by REBECCA SPARROW
I don’t think this advertisement mocking man-flu goes quite far enough. Hands up who thinks we need to organise a telethon, so that every hospital in Australia can have a designated ‘Man Flu Wing’?
Watch. Laugh. And then send it to the men in your life…
We’re battling through the death of 1000 colds here at Mamamia. Is everyone sick at your house too? Who complains the most?
Comments
32 Comments so far
I have a classic manflu story courtesy of my Father who was visiting recently when I had an awful cold AND a non-sleeping baby AND a sick older child & was trucking on, courtesy of panadol, feeling like death.
After a day or so my Father starts telling me “I have an “AWFUL cold. It’s so HEAVY. Oh my HEAD”.
I say “Oh dear, you must have caught my cold. I’m sorry. You poor thing”.
He says “oh no it can’t be YOUR cold because mine is much worse, more like a flu really. I must have got it somewhere else.”
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Manflu comes in 2 forms in this house:
1) Gets the sniffles, acts like he’s dying. Doesn’t get out of bed for 3 days.
2) Has serious illness, mows the lawn in his underwear because he’s in denial about being sick.
Seriously. After an emergency appendectomy (not keyhole) on a Friday he discharged himself early from hospital on the Saturday and while I’m at work on the Monday he does gardening for 3 hours! After promising me he’d take it easy and recuperate I find him at 5.30pm laying on the bed, white as a sheet and shaking, with grass clippings all over the bottom edge of his trackies.
That’s the man I love. Sigh.
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Bugger me, are my fellow men such sooky boys? Has this been exaggerated for artistic effect?
I’ve got cancer, have chemo on Friday afternoons so that I’m sort of better on monday so I can go to work. I haven’t told anyone at work that I’m crook. I don’t have a wife any more but I’m just a little concerned that blokes are so wimpy when sick.
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You are the epitome of one of the 2 types of male patients. At one end, you have the men like you who soldier on, even if they’re really sick and often have to be bullied into the doctors/medication/bed etc. I am married to one of them. The other type is a wimp. He may get a cold and take to his bed, while his partner gets to look after sick kids and try to do the basics of housework, even though she is also sick herself.
Women, on the other hand tend to be somewhere in the middle, less extreme.
This, of course, is my own highly scientific anecdotal evidence, collated over the last 20 years in nursing. Haha.
I sincerely wish you well with your chemo and hope you remember to look after yourself. They don’t give out medals for bravery with cancer….I hope you have told someone about your health, support is a must at this time.
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Hi Faybian,
Thankyou for your kind words.
Alas, I’m facing this little disease alone. My Family (parents, siblings etc) don’t really give a shit, and there’s no way I’m going to tell my kids. They have their own stuff happening and I don’t think it’s the place of parents to bung problems on thier kids, even if they are adults.
I did have a friend who was, and still is, suffering from cancer, and last year when she was really down I spent hours talking to her about whatever she wanted to while she was grappling with the prospect of death, but since I’ve been sick the most I hear from her is a text that says she hopes I’m ok. I guess she, like many others, doesn’t know how to deal with it.
So I’m doing it alone, and in some ways it’s good, there’s no-one to worry about me or fuss over me, and I can spend the weekends at home spewing my heart out without anyone continually asking me if I’m ok.
My big fear is that I’ll succumb to this nasty little disease when I’m alone and no-one finds me until I’m a dried up or decomposed corpse. I’d really like to have my hand held when I do leave this world!
Hopefully that won’t happen, the worst part about chemo is that the cure makes you feel worse than the disease ever did.
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Oh anon, I’d think that your kids would prefer to know about this, even if you refuse any offers of help, at least you won’t end up a dried up corpse because they will think to check you beforethqt happens. I’d be devestated if my dad didn’t want to “bother me”.
While I haven’t had cancer as such, I’ve had a brain tumour and lots of people have helped out and from unexpected quarters too. Yes the cure can make you feel worse than the disease. My first round of surgery pretty much brought me to my knees for about 3 months and it took another 3 months to get back to work. Last time was better.
Please, please think about letting someone else know. Wishing you well with your treatment.
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Thanks Faybian.
I will tell the kids, but they all live in different states so I have to get them all in the same place at the same time. I’d like to get some more confidence about the prognosis before I do it too.
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Please keep us updated. The best and worst post on Friday is good for that.
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I discovered some old mamamia emails and when reading then I came across your posts – hence a reply six weeks later…
I hope you have had the positive prognosis you were looking for, and that you have had some support rather than deal with this on your own.
If your children were able to come home for a visit, however short that would be wonderful too.
I wish you the best.
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Mines a classic:
Mum & bub sick ” well you you are both sick, so you might as well stay with bub and look after him”
Dad & bub sick: I’m too sick to get out of bed, I need sleep, can you keep bub quiet for the day?”
Mum sick: “I’ve taken bub out for an hour/got him breakfast, but I’m busy I have to go now”
Dad sick: – he says very little and just sleeps with out doing or saying anything.
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I currently have woman flu – you know the one where you’re sick as but still have to carry on?
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Haha ManFlu captured perfectly
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I had to go on line and watch more of their video clips all very funny
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Does anyone else think that guy looks like a bigger version of Sam debrito? lol
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I think it’s no co-incidence that in most anti-flu-remedies, men are in the lead role!
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LOL! I love this. Although I have to say, a few weeks ago my boyfriend got the flu jab, and was very verbal about his achy arm. My response was pretty nonchalant “oh, boo hoo, wah wah, it’s not just a vaccine but a MAN-vaccine, lets bust out the violins”. Then yesterday I got mine and I had to eat my words a little bit. Ooops!
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Every time one of the kids gets a cold, the first thing my husband ALWAYS says is “God, I hope I don’t get it!”. He falls short of banishing them from the house but does get himself a separate hand towel in the bathroom and puts his toothbrush up high on a separate shelf lest the cold bugs might jump toothbrushes during the night! Every time someone sneezes he barks at them “Do you need a tissue????” and is very unhappy when they say no. He has always been paranoid about getting any type of cold.
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Very funny, made me giggle.
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God I laughed at that video. My husband most definitely gets man-flu. He is so pathetic when he is sick. I provide him water, tissues, chicken soup and bread and then just close the bedroom door and leave him to battle it out! I keep the kids away and don’t pester him about when he will be up and about again.
But when I get a cold, the whole freaking household falls to pieces. Everyone is cranky at me and the pressure is on to get better ASAP!
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“I keep the kids away and don’t pester him about when he will be up and about again.”
I could fall in love with you for this! I have a cold now and my wife just does.not.get.it!
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Did you ever consider that when you are sick that you are the cranky one who puts everyone on edge?
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After battling with what I thought was a head cold for 2 weeks I finally went to the Dr after collapsing in a heap on Sunday morning. On driving myself home from the Dr, armed with extra strength antibiotics and Prendisone, I told my husband that I have pneumonia. His response – “I’m feeling a bit fluey myself”…….there are NO words….
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I know it’s very wrong, but I really laughed at your comment. Because I know that would happen in this house too!
Hope you are resting and recovering.
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Oh dear lord. That is such a man thing to say.
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hope that you have some proper support around you(maybe your toddler kids?)
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Thanks for all your concern ladies- much appreciated xx.
He’s actually been pretty good, never one to over do the sympathy though!I am getting the occasional cup of tea and he made chicken soup. My 11 and 7 year olds have been absolute champions but god knows what I would do without my besties! Chalk another one up for the sisterhood!
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I’m sorry you have pneumonia, but that was HILARIOUS!
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Is man-flu really a thing? All the men in my life are the opposite. They’ll have to be literally at deaths door before they’ll admit they might possibly be a little under the weather.
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I always find that they’ll complain in the most continuous and vocal way imaginable, but none the less refuse to seek medical attention.
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Its times like this I”m glad I live in the house of pink. Only male in my house is the pooch. Now if I could just get him to stop cocking his leg on the fabric sofa….
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haha POOR PETAL!
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How dare MM publish this abusive video!…don’t you realise how serious Man-Flu is?…I myself almost died 10 times this year from Man-Flu…my throat was sore and my tummy hurt…I find your total lack of sympathy for my affliction to be hurtful and insensitive!
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