A Rant About Fake Terminal Illness Facebook Posts

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I've seen these a lot on Facebook because I need new friends. They really bother me, and here's why. They may seem like harmless fun to the poster, but joking about these things can be horrifying to people who actually love and care about them. A lot of my friends and relatives have health problems that cause them to be in and out of the hospital, and my great grandfather is in hospice. So the terminal illness post really upset me, especially when it's a close family member whom I trust who posts it. Of course, after I read it once I'm not fooled again, but it's not a funny scare, because now I have the idea in my head of someone I am close to dying. I'm one of those idiots who takes health scares seriously. It has caused actual anxiety attacks. I didn't want to put this on Facebook because the person who posted the status update... has other issues, but I really wanted to vent.

It's a good way to make sure noöne will give a s**t when someone actually has a terminal illness.

People who post fake terminal illness posts should die.

Raleigh, your WP admirers and mates know that what you have shared with us about the current state of your life and health is true. We have known you here for some years now, and falsity has never been your style for a moment. I can understand how triggering this thread would be for you. It seems the OP had no idea of your situation nor that you are one of the most frequent posters on Random, nor the gravity of your current situation. We respect and admire you greatly on WP and nothing is going to change that.

Are these people suffering from a mental illness by any chance?

How do they announce it?

Do they say something like, "having a mocha with chocolate sprinkles! And by the way I have a terminal diagnosis!"

It'd be ironic if they found out the terminal illness is real after all.

I'm disappointed I didn't think of doing this.
It would have been hilarious!

I think I may be slightly hysterical.

Thank you, B19.

close family members do this to each other?

...and that's enough internet for one day.

I'm really sorry about triggering you, Raleigh. My sister posted this copypasta thing that sounds like a sincere confession but at the end it says "the only cure is to copy and paste this post to scare your friends!" Her "other issues" are that she's 12 and going through her emo phase basically. So if I say anything negative about anything she posts she will scream in my face. I posted this without thinking that the rant itself might upset others.

I'm sorry too.
These people deserve compassion.
Maybe they fantasise about dying.
I know I used to do so.
I always had a fascination with death.

I take back what I said.
No one deserves to die for careless words.
But I really think you should tell this person how their words affected you.
All this fear of triggering and tip-toeing around people leads to no good.
Things need to be put out in the open.
No one has a right to be protected from what needs to be said to 'spare feelings'.
Feelings need to be felt.

Don't trust anybody on Facebook or anywhere else on the internet. I saw a horrific show on TV a few weeks ago about a young pregnant mom in her 9th month being kidnapped by her Facebook "friend", and nearly being murdered and cut open so the "friend" could harvest her baby and raise it as her own. The mother was saved by the police at the last second and both she and the baby were okay, but that made horror movies look like an episode of Mr. Dressup!

Yes, it's bad enough when people lie about having a deadly disease just to get sympathy and attention, but there are people out there who may even be plotting to kill you. DON'T. TRUST. ANYONE.

My Facebook friends are all people I know in real life. Some of them I've been "friends" with long after I've stopped being friends with them, but I don't want to unfriend them because I don't want to hurt their feelings.