While the science isn’t in a general consensus about the actual severity of experienced symptoms, there does seem to be good evidence that men generally do not have as strong of an immune system response to common flus, and that common flu vaccines are not as effective in men as they are in women.
https://www.livescience.com/61164-man-flu-real.html
Men are more likely to be hospitalized, as well as die from the common flu than women.
Current research seems to be exploring the idea that testosterone hampers immune response (antibody production) whereas estrogen promotes it.
Being dismissive of men’s less effective immune responses to common flus is about as sexist as a man similarly bellittling a woman having menstrual cramps.
https://newatlas.com/health-wellbeing/man-flu-cold-real-or-not/
The pop-cultural portrayal of men as overly weak and hysterical patients when facing a simple flu may hinder men from seeking for appropriate medical treatment because of a fear to be ridiculed. To avoid a culture of toxic masculinity, stereotypical portrayals of gender roles should be avoided."
The way you dismantle toxic masculinity is by listening to men when they describe their lived experiences, allowing them to feel comfortable and not judged when they describe their medical symptoms.
The way you reinforce toxic masculinity is by making it taboo for them to express when they are in pain, and mocking them when they aren’t acting like a big strong tough, toxically masculine guy.
EDIT: a quick overview of @chionogirl via nitter, she appears to be some kind of conservative tradwife/stay at home mom from the American South.
Their Valentines Day tweet is:
Happy Valentine’s Day to heterosexual monogamous couples only (heart emoji)
What a gem of a person.
I used to suffer extreme man colds as well, but losing the weight and quitting smoking/vaping did absolute wonders. Now when I get a cold I just rotate Acetamenophen and a low dose of Ibuprofen if I really need it, and take Echenacia 3x daily as though it’s an antibiotic, despite wise internet sages needing to remind me every time that it’s a placebo effect or their fucking heads will explode. Fortunately for me it’s a placebo effect that yields excellent results, unlike the copious amounts of other alternatives I’ve entertained that didn’t do shit for me.
Echenacia does has some immune boosting properties but it needs to be actual Echenacia. Most low quality herbal supplements are not what they are labeled. Since there are no regulations they can put whatever in there. If you really want to the actual benefits even make it yourself or get it from a higher quality sources. I am planning on making some whole plant Echenacia tincture this year for next winter
Btw that’s a placebo effect
I recommend for people with colds:
- Vitamin D supplement, you likely won’t be getting enough sunlight while bedridden.
- Even without appetite, force yourself to eat some fruits and veggies.
- Gargle and spit a mug of water, honey, and a lot of salt. It tastes bad but will heal throat and tonsil congestion and infection due to the antinflammatory and antiseptic effects of the salt.
- Keep your limbs warm and your head cool. Fevers over 100.4 are bad enough to seek help and fevers over 103 can be fatal, but you should avoid multiple showers a day (even though it soothes the nerve pain) as your body needs to maintain the temperature to fight off the infection.
- Even while sick, do your best to keep up on laundry. Change out your sheets and blankets whenever possible.
Add zinc supplement to that list
I’m living proof that the stereotype of men becoming completely useless when sick has truth to it. As soon as I start to feel slightly under the weather, I become a whiny sniveling mess
Electric. Blanket.
Get it. Now.
It’s so nice when you feel like shit, and you can just have some local warming, right on your body.
No. Get an Electric Mattress Pad. They last longer and since they are less flexible they can put larger heating elements in them
Better yet. Use both
I just use two blankets. Sometimes I’ve used a hot water bottle.
I have heated sheets, but it takes like 3 hours for them to get warm. I’ll have to look into one.
If you admit to living, I don’t think you fit the stereotype.
edit: Remove inappropriate gerund.
gerund
A gerund is a verb that acts as a noun, ending in “-schwing” and often followed by a mother of an absolute unit
Parts of this statement are correct.
first half is iffy at best
Can’t find it right now, but my uni did a study and found that it’s true to an extent, and it’s not for any biological reason.
My assumption has always been that women’s bodies have built-in functionality that put them through varying degrees of discomfort from time to time (periods, pregnancy, menopause), whereas men’s bodies generally only aren’t at 100% when we’re sick. So, when women get sick, it’s more of a, “aw man, I feel crappy again, that sucks”, but when men get sick, it’s like, “oh no, why do I feel like this, what’s happening to me?!”
Man I wish I could find it. But that’s pretty much the assumption that it didn’t find evidence for. Apparently it’s really more a matter of whether you’re sozialised female or male.
I can tough out certain pains, but give me a snotty nose and fever, I curl into a ball of pathetic man putty.
“Babe! BABE! Can you bring me two Tylenol, an Advil Cold and Sinus, two aspirin, my inhaler, another blanket, my phone (please charge, cord’s right there), a tablet to read my book on, and, and, we need to talk end-of-life stuff. …can you turn the fan up please? …and kill the light on your way out… thank you”
She drew the line giving me a bell to ring for help. My mom gave me a bell! (yes, really, I’m a total wuss)
I never feel quite as manly as when I’m sick and it unlocks just enough emotional vulnerability that a TV show leaves me crying for the first time in years like a kid who saw a dead bird.
I’ve had broken bones, puncture wounds, kidney stones, I got stabbed by a blade shaped rock that nicked my right kidney, I’ve cut the heel almost off of my foot, slit my leg open to the bone, shocked bad enough to knock me unconscious, head wounds, back pain, neck pain… The list goes on. I dealt. I’d like to say fairly well.
… But a fever or a blood draw? I cannot fucking function
Blood draw? You mean that tiny needle that they use to take a blood sample?
I mean the unnatural state of inserting something into my veins! It’s not right, it’s not natural, and it goes against all rules of God and man.
I deal better if I can get them to agree to draw from the wrist or back of my hands, it hurts more, but it’s much more dealable. But when they pull from the inside of the elbow? My brain shuts down and I have to distract myself or I’ll hyperventilate. It’s panic inducing, and has nothing to do with the pain or physical sensation. Best way I can describe it is if you have arachnophobia, it’s not like being in a room with a spider, it’s like allowing one to crawl around on your face or the back of your neck and being told to sit there calmly. It’s fucking horrible.
I don’t like any needles in me, but blood draws are the absolute fucking worst. Fevers give me the same panic feeling, but coupled with full body aches and pain in my joints
I believe that higher testosterone generally correlates to more server cold and flu symptoms yeah?
“I would have liked… to have seen Montana.”
“a round american woman and we will raise rabbits she would cook for me”
“And I will have a pickup truck… maybe even a ‘recreational vehicle.’ And drive from state to state. Do they let you do that?”
I ended up with a skinny Filipino who cooks for me and a pickup truck. Getting closer to the dream!
To each their own. Mine prefers my cooking.
She freaked out when we first got together and I cooked. She has literally never met or known a man that cooks.
Literally unbelievable but glad she’s found her time with you educational lmao
She freaked out when we first got together and I cooked. She has literally never met or known a man that cooks.
This just makes me think of that scene in Tropic Thunder with Ben Stiller talking about juggling.
meat and fire, it’s our happy place
If “nothingburger” was a tweet (I call them Xits now - pronounced “shits”)
