What's Your Best Nursing Ghost Story?

Nursing is a profession that often involves long lonely night shifts in eerie hospital wards. It's a perfect breeding ground for ghost stories. These stories often involve sightings of apparitions, strange noises, and unexplained events that are said to have taken place in hospitals, hospices, and other healthcare settings. Some of these stories are believed to be based on true events, while others are purely fictional. Regardless, they continue to captivate and intrigue both nurses and non-nurses alike - providing a spooky glimpse into the world of healthcare after dark.

I know you have seen and heard freaky things. Share your nursing ghost stories...

[FranEMTnurse, CNA, LPN, EMT-I]

These are great!

Im just now starting clinicals and had my first experience this week, just wanted to see if it was normal... I think its normal...if you can call it that..

I have never seen anyone dying before, or been under stressful disconcerting circumstances as my patients were on the floor i was assigned.

My instructor for clincals this week asked us each to "visit" the room of a man CTD, he was younger about the same age as all us.

The others were afraid to go and disturb him.

I just wanted to get what the insturctor told us to do. So they let me go in first by myself!

When I walked in I wasnt expecting anything to different than our other patients.

But, As i turned the corner of the curtain to get to the patient there was a black ether air on his right side. It was thick and waiting.

I tried to ignore it, but the patient who couldnt talk, kept looking at it with a frightend look, then looking back at me.

I wasnt sure what to do, he was obviously in distress about it and couldnt communicate,, finally he got enough strenght to lift his arm point towards it and look at me, then put his hand on his chest as if to say he was afraid(thats how I interpreted it)...he did it twice which seemed like a feat for him with no strenght...

I called the other girls in and they didnt know what I had experienced and that I could still see the ether standing there like it was waiting.

(and Im not about to tell them...dont want to seem crazy to my classmates)

They hurry and listen to breathsounds (what we were sent to the room to listen to) cause they are freaked out..

These are girls that pray often for each other in class...I thought they might pick up and say a quick one for him...but they didnt they were to freaked out.

They left the room....and i was like wait a minute..arent they going to at least say something. I just knew that the thing was waiting for him and that they had not said good bye to the guy they just used!

They said "oh..I didnt even think about that"...

I said I came out here to get you to say bye but if you dont want to, I want to- so I will be back in a miniute.

I went in and held his hand, that thing was still there, I will never forget the creepy feeling of not being able to help him, and knowing that he was going to be alone in that room by himself with that thing waiting to take him;

All I could do was put my hand on his head and use my heart to let him know that he was a precious life that would be missed in the world.

He died about 6 hours later after we had left the clinical.

The next day the girls decided they wanted to say goodbye to him...we found out that he had died, he was a homeless guy that had been found on the steps of a funeral home, in complete liver failure. No one to say good bye to, no one to claim him.

I was searching for what the ether black thing was that was "waiting" for him.

I had heard that you could "feel" death ..but wasnt sure what that ment...

Is this that? ??

From the stories on here it seems like there is more to death than they teach us in the books!

I wonder what else I will get to see or encounter... I love life! but how do you prepare for death..I cant help patients with that... It feels realy bad going against what is inside of me, and I dont know if I can stand seeing that black ether thing again .... I think I understand the cartoons now where the grim reaper looks like a cape with a darkness inside instead of a face!!! its just freakyy

What is an ETHER? I have never heard of that term other than the name for an old fashioned medication that was used in the early 50s to sedate a patient prior to surgery. The stuff made me vomit.

[FranEMTnurse, CNA, LPN, EMT-I]

When I was a student, I had a patient whose first name was a Biblical name, Orpah. He had end-stage pancreatic cancer. His relatives were very compassionate people who would come sit by his bedside and read him encouraging scriptures. For some reason, I got the feeling he didn't share the depth of their faith. When he passed, I was on duty and the first person to discover him right after report. He had an expression of utter shock. His eyes were wide open and so was his mouth. The sight of him gave me chills and made me wonder many times what he had beheld in his last moments on earth.

I had the same experience with a patient many years ago.

[FranEMTnurse, CNA, LPN, EMT-I]

OK here is my Mum's after death experience. She said the desire was stronger than anything she had ever encountered. My Mum was begging, pleading not to go back, but my grandma just kept smiling, & saying no. Mum also said that she had the most incredible sense of calm and peace, & felt that love was all around her-she said you don't feel anything like that in your earthly life. She wasn't concerned about any problems she had either because they all seemed so insignificant; she said you don't worry about anything in this new place; all your sorrows are forgotten. She couldn't emphasise this feeling of peace enough.

I I felt the same way as your mum did when I had mine. It taught me not to be afraid anymore; not even of death. :)

[ShannonRN2010, BSN, RN]

For everyone's info re demons/spirits/ghosts:

I just read a post where someone said if a person moves, the demon moves with them. Well I have Jehovah's Witnesses in my family. A JW lady told me long ago that a JW girl was constantly being bothered by strange sounds, being touched at night, constant coldness in her house, strange noises such as footsteps and stuff being moved around. She always had her bible with her in the house. Well she had the JW elders come in and have a look & they asked her tons of questions. They finally asked if she had brought anything new into the house, she thought about it and said yes, she'd bought some clothes at an opportunity shop & books I think but nothing else. The JW elders told her to get rid of them (think she burned them). After this, the hauntings ceased completely. Apparently, they believe that anything can have a demon in it, or attached to it, so if you bring the object/s into your house, the demon follows. They also don't believe that the dead can come back in spirit form - it is all demons posing as your loved ones. I used to study with them & they take devils & demons very seriously. They told me Satan is out to get you; he wants as many souls as possible before the world ends, that's why they pose as your loved ones. But the loved ones will stay dead until JC walks the earth again & the earth becomes a paradise kingdom (I don't agree with al they say but it's a nice thought). I do believe in the demons though & still pray occasionally.

I used to talk to this older JW couple, he was an elder too, & he told me he had attended many exorcisms for JWs (don't know the terminology they use) & some of them were just freaky, ie: people's skins turning green & they would have no infections etc; personalities completely changing, shy guys becoming openly sexual; unfortunately was so long ago can't remember them all to tell here but my Mum has some freaky stories I can relate here. She had one after death experience I can post if anyone interested.

Okay..JW's don't have "exorcism"...Been a JW for 32 years (yes...that means my whole life!) and have never ever ever heard of an exorcism for JW's. My FIL is (and my grandfather was before he died) an elder and um...well...still never heard of it!

However, yes, I fully believe that demons attach to things. I knew an older JW sister that used to be a witch. I mean hard core, make tables walk across the room "witch". She knew that demons were attached to things and that is how alot of "magic" works. Her stories were enough to make your blood turn cold!

[Doc Lori, R.N.]

Whaat? Now, that is one for the books. Incredible!!

[vegas2009]

Shannon77:

Witchcraft is another "religion" that apparently, many people believe in. I just think of it as, creative hollywood big bucks main theme. Or, I guess it's safe to say it's sorta like- American voodoo?

Some folks literally take "Harry Potter movies" TOO far.

I wonder if ghosts also have their own "preferred religion" to hang with?

[sunbug]

What is an ETHER? I have never heard of that term other than the name for an old fashioned medication that was used in the early 50s to sedate a patient prior to surgery. The stuff made me vomit.

LOL... I took physics and always heard of ether as in reference to time and spaces and such.

I would like to say (uhmm) Ether is conscious gases-- but in nursing terms that would mean something totally opposite of what I am trying to difine LOL:lol2:

anyway here are a few of the definitions for it:

http://www.thefreedictionary.com/ether

[Penelope_Pitstop, BSN, RN]

Shannon77:

Witchcraft is another "religion" that apparently, many people believe in. I just think of it as, creative hollywood big bucks main theme. Or, I guess it's safe to say it's sorta like- American voodoo?

Some folks literally take "Harry Potter movies" TOO far.

I wonder if ghosts also have their own "preferred religion" to hang with?

Well, there's voodoo, and there's Wicca. Those are two completely different things. People who practice voodoo don't consider themselves witches.

And, vegas, love, Wicca is nothing like Harry Potter.

[FranEMTnurse, CNA, LPN, EMT-I]

Okay..JW's don't have "exorcism"...Been a JW for 32 years (yes...that means my whole life!) and have never ever ever heard of an exorcism for JW's. My FIL is (and my grandfather was before he died) an elder and um...well...still never heard of it!

However, yes, I fully believe that demons attach to things. I knew an older JW sister that used to be a witch. I mean hard core, make tables walk across the room "witch". She knew that demons were attached to things and that is how alot of "magic" works. Her stories were enough to make your blood turn cold!

This is why I won't go to or watch magic shows. And I don't like the Harry Potter stuff either. Who really rides around on brooms? No sane person for sure.

[Redhead28]

I was a float nurse and went to ICU that day. Got a patient that was DNR and not too far from dying. I've never had a patient die on my shift (knock on wood) and didn't want to start that day. I prayed that I would do everything to make patient comfortable and see to all of his needs if God could wait until after my shift to take him. Long story short at change of shift he started dropping his sats, bp and hr and died at 1945. Deal made.

[BackfromRetirement]

Have you noticed the way some patients know when they are going to die? I had one who was alert, oriented and ambulatory call me to the bedside and told me to call his family, that he was dieing. I reassured him that his vital signs were good I looked forward to seeing him tomorrow on my next shift. Sure enough the next day he died before my shift started.

[Tina, RN]

Whew! I finally finished reading all of these posts. It took me about a week, but it was worth it!