When it comes to this list, we have a bunch of people who so desperately needed their very own episode of “House” that they got super creative diagnosing themselves. If you’re ready to bump up your medical expertise to the next level, check these fake illnesses and you’ll soon be able to tell who’s pretending.
Super Easy to Catch
With experience, all doctors learn how to tell those who fake it apart from the rest. In this case, kids who are faking are usually simpler to spot as they laugh at the slightest stirring.
Any word or phrase that's considered taboo or unacceptable to say in public will have them chuckling. In this case, the colloquial term for intergluteal cleft really made this kiddo snigger.
Ouch?
Naturally, lying will considerably evolve and accelerate in this article… but in this case, it still shows how silly some people can be. Over the last 50 years, patients have taken dishonesty to the extreme by thinking they can fool doctors.
Screaming in terrible pain is one thing, but showing no other signs of discomfort or hurt is what some doctors would define as an "outright lie."
Kids These Days...
While some of us may overdramatize our symptoms when we're feeling sick, others take it to a whole other level and pretend they cant' speak, the worst part about this story is he really thought he could outsmart health care professionals by refusing to speak.
We finally got the story behind it, and basically, the kid was mad because his dad took his phone away and this was his way of 'punishing' his dad.
Malingering
Who knows why people go out of their way to lie about being sick with symptoms that just don't make sense, in this case, it sounds like he just wanted the attention, but that's just our guess.
Pretending to be sick while in the army is called malingering, and it's actually considered a crime. Not only are you wasting resources and the time of the medical personnel but you're lying on the job.
The Miracle
Another obvious reason why people would fake having an illness and waste healthcare professionals' time is to get a specific kind of medication that they seem desperate for.
Pretending to have a seizure may seem easy to do, but for it to look real and believable, you need to be pretty good at acting, like insanely good!
Catching a Ride
Honestly, we don't know about you but if we were the paramedics in this situation, we'd be so upset and kick her out of the ambulance.
This just goes to show how much respect healthcare workers deserve, after all their hard work trying to help and heal people and this is what they have to deal with!
Wait... What?!
Faking an ailment to get out of school is something almost everyone has done, whether it's because you hate gym class or want to skip sports practice, or maybe you just have an important test you didn't study for and know you will fail.
We're not sure how this guy felt after he knew he would have to get his kidney removed, was he relieved or petrified?
BBQ Sauce
Hospital food has a reputation for being unpalatable, to say the least, which is why condiments like ketchup and BBQ sauce are so important to those with a fussy appetite. In fact, they are so important, this kiddo was mid-seizure when made sure to tell them not to forget his BBQ sauce!
If anything this should be an indication of his priorities, having a seizure that's going to be convincing is clearly not as important as his BBQ sauce.
Sneaky Dog
Even our furry companions can feign a condition to garner some sympathy from their human friends. To be honest, it's not really their fault, as this doggo realized he could get more attention and treats whenever he limped a little.
Too bad this innocent trick cost his owner a few visits to the vet which also means he spent some serious coinage.
Taking it Too Far
Some people will try anything to get a bit more attention, even cause themselves serious harm. It's all seems like fun and games until he puts himself into shock from critically low blood sugar.
Using their condition to try to get what they want is by no means excusable, in this instance, it's just really tragic that it happens.
Such a Pain
By the same token, when people pretend to be sick or deliberately make up symptoms, it makes it difficult for those who actually need medicine to get. Their conditions are met with wariness and suspicion, even though they have a prescription.
And sometimes, the natural stuff just doesn't quite make the cut when you're writhing in pain or suffering from a terrible cough.
The Hand Trick
If you've ever wondered what it takes to fake a seizure, the skills involved are very similar to doing the worm or just shaking profusely, but this woman didn't take her role very seriously as every time the doctor placed her hand over her head, she moved her hand out of the way.
Apparently, this is another trick that doctors have learned to filter out the fakers from patients with actual seizures.
"He's Fine"
I think many of us would be unsure of how to handle this situation, but good thing they had a hard-headed doctor around that would not tolerate this kind of buffoonery, not while he's on shift!
Every so often, a wet noodle needs a splash of cold water or even an ice-cold water pitcher poured over their head to welcome them back to the real world.
Video Games
Despite, well, overwhelming evidence to the contrary, kids can be fun, and one thing they love to do is play video games. So this makes it easy to spot who's pretending because allegedly, it works every time.
We can't help but wonder why kids would want to fake being deaf? The medical jury is still out on this one but at least we know when they're faking it.
When the Cops Show Up
Evidently, the sight of cops can cause seizures for guilty suspects, while their bouts of shaking are voluntary, so are their abilities to follow orders. Sure, the sight of cops does make some people nervous, but we've never heard of it causing convulsions.
Maybe this is a new kind of seizure, as being caught by cops can suddenly trigger a fit of trembling.
Ouch!
Just the mention of needles near somebody's eye is enough to make our hairs stand on end and break out into a cold sweat, so imagine you had to endure that just to play pretend?
It's an uncanny way for anyone to stop bluff and reconsider their poor choices realize it's just not worth it!
Noisy Neighbor
Real-life is no sci-fi novel, but there are those that have main character syndrome and remain convinced that they shouldn't be held accountable for being an obnoxiously noisy neighbor.
Instead of turning his music down, this guy thought he was the victim! If there was a trophy for being the most insufferable neighbor, this guy should get it.
Just Relax
Being a doctor means you have a trove of stories ridiculous enough for those who don't work as a medical professional, and this one should be filed under 'you can't be serious?'
Not being capable of moving your own arms is one thing, but making your own arms so stiff that nobody else can move them is totally bonkers.
Fool Me Once
Presumption combined with ineptitude makes for a devastating combination, like when this girl claimed she had seizures and thought she could fool others with her terrible impression of one.
Maybe someone should have informed her on how seizures actually look before she embarrasses herself like this again.
Priorities
Clearly, this woman needs to sort out her priorities. You know at one point we've all wondered just what in the world some people were thinking, and sometimes we wonder if they're thinking at all!
Asking the EMS to call Comcast is not an appropriate request, even if you can't move and since the woman obviously could move, there was nothing wrong with her but she still wanted to try her luck. Man, we wish we had that kind of audacity!
Temper Tantrums
When someone says "I feel your pain" they're usually just acting as if they're concerned about someone's problems. In the case of teenage jealousy, it's probably just to garner some sympathy. Like when this girl pretended to have a broken wrist so she could get a cast.
We were all at some point teenagers, so we know what it's like when your emotions feel out of control and you just want to fit in with all the other kids, but still, we never faked a broken wrist just to get noticed.
The Beast
People think of multiple personalities as a disorder, but these women think of it as an art form, and live in a fairy tale while everyone else lives in the real world.
It sounds like these two women couldn't face reality and just decided to cast themselves in their own Disney movie.
Explosive
We know this is crazy, but we imagine somewhere out there, there is someone reading this and scribbling down notes for their new screenplay titled "C4 Yourself." Who knows, it could even turn into a hit TV show starring, Leonardo Di Caprio.
It would be full of suspense and we could imagine it being written as a comedy or a horror, both seems entirely plausible.
Totally Paralyzed
Some patients suffer from severe delusions of paralysis, examples of this include: exaggerating your own debilitation while dismissing any possible interpretations from trained professionals.
While this may sound like a fiercely bleak condition, it can often be cured by the patient themselves, they'll just need a little coaxing but sometimes simply asking them to get on the stretcher will yield excellent results!
Red Flags by the Dozen
There's certainly seems to be no shortage of people wanting to fit in and follow all the fads and trends, and kids are no exception. With the sudden rise of screen-time, it's no wonder that more and more people need glasses, so much so that it's become cool to wear a pair.
But if you don't need them, then don't get them! They soon become annoying and if you want to look be on fleek, why not just get frames with clear lenses in them?
Honestly...
Since the dawn of time, people have been lying to their doctors about their unhealthy diets and lack of activity, but not us, we've always been honest, we swear!
With years of experience when it comes to talking to patients about their health, we know this doctor must have been ticked off as this kid was listing all the fruits and vegetables he was definitely not eating.
Tonsil Surgery
Working in the medical field, you get pretty good at questioning your patients, especially with so many people pretending. After all these cases, we can now understand why doctors can be so skeptical.
Even parents lie because they think they know better than doctors, and worse yet, their lie actually hurt their daughter in ICU.
When Miracles Happen
Working in the medical field means you'll occasionally bear witness to supernatural phenomena, some may seem trivial while others will be miraculous. This is just conjecture, but we think this could be a straight-up miracle.
It's almost as if he woke him up after hearing the EMT crew mention the catheter and having a surplus of big IV needles.
Spanglish
Here's a tip, when pretending you're hearing voices in Spanish, make sure the nurse you're dealing doesn't know any Spanish. Otherwise, you'll just end up derailing any plans to get your grubby little hands on those super specific meds.
As it turns out, 'dónde está el Aeropuerto means 'where's the airport?' And undoubtedly sounds more like a question than awful ramblings about doing bad things.
Rate Your Pain
Think of a pain scale as one being barely any pain at all to ten, being the worst pain imaginable, in other words, if you were feeling pain at a nine, you would probably writhing on the floor about to faint from unbearable agony.
But of course, being a doctor means being subjected to manipulation tactics, though many aren't as as extreme and simply lie about their pain while calmly sitting and talking.
"No, I'm Not!"
In this post about yet another unconvincing seizure, the embarrassing shaking-like frenzy this woman was pretending to have was only made less believable once the woman yelled "No, I'm not!" before she carried on with her sudden seizure.
If you have to scream out mid-seizure, then you're obviously not making a very persuasive point.
Sister Act
Sometimes a lie starts out innocent, but if you let it get out of control, it might snowball into a landslide. In this sister act, we have two actors, one unaware but protective sister and her sickly sibling, that's duping her.
Who knows how these lies begin but as with any white lie, it soon unravels and once that trust is broken it's very difficult to get it back.
Lies and Other Crimes
This tale was told by a medic and his partner, who caught a woman shoplifting, and like many of these posts, the woman begins to violently shake as if having convulsing from a seizure.
But unlike a real seizure, her ability to communicate remains intact and she's well aware of her surroundings. She even knows when her seizure will stop!
Never mind What the Doctor Says!
Some people head straight to WebMD once they're feeling a little under the weather. It's crucial to find out exactly what could be ailing them, but this is never a good idea. Sure enough, that fever is far worse than they thought, and according to WebMD they probably have the bubonic plague.
Others don't even need WebMD to know they are really sick, even without symptoms they think they have the plague but they never do. They're just hypochondriacs who are anxious about their own health.
Are You Sure it Was a Carrot?
Lying is the first step in this slippery slope that leads to something much worse than a stern talking-to from the doctor. Of course, we'd all like to eat chocolate and pastries for every meal but does that mean we should? Obviously not!
If you ever feel the need to lie to your doctor, now's the time you look in the mirror and say, "What were you thinking and WHY?"
Wait, Here’s My YouTube Channel…
People who feel the need to fake their illness are fascinating, and their motives remain a puzzle. But not in this case, this guy was definitely in it for the money. Though he remained intent on convincing the nurse that he was in fact blind.
Of course, he was so excited to show her his burgeoning career as a rapper that he completely forgot he was supposed to be blind!
An Elbow Tic
This episodic tic might not define this patient, but his need to cover up his story even after being confronted with the facts may make it difficult to take any real symptoms seriously. Like when he experienced an actual spasm on his way out of the office, it sure makes it hard to believe him after he was so adamant about his cover-up story.
This really makes us think, why do people lie about these little things when it will only catch up to them later on?
Ouch!
Who in their right mind has time for a bullet wound? Certainly not this guy who clearly did not want to admit he was shot in the leg with an actual bullet! Even after they extracted the bullet, he maintained he fell on it...
If a wound is going to knock you out and cause some serious health complications later on, it better be something more serious than a bullet wound.
Even the Elderly...
Sure, "back surgery" sounds like something elderly patients will wear like a badge of honor, but if you're pretending to be in pain to get some more medication, you might as well kiss any credibility you still had goodbye.
While being old may make you seem like a trusting citizen, even the elderly can participate in a conspiracy if it means they will get more pain medication.
The Whole Pantry
As it turns out, there are people who actually profit from their lies! Who would have thought? If this is the first time you've heard about this, you might want to take everything you read online with a pinch of salt, especially if it involves buying some product that promises to "cure cancer."
Belle Gibson's story is just one example of a convicted scammer that promoted pseudoscience for personal profit while marketing her own blog and subsequent products.
Not a Symptom...
Sometimes there's just no discussion when it comes to patients and their faulty conclusions, even after informing them that their symptoms have nothing to do with their supposed diagnosis.
This lady may have some of the symptoms down, but in another way, she doesn't at all! Medical diagnosis certainly isn't always exact and predictable, right? At least not when you're dealing with some people...
A Headache in Your Leg?
Being a kid means you're bound to mess up sometimes, especially when it comes to getting out of gym class. Maybe you'll fake a tummy bug or tell the nurse at school you have a headache in your leg... It's not believable but hey, you're a kid so you don't know any better.
The real tragedy of this is that some people never grow out of their flawed reasoning abilities and still think their lies are believable.
A Real Goof
In this almost standard case of lying to get glasses, we can see that it can only succeed, at least partly, if kids remain consistent in their exaggerations about how bad they can see.
While this patient admits to goofing up the letters to get those glasses, he didn't even flinch. There was no amount of questioning that could deter him from getting in the way of him and a new pair of spectacles.
A Newsworthy Story
Humans are fascinating creatures, capable of so much if they could just find a way to channel their talents and determination. Like this guy who appeared in the news for pretending to be in a coma, just so he could get out of a little trouble with the law...
Imagine if he put that much effort and willpower into something more beneficial, like, his career for example, or not breaking the law in the first place?
Overdoing it
Think you've had a stressful day at work? Try being a doctor and dealing with sick patients every day. This is just a drop in the ocean of what it's like being a medical professional, whose job it is to stay calm, even when dealing with the most peculiar patients.
Spoiler alert: it gets difficult to believe what every patient claims to have, even in the most fatal of cases.
Feeling Faint
Being a General Practitioner means staying calm in the most bizarre situations while keeping a straight face. This story reminds us of what it's like when looking after fussy kids who have a flair for the dramatic.
In both cases, it's best not to indulge their fantasies and soon enough, they'll realize it doesn't help to pretend.
"Because I'm Dead"
One of the first tell-tale signs that you're not dead is being able to respond, but somehow, this woman didn't get the memo and thought her testimony was enough to convince doctors of her new condition.
While we are here to judge, we're not entirely without empathy. We've all gone through an existential crisis at some point in our lives, maybe all this lady needed was to walk it off to know that she was in fact, not dead.
Check, Please!
Being a nurse is not a job for the faint-hearted, nurses have a lot to deal with from life, death, and everything in between.
Even nurses have to put up with patients and their trumped-up stories, from having to deal with test results that prove nothing is wrong to checking the bin to make sure they didn't just throw their food away, pretending they were sick.
That’s A Wrap
Bad acting can ever so subtly hamper a proper diagnosis, as is the case of this lady who didn’t get what she wanted, so instead of sticking to her storyline, she decided to move onto something else entirely.
Her scheme only proved futile as she was soon found out, which meant she was leaving empty-handed and shame-faced, and with that, her acting career was over before it even began.