What a silly concept!! Of course, women can get Man-Flu! So how come I’ve never seen it happen? I’ve yet to come across an actual case. Have you ever seen a woman with a simple
What a silly concept!! Of course, women can get Man-Flu!
So how come I’ve never seen it happen? I’ve yet to come across an actual case. Have you ever seen a woman with a simple head cold or a mild bout of flu go through the same symptoms as a man? No? Never? Well, nor have I.
I’ve never seen a woman, after one or two sneezes or little coughs, complain about her body being run over by a steam roller, or have such a pounding headache that even the neighbours ask her to tone it down. I’ve never seen a woman collapse into a little whimpering heap on her bed demanding the attention of specialist doctors, or at least, the undivided attention of her spouse. I have never heard of a woman demanding that a dedicated courier service be hired to ship copious amounts of medication right to their bedside. I have yet to hear of a women not being able to get up and make herself a cup of tea because all her joints are either frozen in agony, or are simply not responding to what her brain is telling them.
And how about all those responsibilities that women are so keen to take on and not relinquish to anyone else because no one can do it quite like they do? If they had Man-Flu, who would make breakfast for the healthy males in the home? Who would clean up afterwards, do the washing, ironing, shopping, take the kids to school, swimming, extra reading, rugby, tennis, dancing? Who would make sure the kids have lunch, covered books, the right kit for all those after school activities, an extra tissue and some tuck, or at least some money to buy something nice from the tuck shop? And isn’t it obvious that there is no one else who can do what they do? So, they tell themselves, stop fooling around and get up, get on with it and do it!
So whose fault is it that women can’t get Man-Flu? It’s theirs and theirs alone! And it’s simply because they don’t allow themselves to! They always have just one or two more things to do before they can get as sick as their men counterparts. There is always something that Superwoman has to attend to first. And of course, there is always Mother’s voice ringing in their heads with “Do your duty! Remember to wear matching underwear…! Do your duty! Keep your home spotless! Do your duty!” and so on.
And because the ladies can’t get Man-Flu, this means that when they feel a cold coming on, or a little cough, or some stiffness in their joints; they can’t immediately claim to have Man-Flu! They can’t curl up in bed, feel really sorry for themselves, call for lemon and/or hot chocolate drinks, take total control of the TV remote, whimper, and even weep and wail if the situation so demands it (which is most times since after all, Man-Flu is a national emergency!) They couldn’t claim, rightfully or otherwise, that no one, NO ONE in the whole world has ever been under such a severe attack from those dreaded Man-Flu germs. They couldn’t justifiably say that if they did make it through this, it WOULD be a miracle. They couldn’t demand to be left alone, or demand to have company (as long as they’re quiet!),change their mind about this regularly and as the whim grabs them, demand an abundance of sympathy, and announce that no one understands what they are going through, all in their last gasping dying breath!
But, Ladies, do yourselves a favour! Try Man-Flu once or twice and you’ll see it not nearly as bad as men make it out to be. Get into bed at the first sign of sniffles or sore joints. Curl up, look pathetic, sound pathetic and act pathetic! It will give you some time off, a well-earned and well-deserved rest. A cup of hot chocolate in bed. Total and uninhibited control over the TV remote. Maybe some flowers? You may even get some sympathy (although you shouldn’t count on this last benefit!)
But most importantly, it will get your man off his butt and force him to do at least some of the myriad of things you do every day as a matter of course. He will have to make sure there is enough food in the house and then prepare meals; feed himself, the kids and even the pets. He will have to make sure the kids get to school looking decent, and on time! One way or another, he will need to provide clean clothes, do the kids homework with them, put them to bed, and do all these thing BEFORE he sits down with a cold one to watch some football or ruggers.
And maybe, just maybe, he may even realize what a good deal he has in you!