Our submitter, a pharmacist, says this note was written on the back of a patient’s invoice. “She often has hand-written notes demanding an explanation for charges she incurred, but I think this might be the first product complaint I’ve seen,” he says. “I’m kind of surprised it has taken her 80-some years to learn that cough syrup tastes like ass.”
iphone 5/5s/5c/6/6s/6 plus/6s plus replacement screen It is one of the worst things I have ever tasted — tussin DM. To put it bluntly it would gag a maggot! So I guess I will have to toss it — Consider it close to a $7 dollar loss. I hope you don’t recommend it to anyone else.” href=”https://www.flickr.com/photos/passiveaggressive/4158271653″ target=”_blank”>
related: Life is awful.
78 responses so far ↓
#1
Wetbee
The tasting stuff is called guaifenesin. It’s always been the nasty tasting thing in cough syrup. Perhaps grandma should stick to honey and whiskey !
Jun 3, 2015 at 1:45 pm rating: 90
#2
the cat
I know the stuff she is referring to. It does taste awful, but the 8 cough free hours that follow are totally worth it, especially at night. And it is by no means the worst tasting cough syrup- in fact there is no such thing as an effective cough suppressant that does taste good, as anyoneher age should have long ago found out.
Jun 3, 2015 at 1:55 pm rating: 90
#3
Jami
Guess grannie forgot that medicine normally tastes bad.
Tussin DM doesn’t work for me. All it does is give me nightmares.
Jun 3, 2015 at 3:30 pm rating: 90
#4
Roto13
God, how old was I when I figured out that I had to take cough syrup by pouring it into the back of my throat because I’d gag if it hit my tongue? Maybe 6?
Jun 3, 2015 at 3:38 pm rating: 90
#5
captain obvious
Cough syrup SHOULD taste bad, lest the kiddies develop a taste for it. I remember this awesome frothy chalky yellow banana-flavored prescription stuff we kept in the fridge – it was delicious. Ditto Gripe Water! Learned at a young age to hold my breath to prevent having to taste anything I didn’t want to – meds, food or foodlike items – a skill that comes in useful now (hello, green smoothies).
Jun 3, 2015 at 4:17 pm rating: 90
#6
FeRD
“Gag a Maggot” is totally going to be the name of my hardcore, nihilist, post-punk band. I’ll die of a heroin overdose halfway through our first gig, to keep it legit.
Jun 3, 2015 at 5:48 pm rating: 90
#7
Belaani
It’s MEDICINE, you silly old bitch – it’s not supposed to taste like sherry! ( which would probably do more for your, um… affliction. )
Jun 3, 2015 at 6:01 pm rating: 90
#8
Havingfitz
You can’t get it over the counter, but Tussinex tastes like baby angels. It is basically a combo of Benadryl and Vicodin, suppresses a cough for hours, and may be the reason I tried to put a load of laundry into my oven. Five stars.
Jun 3, 2015 at 9:52 pm rating: 90
#9
Brad
In Grandma’s day, a hot toddy cured what ailed ya, and it was good enough for drinkin’ even when nothin’ in particular ailed ya.
I still live by Grandma’s wisdom, and as a result, I have no fucking idea whether Tussin DM could gag a maggot or not. I do have to go to these meetings every week, though. They say it’s ‘Anonymous’, but every time you stand up to speak, you have to say your name. Still don’t know what that’s all about.
Anyway, I’m off to mix a drink.
Jun 3, 2015 at 10:27 pm rating: 90
#10
jugstopper
Bourbon, heavily laced with sugar, was my Mom’s go-to cough syrup. Guaranteed to put the kids to sleep!
Jun 4, 2015 at 12:01 am rating: 90
#11
assiveProgressive
Store brand cough medicine tastes much worse than the name brand stuff. Don`t waste your medicine, old bat. Give it to one of those people standing by the freeway off ramp
Jun 4, 2015 at 1:04 am rating: 90
#12
sunshynegrll
Like OMG, Gramma, you’re supposed to mix it with 7-Up.
Jun 4, 2015 at 3:56 am rating: 90
#13
The Beast Among Us
Cough syrup tastes like ass?
I beg to differ. Ass tastes better.
Jun 4, 2015 at 10:17 am rating: 90
#14
Belinda
FYI, the tussin ingredients have come in pills for years now. I remember there was this bright yellow syrup my mom used to force on me when I was really sick as a kid. . . Just seeing that bottle made me scream, “I’m better! I’m better!”
Jun 4, 2015 at 10:37 am rating: 90
#15
Cerys
I really like the taste of cough medicine. I long ago came to terms with the fact that this clearly makes me a mutant.
Jun 4, 2015 at 11:06 am rating: 90
#16
nameless
hands down worst cough syrup ever – Creomulsion. Made from the same tree sap that brings you creosote, so you know it will….keep your throat from bursting into flame?
Jun 4, 2015 at 7:36 pm rating: 90
#17
JoDa
Dear old bat,
Be thankful you just had a little cough that could be cured by some mildly-unpleasant OTC cough syrup. A few years ago, I managed to snag a nasty case of bronchitis that required an inhaler to cure. That shit tastes like burning rubber, and I had to use it every couple of hours. You know what? No matter how bad it tasted, I could BREATHE after using it, so it was all good.
XO,
People who realize getting better is worth some small discomfort.
Jun 5, 2015 at 1:19 am rating: 90
#18
Kasaba
I work in clinical/drug research, so I am used to complaints from older folk about medications. Actually the worst/saddest complaint I have heard in recent months, was from a lady sharing a hospital room with me, and who ever day begged nursing staff to let her die. It was pretty damn painful to listen to. She was in her 90s and actually had her birthday in hospital. Her complaint? “These drugs make us live too long.” She still had a spark in her eye, but she hated being immobilised, dependent on people to clean her. And her husband had dementia and did not recognise her anymore. The drugs made her better, while her life got worse. There’s a song title for Ferd’s band.
Jun 5, 2015 at 8:31 am rating: 90
#19
Kasaba
I think when you are young and vital, it can be a very difficult thing to understand. For me, it was especially crushing, because I was in hospital desperately wanting to get better, and live life to the fullest again, and here is someone right next to me, saying, I don’t want this (life) anymore. Without access the medicine and intensive care facilities, I would have died from pneumonia. Something which, unfunnily enough started with a little cough that wouldn’t go away. No matter how much cough syrup I took.
When I was delirious in hospital, all I could think of was everything I wanted to still do and my family and friends. Totally clawing at life. What does 94-year old Bessie have to look forward to? Feeling like she is a burden to her 70-something year old daughter. Seeing her husband of >70 years not recognize her. Sitting in a dirty diaper till someone has time to clean her. It makes me sad, ’cause she’s a nice woman. Older people can be very bitter sometimes and she wasn’t. Just sad and unselfish. “I don’t want to be a burden”. Why is someone who has given so much to society, who lived through WWII, being made to feel a burden…..argh.
There are aspects of the drug development industry that I hate, but I cannot argue that in many cases it allows people a better quality of life, and it can save people from critical infection and disease.
Jun 5, 2015 at 2:33 pm rating: 90
#20
Christine
Friend of mine who grew up posh in Mexico told me that whenever he or his brothers or sisters would get a cold, the family cook would mix rum, honey and lemon juice in a little bottle and for the next 24 hours or so, minus sleeping, the childen would carry it around taking little sips until it was gone. When it was gone (my friend claims) their colds were all better!
Jun 6, 2015 at 2:20 pm rating: 90
#21
Raichu
She…really didn’t know that cough syrup tastes awful?
She’s how old again?
Jun 6, 2015 at 10:42 pm rating: 90
#22
Amy in Toronto
In Canada, one of our main brands of cough syrup is Buckley’s Mixture, which is herbal and contains pine needle oil, camphor and menthol, among other things. It tastes like what I imagine pine tree ejaculate would be. The instructions on the bottle should warn users to employ every curse word they know after ingesting.
It works though.
Jun 12, 2015 at 2:37 pm rating: 90
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