Fragrance Allergy is a Disability
The past 5 days I've struggled with fragrances and each day has been worse than the last. This allergy is becoming a serious disability for me. Each of the scenarios below gave me at least a couple of the following: headache, scratchy/burning throat and lungs, sneezing, congestion, and brain fog.
Here is a link from the Environmental Working Group for anyone who is interested in learning about why artificial fragrances are toxic.
I've decided I need to keep talking about this issue. Some people just don't realize how damaging these substances can be. Some people’s noses have been damaged enough by these chemicals that they have to use more and more to even register the smell in their brain. It's like building up a tolerance to a drug. For many, these are chemicals that are “sensitizers” which makes us more sensitive to the effects the more we are exposed to them. This is why it has gotten worse for me as I've gotten older.
Even if these substances don't seem to bother you, if someone mentions they are allergic it is so appreciated if you can avoid them in their presence.
Monday: Two out of five people in a large room had fragrances during a meeting. I kept scooting my chair further away from them throughout the meeting with my laptop for fresh air. One of the people knows about my sensitivities so I'm sure she realized what I was doing but I haven't talked to the other person yet.
Tuesday: a student stopped by my office to pick something up and my office smelled like her fragrances for a half an hour. A colleague has some “autumn” scented stuff in her office that I can smell from down the hall.
Wednesday: I cut my finger and needed a ride to urgent care and all four of my colleagues who kindly jumped up and offered me a ride had air fresheners in their cars. I chose the one with the oldest air “freshener” (1 year old) and it was still unbearable to me.
Thursday: Attended a meeting that had at least three out of ten people who had strong fragrances. I had asked the person who reserved the room ahead of time to pick a large one because I knew of at least one colleague who uses a laundry detergent I'm allergic to - and then the person running the meeting moved tables around so we were packed in close to each other (I need to talk to this person).
Thursday night: In class where the instructor has already kindly requested fragrance free for everyone for me, two out of eight of the people there had fragrances.
Friday: We had someone in our house and their laundry detergent was super strong. . It took over the whole main level, even with windows open.
Sometimes it feels like nowhere is safe.
In my class Thursday I felt an overwhelming sense of being high maintenance. Lights are too bright, sounds are too loud, I'm allergic to fragrances. It can be so frustrating living life as a highly sensitive person. I'm trying so hard to accept and appreciate my sensitivities, but it's a huge challenge. I really don't like asking other people to change their behavior just to be around me, but when it impacts my health I need to keep speaking up.
Maybe I need to live in a bubble with oxygen that keeps the air I breathe purified. I am considering getting an air purifier for my office at least.
