For years, people have poked fun, mostly in gest (I hope), regarding how much shit I'm allergic to. These days, it's mostly foods that I need to be wary of, although there are some outside factors that can send me spinning into turmoil.
Allergic to the usual stuff, like nuts and sunflower seeds, which I don't even need to come in contact with. If someone simply opens a bag or has a sandwich with peanut butter on it, my lungs tend to close up and breathing becomes laboured. I'm also allergic to things like honey and beer and so many things that I doubt there's room to fit everything. Chick peas, I learned the hard way, consuming some hummus at a restaurant many years ago. My throat had closed off completely by the time I'd found a hospital emergency room that was open at 10pm. This was when I found out that the City Hospital will not allow anyone in, no matter how bad they need medical attention. Or at least that's how it was, twenty-plus years ago.
The one benefit to these allergies is that most of the foods that vegans and vegetarians (is there really a difference? 🤔) consume, is made with some item of food that I am deathly allergic to. Sadly, that is the one and only benefit. I'm allergic to dogs, so I doubt I'll ever be able to have a dog as a pet. And I'm also allergic to beer, so there's no hanging out with the boys on the weekend, getting f*cked up and acting stupid. Those who truly know me, though, are well aware that I'm able to act stupid, sans alcohol.
I'm also extremely allergic to perfume. If women simply dab a little on, it bothers me, but I get over it quickly, but then there are those women who don't believe "just a dab will do", but choose to douse themselves with that nasty shit so that they don't just smell like whatever this shit is, but the environment around them does too. One such lady boarded my bus on Monday and the smell has sent me reeling. I've been sick for two, going on three days, so far.
I'm able to bounce back rather resiliently, but when my senses are overwhelmed, I find myself spiraling and I'm not even certain how to get out of the trouble it causes. For three days, I've been sniffling, sneezing and coughing. I've coughed so much that I swear my abs must look like a six pack, by now. (I haven't checked the mirror, but I'm happy to assume.)
The most unfortunate thing is I'm unable to go into the local drugstore, just down the street, as the moment you walk into the store, you're blasted in the face by a toxic mix of perfumes wafting towards the open doorway from the perfume counter greeting you immediately, like a slap in the face. Like getting struck with a punch you weren't prepared for and as often as I visit this branch of Shopper's Drug Mart, I always forget that the perfume counter is right there.
For a company who prides themselves in the "ability" to help the public in need of remedies, they have a strange way of doing this. Knowing how triggered many people's allergies are from just a whiff of perfume, WHY place the perfume counter at the front of the store? The pharmacy should be in the front of the store and the perfume counter stuck back in the rear corner, away from the general public.
It's like the bulk store, putting nuts and peanuts at the front of the store. I walk in there to grab some parmesan cheese, gummy bears or simulated bacon bits and I'm immediately punched in the stomach by rows of pecans, walnuts and peanuts. Who designs this shit? They need a firm smack upside the head. Reboot that brain of theirs.
I remember as a kid, having such violent allergy attacks that it'd require my being placed in the hospital overnight or for a day or two. I think it was my cousin's wedding that I went to, but had to stay in the Tisdale hospital, because we stayed at my aunt and uncles house, where they had a cocker spaniel. Sparky, I believe his name was, but that's about all I recall of that dog. That and he was completely black and would consistently make me sick beyond all belief. Puffy eyes and laboured breathing. I'd be hitting my asthma inhaler like a crackhead does his pipe, thus inducing an asthma attack, which for those unfamiliar is a scary situation. Especially as a kid. Each breath is a struggle.
As an adult, I've learned many techniques to avoid placing myself in such peril, but unfortunately, my job involves interactions with the public and that's a factor that I'm not in control of. I can't predict the fool who will board the bus, ask me a question and spit a half cup of saliva on me in the process, just as I can't predict the woman who will dump a bottle of perfume on herself, instead of showering to get rid of her stink. If anyone has any suggestions, I'm all ears.
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