How many boys got rectal temperatures after breaking the or al thermometer

I had the experience of being extremely congested when ill and having already developed a desire for rectal temps it was fairly easy to cause an oral reading to be inaccurate. We only had glass thermometers when I was growing up so holding the oral thermometer under the tongue for five minutes while congested was difficult, and knowing that I had a great excuse for a low reading I would frequently breath through my mouth and intentionally remove it from under my tongue. After several attempts to get a good reading my mother would acquiesce to a rectal reading, which I really wanted all along. I than got to roll over and have the greasy thermometer inserted up my bottom for a delightful five minutes, hopefully for several more times that day.

I got one after trying to cheat.

I was born in 1950 and rectal temps were the only kind I had until I was 9 or 10 years old. The only time it really embarrassed me was at the Doctors office. There were three small exam rooms and none of them had doors or screens. Unless I was in the last exam room everyone walking by could look in and see me sitting or laying on the table wearing nothing but my diaper. The nurse would un-pin my diaper in order to take my temperature. This was always done while I was on my back and I remember the first time my temperature was taken while laying on my stomach I thought, "that's a stupid way to take a temperature"!

Not after breaking it, but on more than one occasion I hid the oral thermometer before complaining that I felt feverish. That always guaranteed a rectal temperature. It was never a big deal since it was just a fact of the household that the rectal thermometer would come out if there was no alternative.

I loved it, of course.

I guess I wasn't paying attention, I was five and the thermometer that was under my tongue slipped out and smashed onto the tile floor in the bathroom. Mercury rolling all over the floor and broken glass. Mom was not happy and after cleaning it up got the rectal thermometer and Vaseline and took me to my bedroom. She pulled my pants and undies down to my knee's and put me over her lap. I put my hands back to protect my naked bottom butt she moved them out of the way. She shook the thermometer down and put it bulb side down into the jar. Then took a dollop on her finger and spread my clenching tush with her thumb and forefinger and spread the gel on my pink hole and then pushed her finger into it. I yelled "Mom! Ow !" She pulled it out and then slipped in the silver bulb and glass tube about two inches. She put her finger on the end so I wouldn't push it out. After a minute or two it started to feel good in another minute she pulled it out, and read it. Before pulling my pants up she smacked my bare tush ten times for not paying attention and breaking the oral thermometer. From that day to this now 72, I still take my temp rectally.

I do not remember ever breaking a thermometer. I tried to cheat on oral temps and keep the thermometer from getting higher than normal. My mom did not seem to suspect, but usually took or once I was 9 sent me to the pediatric clinic that I went to until college anyway though for whatever symptoms I had.

The clinic was large with 10 exam rooms, 5 nurses who did most of the work, and one doctor. The rule was rectal there until age 9. My mom switched to oral when I was 6 and started school. At that age it did not occur to me that the clinic nurses noted that the appointment notes would say something like cough but no fever, and the rectal temp showed the truth.

When I was 9 I tried to cheat at the clinic also. The nurse was suspicious and asked if I kept the thermometer under my tongue. I was not a convincing liar. A rectal temp revealed the truth. The nurse apparently made a note in my file because I always got a rectal temp at the clinic after than until 15.

I never broke an oral thermometer, but I did break my own rectal thermometer not long after I bought it! It just meant I'd have to buy another one, which I did. A funny thing, the pharmacy where I bought both thermometers didn't keep them on display. You had to ask the clerk for one and they would open a drawer behind the counter and fetch one.

There was no oral Thermometer. Not that i was aware of.

Until i left home it was always the rectal one.

Past 18 years my mother said here is the thermometer, do it yourself. But she would always walk in and take it over. You are doing it wrong she would say.

My oral temps. began around 5, at home and at the doctor's office. I was also never hospitalized as a kid, so I missed the pediatric ward "experience."

The only time that I had a rectal temp. after 5, was at age 8, when my grandmother was babysitting me, and the oral thermometer broke. It was a very painful temperature, because she didn't lube the thermometer. It hurt as much coming out, as it did going in. My butt was sore for hours afterward. My grandmother hated males, but that's a story for another day. Anyhow, based on that experience, you would wonder how I could end up with a fetish, all these years later. That all happened when a girlfriend re-introduced me to them, during my early 20's.

I never broke the thermometer because mine was always taken rectally.

I never broke an oral thermometer but I did have trouble using an oral thermometer. My illnesses frequently included nasal congestion which meant I had to breath through my mouth lowering the accuracy of the oral reading. I also frequently gagged on the thermometer under my tongue. This frustrated my mother and her goal to end rectal temperatures for me.

Shortly after my sixth birthday I came down with step throat and my mother decided to start me on oral temps. I don't remember any big deal about being being a "big boy" or being "just like Daddy", it was just "lets try it this way". I found the oral thermometer pinched under my tongue and I was told off for biting down on the thermometer. I did have a couple of successful oral temps though. I believe it was my third oral temp when I wasn't concentrating and the thermometer dropped from my mouth onto the hardwood floor and shattered. I remember being fascinated with the mercury that had beaded up into silvery balls. I can still see the mercury moving around as my mother swept it into the dust pan. I was back on rectal temps for the next 18 months. It did not bother me as all of my friends were still on rectal temps. Fortunately I did master oral temps shortly after my 8th birthday. My sister who is two years younger than me had no problem with oral temps when she was 6. Even though I was not bothered as a 6 year old that I had failed to master oral, I would have been embarrassed as an 8 year old if my younger sister was on oral while I was still on rectal.

I never broke an oral thermometer after my parents switched me from rectal to oral. But that is probably one reason that some parents stuck with rectal thermometers with their kids as long as they did as they knew that an oral thermometer was easy to slip out of our mouths and hit the floor. And maybe boys were less careful than girls about paying attention enough to hold an oral thermometer under their tongues for 2 or 3 minutes. I remember once our parents made the switch to oral temps for me, it was harder than I thought to keep the thermometer in the right place under my tongue without gagging. If I had a stuffy nose and had to breathe through my mouth, an oral temp was hard to do but I tried to do it once I got to be 8 or 9 as I didn't like the idea of getting my temp taking rectally like a little kid. There was a point when my older brother and I had graduated to oral temps and our younger brother was still getting rectal temps that I worried that our Mom might switch me back to rectal temps if I messed up on the oral temperature. I remember once when my nose was real stuffed up that I was having a hard time breathing and holding the thermometer under my tongue. I was worried that Mom might just switch me back to a rectal temp for that occasion. She didn't. But that happened to our younger brother in a similar situation when he graduated to oral temp and Mom couldn't get a good oral temp on him. I walked in our bedroom and there he was with his underpants down and a thermometer inserted and a very embarrassed look on his face. Mom ran me out of the room and closed the door as she knew he was embarrassed. Although it was funny to me at that age even though a couple of years before I would have been in the same position and maybe not that embarrassed.

The title of this post refers only to boys. Are there any women who have responded about their childhood experiences ? I'd be interested to hear about it from their perspective as well.

Never broke a glass oral thermometer, but had temperature taken rectally until age nine or ten, both at home and at the pediatrician.

My rectal temperature days ended at during the age of 4 after I had tubes put into my ears.

Always rectally till around 9 mostly otk

I never broke one but did once expel it while asked to lean over the exam table. I don't think it was my fault as the nurse simply let go and I reacted. I was very embarrassed to say the least but it happened so fast! After that, I was always made to lay on my belly or side. Thankfully at home, mom or dad didn't require a rectal unless they thought I was trying to avoid school! I soon learned not to do that!

I never broke one either.

About age 10 or 11 mom at home let me take my own but we only had rectal thermometers at that time, so I had rectal all my teen years. At the doctor's his nurse asked oral or rectal after age 13 but I never minded rectal so just had the nurse do that. My bother hated rectal so he convinced mom after much whining to buy him an oral thermometer when he was about 14. I know he asked the doctor's nurse to do oral after age 13. My brother was no fun when it came to rectal temps, he never was interested in RT play or playing doctor like I have read some kids did on here.

My mom used oral as soon as I could hold it under my tongue. She had rectal for the young kids. I remember once having a thermometer under the tongue and when she took it out it was a rectal thermometer. I commented on it and she said yes it is but it has never been used for that. Looking back I wonder how she would ever keep track with ten kids. Yucky

Never broke one I was switched to oral thermometers around 8 but mom kept rectal in her arsenal so to speak till age 12 or so when needed so did the pediatrician.

When I was a young boy, many moons past, I decided to increase my temperature on the oral thermometer that had been stuck into my mouth and so upon being left alone for a moment and hoping that an elevated temperature would give me a "Get out of school for the day pass"...I then stuck the end in front of the stream of steam, coming from the large green glass container which was a humidifier... what a beautiful piece of work for a young boy to admire and the steam emanating from it was a pleasant sight to behold and therefor to be entertained by, so what a fancy idea I had to stick the end of the mercury oral thermometer into the path of that steam...it was quite the sight to see that thermometer explode and mercury and glass fly out everywhere !!

It did not take long to realize that I had mis-judged the high temperature of that steam apparatus and to also realize that I had no replacement for the shattered thermometer....So I was in for a real surprise when the doctor returned and saw the result of my stupid idea and stated that a rectal temp would be in order and following, a hot and large sudsy enema would be given to correct my poor choices for attempting to fool him into thinking I was so ill as to need to get out of classes that day.

He was also my teacher in the science class and had full control of my destiny as it was a boarding school which I lived in full time at the tender age of ten years.

I learned the science of temperature change that precious day, in more ways than one, and was to always receive the thermometers of the future, only anally, under supervision, followed by a nice hot sudsy soapy 2 quart enema...was I too smart for my own good already ??

I was a patient in a children's ward for a couple of weeks when l was 12, and was free to move around the ward most of the time. A lot of kids were in for operations, most commonly tonsillectomies, which were performed under ether. On returning from theatre (the OR), the kids were still only semi-conscious. The nurses often took a sleeping kid's temperature rectally. He/she was seldom aware of what had been done!

- Ken

I never did break an oral thermometer but Mom accidentally broke it so I had to have it taken rectally..... I was arnd 8 she didn’t rush out to purchase a new one either seeing how I was sick at the time and temp needed taken 2-3 times a day.......Mom was great she’d lowered my pj’s down and lube me up a little and slide it right in and hold it there while I just layed there.

I never broke the glass thermometer my temperature at home and the pediatrician was always take rectally

I have never broken an oral thermometer, however my parents already had a digital one which is harder to destroy even if it fell down.

I got my temp checked rectally though

I only had rectal temps growing up. A couple of times my mom dropped the thermometer, and then bought another of the same model-rectal. Even the doctors who examined me, took my temperature rectally.