Saturday, September 10, 2016

Finally a Post and a bit of Q+A

Sorry it has been so long.  Things got crazy between the internship, and school happening again, etc.  As a quick summary for the internship - my allergies were making me miserable and I was having all sorts of problems and people having issues.  One of the people in charge realized how bad it was for me, so he was able to get me moved to something where I am not around animals at all, so I am doing better there now, and much less embarrassing.  Out of control allergies in a mask really sucks!

Ragweed season is still making me pretty miserable overall though.  I have a little bit of Q to A, so here we go:

Q:  Have you gotten any more information about what you will be doing? From what you do know about the job what do you think will be the biggest obstacle regarding your allergies?
A: I guess the above answered that. 

Q: Has your job started Kate? How has it been?
A: Also, see above, lol.

Q: I was just wondering how you cope when you start sneezing in a situation where it is difficult to leave - have you ever had a bad experience for example at a wedding, during an exam, on a plane etc?
A: Yes, its happened a number of times over the years.  Mainly I just have to sit there and let it happen.  Sometimes all the sneezing is disruptive to others, and I usually get very embarrassed.  It hasn't happened often, but occasionally for one reason or another I can't keep my snot totally under control and it grosses out other people.  That's the worst.

Q: I'm wondering, if maybe you're a little a too embarassed about your allergies? I don't doubt that some people are terrible and unreasonable and just don't behave like adults, but I feel like you're a little too sheepish by it? If you could say something like " I can't control it, you're being an ass." And act less embarrassed, people would mock you less? I almost feel like because you act so meek about it, people feel more like they can mock you for something you can't control.
A:
Not really sure how to reply to this.  I'm embarrassed by them, that's just how it is.  And they ARE pretty embarrassing!  Its also hard to reply much when I'm in the middle of an allergy attack, etc.

Q: I"m wondering how your parents reacted to this, and if they were supportive? I know they don't have allergies, but it can't be easy to watch your happy, athletic, popular kid's life suddenly decline due to remarkably severe allergies. I'd imagine it depressed them, too.

A: They have been pretty ok about it.  Concerned and all that.  They took me to lots of doctors and lots of tests over the years. 


I hope the answers were interesting.  I want to note that with the new way yahoo chat is, its hard to tell if someone is online or not.  I am still using it, so feel free to say hi there.  I am also on skype (just type chat, no video or voice), so you can message me on there too also at sneezykate.  E-mail works too, but I tend to like chat better.  As always, please give me feedback and more questions!

4 comments:

  1. Hi Kate :)
    I'm the person who talked about the embarassment in the last post. I'm sorry if I came across as insenstive, I wasjust amazed at how rude people can be, and I was just thinking being more assertive would have stopped them. I don't doubt your allergies are embarassing, especially with people being such jerks.

    Also, do you use corticosteriod nasal sprays ? Or are you too congested to try them?

    Also, I'm glad your job is the reason you haven't been posting, I was worried it was b/c your ragweed allergies were so bad. D:

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    Replies
    1. Its ok, thanks. It was partly job and partly allergies.

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  2. Another question..
    How much do would you say allergies affect your performance in school? Are you so sued to it, so focused, etc. that except for the *really* intense days , or does it actually affect your grades. Has it taken you longer to finish your PhD because of this?

    Also, would you consider yourself a spoonie? ( "spoons" are this system for measuring how much energy a person with a chronic illness has. Generally applies to chronic fatigue/pain disorders, but since your allergies are soo severe I feel like it may apply)

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  3. One last question.....I'm really, really curious...I'm sorry.

    Do you ever lament about how mild your allergies started? I read some of your older posts saying they started off relatively normal and manageable ( mild, even) , and took about two years to get to about as bad as it is now.
    I almost feel like you might think about how it started off so normal, and if it stayed normal you would be okay with it ( almost all allergy cases are manageable). Idk, I know you've mentioned that the only way you really thought about managing allergies was not having them, but do you ever even think, " Gee, a compromise would have been nice."
    Do you still take allergy shots.

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