
‘What’s the most patronising piece of advice you’ve ever received?’ – 23 examples of people being infuriatingly condescending
13.
‘An extremely wealthy person (who was my boss at the time) once told me to have fun and get into debt because I’ll be able to pay it off later. This was based on his experience of getting into debt but also receiving a very large inheritance when his mum died, and expecting an equally large sum when his dad passes.
I was on £27k when he suggested this. He was on £300k (and had the aforementioned inheritance alongside the insane income). This unsolicited advice came after I’d asked if there was any possibility of regrading my role since it required a PhD but was paying £10k less than the market rate in our field.’
–JennyW93
14.
‘Someone tried to tell me how to turn a light on when I was 17.’
–PumpkinPieIsGreat
15.
‘The government advice about washing your hands during Covid – wash for the amount of time it takes to sing happy birthday twice. So cringe.’
–lamaldo78
16.
‘I was rejected for life insurance due to my history of depression, despite having a psychiatrist I’ve worked with for years & being on multiple antidepressants. Fine, whatever, not bothered about that. But the letter rejecting me suggested I talk to a doctor about my mental health. So fucking patronising!’
–vestibulepike
17.
‘The lady at work who told me ‘If you just saved £500 a month you’d have a house deposit in no time!’ When I said at the end of the month after bills I had £100 for food and you know… enjoying life she looked confused and repeated herself.’
–soverytiiiired
18.
‘My ex-GP on a mandatory review phone appointment, talking over me, said that his advice was that I should just listen more carefully to understand him. This was while I was trying to explain that I am deaf and he would have to wait a moment for my hearing partner to explain what he’d said.’
–Draculaaaaaaaaaaahhh
19.
‘My mum telling me that having a Horlicks before bed will cure my insomnia (which I was on medication and receiving private therapy for). If only I had thought of that!’
–ambabeeee
20.
‘When the energy companies told us they were putting all our bills up, but it’s ok cos they sent us a pair of socks to wear in bed.’
–Mackem
21.
‘I phoned the NHS helpline in absolute agony in an attempt to get an emergency dentist appointment. The lady on the phone suggested I brush my teeth! Then she proceeded to explain how I should brush them…’
–Lundierpants
22.
‘IT support telling me to turn the computer off and back on, uninstalling and installing again. I work in IT and am informing you of a bug I found. For free.’
–_kar00n
23.
‘The entire time I was trying to get pregnant and going through IVF and being told by people: ‘Just RELAX!”
–littlebluecoat
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