Aspies and Common Colds

[Pondering]

If you have common colds, fevers, the flu, or other physical illnesses, how do you handle it? Do you suddenly become more sensitive in your five senses or find it even more difficult to sleep? What is it like for you emotionally and physically when you catch a common cold?

 

[Suzanne]

Hi Cheryl

I no doubt, will end up catching a cold now lol but for over a year, I am amazed that I have not actually suffered a cold! But when I do, the worst part is the sore throat and the lack of being able to breath. Plus, it has always brought on asthma and bronchitis. As for why I have been cold free for so long, I cannot even answer.

How do I handle any kind of ill health? Hate with a passion but try to get past it!

Sleep escapes due to not being able to breath properly, which does set panic signals off.

For me, I really do not think I react any different than an nt when I get ill, other than finding it a flipping nuisance!

I do seem to moan less than when hubby gets ill though!

Oh and for a sore throat, honey and cider vinegar

 

[watersprite]

This is me, not saying it is anyone else: I don't get sick often, maybe once or twice a year. But. When I do, I hardly sleep until I start to recover, everything sense-wise is hugely magnified and painful, and I am in a horrendous mood, reduced to a childlike state of almost- helplessness. Usually I "hole up" like an animal in my bed with water and blankets, music, spoken books, and headphones.
Why do you ask?

 

[Ste11aeres]

It starts with me waking up multiple times during the night. The following day, my nose will feel a little funny. The following night, I will again wake up multiple times during the night. The day after that, it will be a full-blown cold. My colds usually last three days, and only one of those days is very painful.

 

[Harrison]

I rarely get colds, when I do I carry on as normal. Did have the flu a while back which laid me off work, that one wiped out my appetite and my sleep patterns went haywire.

 

[James K Trefethen]

Before I was disabled, I tried to work. One of the problems was that I got myself so riled up sometimes that I could not sleep. Usually something a human interaction problem that I blew out of proportion. It caused problems because I had a hard time going back to work the next day- partly from lack of sleep. I got sick like everybody else but then autism also got in the way. Not a good thing when your employer allows only so many sick days.

Thankfully all of my siblings have grown up. I used to get sick all the time as a kid. I could just count on it as one of my Christmas presents during the month of December. I moved back home with my parents but my siblings are gone from the house.

 

[Suzanne]

One of the problems was that I got myself so riled up sometimes that I could not sleep. Usually something a human interaction problem that I blew out of proportion. It caused problems because I had a hard time going back to work the next day

Oh how like me this sounds!

 

[Spiller]

I used to get colds several times a year when I was young.. I hated it, but carried on working as I found that forcing myself to expend energy helped me feel better and I'd get over the illness more quickly.. I refuse to lay down for 'Man-flu'
I gave my attitude of hatred of colds some thought a while back and realised that the emotion of hatred, being based in fear, just attracts more of what I'm afraid of. Therefore I decided that I wouldn't hate illness any more, I'd just accept it as part of life, a reminder of mortality.. since I made that decision I now only get ill once every 2-3 years and colds are usually barely noticeable, a slight hoarseness and that 'cold voice' you get when your sinuses feel funny for 3-4 days..

 

[Progster]

I don't get colds very often, and when I do, it's more of a nuisance than anything else, and I try to continue as normal. For me the worst thing is a stomach flu or norovirus, as I feel nauseous and I can't so anything but lie in bed and wait for the symptoms to recede.

 

[clg114]

When I was a young man, I would go to work sick. I always worked by myself, there wasn't much chance of getting others sick. There was no way I was going to miss a day of work without pay and I did not want to use sick pay when I was sick. I always wanted to use my sick pay days doing something fun. In the last ten or fifteen years I have not been able to do that. If I try to work sick, I'll just get sicker. It sucks to get old.

 

[Licorice]

I hardly ever get sick, but I turn into a cranky zombie. I'm surprised The Walking Dead hasn't come calling.

 

[Judge]

Last time I was really sick was about five years ago. Caught some nebulous virus...but dayim, it put me out of commission for about three weeks.

But then bouts with arthritis in my knee aren't too pretty either.

 

[IAmParadiseSeekerJW]

I very rarely get ill (says miss ill), but when I do; it's bad! I haven't had a cold since maybe early last year or perhaps the winter of the year before...I did suffer with Hayfever during the Summer though and it was a nightmare..I try and carry on as normal, but i'm usually sapped of everything and feel like i'm neither here nor there...I look really drained and like I should be in bed for a month, and my body tells me I need to as well! I just go into a state of self pity for a while and then when it passes, i'm back to usual.

 

[AsheSkyler]

Colds annoy me and make me nauseous. Yay, morning sickness. I hate getting up in the mornings with a cold, nothing like starting a day hugging a toilet. Nausea aside, I'm more cranky because I wake up a few times a night unable to breathe, eating gets awkward since I can't breathe through my nose, and a runny nose is like somebody poking me constantly with a stick. Runny noses are very distracting. The constant sinus headaches don't do much for my mood either.

Thankfully I'm a lot healthier than I used to be and maybe catch one or two colds each year. I wouldn't have caught my last one if the bookkeeping I was given hadn't been completely saturated with some grating smell that wore my tonsils raw just from breathing it in. One year I caught ten colds, most of which in the summer due to my room being too cold at night, and my sense of smell was shot for a few years because of it. It's kind of weird being able to smell again.

 

[Ellylldan]

I'm right now in the middle of it! My skin becomes too sensitive and I lose appetite together with weight. I sleep a lot, it's not a good quiet sleep though, but restless and disturbing. I'm just trying to follow my feelings, not to force myself. I don't really hate the illness, I accept it and let my body fight it, and I just enjoy my endless cups of ginger tea.

I gave my attitude of hatred of colds some thought a while back and realised that the emotion of hatred, being based in fear, just attracts more of what I'm afraid of.

I think this is true. Made me think of mosquitoes. I used to hate them and then a few years ago I decided to accept them, to like them even. Back then my mom made a lot of fun of me for that, but! Could be a coincidence (even if I don't really believe in coincidence), but they bite me way less than before. I didn't kill (at least consciously) a single mosquito since then (I catch them with a glass and free them when they get into my home) and they seem to show some mercy to me, at least I like to think like that, hehehe.
(sorry for off-topic)

 

[Knit Hat]

I don't often get colds, but when I do, I get very cranky and annoyed with the situation. I think that it's mostly due to the fact that I lose a lot of sleep, and issues with touch and sound seems to get magnified when I have a cold.

 

[Aspergers_Aspie]

If someone has a cold I think it is bad practice to not stay at home until it passes as it's puts others at risk of catching a cold. Unless travel is essential and then a person should use hand sanitizer. Boots chemist asked a survey where it asked if I would stay at home till my cold passed if I had one.