How sympathetic/empathic are you towards unwell people around you?

Loved ones, family, friends.........

Are you a 'Ministering Angel' full of sympathy, care, and bowls full of chicken soup?

Or do you have the 'pull yourself together, It's only six broken ribs and a fractured skull' sort of attitude?

To my shame, I am less than perfect in the 'Ministering Angel' department.......:blush:

Unfortunately Ive got to say that im not very sypathetic towards people. Well if they are close then I will be, but if not then I am very un-sympathetic. :(

Have you managed to get on the wrong side of Mrs DT, DT? :suspect:

No sympathy... Self inflicted!.... Pull yourself together :rant:

;) :hihi:

I am terrible if Hubby is ill....I have turned bitter and twisted because as a Mother of 3 children if I am ill he still goes to work as normal and I have no-one to look after me :sad:...I still have to see to the children, shop, cook, clean etc when all I want is my bed and some painkillers!!!

Whereas when he is ill - he's straight home from work and in bed and then he's got me to chase up and down the stairs with sick buckets/tissues/hot drinks/painkillers etc!!

I smother my kids with TLC when they're ill though!!

The only time I have been properly cared for when ill is when I've been admitted to hospital...that has happened twice!!


:help:

So now I just ignore him when he's ill!! :evil:

Originally posted by Strix
[B]Have you managed to get on the wrong side of Mrs DT, DT? :suspect:



Nah, I've meant to post this for ages. I just get a bit guilty sometimes about my lack of sympathy......

Although when my mother had a mastectomy/radiotherapy a few months ago, I was very supportive.......

Maybe It's the more minor illnesses where I am lacking :confused:

Oh yeah - I am talking minor ailments too only men don't ever seem to get them...:hihi:

:confused:

I know people who are always ill in some kind of way.

I know people who are always well in some kind of way.

I think in most cases it's a matter of outlook.


So - yes, I'm a 'pull yourself together' type.


(Doesn't count if I'm ill though, in which case I demand attention and duvet on sofa).

Originally posted by Shiesh
Oh yeah - I am talking minor ailments too only men don't ever seem to get them...:hihi:


Originally posted by Deavon

…………..So - yes, I'm a 'pull yourself together' type.

(Doesn't count if I'm ill though, in which case I demand attention and duvet on sofa). [/B]

Classics :D :thumbsup: ;)

Originally posted by Draggletail
Maybe It's the more minor illnesses where I am lacking :confused:
I hope that doesn't include that migrane you mentioned :suspect:
Migranes and baby care don't mix well :(

I dunno, I suffer from migraines that put me out of commission for 2 days and this doesn't seem to be simply because I'm a whiny man (I admit it, when I'm slightly sick, I really whinge) because my mum gets them too, and she's the same.

As for being sympathetic, yeah, I am to be honest, as long as they aren't too demanding. When I'm ill I want to be given a drink and to be left alone in a dark room, I expect the same from others. When my mum is ill, I make her food (which could be a minefield but when she's got migraine, all she can stomach is toast and a bit of scrambled egg) and drinks.

Anyone else I'll be helpful for, it's not their fault they are sick. If it's self inflicted, that's another story!

Wilf

Well, I admit to feeling sorry for myself when I'm ill, but then there's no-one else around to do it for me... Does that count as being sympathetic? ... Or just Pathetic? :D

ministerng angel.
put 'em to bed for peace & quiet.
plenty of fluids,meds,soup & hot tea.
i dont hold with wimps though who think a cough & cold is life threatening.
and i hate people who take time off work with ailments but still carry on woth their personla life as normal.

in our house you have to be really ill or i have to be unable to to do tea for my partner before he will notice there is something wrong.then there is no concern for me just concern over his belly lol thats men for you

I'm one of those - "Its only a slight case of bubonic plague. Stop feeling sorry for yourself and do something that will make you feel better."

Does that count as being sympathetic?

Dragon

Men are all the same in this field. I am the sympathetic, can't do enough for you, type...but then again he does seem to regularly suffer from meningitis, brain tumour, liver and kidney failure, heart attacks etc frequently reminding me he doesn't have very long to live. Me? When I am really poorly, I don't get a second glance.

It usually depends on whether the ailment in contageous or not!!!

Women are all the same in this are they not? A bloke is not allowed to feel ill. We get a cold and we are virtually disabled by it - having to work with the sniffles, coughs and such, driving around, doing the errands, and being all fatherly or manly - except the damned cold is killing us.

Females - on the other hand - get lots of practice at being unwell - like at least once a month. The female body is more able to cope with illness as it is constantly bombarded with germs from the kids and such as well as the usual womens troubles.

I do hope you realise I am not being too serious about this ;)

Take pity on us men - we have to exagerate in order to compete for attention - the hugs and snuggles and such that make us feel so much better.

Dragon

I am less sympathetic towards 'work place stress' related illnesses than I was some years ago. I think that's because when I was having the most stressful time in my life I was still expected to deliver day in, day out.

I've always been one of the 'caring' types, so I'm pretty sympathetic to people who need it, and that's why I get crabby with people who've had a bad time at work and then disappear for several months with 'stress'. If you hate the job that much, just leave it and get a new one. Whilst you're off with 'stress' some other poor sods are doing your job as well as their own. :)

I have great respect and admiration for people with chronic pain or chronic illness; quite frequently these people with the most to complain about just get on with their lives.

To quote from Goethe, I do believe that 'What does not kill me makes me strong'.

Joe

my wifes sympathetic example;
a certain forum person fell from a height equivalent to the second storey of our home,suffered concussion & broken shoulder socket (7 breaks).
within 48 hours of "recovery" i had a list of chores to do including painting a new conservatory with 1 arm.
my wife would be an excellent nurse 'cos no one would stay in hospital more than 48hours. they daren't.

totally unsympathetic and unempathetic I'm afraid ... especially towards people who are no worse off than me in the health stakes and yet seem to think they're at death's door and deserving of sympathy ...

When I come across them I feel the need to outdo em in the "I'm so poorly, pity me" competition but with the added theme that I'm a lot worse than they are but bearing up without complaint .... :hihi:

Hey, willman if that 'certain person' was you - that seems very harsh ... but if you were actually that bad, you wouldn't have been able to paint the thing anyway, would you. Get UPVC next time, never needs painting :thumbsup:

Originally posted by rubydazzler
totally unsympathetic and unempathetic I'm afraid ... especially towards people who are no worse off than me in the health stakes and yet seem to think they're at death's door and deserving of sympathy ...

When I come across them I feel the need to outdo em in the "I'm so poorly, pity me" competition but with the added theme that I'm a lot worse than they are but bearing up without complaint .... :hihi:

Hey, willman if that 'certain person' was you - that seems very harsh ... but if you were actually that bad, you wouldn't have been able to paint the thing anyway, would you. Get UPVC next time, never needs painting :thumbsup:

yep it was me ,i fell off the roof whilst building the darn thing.the inside then needed painting.actually it was probably 3-4 days after,'cos the painkillers kept making me feel nauseous & sleep all day at first. it was a very slow process i can tell you - but totally true. i also had to install a dishwasher in a my second week off(previously ordered unfortuantely).

it was bad but it was the left arm. couldnt drive for 8 weeks (gear change).

I think usually I am quite sympathetic. Especially with my kids, it pains me if they have as much as a sniffle. They're only tiny and I can't stand it that they might be unwell.

If friends are ill I am usually sympathetic too and will try and cheer them up with little tokens and dish out some quality hugs.

The only thing that makes me mad is when we're all ill yet I can look after everyone else and nobody looks after me! :(

It's not a question of being sypathetic, I just don't like being round ill people, especially in hospitals, for some reason it makes me feel sick. My family know this and don't expect me to vist them.

I'm not really sympathetic unless it is quite serious, I can't be doing with the 1 sneeze and i've got flu brigade (like hubby), he can be a real baby, although I don't know why cos he knows he won't get any sympathy.

It really annoys me though when i'm feeling off colour he always has to have the same thing (even stomach cramps). So now when he is getting on my nerves telling me he's got what I had but only worse I have to wind him up.

He will say I feel ill I've got what you had , so I mention a couple of genuine symptoms and yes he has got them, but then I start inventing them such as does your big toe tingle and when he starts agreeing to these made up symptons I know he is lying.

In my job I have no option but to be sympathetic and caring. It does get to you though even though the feelings are genuine and not forced. I need therapy!:gag:

mistresses are floozies and they live on the island of matress:P

When people ring in at work and say they're not coming in because of a cold I'm really sympathetic, no matter if it's not even a bad cold. I don't want anyone with a cold anywhere near me if I can at all help it. But when they do turn up and they're spluttering everywhere I am horrible and selfish and unsympathetic and fling the windows wide open no matter how cold it is. :gag:

Im a Ministering Angel full of sympathy, care, and bowls full of chicken soup....
A father of 4, i love giving mi kids a bit of (tlc)...
i think when us men get ill though its always much, much, worse because as we men are the stronger sex we need bigger germs to make us ill, so bigger tougher germs mean ...longer in bed, more rest etc its a fact that many women just cant live with...;)

:D us men are not ....babies .... just more sensitive.

there's a certain logic to that madowl ....

:rolleyes: