Catchy title right??? Ok so trying to think of some new topics after the post about bringing back nursing discussions; I know we used to have one similar to this years ago, so I am starting a fresh one.
As most nurses know we are often asked "What's the craziest thing you have seen?" I never know how to answer that because it depends on what the persons definition of crazy is. Working Emergency for 6 years I have seen a lot of crazy things on various scales. I have worked in small community hospitals, I have worked in the busiest Level 1 Trauma center in my state, have worked at another place that was the only trauma center in that state. So I have seen a variety of things in different areas of the country.
So let's specify, what has been your creepiest thing you have experienced. The situation that made you think "Not today Satan, not today!"
I will start, so I am well versed on scary movies. They are my favorite. I guarantee you I would last to the end on a horror movie, that's how well groomed I am to this stuff. I don't get scared often. So was working one night and they brought in a psych patient.
She was working at some chicken factory and co-workers called 911 saying she was having a psychotic break. No one knew of any medical history of mental illness and she had never acted like this before. Her mom got to the hospital before her and said she has never had any psych issues. Given her age I thought maybe she was going to end up being diagnosed with schizophrenia or something because so often we would see the first episode present similar and she was in her early 20's.
Anyway patient gets there and they move her into the room, I have the zone that has 2 acute medical rooms and 2 acute psych rooms. Lights are a bit dim and we already cleared out the room. EMS brings her in and she is sitting on the corner of the bed looking around and kind of rocking back and forth. I go in and introduce myself and do all that and explain to her I would need to take blood and get urine. I notice she keeps looking up to the corner of the room towards the ceiling that is shadowed and flicking her eyes back and forth to that corner and back to me all while subtly rocking. I am close to the door with the door open because you always have to be close to an exit in situations like this. I go to ask her a few things and while she is answering me she looks quickly back to the shadowed corner in the ceiling and rapidly whispers *I know I am trying to get rid of her* and looks right back to me and finishes her sentence. Like not missing a beat, not acknowledging she just whispered to the shadowed corner.
The hairs on my arms stood up and I took 3 steps back, told her I would be right back and said *not today satan, not today* told my resident I was done. LOL Said I have watched enough scary movies to know that I am not even going there!!!!
