Just because i'm bored....hypochondriacal family members rant

Yikes. I feel for you. Not only is that unnecessary, but it also makes it harder for ER staff to treat people who really need the help.

I'm just hoping she doesn't post pictures of her boob infection on FB like she did her rash.

My sister in law went to the ER twice for a broken picky toe. After $2k in ER bills, her husband finally convinced her it wasn't broken, and if it was- there isn't a damn thing anyone can do about it.

Gross, rash photos?! Maybe she should go see a psychologist, not ER.

My grandpa is a bit of a germophobe, but I don't think it's as serious as your MIL.

Sort of related: I just read this amazing book called The Mind Body Code. It might be worth a shot for your MIL. It's about the psychological connection between mind and body within a cultural context. Either way I found it to be a really fascinating book.

But how/why? ER visits can be really expensive. What a waste of resources. The last time I went to urgent care they ask why didn't I go to the ER I told them the price.... its was painful to wait but they were about to resolve everything that day at the urgent care and I didn't have to pay anything

Exactly, Faran. And why would you want to wait in an ER for hours when you could go to your regular doctor or even a concentra or patient first?

Pretty much sums up my family...

@Snarky That's easy. What sounds worse on Facebook: OMG I just went to the ER.... or OMG I just went to a regular doctor... The ER posts get the sympathy.

My asthma's very bad, and I wind up having to go to the ER once or twice a year for severe attacks. I kind of miss the ER near where I used to live. They had a walk-in clinic in their ER specifically for people who went to the ER when they didn't need to and needed to just see a GP instead. Saved everybody a lot of hassle.

I don't know why people insist on going to the ER for EVERYTHING. first, it's expensive even if you have insurance, and second, this is the exact reason why health care is now mandated.

ETA: mandated in the US i mean.

Does you MIL not have a primary care physician? I could understand going to her doctor's office for illnesses, but gosh an ER is just so expensive! I don't happen to live with hypochondriacs personally, so I don't have advice for you there....but you might want to suggest that she find a primary care physician that she could go to rather than the ER.

My husband's sister-in-law uses the ER as her doctor and usually for attention.

We don't speak to her anymore lol.

My MIL isn't a hypochondriac but she is an ill woman who does not take care of herself. She had pnemonia the week of the wedding and then last friday she landed in the ER. She is a diabetic, she has a-fib (my mom has it also), is on blood thinners, overweight and does not do what she is suppose to. My H and BIL#2 are pretty just fed up with her behavior. BiL #1 isn't around as much for this and BIL#3, who lives with her, has his own stuff.

ER is expensive, I do not get why she just doesn't go to the doctor?

Like Faran said, total waste of resources. She needs a higher ER deductible. All of that could be taken care of by a PCP, or urgent care. I just moved to the suburbs and there's as many urgent care facilities as there are dunkin donuts.