Crazy old wives tales and odd customs...

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Specializes in Peds(PICU, NICU float), PDN, ICU.

Ok, if you have ever done PDN for a while you know you've run into some weird things. What have you seen?

I had the Mexican Family (Mexican old wives tale) that placed a red string moistened in their mouth on the kids forehead to stop hiccups.

People who swear you get colds by being cold, cold air, wet hair, no socks on your feet, "cold formula" that is room temp and must be heated.

The most recent one I'm observing now is a family using oils to heal because someone told them it heals every illness out there. Like peppermint oil on the feet to cure a cold and another oil on the feet to detox. Eucalyptus oil to sterilize the air. Its fun watching them start to realize it doesn't work.

Had a family who thought their child was cursed and that they had to lift the curse so the kid would heal.

I'll think of more. What have you seen?

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Well sorta, once a patient's Mom had people come in to do an exorcism. The other nurse on duty said that the people just prayed, spritzed water around the house, burnt sage and opened all the windows. Nothing like we see on TV.

It didn't work. The kiddo still has CP.

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Don't remember the specifics, but one of my client mothers was doing something with the client one time that was clearly not going to work, based on superstition. I bent over backwards not to say anything.

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Specializes in Peds(PICU, NICU float), PDN, ICU.

I have to watch my facial expressions carefully around people when they do this stuff. Its hard to bite my tongue and keep a straight face.

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Specializes in Pediatric Private Duty; Camp Nursing.

I once worked for a Mennonite (w PA Dutch pow wow traditions) mom who had foster children w special needs. She would slice raw onions and place them in the 4 corners of the room to kill germs in the air. They'd stay there for days if not weeks. One night I was there when she put fresh slices out, it was so horrible I had to bag them up and seal them. Whew!!

Also that "catch a cold if you are cold" drives me crazy. That's prevalent everywhere.

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Specializes in ED, trauma.

My parents still tell me not to go out of the house with wet hair. But I'll be damned if they probably haven't jinxed me cause every time I leave with wet hair or no socks just sandals, I seem to always catch a nasty cold.

There's either some small truth to it, or I've been hexed!

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I guess I think that being cold can contribute to illness. Secondary result of your body being unable to effectively fight infection, because so much energy is wasted trying to keep the body warm.

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Specializes in Peds(PICU, NICU float), PDN, ICU.

I air dry my hair and always leave with it wet. I catch colds from being near a pt with a cold. I never get them unless I'm around someone with a cold.

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Specializes in Pediatric.

Not my personal experience, but my patients mom had a nurse who was deep into all that. She came home one day and found out the nurse had been flushing special holy water blessed by some voodoo priest Into the g tube. She had been doing it for months. She claimed it was because my patient was demon possessed.

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Specializes in Pediatric Private Duty; Camp Nursing.
Not my personal experience, but my patients mom had a nurse who was deep into all that. She came home one day and found out the nurse had been flushing special holy water blessed by some voodoo priest Into the g tube. She had been doing it for months. She claimed it was because my patient was demon possessed.

Sent from my iPhone using allnurses.com

Was she Haitian or from some other country?

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Specializes in Medsurg/ICU, Mental Health, Home Health.
I guess I think that being cold can contribute to illness. Secondary result of your body being unable to effectively fight infection, because so much energy is wasted trying to keep the body warm.

Being cold can contribute to illness because when it is cold, people are more likely to be in larger groups inside of doors and this closer proximity more readily contributes to the spread of infection.

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Specializes in Peds(PICU, NICU float), PDN, ICU.

Being cold can contribute to illness because when it is cold, people are more likely to be in larger groups inside of doors and this closer proximity more readily contributes to the spread of infection.

That's different than when people say that the cold temp outside is the cause of the common cold. If the common cold was named "hot", the same people would probably believe it was caused by heat.

I have a good friend who is very sweet, but not real bright. She is one of those people that believes what she hears over what science proves. She swears her kids will get sick if they go outside without a coat in 60 degree weather, but she keeps her home at 60 in the winter (don't get me started on that). I will never understand why people like that just don't get it even with proof.

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