Girl swallowed a fork!

@estherlou (5015)
United States
August 28, 2011 2:53pm CST
I was watching one of those ER shows. A 14 year old girl came in acting strange, and wouldn't talk and seemed almost paralyzed with fear. After a lot of talk and asking questions but getting no answers, the brand new resident began his exam. He tried to look down her throat but she barely opened her mouth. He coaxed her to not be afraid but let him look, and he saw a dinner fork in her throat! They had to paralyze her throat, and then use forceps to pull out the fork. It was a full-length dinner fork. It turned out the girl was a severe bulimic and over time, her gag reflex was no longer working. She had begun using other things besides her fingers to force herself to throw up, like the fork. This time, it just slipped down her throat and got logged there. She came in so fearful because she was afraid she could actually swallow it! OMG. What a weird thing! She was lucky! They got it out easily and discovered her bulimia so she was able to get help in that area also. What a first patient for a new ER doctor!
2 people like this
15 responses
@ronadelle (1547)
• Philippines
29 Aug 11
Oh! I was in shock while reading this! I can't reconcile in my mind how did that full-length dinner fork ended up all the way inside her throat! It must be scary and very painful! Oh, I hope that it will never happen in real life. I was really holding my breath on this estherlou. Haha. Nice post!
1 person likes this
@TwiKnight (107)
• Malaysia
29 Aug 11
If only such creativity could be expended on particular more beneficial circles, like archaeology perhaps. It's the logic behind things as such that worries me as to the survival of our kind; that if we could put in something, we could get it out as well. Least that taught her a lesson.
1 person likes this
@GardenGerty (157546)
• United States
28 Aug 11
I am glad he was persistent. We just are so messed up nowadays, wanting to be thin, feeling bad for eating, and using "do it yourself" methods that really mess up. I did not realize that the gag reflex would quit, or that people would do stuff like this. Yikes.
1 person likes this
@Absinto (2385)
• Portugal
28 Aug 11
Sadly these things do actually happen and usually to sick people as much as her. nulimic people dont mean to harm themselves but sometimes do without even noticing. just like this girl with the fork. She hurt herself but wasnt realizing until an accident happened.
1 person likes this
• United States
29 Aug 11
Oh my this is serious. Yes I do understand the things that Bulimics do and did not realize they went to such great lengths. That could have killed her as it could have gone in side and lodged into some really sensitive part in her body. I knew someone a long time ago who was as skinny as a rod due to her bulimia, I have not seen in a long time and do hope she has overcome this somehow as it was really awful.
• United States
28 Aug 11
Oh, how awful! I was glad to realize though, that it was able to come out, and that it wasn't in prongs-first. If she stuck it down there on purpose, she wouldn't have put the prongs in there first, which would have been even worse. It's also a very good thing that she did not have to have surgery, and that she could have been saved with that simple procedure.
1 person likes this
• United States
28 Aug 11
No wonder she was scared. Now they need to get her treatment for bulimia ..heaven know what she will shove down her throat next.
@cher913 (25782)
• Canada
29 Aug 11
there is this show 'untold stories of the er' which i like to watch when its on. its interesting the odd cases which come into a big city hospital.
@ElicBxn (63235)
• United States
28 Aug 11
I've seen that one, very sad, those are interesting shows, I watch them, but the roomie hates them
@williamjisir (22819)
• China
29 Aug 11
It is really dangerous, but the girl is lucky to have had it taken out of her throat. I wish she would be careful next time not to get anything dangerous to the throat for safety.
@shaggin (71663)
• United States
30 Aug 11
Oh my gosh how very scary. I cannot imagine someone doing this willingly. What was she thinking? Imagine how scared she must have been when this happened though. I feel bad for this girl honestly to be doing that to herself. At 14 years old shes so young she shouldnt have to worry about her weight its sad that she feels she needs to make herself vomit to be skinny. I hope now that she is getting help that she can get well.
@dawnald (85135)
• Shingle Springs, California
22 Sep 11
yeah very lucky, if it had gone down it probably could have pierced something and caused a lot of problems.
@lala501 (1532)
• United States
28 Aug 11
I think i saw that episode.So glad that they got that girl help,hopefully she's doing much better now. I like that show because you see stuff that you wouldn't normally expect to happen at a hospital.
@SydneyJ (902)
• United States
28 Aug 11
That's insane! I can't beleive someone could actually swallow a fork and have it quiet easily removed.. That would be so painful!
@jazzyrae (1745)
• United States
28 Aug 11
Haha that's really funny but sad. I don't think that could really happen