Adding My Own Experience Because The Misrepresentation Of Fainting Is Also Pissing Me Off:

adding my own experience because the misrepresentation of fainting is also pissing me off:

first, i start to get really nauseous (sometimes this doesn’t happen, depends on what caused the fainting; if i get up too fast, it’s quite instant and there’s no time to feel sick, while collapsing due to heat has a far more gradual onset, hence the nausea)

then the world goes twinkling away, in that static-y way that happens when you stand up abruptly. this is also when i lose all comprehension of language

since this doesn’t mean i’m knocked out cold, my body can still try to move itself into a safer position; sometimes, this results in me only dropping into a crouch, or often i end up sliding down a nearby wall. i rarely ever get hurt/smash into the floor (except for when i slide down over an electrical outlet, ouch)

after about 10-30 seconds, everything comes back into focus slowly, except i now have a tremendous headache - mostly from having to re-intake sensory information - and still can’t understand speech for another half-minute or so.

One thing that MASSIVELY pisses me off is how fainting is shown in media. It’s always the person sways a little, collapses in one movement, and then is unconscious for like… fucking ages??? They wake up hours later tucked under a blanket and it’s acted like that’s normal. It’s NOT. A person that’s fainted should be back with you pretty quickly, actually:

(From NHS website)

I had an experience in my last work place where I fainted, but because it looks so different to how it’s shown in film and TV my managers had no idea what had happened. Here’s a comparison of usual media vs my actual fainting that they were all confused by-

Films, TV shows, plays etc:

1) Person goes “oh goodness” or something similar whilst holding hand to chest

2) eyes roll back, gracefully falls to the floor

3) nearby people see the poor fainted person, pick them up, put them on a bed or sofa

4) person comes to hours or even days later with no idea what happened and everyone else is just like “oh good you’ve woken up 🙂”

My usual fainting experience:

1) Everything starts spinning. Incapable of making words as my sole focus is on trying to get myself to the ground ASAP

2) Stumble to floor/chair/ anything I can lean against

3) Quick violent slump as actual faint occurs. There is no dainty falling- the whole body has hit shut down. Usually smack my head on the floor if I haven’t managed to get myself somewhere soft

4) Aware of surroundings almost immediately, but takes a few seconds to fully come back round

5) Carefully sit back up and explain to everyone going “what the fuck happened” that I fainted, and no, I do not need smelling salts actually.