17 Memes That Nail What It's Like to Receive Unsolicited Medical Advice
When you live with chronic illness, hearing advice or recommendations from others can often be part of the territory. Sometimes it’s friends or family members who mean well and genuinely want to do whatever they can to help, but other times it may just be someone trying to sell you something. Either way, it can be frustrating to hear advice about treatments or cures from people who aren’t your doctor. If you have a chronic illness, you’ve likely pursued countless treatment options in search of relief, working with your team of doctors and specialists to find whatever medications and treatment protocols are best for you and your health. Plus, the thing with chronic illnesses is that they’re, well, chronic – which unfortunately means no cure.
Receiving unsolicited medical advice can be infuriating – but sometimes, you just have to laugh at how silly some of these suggestions can be. If turning to humor helps you cope with the frustrations of life with chronic illness, the following memes are for you.
1.
!["have you tried...?" "learn to pronounce my illness, then we can talk."](https://themighty.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/Screen-Shot-2018-05-21-at-8.57.39-AM.png)
2.
![nice hypothesis you have there. would be a shame if someone were to test it](https://themighty.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/Screen-Shot-2018-05-22-at-9.00.41-AM.png)
3.
![when the person judging you acts like they know more about your illness than you do. "you know nothing jon snow"](https://themighty.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/Screen-Shot-2018-05-21-at-1.28.53-PM.png)
4.
![skeleton sitting on a bench with caption: me, waiting for positive thoughts to cure me](https://themighty.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/Screen-Shot-2018-05-21-at-9.01.53-AM.png)
5.
![listening to someone talk about my illness when they know very little about it](https://themighty.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/Screen-Shot-2018-05-22-at-9.10.22-AM.png)
6.
![please tell me more about how eating healthier and thinking more positive will absolutely prevent my flares](https://themighty.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/Screen-Shot-2018-05-21-at-9.26.22-AM.png)
7.
![when someone unqualified tries to give me health advice](https://themighty.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/Screen-Shot-2018-05-21-at-10.37.22-AM.png)
8.
![oh my cousin's friend's sister's girlfriend used to have that. she had magic healing moon fossils implanted under her skin and now she's fine, you should ask your doctor about it](https://themighty.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/Screen-Shot-2018-05-21-at-9.29.27-AM.png)
9.
![oh, so you've never met someone with my same illness, never heard of it, can't even spell it, but still want to tell me how I should live my life? please, write down your opinion,and put it in this special container.](https://themighty.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/tumblr_mt6vf74vtR1s6a5kwo1_r1_1280.jpg)
10.
!["have you tried..." scooby doo waving his finger "no"](https://themighty.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/Screen-Shot-2018-05-21-at-9.38.40-AM.png)
11.
!["but you don't look sick..." "funny, you don't look like a doctor."](https://themighty.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/Screen-Shot-2018-05-22-at-12.11.34-PM.png)
12.
![when someone gives me health advice that I didn't ask for... Meg from Hercules saying, "I'm a damsel. I'm in distress. I can handle this. Have a nice day."](https://themighty.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/Screen-Shot-2018-05-21-at-10.40.25-AM.png)
13.
![I'll do my best to not judge you after the ignorant comment you just made about a health condition you know nothing about](https://themighty.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/Screen-Shot-2018-05-21-at-9.41.02-AM.png)
14.
![when someone tells you how to "cure" your chronic illness](https://themighty.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/Screen-Shot-2018-05-21-at-11.46.54-AM.png)
15.
16.
![when someone tries to tell you how to cure yourself using yoga, dieting, etc.... "no, don't"](https://themighty.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/Screen-Shot-2018-05-22-at-12.13.10-PM.png)
17.
![unsound medical advice... unsound medical advice everywhere...](https://themighty.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/56468405.jpg)