Is intermittent fasting right for you?

That’s A Lotta Honkin’ Anger
Bad Behavior, Impossible Demands, Pharmacy, USA | Right | January 4, 2022
I’m a new employee at the drive-thru window of my pharmacy. A rather notorious customer drives up. Legends in the pharmacy say that every time she’s in, she has a problem with something that results in a full-blown tantrum. She pulls up to the window.

Customer: “My doctor was supposed to have faxed over my scripts.”

After checking our fax machine, it’s clear that there’s nothing there.

Me: “Ma’am, do you know the name of the medication?”

She names one that is a controlled substance.

Me: “I apologize, ma’am, but the doctor cannot fax that script. It is required by law that they write it on a physical slip and have you bring it in.”

Customer: “No, my doctor faxed it last month.”

Me: “I’m sorry for any confusion about your medications, but there is no way a doctor can fax a prescription of that specific medicine without getting in serious trouble.”

I check the system and can see where she brought in the physical script last month and had it filled, but there are none current. Now there’s a line of cars behind hers.

Me: “Ma’am, could you please park and come in? I can show you a copy of what your script would look like so that if you misplaced it, you know what to look for.”

She starts laying on the horn in her anger, causing a five-second honk between every sentence.

Customer: “NO!” *Honk!* “MY DOCTOR FAXED IT IN!” *Honk!* “FILL IT AND GIVE IT TO ME NOW!” *Honk!* “CHECK THE FAX MACHINE AGAIN!” *Honk!*

Me: “It’s not there, ma’am. I already checked when you first asked, and now that I know the name of the medication, I also know for a fact that your doctor wouldn’t have faxed it.”

Now she’s honking and screaming. I learn a few new swear words, and I also learn that she has no understanding whatsoever about how anatomy works. She eventually calms herself a little as something occurs to her.

Customer: “Maybe it fell on the floor. Check the floor!”

Me: “Ma’am, it did not fall on the floor because it was not faxed over. It is illegal to fax a script for this medication.”

Now cars are hanging out into a busy street, waiting in line.

Customer: “CHECK. THE. FLOOR. NOW!”

I sigh, walk away from the window, lean against the nearest wall with my arms crossed for ten seconds, and then come back.

Me: “It’s not there. Like I told you. You need to bring the script in your hands. Please go home and call your doctor, because clearly, you left his office without your script. There’s nothing further I can do about it.”

Customer: “You call my doctor!”

Me: “I am not going to call your doctor because one of you forgot to get a controlled substance prescription. That’s between you and their office. Please go home and call your doctor.”

She screeches and starts banging on her steering wheel, randomly slapping the horn. The pharmacist gestures to me, indicating that it’s time to stop engaging with her.

Me: “Have a great night!”

When I walk away, indicating that she has reached the end of our interaction, she lays on the horn. She simply plants her hand on the horn and refuses to let up.

Pharmacist: “Huh. She’s unusually mellow tonight. Perhaps her medications are working.”

Me: *Pauses* “I don’t want to work on a bad night.”

In the end, the police had to be called to make her move her vehicle.

Giving Their Anger A Boost
Current Events, Impossible Demands, Jerk, Missouri, Pharmacy, USA | Right | January 3, 2022
It’s booster time at the pharmacy and the lobby is completely full of people: people standing in line to be helped and people sitting in chairs waiting for shots. We have TWO registers and a couple of computers for checking people in. People are picking up prescriptions, dropping off prescriptions, getting checked in for shots, getting rung out for shots, and also receiving their required paperwork to do shots. I am barely staying on top of helping everybody while I check people in and ring people out. We’re fully staffed but in the middle of a Monday morning rush.

Without warning, a customer comes up to the counter.

Customer: “My appointment was at 11:30.”

It’s now 12:15 pm.

Me: “Did you check in?”

Customer: “I shouldn’t have to check in; I did all that online.”

I’m thinking, “Okay, he just made his appointment online, showed up at 11:30, and sat his butt down expecting someone would eventually give him a shot.”

Customer: “You’re not doing your job. I want to speak to the pharmacy manager!”

Me: “The pharmacy manager is not here, but I can get the store manager.”

Customer: *Pointing* “Who’s that guy over there?”

Me: “He’s our staff pharmacist.”

He gets angry and accuses me again of not doing my job, saying that he shouldn’t have to check in, so I go page the store manager.

Customer: “I have to leave soon. Just give me my shot.”

In the time this has taken, my coworkers and I have managed to check him in.

Me: “You have to fill out this paperwork and I have to ring you out.”

Customer: “I’ll fill out the paper; just give me my shot.”

I hand him the paper and he starts to walk away. At this point, the store manager shows up.

Store Manager: “What’s going on?”

Me: “This guy has a problem with us.”

The store manager went to talk to him, so I went in the back part of the pharmacy and complained to my coworkers about the insanity of it all.

When you go to a doctor’s office, you check in at the counter and you sit down and patiently wait for a nurse to call you back. Not once have I ever seen somebody throwing a self-entitled tantrum at the doctor’s office. Yet people seem to find it okay to abuse hard-working pharmacy employees who are trying their best to help everyone.

Do They Prescribe Caffeine Pills Here?
Employees, Ignoring & Inattentive, Pharmacy, UK | Working | December 31, 2021
I need to regularly obtain a specific over-the-counter medication to treat a mild chronic condition. I have been using this now for getting on for a decade.

This is how it goes whenever I go to the only local pharmacy that stocks it, which is about once every two months. The encounter is with exactly the same member of staff every time.

Me: “Hi, I’d like two packages of [medication], please.”

Employee: *Looking at me blankly* “What’s that?”

Having anticipated this, I show her an empty package of the last consignment.

Me: “It’s this.”

She looks at it with a puzzled expression on her face.

Employee: “I don’t know whether we stock this.”

Me: “You had it last time I came in, a couple of months ago.”

Employee: “I wouldn’t know. I don’t think we have it.”

Me: “Can you ask one of the dispensing pharmacists?”

Employee: “Well, okay, but …”

And she drifts off out back, where I see her through a window showing the package to the pharmacist on duty, who instantly goes to where it’s stocked and shows her where it is, and hence, she picks up a fresh package of [medication].

Employee: “Is this what you wanted?”

Me: “Yes, please. Can I have two, please? It saves me a journey if I can have two of them.”

Employee: “I don’t know whether we have two.”

Me: “Can you just check? It saves me a journey.”

She wanders out back again, where she talks to the pharmacist on duty again, who goes to exactly the same place as last time, showing her where it is again.

Me: “Can I have the old one back?”

Employee: “What old one?”

Me: “The one I gave you to show you what it was.”

She floats once more out the back, where she talks once more to the pharmacist, who picks up the old package from the counter where the subject of our anecdote put it down, and puts it into her hand.

Me: *Eventually* “Thank you.”

I paid and left.

This Lady Is Soul-Destroying
Instant Karma, Jerk, Pharmacy, USA | Right | December 16, 2021
A woman asks to cut me in the prescription pickup line because she is very sick. I am also very sick and can barely stand, but she is much older, and the line is at least twelve people deep. I am going to agree. But then…

Customer: *Screaming* “Oh, just forget it! I can already tell you’re not gonna let me. You’re heartless!”

Me: “Well, you didn’t give me a chance to respond.”

Customer: *Yelling* “That’s because you have no soul!”

Me: “You’re right. Enjoy the back of the line.”

She asks a few people behind me and they all say, “No.” I hear one man say:

Other Customer: “I don’t have a soul, either. Sorry.”

Throwing A Fit Doesn’t Mean You Have To Do That!
Impossible Demands, Pharmacy, Reddit, Wild & Unruly | Right | CREDIT: Miss_Drew | December 11, 2021
My first job as a teenager was at a large chain pharmacy that also sold food and home goods. The store was near several assisted living homes, so we had mostly elderly customers.

One day, I was asked to work the register in the pharmacy with the pharmacy tech to assist with long lines. I had caught up with customers and was just standing around while the tech rang up an older lady. She had picked up a few groceries from the store area and wanted to check out at the pharmacy register with her prescription pickup. No problem. The tech pulled up her file on the computer.

Tech: “I’m afraid this prescription isn’t covered by your insurance, ma’am.”

She became absolutely livid!

Customer: “How dare you withhold my medicine?! Give me the price with insurance coverage!”

Tech: “Ma’am, we simply can’t do that. We have no control over what the insurance decides to cover.”

This elderly woman then proceeded to pick up her carton of eggs and throw them at the pharmacy tech! He dodged the eggs and they exploded all over the floor behind the desk. She then pulled her purse up over her shoulder, turned around, and stomped out of the store.

The whole time, I just stood there in shock, watching it all go down. I had never seen someone act that way! The tech calmly brushed it off as if it was a normal occurrence. I grabbed the mop bucket and we cleaned up the mess together.

Customers That Will Give You Blisters
Bad Behavior, Impossible Demands, Pharmacy, USA | Right | November 30, 2021
I’m a doctor, working at a public night shift service. It’s kind of like an emergency room but for non-emergencies, to keep the hospitals clear of white codes. We treat anything from a fever to a sore throat to prescriptions for urgent treatments.

A woman walks in at 3:00 am asking for a prescription for hypertension drugs, which isn’t unusual, as people sometimes don’t notice they’re running low.

The law (not a rule, not my decision — the law) states that our service can only write prescriptions for potentially life-threatening conditions’ drugs for a maximum of seventy-two hours’ coverage, so if you take one pill a day, I can only prescribe you a single blister.

While I’m writing the prescription, she casually mentions:

Customer: “I’m an insomniac. I was cleaning the medicine cabinet and I realized I’m down to my last full blister.”

My pen stops and I ask her to repeat.

Me: “Full blister?”

Customer: “Yeah.”

I void the prescription and explain to her the law. She gets mad, starts yelling, and threatens to call the cops.

Me: “Go ahead.”

The cops come, and she triumphantly announces:

Customer: “He is refusing to treat me!”

I explained the situation, and they asked her if it was true that she had a full blister. She, of course, confirmed it. The cops looked at her — still with her look of triumph, waiting for them to arrest me — then at me, and then ask her politely to leave, as I was in the right. She was livid.

The day after, my boss called me and cracked up because she went back during the day to talk to “the manager”, and my boss told her the exact same thing. Never saw her again.

We Suppose This Might Be Problematic
Employees, Jerk, Lazy/Unhelpful, Pharmacy, USA | Healthy | November 19, 2021
A particular medication that I’ve needed for a while comes in several forms: injections, suppositories, and oral pills. I’ve been on all three varieties over the past few years. This scene happens as my doctor has just switched me from injections to pills and I go to fill the new prescription at the pharmacy for the first time.

The pharmacist hands me a bottle of what looks like large pills, but I review the instructions on the label before I leave and notice that something seems off, so I go back up to the counter to ask the pharmacist a question.

Me: “Excuse me, but the instructions on this medication say to ‘insert vaginally,’ and I’m pretty sure I’m supposed to be on the oral form of this medication right now. The bottle you gave me looks like pills, not suppositories, so I’m guessing it’s just mislabeled, but I want to double-check that I got the right thing before I leave.”

The pharmacist answers in a condescending voice.

Pharmacist: “No, this medication is always a suppository. Don’t swallow it; insert it vaginally.”

Me: “But I was just at my doctor’s office yesterday and he told me I’d be getting an oral version of the med now. Right now I’m taking a version of this medication that’s an intramuscular injection, so I know it comes in multiple forms. Also, I’ve been on the suppositories in the past and they didn’t look anything like this. But this is my first time taking the oral version, so I’m not positive what it’s supposed to look like. Are you sure these aren’t pills that I’m supposed to swallow orally?”

Pharmacist: “No, just follow the instructions on the label and call your doctor if you have any questions.”

Me: “I’m sorry, but this just doesn’t make sense to me, and these really look like pills, not suppositories. Can you please just double-check the prescription before I leave?”

The pharmacist rolls his eyes and snatches the meds out of my hand. He comes back a few minutes later.

Pharmacist: “Your doctor wrote the wrong thing down, but I called and checked and you’re supposed to be on pills, not the suppositories. Here’s the correct medication for you.”

Then, he handed me back the exact same bottle of pills with a different label with instructions to “swallow by mouth”. He never apologized or acknowledged his error in any way.

I simply thanked him and left, but I’m sure glad I pay attention and aren’t afraid to advocate for myself. Even if my doctor did write the wrong instructions on some form, isn’t it supposed to be the pharmacist’s job to catch errors like that? And how could he not tell the difference between pills and suppositories? They look nothing alike!

I still see that pharmacist every time I go to that store. I just hope he hasn’t hurt anyone else by messing up their meds too badly!

Not The Boost You Were Expecting Today
Employees, Health & Body, Ignoring & Inattentive, Minneapolis, Minnesota, Pharmacy, USA | Working | October 31, 2021
It’s the start of flu season. Several grocery store chains are offering a $5 payment for getting flu vaccinated. I’m already vaccinated against the health crisis disease, but I figure I should get flu vaccinated, too; I work closely with people.

I decide to go to one of the pharmacies that’s offering a $5 gift card. The main desk has big placards that say, “Pickup,” “Dropoff,” and, “Information”. I wait in line for information.

When I reach the technician behind the desk:

Me: “I would like the flu vaccine.”

Employee #1 : “All vaccine inquiries go to the window on the right.”

Sure enough, to the right, hidden behind some shelves that appear to be laden homeopathic medicines and such, is a little tiny archway window that looks like it’s somehow older than the whole rest of the building. For some reason, a small section of wall around that window, and only around that window, is made of red bricks. There’s a sign over the window that says, “Vaccine inquiries,” and there are information placards for both the [health crisis] vaccine and the flu vaccine.

There are three people in line in front of me. I wait my turn and then approach the desk.

Me: “Hello. I would like the flu vaccine, please.”

Employee #2 : “Okay. Can I have your ID, a credit card, and your insurance card?”

I hand him my ID and insurance card as he presses a pile of documents on a clipboard toward me.

Employee #2 : “Sign this.”

He turns his back on me to start entering information from my cards into the computer. I give the paperwork a quick read. It says, “[health crisis] vaccine.” Like a lot. In several places. It does not say, “flu vaccine,” in even one place.

Me: “Uh, sir?”

He seems busy. I wait. Finally, he turns to me

Employee #2 : “Have you got it filled out yet?”

Me: “No, sir. It’s wrong. It says, ‘[health crisis] vaccine’ and I wanted the flu vaccine.”

Employee #2 : “It’s fine. Just fill it out and sign it.”

Me: “Okay. And you’re sure this is going to be the flu vaccine?”

Employee #2 : “Yes.”

Me: “Okay.”

So, I fill it out and sign it. I also scratch out “[Health Crisis]” and write “Flu” and then initial the change. This turns out to be important later.

He takes the paperwork from me and directs me towards a third area, hidden from the first two. This area has brown painted cinder-block walls and several doors in a small cupola waiting area. The sign over it simply says, “Treatment.”

Eventually, someone comes out of one of the doors. This man is different from the lab technician I had been speaking to earlier. He’s older for one, with a strong accent that makes it clear English is not his first language.

Employee #3 : “You are here for the vaccine, yes?”

Me: “Yes, sir.”

Employee #3 : “[My Name], yes?”

Me: “Yes, sir.”

Employee #3 : “What is your birthday, yes?”

Me: “[Birthday], sir.”

Employee #3 : “Very good. Come with me. We will get you vaccinated.”

I follow him through another door to a small room, almost the size of a broom closet, but much more brightly lit.

Employee #3 : “You do not have any allergies to any medicines, no?”

Me: “No, sir, no allergies.”

Employee #3 : “You have a wife?”

Me: “Yes, I do.”

Employee #3 : “Good. She will be very happy that you are being safe. Please lift your sleeve. This will pinch a little. It will not hurt, no.”

He pokes my shoulder with the needle and injects it.

Employee #3 : “Very good. Go to the ‘Vaccine Inquiries’ desk to schedule your second shot, yes.”

Me: “Second shot? I thought that the flu vaccine only needed one shot. Also, uh… How do I get my five dollars?”

Employee #3 : “Flu vaccine? No, this is [health crisis] vaccine.”

Me: “I already got the [health crisis] vaccine. My insurance is going to deny a third shot.”

Employee #3 : “Please take this matter to the ‘Information’ desk. I cannot help you with this.”

Me: “Okay.”

I go back to the Information desk. There’s a different person this time, a woman. I can’t see the man I spoke to earlier.

Me: “Hey, you gave me the [health crisis] shot, and I wanted the flu shot.”

She glances at my paperwork.

Employee #4 : “It says, ‘[health crisis].’ Also, there were some issues with your payment.”

Me: “Please look closer at the paperwork, ma’am.”

She looks closer and sees that I crossed out “[health crisis]” and wrote “flu.”

Employee #4 : “I can’t accept this paperwork; it’s been altered. Do you have any paperwork that hasn’t been altered?”

Me: “I feel like maybe I should be the one asking you that, ma’am. Can I get whatever charges you’ve made on my card canceled and get the flu vaccine I asked for, please?”

Employee #4 : *Pauses* “One moment, sir, while I go get a manager.”

Me: “Thank you.”

The manager comes out and looks at the paperwork. He talks with the lady and with the employee who gave me the shot. Then, he looks at the paperwork again and starts typing on the computer. He doesn’t ask me any questions. Finally, he walks up to the front desk.

Manager: “Sir, I’ve refunded the charges against your card because it was our error. Do you still want the flu shot with us?”

Me: “No offense, sir, but I think I will be going elsewhere. Thank you very much for your assistance. I’m very glad it’s fixed. But I just want to go home now. I think I will try again elsewhere tomorrow.”

I went home and checked my bank statement. Sure enough, they had tried to charge me and then canceled the transaction. The next day, I went to a different grocery store pharmacy that was offering $5 for the flu vaccine. This time, it went very smoothly.

Caught In A Really Annoying Drug Ring
Ignoring & Inattentive, Medication, Pharmacy, USA | Healthy | October 27, 2021
My pharmacy sends out text messages as a reminder to order refills. You can answer “YES” to have the refill placed or “NO” to opt out. I don’t like the side effects of a certain medication, so my doctor switches me to a new medication.

Text Message: “REMINDER: Your medication [first three letters] is due for a refill. Reply YES to order a refill or NO to skip.”

Me: “No.”

Text Message: “You have opted out of refilling your medication [first three letters]. If this is an error, please contact [Pharmacy] at [phone number].”

Shortly after, my phone rings with the pharmacy number.

Me: “Hello?”

Pharmacy Tech #1 : “Hi there, this is [Pharmacy Tech #1 ] at [Pharmacy]. I’m calling in regards to your prescription for [medication #1 ].”

Me: “Yeah, I just cancelled it. The doctor—”

Pharmacy Tech #1 : “Oh, you really shouldn’t. We can go ahead and schedule a refill for you over the phone.”

Me: “No, the doctor said—”

Pharmacy Tech #1 : “You need to take your medication as prescribed by your doctor.”

Me: *With a point-blank tone* “And he prescribed switching to [medication #2 ].”

Pharmacy Tech #1 : “Oh.”

I hear the mouse clicking.

Pharmacy Tech #1 : “Thank you for your time.”

Ten minutes later, I receive another text.

Text Message: “REMINDER: Your medication [first three letters] is due for a refill. Reply YES to order a refill or NO to skip.”

This is the first medication again.

Me: “NO.”

Text Message: “You have opted out of refilling your medication [first three letters]. If this is an error, please contact [Pharmacy] at [phone number].”

My phone rings again. It’s the pharmacy … again.

Me: “Hello?”

Pharmacy Tech #2 : “Hi there, this is [Pharmacy Tech #2 ] at [Pharmacy]. I’m calling in regards to your prescription for [medication #1 ].”

Me: “My doctor switched me to [medication #2 ]. I just spoke with [Pharmacy Tech #1 ] and told him all about it.”

Pharmacy Tech #2 : “Um… Our system shows you’re due for a refill.”

Me: “I know, but I’m not.”

Pharmacy Tech #2 : “I don’t… um… you’re due. We need to schedule your refill.”

Me: “What do I have to do to get out of this loop? My doctor switched my medication. I am not filling [medication #1 ].”

Pharmacy Tech #2 : “But… you’re due.”

Me: “No, thank you. Please remove this medication from my file.”

Pharmacy Tech #2 : “Okay.”

Me: “Thank you.”

Ten minutes later, I received a third text for the same medication. I didn’t answer that time and they didn’t call back. When I went to pick up [medication #2 ], both technicians were there but they didn’t say anything.

The Tantrum That Never Came And The Husband Who Stopped It
Awesome, Current Events, Jerk, North Carolina, Patients, Pharmacy, Spouses & Partners, USA | Healthy | October 15, 2021
It was 7:30, and I’d dropped into my local pharmacy in order to grab a prescription on the way home. I went back to the pharmacy counter and saw a woman hovering around the counter, wearing a mask, so I did as I always do and stayed a safe distance back to wait. She turned to me, immediately, and I realized I was in for something interesting, as she immediately asked me if I was there for a vaccine. I simply replied that I was there to pick up a prescription, and I could tell from the way she turned from me that she was trying to find someone to complain to. Her attitude radiated impatience and a little entitlement, so I was ready for fireworks.

After a moment, a man came around the corner and started talking to the woman; it turned out that he was her husband. He had been looking for something on the shelves and couldn’t find it but was going to check again since they were still waiting; she requested he stay at the counter because he was “better at talking” than she was. He told her to just call for him when the pharmacists got to them and headed back off to go find whatever it was he needed.

She then proceeded to start making “ugh” huffing noises, like she was scoffing at the wait already, but she did it so often there was hardly a second between her scoffing noises. It was like a mini-tantrum to herself. I don’t know how long they’d waited before I arrived, but I had only been there for maybe two minutes, and I’ve been to the pharmacy enough to know their wait times at the counter didn’t tend to be long if there wasn’t a line, so there was almost no way she’d been waiting more than a few minutes before I arrived, as the counter and back half were empty except for a car or two outside.

After another second, the head pharmacist/doctor in charge approached the counter to ask what they needed, and she called for her husband in a clipped tone before starting off anyway without waiting for him to get back to her.

Woman: “We’re here for our boosters.”

Doctor: *Not unkindly* “We don’t take walk-ins after 1:00 pm, and we don’t have appointments after 7:00.”

He could tell they didn’t have an appointment without having to ask, considering the hour, and his tone was mostly confused and a little concerned, like maybe they’d managed to book an appointment anyway and he was about to have to deal with a massive system issue. He was clearly anticipating fallout, either way. The woman opened her mouth, and I could hear the complaint starting in her throat through the half-second of tone she got out.

Then, her husband cut her off, emphatically and in a volume and tone that were almost teacher-voice-like.

Husband: “No. He is telling us what he can and cannot do.”

He then turned to the pharmacist and, in a pleasant tone, asked again about walk-in times so he knew when best to come back. The pharmacist walked him through using the app to make an appointment and clarified what vaccine they needed the booster for. The husband seemed almost pointedly pleasant when he talked, like he was making a point to his wife about how you talk to people when you can’t get your way. She didn’t say anything else except to ask what vaccine they had because, apparently, another of the same pharmacy carried the other kind, and when they left, they left quietly and with no further tantrums.

We’re Beginning To See Why These People Are On Medication…
Alabama, Jerk, Pharmacy, USA | Right | October 8, 2021
It is just after a state law changes requiring us to record IDs for any and all purchased controlled prescriptions. To comply, a screen now pops up before we can complete the transaction and we cannot bypass it. We can only go back and take the controlled medicine off. Several customers/patients are unhappy with this new law.

Customer #1 : *In the drive-thru* “I have never had to show my ID before!”

Me: “It’s a new law, ma’am. Sorry for the inconvenience. I just need to see your driver’s license.”

Customer #1 : “I don’t have it! It’s at home! This is stupid! I’ll have to come back!” *Speeds off*

Later, another customer holds their ID at a hard-to-read angle and snatches it back before I have even a hope of a chance of reading the number or expiration date or checking for a hologram.

The customer quickly rattles off the ID number.

Me: “Ma’am, I need to check your ID in full and need to be able to properly read it per the law.”

Customer #2 : “I told you my number!”

This goes back and forth for a bit before the no-nonsense manager/head pharmacist walks up.

Manager: “Ma’am, either let us see your ID properly or leave.”

She huffs and holds her ID at the awkward angle again. My manager snatches her ID, holds it in clear eyesight for me so I can enter the required information, and then gives it back.

Customer #2 : “How dare you?!”

Manager: “It’s state law, Mrs. [Last Name]! Your total is total. Pay and leave.”

The customer finally complies.

Later, another customer:

Customer #3 : “You new here?”

Me: “I’ve been working here about six months, sir. The law went into effect this week. I need to see your ID, please, in order to progress.”

Customer #3 : “The h*** you do, white girl!”

I’m white; he is black.

Customer #3 : “Get [Coworker] over here!”

[Coworker] happens to be black.

Coworker: “It’s the law, [Customer #3 ]. We need your ID.”

Customer #3 : “You’re my sister and I’m your brother!”

Coworker: “I ain’t related to you! ID or get out of line.”

Her Brain Has Been Transferred
Pharmacy, Stupid, Texas, USA | Right | September 10, 2021
I work in a mail-order pharmacy. We ship to several different states, but if we don’t take a certain insurance, then we will transfer the prescription to one of our sister locations. I explain to a patient that her prescription has been transferred to our sister location and that they will process it and contact her once it’s ready.

Patient: “I’ve spoken to your location before and given you the shipping and payment information.”

Me: “Yes, ma’am, we have already transferred that information over to them along with your prescription.”

Patient: “Wouldn’t it be easier for you to just transfer the prescription direction to that pharmacy?”

Me: “…” *Head-desk*

I’m really not sure what she thought I was saying the three times that I said, “We have transferred your prescription.”

Developing Film Is Becoming A Lost Art
Montana, Pharmacy, Photo Lab, USA | Right | September 9, 2021
We have a customer who brings in a twelve-exposure film to our camera man to be processed.

Customer: “How soon will it be back?”

Coworker: “Thursday.”

Customer: “Boy, I’m glad I didn’t bring in a twenty-four- or thirty-six-exposure film, that would take forever to come back!”

Makes sense to me!

On The Threshold Of Stupidity
Current Events, Health & Body, Pharmacy, Stupid, UK | Right | August 30, 2021
In the UK, restrictions have been lifted in most places; however, people are still required to wear a mask in certain places such as pharmacies.

A customer comes up to the counter, prescription in hand, and asks to borrow a mask as she is without one. Of course, no problem. I take her prescription, tell her it will be about five minutes, and then go and grab the box of masks. When I come back with them:

Customer: “Oh, no, thanks, it’s fine. I’m inside now.”

I suppose at least she was polite and took one when I told her they were mandatory. But who knew you could only catch a sickness over the threshold of a business’s premises?

A Prescription Explosion
Bad Behavior, Impossible Demands, Long Island, New York, Pharmacy, USA | Right | August 9, 2021
I work as a pharmacy technician at a well-known pharmacy and convenience store. A man comes up to the counter and asks for a refill on his prescription. The pharmacist informs me the doctor did not call it in yet.

Me: “I’m sorry, sir, the doctor still did not call in your refill.”

Customer: “Can you call him now?”

Me: “Of course!”

I call his doctor, but they have already closed for the day.

Me: “They left for the day. We can give you a few pills to hold you over.”

Customer: “No, I don’t want that! Every time I come here there is a f****** problem!”

Me: “What would you like me to do, sir?”

The customer walks away in a huff. I think this is the end of it until the phone rings thirty minutes later.

Customer #2 : “Yes, my husband was just there and told me the doctor did not refill his prescription and you told him, ‘What would you like me to do?’ What kind of s***ty customer service is that? I work all f****** day. I don’t need this s***.”

Me: “Miss, I don’t know what to tell you. I called the doctor and they had left for the day, so I offered your husband a few pills to hold him over and he refused that, as well.”

Customer #2 : “There had better be a prescription there tomorrow or I will blow up your f****** store.”

Me: “Miss, that probably would not be a good idea considering I have your name and address right in front of me.” *CLICK*

Some people are not too bright.

Sounds Like Your Brain Could Use One Of Those, Too
Employees, Funny, Pharmacy, USA, Wordplay | Working | August 2, 2021
I’m a pharmacist with a major corporate chain. I’m talking with a patient about a medication that she should have refilled but hasn’t yet.

Patient: “Oh, I don’t need that one refilled. My doctor took me off it.”

Me: “Sounds good. I’ll put that in the notes.”

Patient: *Jokingly* “Besides, I just dropped over $300 at your pharmacy a couple of days ago. I don’t think I need to spend any more right now.”

Dear readers, I can only ascribe what happens next to this being the end of a very crazy twelve-hour shift. I want to say, “Let’s give your pocketbook a break.” For some reason, my brain decides to change the word “break” to “rest” halfway through the word. So, what actually comes out of my mouth is:

Me: “Oh, yeah, let’s give your pocketbook a breast.”

Exhaustion is a powerful drug, guys.

That’s Going To Be A Big Dirty NEIGH To That Return
Australia, Hobart, Pharmacy, Refund, Revolting, Tasmania | Right | July 26, 2021
A customer comes in with a small digital thermometer, the kind that generally goes under the armpit or in your mouth. As such, they’re designed to be resistant to fluids, although they’re not entirely waterproof because, hey, they are cheap.

Customer: “I bought this a few days ago and took a couple of readings, and now it’s stopped working. I think maybe it’s the battery. Can I have a refund or an exchange?”

Coworker: “Let’s have a look and see if we can change the battery first.”

My coworker opens the battery case of the thermometer and finds it rather brown inside. As she’s new and unsure of what to do, she asks my opinion.

I take note of the brown and then notice that the outside of the thermometer is damp.

Me: “It looks wet. Could it be water damage?”

My coworker tilts the thermometer to try to see the battery better, and suddenly, about two teaspoons of very brown, very murky water run out of the battery compartment and onto our bench.

Customer: “Oh, no, it’s not water damage. I mean, I did wash it, but it was broken before that. I used it on my horse because he’s sick and I didn’t think you’d want to handle it unless I washed it first.”

Yep. We now had horse poo water on our bench and on my coworker’s hands. From the condition of the battery compartment, I strongly suspect that this may not have been the first time the customer had washed the thermometer.

Despite my misgivings, my manager gave the customer the exchange anyway. My coworker disposed of the used thermometer and scrubbed the bench and her hands very thoroughly.

Ah, the joys of working retail.

Lay Off The Scooby Snacks!
Liars/Scammers, Non-Dialogue, Pharmacy, USA | Working | July 22, 2021
I had a lady pick up [painkiller] for a dog. It was a pretty early refill and I was bored, so I went to our manager, and it turns out the dog had been filling this prescription all over town.

I just thought I’d try and broaden the search, so I just did the owner’s name and date of birth and found multiple other dog names all filling [painkiller]. I called the office and it turns out the vet this dog owner was using had just stepped down to be with her family and was not practicing. The owner used to work there but had been fired for calling in fake scripts. The office said they would take care of the issue.

The part that still makes me laugh about this whole sad situation was that the first dog’s name was Scrappy, and one of my techs chimed in, “I would have gotten away with it if it wasn’t for you meddling kids!”

Sometimes You Have To Go Off-Script
Australia, Current Events, Health & Body, Patients, Pharmacy, Retail | Healthy | July 20, 2021
I work in a pharmacy, so you can imagine that we get more than our fair share of sick, coughing people. Unfortunately, that also means that we get more than our fair share of people who insist they cannot wear a mask. While corporate has refused to allow us to use curbside service, my management HAS been very good at backing us up and insisting we can refuse service to people that don’t comply.

Customer: “Hi, I just need this script filled.”

Me: “Sorry, ma’am, can you please put on your mask?”

Customer: “No, I have a medical exemption.”

Me: “I’m afraid that I am going to have to insist.”

Customer: “I cannot wear a mask.”

Me: “Ma’am, we will refuse service to anyone who isn’t wearing a mask. Many of our customers are high-risk.”

At this, she lifts her script to press it flat against the plastic of the barrier between us.

Customer: “The sooner you give me these, the sooner I can leave and start taking them so that I can wear a mask. But I need this script first.”

I am about to keep arguing, but then I realise what the medication on the script is. It’s a strong prescription painkiller, used for nerve disease and shingles and its complications.

I then look at the woman’s face again, and I realise the redness on her cheeks and jaw are not embarrassment or just a ruddy complexion but inflammation.

Me: “Sorry, ma’am. I’ll… get right on that.”

Could she have been clearer? Given the particular painkiller, probably not

They Have A Membership Card To The Entitlement Club
At The Checkout, Bad Behavior, Current Events, Pharmacy, Texas, USA | Right | July 17, 2021
It is late, my husband and I are picking up some prescriptions at the only twenty-four-hour pharmacy in our area, and we decide to get some much-needed OTC meds for the household. As it’s so late, there is only one cashier. We stand the appropriate six feet back, both in masks per state ordinance. There is a gentleman ahead of us at the register who is taking an exceptionally long time because his total is “unsatisfactory ”. I should note he is NOT wearing a mask and is getting uncomfortably close to the cashier.

Customer: “Okay, go through the items again and tell me every price.”

Cashier: “All right.”

The cashier begins reading the list, for what is probably about the third time.

Customer: “No! No! Your signs say those things are cheaper!”

Cashier: “Like I told you before, sir, those prices are with our store card, which I can sign you up for. It’s free.”

Customer: “Absolutely not! Go through it again and give me the correct price!”

At this point, he is leaning over the register and is basically inches from her face. Since the cigarette shelves are right behind her, she cannot step that far back. Finally, I walk forward with my store card.

Me: “Here, scan mine. I have kids at home and want to get out of here.”

Cashier: *Obviously relieved* “Thank you.”

Customer: “Hold on, I need to grab a few more things, then!”

We all groan, but whatever will hurry him up. He comes back, adds about ten more things to be scanned, and then steps back. The cashier stares at him, as do my husband and I. After a few minutes, he snaps his fingers and glares at me.

Customer: “Well?! What are you waiting for!”

Me: “Huh?”

Cashier: “Sir?”

Customer: “She scanned her card. Hurry and finish this so I can leave!”

Cashier: “Sir, it’s totalled out. Now you just have to pay. Did you need something else price- checked, or…?”

Customer: “But she scanned her card!”

Me: “And…?”

Customer: “Then scan it again or something, but hurry up!”

Me: “I’m not sure I follow.”

Customer: “Hurry and pay so I can leave; you scanned your card already once!”

I suddenly realize he thinks I offered to pay for his items.

Me: “Dude, I just scanned the discount card. I’m not paying for your stuff!”

Customer: “Well, why else would I get the rest of the stuff I needed?! Oh, my God, f*** this! F****** poor people!”

He shoved his items over the counter at the cashier and stormed out. We all just stood there in shock. Not only did he think I was offering to pay, but he actually added MORE stuff. I guess late nights always bring out the weirdest people.