"How old are you?"

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Now and then I am asked by a pt how old am I, is this my natural hair color, or other things you couldn't pay me to ask another person :uhoh3: . Usually its a nice old lady who is trying to be complentary, which is fine, I usually say, "oh how sweet, but I don't usually give that info out" and then change the subject. But sometimes its someone close to my age who is trying to be rude. I admit that I look a lot younger than my 23yrs, but I act professionally. Is there something better to say than "I don't discuss that" said with a smile? I am interested in hearing with everyone else says to these pts. Thanks! :eek:

Specializes in NICU.
I do look young, but it's not as bad as a friend of mine who was asked if she wanted the "kiddy" menu when she was 18.

That happened to me once!!!! :imbar

I also got carded for a PG-13 movie when I was 18 years old. I showed them my driver's license and they looked so embarrassed...

Once I was at work and caring for a very sick 1:1 baby on the oscillator, with like 8 IV pumps going, busy all shift long. At one point the father of the baby next door actually asked me if I was doing some sort of high school course at the hospital! It was after midnight, and I had just gotten through putting an IV in this baby right while he watched from his baby's bedside! Yeah, they let high school kids do this stuff. :angryfire

Doesn't help that I'm 4'10" and wear pigtails sometimes...

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well as i work in paeds i'm always asked if i have children of my own. When i tell them 3 i always get the same reply....'u dont look old enough to have 3. how olds your eldest?' When i tell them 11 just by looking at their faces they are wondering how old i am? well i'm 37 and to be honest i look about 24/25 yrs old. i just laugh and say i am old enough to have an 11 yr old, im older than i look. They just laugh too and change the subject. Then a relative will come and visit the child and the parent says to the relative ' u wouldnt believe she has 3 children would you?' well i do the same thing again. To be honest i'm used to it and just laugh it off. Wait till parents now see im expecting my 4th child in jan. See what they say about my age then....lol

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Specializes in many.

I am 34 and get the strangest looks when someone asks me how many kids I have or how long I have been married. Because I tell them I have 3 and have been married for 14 years. Then I follow up with "Yeah, I got married when I was twelve" Then the looks really get strange! :chuckle

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I only have one answer to that question, "I am old enough to know better, and too young to care". That gets them laughing and talking about something else.

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Specializes in CCU (Coronary Care); Clinical Research.

i also get asked how old I am quite a bit...most of my patients do have kids older than me...I started nursing at 23...just prior to my graduation from college (my fifth year of college) a patient's wife asked me when I graduated...I told her that I graduated in one week, how excited I was, etc. Her next question was what college are you going to :uhoh21: Yea...a high school student can push meds through an IV (which was what I was in the room doing...) I guess it just goes to show that most people are not aware of the different scopes of practice...Now that I am all of 25 years of age, I still often get asked my age...It doesn't really bother me...just used to it now...actually most people seem to be impressed about how "accomplished" I am at such a "young" age...So is life...I do think that alot of the questions are because the family/patient is trying to establish a rapport and are in crisis mode themselves and is something easy to talk about...There are nurses in my unit that have actually worked in the unit longer that I have been alive...

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You people are in your 20's. Of course you look young! You ARE young!

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You people are in your 20's. Of course you look young! You ARE young!

LOL :chuckle

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I alwaysget carded in any place that sells alcohol or anything else for persons 21 and older. I am 27 and my most recent (and somewhat embarrassing) encounter was at a new wal-mart that opened up not too far from my house. I was in walmart with my son and his dad and there was a lady giving out sample of deli sliced ham and turkey. I went to get a piece with my son and she said to me in a very strong tone " I can't give you any because you have to have a parent with you". I was embarrassed because there were people behind me and she caught me off gaurd. After standing there looking meek and blank, I said to her " I am the parent and this is my son, now can we try the ham". I am glad most days that I look younger than what I am (people usually say about 15 or 16 plus god gave me the tiniest voice ever), it sometimes gets annoying especially when you don't have an I.D. on you to prove that your old enough:-). The voice comes in handy for telemarketers who call, and ask can they speak to my mom or dad, and I tell them that I am the babysitter and the "parents" won't be home until midnight (heehee).

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I also got carded for a PG-13 movie when I was 18 years old. I showed them my driver's license and they looked so embarrassed...

lol, Yeah i get carded for pg-13 movies. ugh I ALWAYS have an ID on me!

My boyfriend almost didnt get let in a movie. he is 19, almost 20. And he didnt have any form of Id on him, so my friend, who lookes about 28 had to go buy him a ticket.

I cant blame the ticket people though, he is 5'6-5'7, thin, and looks very young.

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I think there are several reasons why patients ask personal questions. One is, they sometimes want to take some of the attention off themselves. You know- let's talk about YOU instead of whats wrong with me! :) Another is they are digging to find out how competant their nurse is! They could be nervous, bored, lonely, wanting conversation, etc.... And especially with the older patients, they may look at us as their grandkids sort of- like they CAN ask personal questions. I find that it's more the younger patients who ask me personal questions than the older folks. If I feel uncomfortable with the questions, I am usually vague and just ask them questions instead, if I have the time. Maybe that's the avoidance way, but they're already not feeling good, so I don't want to compound that by making them feel dumb and nosy too.

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I used to waitress at a bar and if I had to card someone in a group, I'd card everybody in the group if they looked under 35-ish. This started when I had a bad experience and inadvertantly offended someone, LOL.

After that, I had a few bad experiences where people thought I was an idiot (or trying to be a jerk) for carding them when they were obviously over 21. :chuckle Age is such a touchy thing sometimes, the thing I was trying to do was not offend... I know I would be a bit upset if my friends got carded at a bar and I didn't.

The only time I get irritated about being carded is when the cashiers at Rite-Aid card me for smokes. They should know who I am by now, I go in there all the time. I think they do it just to **** me off.

Bethany (I realize I won't be carded for very long if I keep smoking :uhoh21: )

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i am the youngest nurse on my floor. i am only twenty, but i am an rn. i graduated from an adn program, which i began right out of high school.

practically every shift someone asks me how old i am, what my job is, am i really a nurse, how did i get to be a nurse so quickly, etc. usually, it is a kind, grandparent-type person. once in a while, it may be someone flirting. whatever the case, no patient has yet asked in an offensive way although i suppose someone may do so at some point.

occasionally people outside the hospital will irritate me when they ask.

i try to project a mature image always and handle myself professionally at work. truthfully, though, twenty is pretty young.

also, i have to admit that i am something of a free spirit; i like to have fun and be silly sometimes. i think that is okay as long as i keep adult responsibilities.

i really do look very young too. many people think i look about 12 or 13 because i am short, thin, softspoken, and have long hair. right after i graduated from high school, i was in an antique shop whose owner tried to get me to be a "girlfriend" to one of his 12 year old grandsons. :rotfl:

oh, well. it really doesn't bother me anymore.

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