Myths have been around for centuries. As soon as humans were able to tell stories, we have had mythology.
Now with technology advanced far beyond the writing on the cave wall, we can more easily spread around information as well as misinformation. Some of that information can even be harmful.
Misconceptions about mental health, pregnancy, or any number of things are reinforced by social media, movies, or even word of mouth. Sometimes that can really make someone angry if they are dealing with the consequences of that falsehood.
Redditor Indieriots asked:
"What common myth p*sses you off?"
These might make you just as upset.
Mislead by TV and movies.
"That you have to wait 24 hours to report a missing person. It is a myth perpetuated TV and movies for the sake of drama, but not true in real like at all."
- tschris
"In many cases police will give missing people some kind of 'waiting period' after having checked for possible, (obvious) dangers. In many cases, because a missing person happens quite often because people make spontaneous decisions."
"But if you're sure something is really wrong and have good reasoning, they will be searching tediously even after just an hour."
- deterministic_lynx
"Yup, especially with children, the elderly, and disabled folks, those first hours are crucial. If you haven't seen/heard from a loved one when you usually would, that alone is grounds for reporting. Some cops might not take it seriously, but it's critical that you push them to listen to you."
- hayleybeth7
"Something like 1500 people go missing every day in the US. But the reason that number is so high is that most missing persons cases should probably not have even been filed in the first place. Stuff like a teenager deciding to go to a party instead of coming home at night without telling their parents."
- caninehere
An old and incorrect phrase.
"'Lightning never strikes twice in the same place.'"
"In fact, it does - and frequently."
- Back2Bach
"Lightning rods would be incredibly useless otherwise."
- gigglefarting
Gum doesn't stick around that long.
"Gum does not stay in your stomach for 7 years. Sure, swallowing a lot of gum isn't great and can cause problems in your digestive system, but it only takes a day or two to pass."
- usually-suspect
"What's funny about that is when I was kid n heard it, I took it as a challenge to only sh*t pink blobs of gum seven years after. I was quite disappointed."
- maverickmain
"Same but with the 'a watermelon will grow in your stomach if you eat the seeds!' I thought I was a genius cause I'd never go hungry again with a watermelon forever growing in my guts! I ate so many seeds lmao."
- NefariousAquarius64
Breastfeeding doesn't replace contraception.
"You can't get pregnant if you're breastfeeding. It lowers your chances but not to zero."
- Damn_Canadian
"I, a mother of two children ages 7 and 8, 100% agree with you. Doesn't matter if your baby hasn't had anything but breastmilk. Doesn't matter if you haven't a normal cycle. All of those things they say. It doesn't matter. I promise you absolutely without a doubt CAN get pregnant while breastfeeding."
"Source: my dumba** with 2 kids 12 months apart."
- Signal_Skill9761
A misconception about mental health disorders.
"That bipolar means you are 'happy one minute and sad the next minute.' It's a disorder where you have episodes of depression and episodes of mania/hypomania. These episodes last weeks/months/years. There's nothing about emotional lability at all. That's an entirely different disorder."
- 292to137
"True that! Plus manic phases aren't always happy."
- Bebe_Bleau
"Hell yeah that's for sure. I've been going to my local DBSA support group weekly for years and it seems like it's not a happy thing like for most people. Hypomania can be, but mania doesn't seem to be."
- 292to137
"Corollary: Depression does not mean you are sad all the time or can't express happiness or joy. I can bawl my eyes out for 20 minutes for no reason, and still laugh at a dumb sitcom joke before crying again."
- Forceflow15
"In my experience, Depression is more about a great feeling of emptiness than a lot of sadness, crying etc."
- Vladimir_Putting
"That OCD is liking things to be extremely neat, tidy or organized."
- clumsyumbrella
"As someone with diagnosed OCD who lives in a house that is actually a disaster, yes lol."
- wickedflowers
"This! I didn't realize I had OCD because of this and because it often overlaps with other mental illnesses."
- CapriciousSalmon
Just trying to keep the kids busy.
"'You can tell a ladybug's age by counting it's spots.' Even as a kid this didn't make sense to me. Why tell your kid this? What's the point?"
- Lvcivs2311
"Because it made kids shut up and sit still long enough to count the spots of a loving moving ladybug. 5 min to a kid, blissful peace and quiet for the parents."
- girlwhoweighted
There's no way this is true.
"We only use 10% of our brain."
- WarriorOfTheWord
"Ah, yes. The logical thing to do when you try to survive is to evolve a bigger brain, just to not use it."
- YouTube-r
Hopefully this shed some light on these important (and trivial) myths that we've continued to pass down over the years.
Thank goodness we can google the real answers.
Want to "know" more?
Sign up for the Knowable newsletter here.
Never miss another big, odd, funny, or heartbreaking moment again.
@JamesTate121/X
