# I don't bruise - is this a problem? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [August 2, 2007, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-bruise-is-this-a-problem/414159 "2007-08-02T18:14:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2007, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-bruise-is-this-a-problem/414159/1 "2007-08-02T18:14:38Z")
Very mundane and pointless, I know. I know that excessive bruising is a problem, and can indicate serious pathologies, but I have the opposite case - I very rarely bruise, even when I do something that oughta raise a good one. I think this is a good thing, but I started wondering if it can be too much of a good thing, and if an extreme like this also indicates some kind of medical condition. Google is no help on this one; I don’t even know if there is a name for not bruising. So, anyone have any ideas? Anyone have a grandma who died of not bruising? ---
**Author:** ![ASAKMOTSD](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/919ad9/32.png) [@ASAKMOTSD](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ASAKMOTSD)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2007, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-bruise-is-this-a-problem/414159/2 "2007-08-02T18:24:01Z")
There is a simple answer - you are an alien. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2007, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-bruise-is-this-a-problem/414159/3 "2007-08-02T18:25:18Z")
Hmm. Hadn’t thought of that. Hey, maybe all my blood vessels were replaced by adamantium! ---
**Author:** ![fishbicycle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/aeb1de/32.png) [@fishbicycle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fishbicycle)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2007, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-bruise-is-this-a-problem/414159/4 "2007-08-02T18:31:56Z")
I’ve never had a bruise in 48 years. Maybe I’m some kinda freak (too). I haven’t given it much thought, but I suppose it’s a good thing that I don’t bruise easily, or at all. ---
**Author:** ![Swampwolf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8edcca/32.png) [@Swampwolf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Swampwolf)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2007, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-bruise-is-this-a-problem/414159/5 "2007-08-02T18:40:24Z")
It takes a _lot_ for me to bruise, too. I just figure I have enough iron in my bloodstream, and count my blessings. ---
**Author:** ![badbadrubberpiggy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/57b2e6/32.png) [@badbadrubberpiggy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/badbadrubberpiggy)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2007, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-bruise-is-this-a-problem/414159/6 "2007-08-02T18:47:30Z")
You’re a pod person. Actually, I bruise oddly easily, but when I fall or actually feel myself bump into something & notice the pain, I don’t get a bruise. Even if the spot I hit is sore. ---
**Author:** ![corkboard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e9bcb4/32.png) [@corkboard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/corkboard)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2007, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-bruise-is-this-a-problem/414159/7 "2007-08-02T19:04:10Z")
The last time I got a bruise was when I was hit in the eye with a baseball on a line drive trajectory at my head. That was, maybe, 30-some years ago. Nothing since then. Pod people unite! ---
**Author:** ![Lanzy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/74df32/32.png) [@Lanzy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lanzy)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2007, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-bruise-is-this-a-problem/414159/8 "2007-08-02T19:05:48Z")
I used to not bruise but now I bruise about like anyone else. I was diagnosed with very thick blood (not a doctor and can’t remember what this is actually called) and now take blood thinners everyday. Why? Because thick blood can make the heart work much harder than it should have to and can cause clots easier which can come loose and go to your brain and kill you. (my Dr.'s quote, not meant to alarm) But you’re probably fine. If you are concerned see your family doctor. ---
**Author:** ![amarinth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3be4f8/32.png) [@amarinth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarinth)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2007, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-bruise-is-this-a-problem/414159/9 "2007-08-02T19:18:04Z")
[QUOTE=Swampwolf] It takes a _lot_ for me to bruise, too. I just figure I have enough iron in my bloodstream, and count my blessings. [/QUOTE] I also rarely bruise (a couple of bicycle incidents changed that from “never” to “rarely,” but even those don’t make bruising a sure thing) and I have nearly no iron in my bloodstream. So that isn’t necessarily it. It does disguise my clumsiness though - I never have to explain that I walked into something (again) because there are no external signs. ---
**Author:** ![norinew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/eb9ed0/32.png) [@norinew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/norinew)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2007, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-bruise-is-this-a-problem/414159/10 "2007-08-02T20:50:40Z")
I bruise if I get breathed on hard. My hubby, OTOH, has to suffer a _really_ traumatic event to bruise. I always figured he and I are just on opposite ends of the spectrum. ---
**Author:** ![Least\_Original\_User\_Name\_Ever](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e480ec/32.png) [@Least\_Original\_User\_Name\_Ever](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Least_Original_User_Name_Ever)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2007, 1:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-bruise-is-this-a-problem/414159/11 "2007-08-03T01:03:35Z")
Maybe you are a bruise, but since it’s so well disguised and so uniform across your entire body, it all blends in. ---
**Author:** ![ShibbOleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/848f3c/32.png) [@ShibbOleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ShibbOleth)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2007, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-bruise-is-this-a-problem/414159/12 "2007-08-03T01:10:03Z")
I’ll bruise if I break a bone or otherwise harm myself greviously (think torn ligaments), but otherwise not so much. It’s a bit of a curse, since people often think I wasn’t hurt. ---
**Author:** ![Autolycus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/22d042/32.png) [@Autolycus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Autolycus)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2007, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-bruise-is-this-a-problem/414159/13 "2007-08-03T01:21:46Z")
Hmmm… ever try training in Muay Thai? If that doesn’t bruise you, then I’d be worried. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2007, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-bruise-is-this-a-problem/414159/14 "2007-08-03T03:41:46Z")
[QUOTE=ShibbOleth] \It’s a bit of a curse, since people often think I wasn’t hurt. [/QUOTE] That’s the downside - it’s hard to get sympathy for your boo-boos when people can’t see them. Well, it’s good to see I’m not alone in this oddity. ---
**Author:** ![Chimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Chimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimera)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2007, 3:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-bruise-is-this-a-problem/414159/15 "2007-08-03T03:54:57Z")
I don’t bruise very easily and I’m very glad of it. When I broke my ankle 2.5 years ago, I had only very minor bruising around the site. Lots of swelling, but only a few small bruise areas. This spring when I had oral surgery, they said my entire face would be black and blue for a week or more. Oh, it sure swelled up, but I had only two small bruise spots. Damn glad my face didn’t go all purple on me! OTOH, my ex-wife bruised when the wind blew past her. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2007, 12:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-bruise-is-this-a-problem/414159/16 "2007-08-03T12:13:08Z")
Are you Hugh Jackman? Or Bruce Willis? ---
**Author:** ![Least\_Original\_User\_Name\_Ever](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e480ec/32.png) [@Least\_Original\_User\_Name\_Ever](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Least_Original_User_Name_Ever)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2007, 12:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-bruise-is-this-a-problem/414159/17 "2007-08-03T12:23:51Z")
You might be Wolverine. Are your bones adamantium? ---
**Author:** ![Kythereia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e8c25b/32.png) [@Kythereia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kythereia)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2007, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-bruise-is-this-a-problem/414159/18 "2007-08-03T17:33:14Z")
Do you wear glasses constantly and work as a mild-mannered reporter? (More importantly, can we switch superpowers? I’m one big bruise right now…) ---
**Author:** ![Gus\_Gusterson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/85f322/32.png) [@Gus\_Gusterson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gus_Gusterson)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2007, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-bruise-is-this-a-problem/414159/19 "2007-08-03T17:42:57Z")
I haven’t had a bruise since I was a kid and my three-year-old son, who is always running into things, doesn’t bruise. My wife and four-year-old daughter both bruise very easily. It’s a shame, since my wife has Tina Turner-caliber legs but they have bruises all over them. ---
**Author:** ![Flea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/d78d45/32.png) [@Flea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flea)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2007, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-bruise-is-this-a-problem/414159/20 "2007-08-03T18:17:05Z")
[Old metafilter thread](http://ask.metafilter.com/50426/I-dont-bruise) on this subject. I bruise very easily. The prevailing theory in the linked thread is that is has to do with high iron. If that’s the case, I wonder if these folk are also routinely constipated, since iron constipates you. 😕 [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-bruise-is-this-a-problem/414159.md?page=2)