He actually laughed at me: People are sharing the times doctors horribly dismissed or misdiagnosed their symptoms, and oh my God

Oftentimes, we ignore, brush off, or miss the signals our body gives us, but sometimes — especially if you're a person of color or a woman – it's those we're supposed to trust most that dismiss, ignore, or completely misdiagnose our symptoms.

From being told it was just anxiety to literally being laughed at by a provider, these stories show what can happen when patients aren't taken seriously:

1."I started experiencing really, really bad breath. To the point that if my husband or kid were within six feet of me while I was talking, they would both step back and/or cover their noses. I tried everything: brushing my teeth multiple times throughout the day and changing toothpastes. I went to the dentist and to an ENT. Both said they didn't find anything, but also didn't have any suggestions."

(Cont'd) "Finally, one night, I was literally walking the house with 'indigestion.' The pain suddenly shot through my chest and butterflied between my shoulder blades. As I know this can be a symptom of a heart attack in women, I went to the ER. They determined I wasn't having a heart attack and were preparing to release me."

"Unknown to me, they had put a nitro patch on me. At some point, I was complaining of major migraine (this can be a side effect of nitro). They then accused me of drug seeking! Thank goodness, they called my PCP, who said, 'Nope, if she is complaining, there is an issue. Admit her.' The next morning, I had an endoscope. They found a large esophageal ulcer. When that got treated, the bad breath went away. Advice is to keep searching for answers and don't let doctors continue to dismiss you."

—Anonymous, 62, US

2."I had slow but consistent weight gain that couldn't be helped, my hair became brittle and fell out, diabetes, high blood pressure, fits of anger/rage over simple things, and my face became so round that you couldn't see my ears looking straight on (moon face). Plus, I had the ubiquitous fat deposit at the base of my neck known as the buffalo hump. My symptoms were almost always dismissed as being overweight (fat and lazy), and I was almost always told by many primary care doctors to diet and exercise to fix everything. I was lucky that my new endocrinologist was experienced enough to see my problem immediately, just by walking through her office door and seeing my big moon face."

(Cont'd) "The disease is called Cushing's, or hypercortisolism, and is caused by massive overproduction of the hormone cortisol. In my case, I had a tumor on my pituitary gland that was causing me to produce so much cortisol. I had to be treated with brain surgery to remove the affected pituitary gland. I am now dependent on daily doses of hydrocortisone and other hormone supplements that my life depends on. So listen to your body and don't take the ol' 'diet and exercise' gaslighting answer many doctors will give."

—Anonymous, 55, Male, Texas

3."I was peeing blood all day and was trying to ignore it. It progressed, and I went to three different emergency rooms before I got a CT scan. The first two ER doctors told me I had a UTI. Turns out I had cancer. My kidney was so big from the tumor that it was rupturing. I have to have the whole kidney removed. I'm OK now, but it was a lot."

4."For seven years, I had lower back pain. My primary care doctor kept incorrectly sending me to neurologists. Finally, I collapsed one night. Turned out, it was a kidney stone blocking my urinary system. I ended up with sepsis and in intensive care for two weeks! If my husband hadn't immediately taken me to the ER, where they knew the latest protocol for treating sepsis, I would have died."

—Anonymous, 81, Female, Nevada

5."Since the age of 16, I started getting extremely nauseous and having diarrhea every time I ate anything. It was the '90s, so there were no real thoughts about what was actually wrong with me. I started avoiding meals, losing weight, missing school, and staying home all the time. Went on for months. My parents brought me to the doctor, who accused me of attention seeking and anorexia, and sent me to a psychologist. During my brief and frustrating time in therapy, I was told I had anxiety, anorexia, and agoraphobia…and that I needed to stop acting up. So I struggled all the way through high school, then college, and another 20 or so years of work and life in general while being told by several other doctors that I had anxiety and an eating disorder."

(Cont'd) "They put me on all kinds of meds that made me feel terrible…meanwhile, the nausea became a daily thing. I had vomiting, diarrhea, and suddenly had raging asthma and eczema. I pretty much wondered if this was the rest of my life. Then one day, my doctor said to me, 'You know what? My wife had similar symptoms and was just diagnosed with celiac disease. Let's get you tested.' Yeah. Guess who has celiac disease and suddenly didn't have anxiety, an eating disorder, asthma, and eczema about two months after cutting out gluten? I'm not mad anymore. I just want others to learn from my experience because my experience was ridiculous and ruined literally half my life. If you have any of those symptoms, ask your doctor to test for food allergies and intolerances immediately."

—Anonymous

6."When I was 30, I had side flank pain that lasted years. My primary care doctor told me that it was likely acid reflux, which I told them that made no sense. Got a second opinion, and they ordered an ultrasound on my gallbladder, which came back normal and agreed with the previous diagnosis. One night, the pain was so bad I couldn't stop vomiting, so I went to the ER. Turns out I had a 6 cm dermoid cyst on my ovary. Years of pain and thousands of dollars later, I got the diagnosis."

7."I never slept. I remember lying awake all night as a kid every night. I was hyperactive but did 'well' in school (did not cause problems or run around), so I was never tested for ADHD. Then, when I turned eight, I started having horrible migraines for days at a time. I was also having bloody noses multiple times a week. I went to multiple neurologists, and because I had no 'behavioral problems,' they never tested for ADHD and just didn't believe me when I said I couldn't sleep at night. I used Vaseline in my nose for dry skin and considered cauterization. Fast forward to turning 20, I was having the most insane bloody noses and horrible headaches constantly."

"Instead of not being able to sleep, I literally couldn't stay awake for more than a couple of hours at a time. The bloody noses ended up getting so bad that I had to go to the doctor, and they suggested I get a sleep test. FINALLY, diagnosed with sleep apnea at almost 21 years old, and my whole life changed once I started using my CPAP machine. My mood improved, focus improved (I got an ADHD diagnosis/meds, which can be exacerbated by sleep apnea), migraines and headaches diminished, and I rarely have a bloody nose. I truly became a different person. GET A SLEEP TEST DONE!"

—Anonymous, 24, Female, Washington, DC

8."I kept mentioning to doctors how I would blow blood vessels in my finger joints, particularly after taking aspirin. I showed them photos. They would just shrug. It would start with itching, then a pinprick pain, then bruising from blood leaking into the joint space, then several days of healing. I was worried if it happened in my brain, so I did a deep dive on the internet. I discovered Achenbach Syndrome, which could be associated with Hashimoto's disease. I looked that up and I had most of the symptoms of Hashimoto's."

9."It started with a wooshing in my ear in June 2021. I thought it was an ear infection, went on antibiotics, and it continued. Went to ENT. They told me I was fine and it would go away 'soon.' They sent me on my way. Then the headaches started. I'd never had a migraine before and thought I was suddenly getting migraines. The whooshing got worse. Then my eyesight started going. I went to my PCP, who told me it was probably just a migraine with an aura. On March 17, 2022, I woke up blind in my right eye. I went to the ER, and that night, they told me whatever I had was going to kill me; it was just a matter of how."

"Turns out I had idiopathic intracranial hypertension — unexplained cerebral spinal fluid build up in my brain, which was putting so much pressure on my optic nerves that I was going blind and would have had a stroke. I was in the hospital for two weeks, had brain surgery to have a stent placed, and was out of work for three months after. Thankfully, my condition was caused by a medication, and since I don’t take that medication anymore, I am stable, but I am still followed by a team of doctors every six months!"

—Anonymous, 32, Female, NYC

10."I knew something was wrong. I kept having UTI symptoms, but I was told the tests were negative. I was repeatedly told to lose weight and get my blood sugar lowered. I barely ate, was taking my meds and insulin. I knew I had kidney stones, so I asked if it could be a flare-up. The jerk male provider at the walk-in clinic (I couldn’t get in to see my primary doctor) snapped at me. I had to be very insistent to get an X-ray to see if any kidney stones had moved since the last X-ray. I asked if they had moved. He said he didn’t know. I asked to see the X-ray because I knew what my last X-ray looked like. He refused to let me see it. This went on and on until I just decided to try another day."

(Cont'd) "Well, that day came, and I got an intense pain that I almost passed out. So I was waiting for the place to open. Thank God a good female provider was there that I had seen before. She listened and was very concerned. She wanted me to take an ambulance to the hospital. She said it was most likely the kidney stones and an infection. I had to sign a form stating that, against medical advice, I refused the ambulance (I had no insurance; I lost my job because of missing work from being in pain and being in the bathroom most of the time). So, I got myself to the ER. I was taken back right away. I saw several people and had several tests. I was starting to be septic. They said if I had waited even an hour more, it could have been worse."

"Several hours later, along with multiple doses of antibiotics and pain meds, I was taken by ambulance to another hospital (thankfully, I had filled out emergency assistance for medical care and was approved). Hours later, I was taken to the operating room. The kidney stones moved to my ureter; they were blocking urine flow, and there was a lot of pus in my urine. My urine was backed up. I was in the hospital for a week, had a midline put in my arm, and went to the hospital daily for infusions of antibiotics. During my follow-up, my primary care provider showed me the X-rays from months earlier that I had with the jerk male provider, and even I could tell the kidney stones had moved, and I should have been treated sooner. She and I were so mad. We reported him. And my blood sugar was higher because of the infection."

—Anonymous

11."I was 40 when I had my first mammogram. It was abnormal, and they suggested I have bilateral biopsies for 'suspicious masses'. I was advised to follow up with imaging every six months, which I did. After a year and a half, they suggested I continue regular screening as the biopsies were benign and there were no changes. We moved, and I changed hospital systems. I had my screening at 44, and the same thing happened. I had the biopsies, but this time they sent the specimen to Washington State University, which has better science. Turns out it was cancer. I'm three years cancer-free now, but did the first hospital miss it… I'll never know. I went through a lot of treatment and surgery to get here."

12."I went to countless doctors over the years because I had bad pain in my right abdomen with vomiting. I always got told that it was gas pains and would go away, or doctors told me I had IBS and gave me medication that didn't do anything. I got a HIDA scan. It hurt so bad, but they dismissed it as normal. Finally, years later, I found out my gallbladder was severely inflamed, and I got it removed. Problem solved. I'm tired of dismissive doctors."

—Anonymous

13."In my late 20s, I would get horrible, stabbing pain in my abdomen on my right side. I couldn't tolerate the pain (and I have a high tolerance) and ended up in the ER. They couldn't find anything wrong, so I was sent on my way. Over the course of two years, these pain attacks would come on, always in the same spot, and they could last from a few hours to a few days. I went to my GP, internal medicine specialist, and my OBGYN, and no one could find anything. They ran every possible test and even did exploratory surgery. It's important to note that during the aforementioned surgery, they couldn't find my appendix."

14."As I stepped out of a bus, the step was so high I twisted my foot sideways, toppled over, and immediately felt pain and swelling in my ankle area. Luckily, there was a medical center nearby, where a doctor told me I had done soft tissue damage to my foot, and with bandaging, it would eventually heal on its own. I limped around for weeks afterward, in unimaginable pain, waiting for my foot to heal, but after about four weeks of the same, I went to another doctor for a second opinion. He organized a CT scan with contrast dye, which discovered I had actually broken off a 2 cm long piece of bone from directly beneath my ankle. I had to wear an ankle boot for six weeks, followed by months of intensive physiotherapy for it to heal."

—Anonymous, 55, Female, Brisbane, Australia

15."I had a chronic cough, an inability to gain weight, gastrointestinal issues, sore joints, and my hands would bloat and turn grey in water. Five specialists later, I saw a BuzzFeed article about '39 people having a worse week than you' that featured a picture of someone whose hands looked like mine did after being in water. I followed it to the Reddit thread, and the first comment was, 'Do you have cystic fibrosis?' Turns out the poster did, and so do I. I got into a specialty clinic for cystic fibrosis, and they immediately put me on medications. It's still early days, but I feel so much better, and my family members with similar symptoms (cystic fibrosis is genetic) are all getting tested as well. Thanks, BuzzFeed, you helped figure out what was wrong with me faster than six doctors did."

And lastly:

16."I had horrific periods growing up — extremely heavy, debilitating pain, passing out, and giving myself gastritis from taking so much Advil every month. Everyone around me said their periods were awful too, so I assumed that level of pain was a normal part of being a woman and just something I had to live with."

"I was born with only one kidney, and after Googling the link between renal and reproductive tract anomalies, I suspected a rare condition called OHVIRA. When I was a teenager, I mentioned this condition to my nephrologist — he actually laughed at me for trying to diagnose myself and was extremely dismissive. Later, when I was in college, I decided it was time to finally be a big girl and go to the gynecologist for the first time — thankfully, that sweet doctor actually listened to me, ordered an ultrasound, and confirmed I had a uterine anomaly. Further imaging was needed to confirm which type of uterine anomaly I had, and she also recommended I see a fertility specialist. After I got married, I went to a specialist who ordered a pelvic MRI."

(Cont'd) "The MRI actually showed I did have OHVIRA, which had caused obstruction, retrograde menstruation, and endometriosis. Surgery to remove the obstruction and endometriosis drastically improved my quality of life and was necessary prior to conceiving. Looking back, I wish I had advocated more for myself. I wish I hadn't been so scared to go to the gynecologist for the first time, or else I would have gone and received a diagnosis and surgery years sooner. I wish my nephrologist had encouraged me to go to a gynecologist after I told him about my concerns instead of dismissing them as teenage drama."

"Trust your instincts and advocate for yourself. Go to the doctor if you suspect something is wrong — don't ignore it or accept that as your new normal. If a doctor is dismissive or belittles you, find a new one who will listen to you and address your concerns. Listening to your body and finding the right doctor can be the first step toward healing."

—Anonymous, 35, Female, Alabama

Going to the doctor is supposed to give us answers, but we all know that's not always the case. Did your doctors ever dismiss, ignore, or misdiagnose your symptoms? Let us know in the comments or at this anonymous form.

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