t there, that was very different than me screaming and crying and praying because I heard a scary voice say awful things and didn’t know where it was coming from.
Flora Porter 8 months ago
There's so much more work to be done to understand how the brain works. If I had my time again, it would be fascinating to work in neuroscience.
#35
Finally one I can answer!
Was diagnosed with a habit cough, but then I started developing intense pain in my legs when walking even short distances. I had blood work done, and my doctor told me to go to the ER immediately.
I got diagnosed with a blood clot in my heart, and blood clots in my legs, with heart failure and kidney failure. I had fluid around my heart, which explains the cough. I was 21 years old when this happened, and I’m 24 now. I’ll be on medication for the rest of my life that keeps my heart from failing again, and I’ll need a kidney transplant at some point in the future. My medical goal is to keep my kidneys functioning for as long as possible.
Turns out that sometimes a cough isn’t just a harmless tic.
What do you think ?
Cierra Edens 8 months ago
Starting 15 years ago as a freshman in high school I had migraines, nausea, extreme tiredness, constipation, skin rashes, randomly would throw up, stomach cramps, weight loss then weight gain 2 years before diagnosis etc. I always had a reason or excuse migraines—neck arthritis, tiredness—full time college student with 4 kids, nausea—ate too much or to greasy food, skin rashes—hormones. I also was chronically anemic, low calcium, low vitamin d. All of a sudden one day woke up with worse pain of my life in lower left quadrant then started non stop vomiting thought food poisoning. Well 3 er trips, being admitted for 3 days, 2 cts, 3 ultrasounds, hospital refusing GI consultation “because it’s probably just ovulation pain”. I got in with GI had an endoscopy and colonoscopy within a week. Results came back Marsh 3b celiac disease, I feel so much better gluten free haven’t felt this good in 15 years and all my symptoms went away as long as I don’t get glutened.
Huddo's sister 8 months ago
I only realised my gluten intolerance was actually coeliac's because the dietitian (that I was seeing for a completely different reason) put together the facts that I knew I had one faulty gene, already diagnosed with one autoimmune condition, had chronic low iron and vitamin d levels and was lactose intolerant. I had already been eating gluten free for years, after starting on a low fodmap diet for IBS and realising I reacted to sourdough bread, even though it should have been okay. I think the gene decided to kick in after I stopped sharing a house with my brother who is ceoliac, where I ate gluten free except for snacks, and started eating more of it again.
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Headless Horseman 8 months ago
I had just given birth not 4 weeks beforehand and was feeling great about my weight loss already! I could see results and everyone was complimenting me on "bouncing back". In week 22, I collapsed unconscious on the floor and my husband had to drag my near-dead self to the hospital. I had lost 47 lbs in 22 weeks.... I have now been diagnosed with anorexia and am recovering well. Every meal is difficult but every meal is a win. I am going to live, damn it, even if its the last thing I do.
theoneandonlynoira 8 months ago
Ugh it's so unfortunate that the culture surrounding pregnancy expects people to rebound immediately. Hope you kick anorexia's butt
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Gavin Johnson 8 months ago
Mate of mine when I was 18 had a very sore chest, went to the docs and got antibiotics for a chest infection. Didn’t clear it. We went an away on a summer hol (Ibiza, I leave that to your imagination) , a big group of us, we imbibed a LOT of alcohol and ‘recreational’ stuff. Came home, she’s still struggling, sent off for x-rays of her chest. Nope, nothing there. Turns into chest and stomach pains. She’s properly ill. Doc asks her about her depo injections (birth control), she says she’s upto date and not missed a single injection. He suggests a pregnancy test anyway. Yup positive test for being pregnant. In fact VERY pregnant. Baby boy born four and half weeks later. She’d had antibiotics, alcohol, ‘recreational’ fun, an x-ray and basically been an 18 year old lass having fun. She wore size 8 jeans and bikinis right upto 7 and a bit months, no signs of being pregnant. Her and her partner had a very short time to get used to the idea! No issues for baby thankfully, he’s now 31.
Flora Porter 8 months ago
Happens more often than you'd think. I once did a temp job to cover for a girl who called in sick with what she thought was a stomach bug and had a baby the same day.
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Justme 8 months ago
Intense headache and a super runny nose … turns out to have been a tear in the spinal cord covering and was leaking spinal fluid through the nose.
Michelle Gosney 8 months ago
Thought I had mild indigestion that lasted over 12 hrs. Was a heart attack
theoneandonlynoira 8 months ago
Should probably stop reading these before I self-diagnose cancer or something
Cosmikid 8 months ago
Many of these stories have to do with an uncommon condition undiagnosed, or doctors who don't listen. Those may be connected. I roomed with an upper med student in grad school, we traded war stories at dinner daily. A Med School story I expected to see here, but haven't: Medical students are renowned for getting every disease they study. They learn early about the mind confusing things- they've done it. And they are taught this rubric when studying Diagnosis. "Common conditions are ... common: rare ones- are rare. When you're under the bridge and hear hooves overhead - think "horse." Not "zebra"." Good advice, of course. Unless- you're the zebra. I and my family are now certified zebras. I have baffled the entire Mayo Clinic; 3 separate times. My GP- had to take me aside to tell me- "I know this. You are sick." Yeah, good to know. You WILL find a doctor who believes you- keep looking, and try "zebra" on them. Me- Ehlers-Danlos; wife- polycythemia. On beyond zebra...
Lisa Delgado 8 months ago
I just recently learned that your skin isn't supposed to tingle after using moisturizer. I've gone through more than 50 years of my life thinking this happens to everyone!
KimB 8 months ago
Very high pain tolerance has been more of a curse than a blessing. Severe ear infection I had no pain or fever. Woke up one morning having a little trouble hearing out of my right ear and it felt wet. Put my hand up to wipe the outside and it was blood. Ruptured ear drum and permanent 20% hearing loss in that ear. I also woke up one morning with weird unpleasant taste in my mouth and the back of my throat felt kinda swollen and weird when I swallowed. No pain though. Persisted a few more days then I got a rash on my chest and stomach. Spiked a fever so I went to the ER. Doc must have asked me six times if I had any pain in my throat and just looked surprised when I said no. Worst case of strep throat he'd ever seen.
Scarlett 8 months ago
My grades plummeted, I had no energy to do anything, I stopped doing my hobbies, I just sat and stared at the wall or lay in bed and stared at the wall. All my teachers and the school counselor said it was laziness and that I just didn’t care. Turns out it was severe depression due to being bullied mercilessly and having an absolute wreck of a home life. Who knew?
Olli Hawk 8 months ago
My arm moves almost fully backwards when I extend it. I thought everyone’s arms did that and people had to focus to keep their arms straight
Deleila Charlie 8 months ago
I went to the doctor because I had yet another tendon infection, I knew the pain by then. It was in my upper leg so the doctor moved my leg and bend it backwards. She was taken aback by how limber my hips were and said that it wasn't normal. Even the rheumatologist I was sent to was making horrified faces as she saw hoe my limbs moved. Turned out I had hypermobile joints and all the tendon infections were because of that. Plus I have Fybromialgia so that makes it take longer to heal. My hips often slip out of the sockets these days
the one dude who likes cheese 8 months ago
My knee can bend backwards. Not far, like an inch and a half. Not everyone can do that I guess. My friends were shocked when i did it one day. it was very suprising for me.
Cosmikid 8 months ago
95% likely Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome; genetic, my family is riddled with it- ED was NOT in their textbooks when these doctors went to Med School- we have to educate all our doctors. Get diagnosed- some versions of the genes are dangerous, in different ways. Google "Ehlers-Danlos Society" - really good people and information.
Load More Replies...
Riley Diane Johnson 8 months ago
ever since i was born, it was hard to walk. turns out i have hip displaesia.
ramya theepika 8 months ago
I am allergic to ant bites and went into anaphylactic shock and had to be in ICU for a week .
Michelle my Belle. 8 months ago (edited)
A lot of these are super serious but...that kiwis and pineapple aren't supposed to make your mouth buzz. Who knew???
Cierra Edens 8 months ago
Starting 15 years ago as a freshman in high school I had migraines, nausea, extreme tiredness, constipation, skin rashes, randomly would throw up, stomach cramps, weight loss then weight gain 2 years before diagnosis etc. I always had a reason or excuse migraines—neck arthritis, tiredness—full time college student with 4 kids, nausea—ate too much or to greasy food, skin rashes—hormones. I also was chronically anemic, low calcium, low vitamin d. All of a sudden one day woke up with worse pain of my life in lower left quadrant then started non stop vomiting thought food poisoning. Well 3 er trips, being admitted for 3 days, 2 cts, 3 ultrasounds, hospital refusing GI consultation “because it’s probably just ovulation pain”. I got in with GI had an endoscopy and colonoscopy within a week. Results came back Marsh 3b celiac disease, I feel so much better gluten free haven’t felt this good in 15 years and all my symptoms went away as long as I don’t get glutened.
Huddo's sister 8 months ago
I only realised my gluten intolerance was actually coeliac's because the dietitian (that I was seeing for a completely different reason) put together the facts that I knew I had one faulty gene, already diagnosed with one autoimmune condition, had chronic low iron and vitamin d levels and was lactose intolerant. I had already been eating gluten free for years, after starting on a low fodmap diet for IBS and realising I reacted to sourdough bread, even though it should have been okay. I think the gene decided to kick in after I stopped sharing a house with my brother who is ceoliac, where I ate gluten free except for snacks, and started eating more of it again.
Load More Replies... Headless Horseman 8 months ago
I had just given birth not 4 weeks beforehand and was feeling great about my weight loss already! I could see results and everyone was complimenting me on "bouncing back". In week 22, I collapsed unconscious on the floor and my husband had to drag my near-dead self to the hospital. I had lost 47 lbs in 22 weeks.... I have now been diagnosed with anorexia and am recovering well. Every meal is difficult but every meal is a win. I am going to live, damn it, even if its the last thing I do.
theoneandonlynoira 8 months ago
Ugh it's so unfortunate that the culture surrounding pregnancy expects people to rebound immediately. Hope you kick anorexia's butt
Load More Replies... Gavin Johnson 8 months ago
Mate of mine when I was 18 had a very sore chest, went to the docs and got antibiotics for a chest infection. Didn’t clear it. We went an away on a summer hol (Ibiza, I leave that to your imagination) , a big group of us, we imbibed a LOT of alcohol and ‘recreational’ stuff. Came home, she’s still struggling, sent off for x-rays of her chest. Nope, nothing there. Turns into chest and stomach pains. She’s properly ill. Doc asks her about her depo injections (birth control), she says she’s upto date and not missed a single injection. He suggests a pregnancy test anyway. Yup positive test for being pregnant. In fact VERY pregnant. Baby boy born four and half weeks later. She’d had antibiotics, alcohol, ‘recreational’ fun, an x-ray and basically been an 18 year old lass having fun. She wore size 8 jeans and bikinis right upto 7 and a bit months, no signs of being pregnant. Her and her partner had a very short time to get used to the idea! No issues for baby thankfully, he’s now 31.
Flora Porter 8 months ago
Happens more often than you'd think. I once did a temp job to cover for a girl who called in sick with what she thought was a stomach bug and had a baby the same day.
Load More Replies... Justme 8 months ago
Intense headache and a super runny nose … turns out to have been a tear in the spinal cord covering and was leaking spinal fluid through the nose.
Michelle Gosney 8 months ago
Thought I had mild indigestion that lasted over 12 hrs. Was a heart attack
theoneandonlynoira 8 months ago
Should probably stop reading these before I self-diagnose cancer or something
Cosmikid 8 months ago
Many of these stories have to do with an uncommon condition undiagnosed, or doctors who don't listen. Those may be connected. I roomed with an upper med student in grad school, we traded war stories at dinner daily. A Med School story I expected to see here, but haven't: Medical students are renowned for getting every disease they study. They learn early about the mind confusing things- they've done it. And they are taught this rubric when studying Diagnosis. "Common conditions are ... common: rare ones- are rare. When you're under the bridge and hear hooves overhead - think "horse." Not "zebra"." Good advice, of course. Unless- you're the zebra. I and my family are now certified zebras. I have baffled the entire Mayo Clinic; 3 separate times. My GP- had to take me aside to tell me- "I know this. You are sick." Yeah, good to know. You WILL find a doctor who believes you- keep looking, and try "zebra" on them. Me- Ehlers-Danlos; wife- polycythemia. On beyond zebra...
Lisa Delgado 8 months ago
I just recently learned that your skin isn't supposed to tingle after using moisturizer. I've gone through more than 50 years of my life thinking this happens to everyone!
KimB 8 months ago
Very high pain tolerance has been more of a curse than a blessing. Severe ear infection I had no pain or fever. Woke up one morning having a little trouble hearing out of my right ear and it felt wet. Put my hand up to wipe the outside and it was blood. Ruptured ear drum and permanent 20% hearing loss in that ear. I also woke up one morning with weird unpleasant taste in my mouth and the back of my throat felt kinda swollen and weird when I swallowed. No pain though. Persisted a few more days then I got a rash on my chest and stomach. Spiked a fever so I went to the ER. Doc must have asked me six times if I had any pain in my throat and just looked surprised when I said no. Worst case of strep throat he'd ever seen.
Scarlett 8 months ago
My grades plummeted, I had no energy to do anything, I stopped doing my hobbies, I just sat and stared at the wall or lay in bed and stared at the wall. All my teachers and the school counselor said it was laziness and that I just didn’t care. Turns out it was severe depression due to being bullied mercilessly and having an absolute wreck of a home life. Who knew?
Olli Hawk 8 months ago
My arm moves almost fully backwards when I extend it. I thought everyone’s arms did that and people had to focus to keep their arms straight
Deleila Charlie 8 months ago
I went to the doctor because I had yet another tendon infection, I knew the pain by then. It was in my upper leg so the doctor moved my leg and bend it backwards. She was taken aback by how limber my hips were and said that it wasn't normal. Even the rheumatologist I was sent to was making horrified faces as she saw hoe my limbs moved. Turned out I had hypermobile joints and all the tendon infections were because of that. Plus I have Fybromialgia so that makes it take longer to heal. My hips often slip out of the sockets these days
the one dude who likes cheese 8 months ago
My knee can bend backwards. Not far, like an inch and a half. Not everyone can do that I guess. My friends were shocked when i did it one day. it was very suprising for me.
Cosmikid 8 months ago
95% likely Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome; genetic, my family is riddled with it- ED was NOT in their textbooks when these doctors went to Med School- we have to educate all our doctors. Get diagnosed- some versions of the genes are dangerous, in different ways. Google "Ehlers-Danlos Society" - really good people and information.
Load More Replies... Riley Diane Johnson 8 months ago
ever since i was born, it was hard to walk. turns out i have hip displaesia.
ramya theepika 8 months ago
I am allergic to ant bites and went into anaphylactic shock and had to be in ICU for a week .
Michelle my Belle. 8 months ago (edited)
A lot of these are super serious but...that kiwis and pineapple aren't supposed to make your mouth buzz. Who knew???
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