Allergies

[protege]

I didn't want to take over the other thread

What is it about allergies that turns some people into fucking morons? For example, I once had a coworker who insisted that my allergies meant that my immune system was failing.

No douchebag, it means that my immune system is working overtime! It sees things like dust and mold as enemies and is trying to deal with them. Yes, I know that my sniffling and constantly having to blow my nose is annoying. Not much I can do about it until the meds kick in. Yes, I know that "hacking up hairballs" is nasty. So is going through an entire box of Kleenex in 2 hours. Do you really think I have a choice?

Also, do you really think that I *like* dealing with migraines? Yes, I know that I get to leave work early. Never mind that it's because I cannot see what I'm doing (has anyone ever tried to type in data when you're seeing flickering lines?), can barely walk around the room, and my speech is all fucked up. Throw in the because the meds (migraine pill + massive ibuprofen) doesn't agree with my stomach, never mind making me sleepy, and doesn't it sound awesome?

Same guy gave me grief about how I'd chug a couple Mountain Dews per day during allergy season. Seriously asshole? You're giving me shit about how I'm trying to control things so I'm *not* sick? Caffeine helps open up the blood vessels in my head so I *don't* get a headache and so I'm not everywhere, or constantly falling asleep.

Unless you know how migraines are crippling, you really don't have the right to call me a pussy for getting them. Why don't *you* try working with the pretty flickering red/green lights? Or, *you* try typing in numbers when it feels like your eyes have been scribbled on with a white magic marker?

No? Shut the fuck up then.

[BlaqueKatt]

Unless you know how migraines are crippling, you really don't have the right to call me a pussy for getting them. Why don't *you* try working with the pretty flickering red/green lights? Or, *you* try typing in numbers when it feels like your eyes have been scribbled on with a white magic marker?

No? Shut the fuck up then.

ugh, I seriously hate this attitude, migraine=/=bad headache(mine have perfectly mimicked a stroke, down to losing control of an entire side of my body, that was downright terrifying). There is a reason migraines are included in the Americans with Disabilities Act, BECAUSE THEY'RE A DAMN DISABILITY!

No aspirin doesn't help, neither does Tylenol, sometimes a megadose of caffeine can delay the concussion-level pain/vomiting/photo-sensitivity, but it won't go away without a prescription(which mine makes me lightheaded, dizzy, sleepy, and normally vomiting once, but without the skull full o' razorblades* pain).


*I heard the best description of a migraine ever in the movie shutter island, the doctor was describing the pain side of it to someone that never had them, "it feels like someone sawed your head open, dumped in a bunch of razorblades, closed it, and then shook it up."

[telecom_goddess]

wtf? someone called you a pussy for having a migraine? Obviously they have never had one. Unbelievable.

[HYHYBT]

Some people are incapable of believing problems they don't happen to have themselves are real. Worse is people who *do* have it, but a much milder (or sometimes even more serious) version and cannot comprehend that it's not like that for everybody.

[AccountingDrone]

*I heard the best description of a migraine ever in the movie shutter island, the doctor was describing the pain side of it to someone that never had them, "it feels like someone sawed your head open, dumped in a bunch of razorblades, closed it, and then shook it up."

Mine aren't so sharp, it is more like that old torture that was winding a cord with knots in it around the head and twisting a rod tournequet-like to tighten it around the head, just only on the right side. Though I could really do without the vomiting. Except for the ones that feel like someone snuck up on me and whacked me on the right side of the head with a baseball bat.

Really, I wish that they would take all doctors, give them a dose of nitroglycerine and let them FEEL what a migraine is like. They would agree instantly that something like that is not all in our imaginations ...

[HYHYBT]

I expect that most doctors already know that migraines aren't figments of your imagination;,it's just that there's not a lot they can DO about them.

[Lace Neil Singer]

*touches wood* I haven't had a migraine for a while, but can still remember back when I worked for the pet store in the garden centre and had one, and had to pretend I had the flu cuz my boss thought that a migraine was basically a headache and would have told me to take a pill and get to work.

I couldn't take anything once the migraine had gotten hold; if I managed to get a dose of migraine pills down when I saw the "tail" (what I call the curled up black and white flashing thing that appears on my vision, cuz it looks like a pig's tail) then I'd be alright, if slightly spaced out, otherwise I couldn't take pills cuz of the nausea and vomiting. I'd have just vomited the pills back up. To me, a migraine is something that leaves me lying on a bed in a darkened room, suffering for hours in agony, and just wishing it would go away. Whereas a headache is something I can deal with.

[Racket_Man]

Some people are incapable of believing problems they don't happen to have themselves are real. Worse is people who *do* have it, but a much milder (or sometimes even more serious) version and cannot comprehend that it's not like that for everybody.

The migraine thing is just as bad as trying to explain a sever kidney stone attack to someone who has never experienced it ie. the cold/hot sweats, the nausea, the dizziness, the "I can not see straight" pain, the puking, the puking of strange brown liguid, the puking until you think your body is upchucking stuff in your bowel.

One manager I worked under just could not understand that projectile puking on a customer was not really in the best interest of the company.

[fireheart17]

Some people are incapable of believing problems they don't happen to have themselves are real. Worse is people who *do* have it, but a much milder (or sometimes even more serious) version and cannot comprehend that it's not like that for everybody.

Or when you combine the two (people know somebody with a mild form of the illness/disability and believe that it's the "severe" level or reverse it).

Example: person A knows a child with autism, but the kid suffers from Aspergers. Person then meets another person B who also has an autistic child, but the behaviours are quite severe to the point of self-injury.

Person B has done their research on their child's condition and other factors. They know that Person A's child might have Aspergers or a milder form of autism. They understand the symptoms.

Person A on the other hand, has not done their research and believes that Person B's child is simply acting that way due to either A) ADHD, B) child is a foster child/feral child or C) the parent has not actually been "parenting" their child and he/she is acting up due to that.

[Lace Neil Singer]

More likely, someone has a child who does not have autism, AHDD or anything else but who "Momdiagosed" the child herself rather than taking it to a doctor. Child is not autistic or suffering from AHDD but is simply badly parented. Child is pumped full of Ritalin which he or she doesn't need.

Some people are incapable of believing problems they don't happen to have themselves are real. Worse is people who *do* have it, but a much milder (or sometimes even more serious) version and cannot comprehend that it's not like that for everybody.

Like PMS or period pains, for example. I always hate it when people brush off severe period pains cuz "Well, I never have any problems" or state that PMS doesn't exist just cuz they don't suffer from it.

[Eisa]

^That drives me insane. My PMS and cramps are horrible. It's like someone's slowly sawing through my uterus with a rusted butcher knife. Mixed in with a rabid piranha.

[blas87]

It seems a lot of my coworkers also suffer from migranes, so I don't feel as odd as I used to.

Since Excedrine was pulled off the shelves, it's been a nightmare for those of us whose prescription meds just don't always cut it. I'll admit I've disobeyed the doctor and taken OTC headache meds because I gave it my best try to "wait it out" when I'd get migranes anyway, and I just couldn't miss work or spend every day just lying in bed or on the couch waiting it out.

Some of us are quite a sight when we're in the middle of our worst headaches. I know when I have a bad one, all the color fades from my face and I look like I'm related to Edward, a few of my coworkers end up so dizzy from the lighting they get nauseated, the throbbing in my head forces me to constantly have to close my eyes for a few moments here and there.

[XCashier]

Some people are incapable of believing problems they don't happen to have themselves are real. Worse is people who *do* have it, but a much milder (or sometimes even more serious) version and cannot comprehend that it's not like that for everybody.

I have noticed that a lot. Like people who "joke" that my depression is "all in your head", or tell me to "cheer up!" Wow, I never thought of that! Thank you sooooo very much! PMS, weight problem, etc., same thing. Yes, I'm happy for you that you only get mild twinges and have never had a problem with your weight. It does not mean that I am defective or stupid or lazy. Your metabolism, genetics and life experiences =/= mine.

I've never had a migraine, and even I know it is more than just a headache, and the severity and experience differs from person to person. Therefore, I would never presume that the migraine sufferer is overreacting. A little empathy and decency goes a long way, folks.

[protege]

I have noticed that a lot. Like people who "joke" that my depression is "all in your head", or tell me to "cheer up!" Wow, I never thought of that! Thank you sooooo very much! PMS, weight problem, etc., same thing.

I once told a co-irker that if he didn't knock it off, the sledgehammer I keep in my car's trunk...would be "all in his head"

Right now, I'm feeling the wonderful affects of sinus problems. The weather is kicking my ass. Not only am I constantly coughing, but my nose is welded shut...and I'm a bit doped up on various meds. Throw in being at work, and it just sucks all around.

[tabbyblack13]

I am having a really bad reaction to my seasonal allergies right now too. I've taken various allergy meds and all of them has done very little help. The nasal rinse doesn't even work. They have a shot here that is filled with steroids that is suppose to last at least 3 months but it didn't help at all.

Right now I have been coughing and congested to the point coworkers have been wondering if I am sick. My nose just started bleeding today and it really sucks. I've finally gave up and I am currently looking for an allergist. Right now I'm thinking that I need to leave Arizona to get relief.