Was I an annoying patient at a&e??

[purplellama3]

I recently saw a thread on here with a similar situation and the replies to it made me question if my response to my situation was normal or not!

I was in a horrible accident recently and had to be taken to hospital on a board and neckbrace. I had hurt my hip and they were concerned it was broken. I was really upset, in a lot of pain, frightened as I wasn’t allowed anyone with me (Covid times) and on morphine so probably slightly overly emotional on top of it all!

I had been really quiet as I was honestly so frightened, and I remember at one point there was several doctors and nurses around me doing checks and the doctor said to the nurse something about getting my trousers off and putting a hospital gown on round me. The nurse started to help me and I have no idea what happened to me but I suddenly freaked out and was hysterical about it. I was SO paranoid about anyone seeing my body (even though I know they’re not actually looking at me!) but I suddenly starting panicking and crying out and was completely inconsolable. I honestly don’t know if it was just the emotions of the situation or the morphine but I was completely hysterical about it and I felt so scared and embarrassed. The nurse was absolutely lovely and helped me so much and eventually I calmed down and everything was fine. I actually wrote in praising her for how kind and compassionate she was throughout my night there

thankfully everything was fine and my hip was badly bruised not broken, but I was so embarrassed about my reaction. I don’t know what came over me- I usually wouldn’t say boo to a ghost and I’m really shy but I completely freaked out and my reaction surprised me because I didn’t expect it at all and I don’t know why I was suddenly so upset. I could hear the beeping like crazy and my heart was over 140 from panicking!

after I went home I put it out of my head and tried to forget it as I completely made a fool out of myself and the whole thing was a horrible memory. But I saw a post on here of someone who was embarrassed about showing their legs at hospital and some of the comments said it was ridiculous etc. I suppose it got me wondering- I know my reaction wasn’t normal as such, but will I have been that difficult person that everyone thought was really annoying or dramatic? I’m a stresshead and I hate the thought of being difficult or annoying especially to healthcare staff who were only trying to help me. Was my reaction that bad and unusual? Thanks in advance!

I voted yabu - to think you were a difficult patient.. so I would ignore the votes it’s not clear what the vote is.

To add to stories. Post surgery I was on a overspill ward.. I was demanding coffee . Nurse was explaining I hadn’t been out of surgery long enough to have a drink so I then was shouting I wanted whisky ( I don’t even drink whisky ) 🤣

I work in A&E and honestly, that reaction is nothing to be concerned about. People do weird things when they are in pain and medicated. Or completely irrational like the drunk man who kept trying to get out of his neck brace despite his broken neck!

An interesting point about why people can react so differently to morphine. It can break down at very different speeds in the body as the liver processes it due to how much of a certain liver enzyme your body produces, and that is controlled by your genetics.

People who produce loads of the enzyme find that morphine doesnt do much for them in terms of actually working on the pain and/or have very few side effects. People who produce very little of the enzyme end up with really good pain relief but might also have loads of side effects as the morphine lingers in the body longer than normal.

You can get a genetic test that will tell you how much of the enzyme you produce ad so how you are likely to react to morphine. It explains why morphine works really well for me, but I see pink elephants dancing round the ceiling. They now just give me half doses if I need some!

All sorts of wierd and odd things happen when people are scared, stressed, given disinhibiting drugs and put in very unusual situations.

Medical staff are used to it and if they are not, they soon will be, and will have others around them who have seen it all before.

Two stories for ya, one not mine so ill switch a few details...

I had to go into hospital as my gallbladder was trying to kill me. They gave me cyclazine to ensure I wasn't sick, and were going to follow up with IV morphine shortly after..

The cyclazine kicked in and I started hallucinating, and I was FASCINATED. Stuff was wandering about the walls in my peripheral vision and all the white surfaces (so, a lot, in a hospital!) had cursive writing appearing across it then fading out. I couldn't read it of course, and was trying to see the 'things', they were a bit like woodlice, trundling all about but never quiiiiiiite in view.

A nurse came along and according to her later, I was sat bolt upright on my bed, gripping the side rails as if I were on a rollercoaster ride, eyes like a rabbit in the headlights - she said 'are you ok...' and I said 'well yes but these trundling bugs WONT STAY STILL...'

She said 'did you have the morphine?' I said nooooo... just the cyclazine.. I think these are hallucinations... THIS IS FUN...'

She RAN... to get a Dr, they gave me morphine and it all settled down, but that then disinhibited me to the point where I was able and willing to tell them just how fucked off I was that they'd stopped my fun.

The next day, I was mortified at how ridiculous I'd been..... they just laughed.

A friend of mine is now a well respected medic, but during their first year out of med school, they experienced a really scary neurological 'event'.

They drove to work, got out of their car... took their shoes and socks and trousers off... and then wandered about town, telling everyone they were a Dr, finally actually going into work and trying to sit on the reception desk because they now wanted to ... be a telephone (they didnt say telephone, they sat on the desk and kept ringing and then answering themselves).

Mmm.

Long story short, it they were taken to the appropriate part of the hospital and fixed up which took some time, and they had no idea about the finer details of the whole thing until several months after when they finally returned to work.

It still wasn't the weirdest or most out there thing that has happened there, by a LONG way!

That actually made me laugh out loud

I broke dozens of bones in an RTA 30 years ago. I have no memory of the accident or the few days afterwards, but apparently kept telling the ambulance crew, the fire crew, a helpful passer-by, and all the A&E staff: “It’s OK, I’m a nurse you know, leave me alone, I’ll get up in a minute, I’m fine, don’t touch me, I can do this.”

Yeah I would have appreciated a bit of warning. I had to drive home on that leg! It hurt for days afterwards too.

It definitely made me feel quite emotional suddenly being in all that pain when I wasn't expecting it.

you we’re not annoying one bit. You were shocked, in pain, scared and on strong drugs. You’d have adrenalin flooding your system and in fight or flight mode. Don’t give your reaction a second thought. It was completely understandable and normal. So glad you just had bruising and nothing more serious after such an accident. Don’t you be judging yourself, the staff who were looking after you certainly won’t have done. 💐

You were in shock and had had strong drugs. Don't give it a second thought. The nurse certainly won't have done.

Be kind to yourself and try not to worry. It was a stressful situation and the doctors and nurses wouldn't have known if you had a specific reason and or a reaction to the drugs. I once scared a nurse by screaming the place down. I was in an isolation room with food poisoning and appendicitis and had not slept in almost 48 hours when I finally dropped off and she came to do obs. I suffer from night terrors anyway and I leapt up whilst attached to the drip and monitors and screamed blue murder as she tried to take my blood pressure. I apologised so many times for scaring her and she sat with me until my heart rate returned to normal and I stopped crying. I felt awful but I also know I was ill and tired and alone and was always appreciative so they knew I wasn't doing anything on purpose.

Don't worry about it. People who have had gas and air end up completely disinhibited and say / do much worse

I've had a similar reaction on morphine. It's normal. Don't worry about it.

Don’t be so hard on yourself. Best of luck with your recovery (physical and emotional!)

Also a nurse (although not in A+E) and wanted to add that it is completely normal to have emotional outbursts/experience paranoia/ get angry/cry whatever … when you are in an alien environment and in pain and feel completely vulnerable. It really does happen all the time and patients are often really embarrassed afterwards but no one takes it personally or assumes you are a difficult person.
When I was in labour on the other hand … I still blush to think of it now but I’m sure I wasn’t the first or last labouring woman to go off her head.

No you weren't annoying, you were scared. I hope you're okay now.