Thursday, June 10, 2010

The Man Cold

Just recently our family came down with a nasty chest cold. As I'm sure most people are aware, however - this is nothing compared to the man cold.



The man in question at our house moans on the couch, snuggled up on bed, sends moan texts and just moans in general really. Obviously having the same virus as the rest of the family is really taking it out on him, and as such, we should all be coddling him with sympathy, back rubs, and chicken soup...

Well, being the unsympathetic woman that I am, I decided to do a little research into the topic. Why is the man cold so much worse than a woman's?

The Infamous Man Cold

The truth? It's not. It is exactly the same virus with exactly the same symptoms. However, I did find out some information on perhaps why the male species seems to think that they are dying every time that they get a man cold.

  • It is scientifically proven that men are more likely to overrate their cold symptoms, one of the theories being that men have different ways of perceiving and reporting symptoms.
  • The symptoms are the same, men just respond differently.
  • Men are less likely to seek medical advice.
  • Being sick is seen by men as a green light to go ahead and let it all out. Moaning, whining, you name it. This is perhaps because men are not often given a chance in society to participate in this 'women's' activity. Therefore they take advantage of the man cold when they can.
  • Men who feel neglected or in need of some nurturing are also prone to taking advantage of the man cold to receive the attention they crave.

Urban Dictionary definitions of the man cold:

1. The name 'man cold' disguises the true, terrible, debilitating disease that is the 'man cold'. Nearly all men will die from man colds unless they are administered immediately with large amounts of mindless TV such as daytime TV or children's cartoons. It is essential that they not move from the bed or a comfy sofa to allow for rehabilitation, and must have tissues and 'man cold' medicine. ( Such as chocolate biscuits, McDonalds or a nice cup of tea.) All of which must also be administered to them constantly by a nearby female.

2. Only men get 'man colds'. They are the worst type of cold to get. They are near-fatal. Your man will not be able to lift a finger for two weeks... if you are lucky.


So after doing some reading on this topic (and of course, cooking dinner, doing the family's washing, cleaning up, watching the kids and putting them to bed ) I'm thinking I pulled the short straw when it comes to being a woman in a house full of sickness!

I might take a leaf out of the man's book and go put my feet up while watching rubbish television. And then demand medicine from a nearby male.... in the form of chocolate of course. :-)

1 comment:

  1. Haha love it. I have a culprit of the man cold of my own. Know how bad it gets! :)

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