"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 Pediatrics.

I know I am extremely young looking, and having 3 children and an older husband doesn't help much either. However, I almost choked a couple of weeks ago when I was in the mall food court with my 2 year old, with my student LPN ID dangling around my neck, and an older couple sitting across from me were discussing me quite loudly.

"Wow, it's really sad to see all these young mothers these days."

"She alone with the baby. Probably unmarried, the father probably left her."

I got up and left, and as I passed the guy saw my ID and "whispered": "She's a student nurse? How old is she?"

So, being that I heard him, I decided to answer. ALL HIS QUESTIONS.

"I'm 22, married, was married when I had her, and YES...I AM a student nurse." He was flabbergasted. How rude!

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I love when people ask me how old I am so I can tell them I'm 29 and then see the look on their face. I had a patient tell me I couldn't be older than 13 the other day.

I also get questions from strangers as to where I'm looking at colleges, or where I go to school. Well, I actually am in college again, but I graduated the first time 7 years ago. :roll

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I am 63 years old. When one of my my co-workers found out how old I am she could not believe my age. She told everyone in the unit and they came to me looking at my face saying "you don't look your age". Anyway, I do not dye my hair which is black with few grey that's not noticeable. My skin looks good. I take care of myself: not smoking, not drinking alcohol, and I'm vegetarian. Now, When they ask me about my age I just give them smile and tell them "I'm old enough to take care of you." I have two boys ages 32 and 27. They both look like teenagers.

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I have been asked all of my life "Are you a natural blonde?"

Pts (and staff) frequently ask me if I have kids. I don't. Dh and I are childfree by choice. People are usually threated by this, so I do not want to reveal to them that we do not wish to be parents. People are so suspicous of this choice.

I have never been able to come up with a good way to avoid this question or the answer!

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I have been asked all of my life "Are you a natural blonde?"

Pts (and staff) frequently ask me if I have kids. I don't. Dh and I are childfree by choice. People are usually threated by this, so I do not want to reveal to them that we do not wish to be parents. People are so suspicous of this choice.

I have never been able to come up with a good way to avoid this question or the answer!

I also don't plan on having children, but I'm not married yet. I'm sure I'll be dodging this question in a few years...my parents are already on my case, since it's up to me to provide grand-kids. :uhoh21:

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I am a student nurse (22) but recently one of my clients asked me how old I was. When I told him, he said, "Oh, I thought you were a kid. I thought I got a mini-nurse!!" LOL. :rotfl:

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Specializes in Medical Oncology, Med-Surg, L & D.

i am now 26 y.o. when i was 21 y.o. i went to the salon to have my hair permed. as the lady was perming my hair she was asking me personal questions (which i didn't mind answering). to the point when she asked me "did your mom know that you're getting your hair permed?" :eek: i was like "no! i didn't need approval from her re: my hair. i'm old enough to decide for my hair, thanks for asking." :rolleyes: and she goes "how old are you?" i said "i am 21 years old." she said i look like younger than 16? :( i was trying to be nice to her and just said "i will take that as a compliment, thank you." (i cannot mess up with someone perming my hair.) :lol2: one more experience when i was working at the hospital. this sweet little old lady asked me how old i was? and i told her i was 21. she asked me "are you sure you can take care of me? you are too young." i just told her "i am knowledgable enough to take care of her." :nurse: she gave me the sweetest smile ever. :w00t:

since i have been experiencing this kind of comment, i, myself, don't judge the book by it's cover.

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Specializes in LTC/Telemetry/MedSurg.

Looks like NURSES look younger than their age!!!:) i myself have been asked about my age..and when i told them I'm 32 and married with two kids..they would say "are you kidding?"..:rotfl:

even stressed at work..NURSES should find time to laugh and giggle...SMILE every one!!!:) :) :) :) :)

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Specializes in Trauma, Teaching.

I don't get asked how old I am, just how long I've been a nurse. I just sigh, and ask them what year it is, then tell them (24 years). Oh well, only another 20 to go till retirement!

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Looks like NURSES look younger than their age!!!:) :) :) :) :)

This is so true! :chuckle Every female nurse I know (not good with male ages so no comment) looks at least 10 yrs YOUNGER than her age! This is very surprising considering job stress and whatnot!

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Specializes in Geriatrics.

I get more than just age questions at the nursing home I work at. I have one sweet old lady who asks every night which school I went to in the first grade, where I'm from originally, if I have a boyfriend, and if I could talk if I didn't have hands (answer, probably can't. I move my hands a lot while talking!). It's cute, and all I do is answer the questions with a smile. It's hard not to; she's just curious about her CNA. :)

The questions I get from most of the patients, though, are if I'm in college (thankfully they don't seem too alarmed when they find out I just turned 18) and where I'm from originally. Guess they can't place the accent -- gotta love the "Air Force brat" accent! :p

Maybe most nurses look younger than their age, but I've always been told I look older. I remember being fourteen or fifteen and being asked by people if I was married to a guy who was 17 or 18. What was really funny though was that one time my mom was asked if my sister and I were her sisters! Either we looked a whole lot older than our ages (doubtful with my sister), or Mom looked really young! :rotfl:

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im 19 and just finished LPN school - clinicals were hard because people looked at me like "uh..how old are you again??" - to each their own, i suppose =)

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