My Worst ER Experience at Northside Forsyth Hospital
Living with chronic illness means I’ve spent more hours than I can count in hospitals and doctors’ offices. Some of those experiences have been full of kindness and compassionate nurses who go above and beyond, doctors who truly listen, and staff who make the unbearable a little lighter.
But not every story ends that way. This one didn’t.
After more than a week of being unable to eat, liquids not staying down, and pain so severe that my entire body was stuck in fight-or-flight, I followed the advice of my care team. My doctor, the nurse line, and even my heart monitor team all told me: ” Go to the ER.
So my husband drove me to Northside Forsyth Hospital. A place I’ve often trusted, a place I’ve written about before in my chronic illness journey. A place where the nurses have always been incredible.
This time, though, one doctor changed everything.
The Doctor Who Laughed at My Pain
The moment he entered the room, his presence was heavy, not with care, but with contempt.
He didn’t run the tests you’d expect for someone fainting, dehydrated, and in severe pain. When I passed out during a CT scan, I overheard him say, “She’s just being whiny,” before walking away.
He yelled at nurses, snapped at patients, and muttered under his breath. His anger filled the hallways. His disdain was unmistakable.
And when he finally turned to me?
He said flatly: “There’s nothing wrong with you.”
I asked through tears, “Then why am I in so much pain? Why can’t I keep anything down?”
He scoffed.
“Look, I don’t know. But you need to go home.”
The Conversation That Broke Me
I begged, “Can you at least do something for the pain and nausea?”
His answer dripped with sarcasm:
“Like what? I don’t see a reason to give you narcotics.”
I whispered, “IV Tylenol?”
He laughed in my face.
“Yeah, right, like that’s what you really want.”
He finally relented to IV Zofran but nothing else. His solution?
“Go home and take Motrin.”
I reminded him, “I’m allergic to Motrin.”
His response? “Yeah right.”
When I asked what to do about my low potassium, he smirked:
“Eat a banana.”
I am deathly allergic to bananas. By then, I didn’t even bother explaining. I had no fight left.
The Aftermath
I went home still sick, still in pain, still fainting. The next morning I woke up with bruises across my chest, arms, shoulders, and back; finger marks, fist marks. My body looked like it had been in a car crash. My heart monitor showed dangerous spikes. I vomited, fainted, but told my husband, “I’d rather die than go back there.” And I meant it.
Instead, I paid $517.55 out of pocket for a mobile IV nurse. Within hours, I had fluids, magnesium, and Zofran, basic care that should have been available in the ER. My body calmed. And a few hours later, I passed two kidney stones at home. Stones that the doctor insisted did not exist.
named them Jim and Dwight. My son, equal parts brilliant and strange, wants to take them to school for a microscope project. For now, I’m keeping them, perhaps as evidence. Perhaps as ammunition. Dare I say… Exhibit A.
The Bigger Questions
This isn’t just about one cruel doctor. It’s about a system that allows cruelty to thrive.
I’ve read his reviews since. They tell the same story: patients dismissed, humiliated, belittled. And still, he continues practicing, shouting at nurses, mocking patients, turning compassion into contempt.
So I’m left with two painful questions:
- What recourse do patients have when doctors abuse their power? Bad reviews don’t stop them. Complaints seem to vanish. Hospitals protect their own. Where does accountability live?
- What happens to patients without resources? I was lucky, I could pay for a mobile nurse, for fluids, and medications out of pocket. But what about those who can’t? What about the patient who has no choice but to return to the same ER and face the same humiliation?
Why I’m Sharing This
I don’t know the answers yet. But I know this: cruelty should never be part of medicine. And yet, that night, cruelty was the only thing I was given.
Patients deserve to be seen. To be heard. To be treated as human.
For now, I’m still recovering, still processing. But I refuse to stay silent. Because silence protects the ones who harm, not the ones who suffer.
So I leave you with Jim and Dwight’s kidney stones that nearly broke me, and the reminder that compassion, not cruelty, should live at the heart of healthcare.
If you’ve ever been dismissed, laughed at, or humiliated by a doctor, I see you. You’re not alone. And your story deserves to be told. Come find me on TikTok, Instagram, Pinterest, Reddit, or in our snarky and dark invite-only Zebra Facebook group. I want to hear from you… be my Exhibit B.
What a touching story, seeing the failures of modern medicine is upsetting. i hope the best recovery to you, and that you can find yourself a doctor who cares and will listen. Who cares about your past, you need help now and doctors should recognize that. I am sorry for what happened to you, sending best wishes.
Thank you so much for your feedback and for stopping by, yes, this doctor has a clear bias and medicine must address this issue.
It’s sad to know that we are not treated like human beings but as a number. The level of care to all patients and their health should be your priority that is what health providers are supposed to do.
you’re right and that is why no one likes or trust the healthcare industry anymore.
As health care un the united states sky rockets to seemingly match the pace of growing pay for CEO’s we must remember that the main priority is to take care of the patients. That the person in front of those providing Healthcare are someone’s parents, kids, brothers and sisters.
you’re right, corporate greed as turn us into numbers rather than people.
Omg I’m so sorry that happened
thank you hon
I am sorry to hear about your experience. It’s sad to read about doctors that lack basic empathy. Thanks for sharing resources that can be used when the health care system fails us. Take care.
thank you for your support!
Catt! those are huge! the fact you did no urinate means things could have ended really badly! you must report him, I know its scary to speak up but this is NOT okay!
oh damn… you know its serious when the nurse tells you to speak up! girl, I think he is the kind of doc who would let me die for saying something.. ya know?
babes, that’s the whole plot… if a doctor is such an ass that you feel he would let you DIE for speaking out then its your duty to say something! you have a platform! speak up! also file a complaint with the Joins Comissions for the hippa violation
Was it the tall doctor? if so that Jackass sent me home saying I was fine, he YELLED at me! YELLED told me that I needed rehab… what I have is cancer and I had a obstruction! I could have died! girl PM me on TT I want to know if its the same dude cause I am getting ready to file a lawsuit
dude… wtf… is this the dude you were talking about in our live??!!! holy shit…. does his name have a II on it? also how you doing after surgery? you good? are you out?
Lawyer here but this is not legal advice. Document everything. Check in with a medical malpractice lawyer. Request not to see that provider. And in the future, ask for a patient advocate and a shaperone when you must interact with him. But yes, medical malpractice lawyer stat. And in the future, print your MyChart info in case they delete it again.