12 Hauntingly Disgusting Experiences People Can’t Forget

Disgust is an emotion most of us prefer to avoid, yet certain situations make it impossible to ignore. Whether caused by a familiar person or a stranger, some encounters are so repulsive that they leave a lasting impression. The stories in this article highlight moments that triggered intense nausea or the urge to escape, experiences that still evoke a strong sense of revulsion when remembered.

• I was on a picnic with family members a few years ago, and saw a couple on a blanket not far away. Suddenly, the woman leaned over the man and popped a large pimple on his forehead — with her teeth! Yes, there are more disgusting things in the world, and I’ve seen some of them, but this revulsed me on a deep, visceral level. © Garth Ware / Quora

• I once saw a lady change her baby on a table in the food court of the mall. It was at Christmastime, so there were tons of people around. She just didn’t care.
  I also told the custodial staff, «Hey, some lady just changed her baby on that table,» and they didn’t
  do anything. © ratsandfoxbats / Reddit

• When I was about 14, I was walking around the grocery store with my dad. There was a mom and her toddler-aged daughter in the aisle with me. I watched the daughter say, “Mommy, I have to sneeze!”, which prompted her mother to get on her hands and knees and allow her daughter to sneeze in her mouth. Then she got up, and they acted like nothing happened. © bonybug / Reddit

• At an All-You-Can-Eat buffet and elderly woman was choking on her food and an employee had to administer the Heimlich Maneuver which caused her to vomit on her plate and table. After she was taken away by ambulance her elderly husband continued to eat with the vomit on the table as if nothing had happened. © Lisa Olson / Quora

• A well-dressed woman sitting next to me at the bus stop was eating raw chicken that she’d clearly just bought at the grocery store up the street. I’d seen her for months on and off, waiting at the same time as me, probably going to and from work. But there she was in the middle of a South Texas summer, eating raw chicken like she was starving to death while waiting for the bus in 105-degree weather. © Unknown author / Reddit

• Once, I was in the subway. A guy in front of me rushed towards me and picked something up from the floor right next to my foot. He put it in his mouth and started chewing on it. It was an old and stepped-on gum that was glued to the floor. © valoudev / Reddit

• I was sitting on the bench at a park when this homeless man approached me. He didn’t say a word, just threw a folded newspaper on my lap. Scared, I opened it to see what he wanted.
  Inside the paper was a repulsive sight — a grotesque, slimy mass of unidentified goo. It reeked of rot and decay. Without a word, the man disappeared into the shadows. It felt like a nightmare, but I was surely wide awake when it happened.

• My parents managed a 480 unit apartment complex. One male tenant moved out and when we walked into the apartment and everything was immaculate. When I went to make sure he had not forgotten anything, opened up the bedroom closet and was greeted by hundreds of mason jars of urine. Each and every closet and cupboard held the same treasures. We had to call in a bio hazard company and a dumpster just to take all the jars. © Julie Jergenson / Quora

• I was at a restaurant with my ex-boyfriend and his colleague when his colleague pulled out nail clippers and proceeded to clip his nails at the table! Gross! © Susanna Stratmann / Quora

• A homeless man arrived at our hospital with an abdominal abscess. We were trying to clean his wound and assess the damage, and when we reached inside, we were horrified to find that he had been hiding his money there. He nonchalantly stated that he kept his money tucked in there to protect it from being stolen. © DyingLion / Reddit

• University library. Some unwashed, smelly old bearded guy always came there to use their free Wi-Fi. The stupid laughing was tolerable; I had headphones. Piling up a mountain of tangerine peels was tolerable; I like tangerines. But one day, he started clipping his dirty fingernails, and one flew straight at me.
  I went straight to the staff and got him kicked out. © Le_German_Face / Reddit

• Once on a midday regional train, the guy sitting next to me just pulled out a packet of floss and started flossing. Bits of food were visibly being flung from his teeth.
  He did that for like 10 minutes straight, then put away his floss. If that wasn’t bad enough, he then started to shove his fingers into his ears, clean them with his pinky finger, and wipe wax on his pants. © Blurryblanket / Reddit

If you want to take your mind off these nauseating situations, check out these funny but awkward stories.