[ARCHIVED THREAD] - Why do men (Page 1 of 2)
Posted: 2/6/2005 8:08:40 PM EDT
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turn into the biggest babies when they're sick?? Take one macho man, add a fever and watch him turn into the biggest mama's boy you've ever seen...sheesh. Mr. Sp1 was fine when the game started, then was puking by the time it was over. Now he's running a 101.2 temp. Isn't that when your brain starts to fry? I went and got him some Sprite, gave him some aleve, put a cold rag on his forehead...I don't know what else to do. Any of you ladies have any suggestions? I've never really taken care of a sick person before... He just screamed for me to come running into the living room...I come running, thinking he's got blood pouring from every orifice in his body, only to find my services were vitally needed in handing him the remote. Two feet away.  Damn mama's boy. 
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Maybe its because I live alone Me being sick is normally just me feeling miserable and dragging but I do the same stuff, include work unless Im very bad off. When I had food poisoning I couldnt walk well so I leaned up against the wall to get to the kitchen to get water and back to bed. |
Fevers are actually beneficial up to 104ºF They boost the immune system to help fight infection. Between 104-105ºF, they cause a high degree of discomfort but are not harmful. Over 105º you are subjected to a higher risk of getting bacterial infections. 108ºF fevers and higher can cause brain damage ... although the body temperature doesn't naturally rise that high unless affected by the ambient environment you're currently in. Your body has a built-in thermostat to prevent this from happening on it's own. |
How does the body stop it from going higher? |
There is a built-in temperature control in your brain, which controls blood flow to the skin, sweating and shivering that normally keeps our body temperature between 97.5 and 99.5. Fevers are caused by a chemical release of pyrogens from white blood cells that trigger the brain to increase the body's temperature. Pyrogen dissipation in the bloodstream is what regulates and ultimately causes fevers to break and reduce the body temperature to normal levels. |
Actually the only virus or bacteria that is truly affected by a human fever is syphilis and only barely. Personally, I don't turn into a baby and very rarely get sick, but my guess for why most men turn into babies is that maybe that's the only way to get a break.   Just kidding.......................or am I? 
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I don't, but I live alone too. Wouldn't really do me any good to act like that. I'd still have to go fix my own soup. I can tell you why my father used to do it. He said, and I witnessed, "If I'm even remotely capable of doing something, your mother is going to give me a whole list of shit to do. This means I don't have to do anything." |
Break?! He's been traveling for the last week, then when he came home, he immediately went down to the lease with the guys for a 'boys weekend'. He's got it made around here...the only thing he ever has to do is take out the trash, which I usually end up doing myself... |
Do what monthly? I don't see many women taking to the couch crying for popsicles and ginger ale on a monthly basis. If yours does, I feel sorry for you. Yes, men are absolute babies when they get sick. I think it's something about them wanting their mothers, and anything in the room with a vagina will do as a "mommy standin". |
Ladies get turned on by the strangest things...  We men are used to being able/expected to be able to handle things. Take that away, and it's...hard to take. |
Not as a mommy stand in but you're on the right track with the highlighted part. Personally, I get the impression that it's really the only acceptable time when we can act like that. Not necessarily a good reason, but it's really about the only time a guy can get pampered and spoiled without having his masculinity threatened. Purely pshychological. Or as in my fahter's case, an excuse to do nothing and not get nagged about it. As for me, I'm easy when I'm sick. Just leave me alone. I'm cranky, extrememly irritable, and have a VERY VERY short fuse for bull shit, when I'm sick. So it's really just better to leave me alone anyway. If you want to be nice, go to the store, buy me a couple cans of soup and drop them off. I'll cook it myself when I feel like eating it. You don't have to stay, and please, for the love of God, DON'T offer to "take care of me" or try to convince me that I need to stay home. I hate that! Fever, no fever, naseous, whatever, I don't care, as long as I can still move, I'm going to work. If I can work, then I don't need anyone to care of me. The day I end up as a quadraplegic (sp?) THEN you can take care of me. Deal? As for the other side of the coin, I noticed most women tend to be much more "nurturing" when their guy is sick. Quite frankly to the point of being overly picky and fussy about everything. "Here let me help you with that pillow." or "You should really cover up, hun." etc. Probably from dealing with too many "whiny sick guys" in their past, but damn that's annoying. That said though, women treat a guy like that and it's pretty safe to say he's going to act like it. (We've had these discussions before. People [men or women] WILL do what you let them do if you reward them for it.) |
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I have the opposite problem: Both my mom and sister are nurses, and they shift into full-nursey mode if you so much as sneeze. Thankfully, I get sick very very seldom. I had to (almost) threaten the Old Crone's life the last time I was sick, in order to make her leave me alone. ckmorley Note: "Old Crone" is a family joke.
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Not from you, Babe. I meant in general of course. 
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Thanks, dear.
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i have to agree with drache...if im sick and feeling horrible just leave me alone unless i ask for something. i like to be left alone and sleep as long as i can or just lay in bed, i dont wanna be up doing anything that i dont have to. frtloop learned this the hard way the last time i got sick(from drinking too much one nite ). all i wanted was to be left alone and she wanted to help me out. it was her first time seeing me like that and it scared her and i understand but when i say i'll be ok and to leave me alone thats what i want. it was a hard lesson learned for her but atleast she will know for next time.ETA: post 762 in the womens forum...isnt that great. also received the mags today that will hold my 7.62 when i get it...haha |
Yes...it scared the crap out of me. But that doesn't mean that if he gets sick I won't try and mother him to a point. I will make him food, tea, whatever...but that's because I love him 
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Here we are close to page 3. I was feeling bad Thursday night so I called in sick Friday. on day in three years. I sleep till nine with the heating blanket on. Get up take a shower, lay around the house. Saturday I feel ok so I clean and do a little shopping. Sunday is Super Bowl party and I drink to much so I felt sick Monday and made it in. Monday night I went home and crashed. Today I feel sick. Maybe I need to get someone to take care of me. |
If the body can regulate it's temperature, then why does it allow a fever to escalate so high that it does damage to the brain? How is that possible if it's failsafe? (BTW, i'm not being argumentative, I'm genuinely interested...  )
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When we are sick, whether from an infection or from other causes, our bodies "turn the temperature up". This actually helps when you have an infection: a fever helps your body get rid of bacteria and viruses, many of which will grow well at normal body temperatures but not at the higher temperature of a fever. Thus it's not always a good idea to try and bring down a fever all the way. |
I got that, I'm asking if the body has the ability to regulate it's temperature, then why would it let the temp get so high as to cause damage? |
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because the body will take whatever steps it deems necessary to survive, up to and including brain damage. this is easily seen in cases of hyperthermia, where to preserve the scant remaining resources of onboard water the body will stop sweating and eventually cook the brain. life must be preserved even if the life after that point isn't worth living. and back to the original question; if you have any sort of man in your life then you know that he RARELY gets sick but when he does it takes a lot to bring him down. Men also don't handle being helpless very well. +1 on the leave me the hell alone when I'm sick. I've lived with a nurse for 5 years (as of today HOORAY!) and she STILL won't leave me alone when I'm sick or have an owie. I get better medical attention at home then I did in the Army. 
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Thanks, Tweak, you're just a wealth of information...
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Then what is up with mine? He wants to be pampered and spoiled all the time...
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