Are you REALLY allergic to smoke?

[Blue-Jay]

Or do you just say that to make smokers feel guilty?

[NNadir]

1. After my father died of cancer, I couldn't stand to be around the stuff.

I tolerated it - didn't even mind it - all the time I was growing up, but I loved my father very much. To see how he died changed me psychologically. I am pyschologically allergic to tobacco smoke.

[LynneSin]

4. I know exactly how you feel - my father also died from cigerettes

And now living in a non-smoking state (Delaware) it's just torture being in a smoky bar. I still have a bad hack and I swear it's from the bars we were at in DC (still smoking)

[shanti]

35. my dad had half of one lung removed because of cancer sticks

about 4 years ago, and he's not doing too well at the moment. if i impress ANYTHING on my four sons, it is DON'T SMOKE TOBACCO! it's a killer. all but one have heeded my advice. i have never smoked ciggies, but both my sister and brother have for 30 years. i won't allow anyone to smoke in my house/car, it chokes me up.

did i mention, i hate cigarettes?

[Blue-Jay]

6. Two things:

First, I'm very sorry to hear about your father's untimely death. I wouldn't wish that on anyone, nor on their family. :hug:

Also, being "pyschologically allergic" to cig smoke seems to me to be a very valid thing. I hadn't thought of it in those particular terms before. Thanks for that input.

[TimeChaser]

2. Not 'allergic' exactly...

But it does aggravate my asthma

[Blue-Jay]

8. You get a "pass" for asthma.

If nothing else, I'm a very polite smoker.

[Robb]

3. I think I've pissed people off about this before

:evilgrin:

Technically it's not an allergy. Put simply, the reaction "allergic" people have to cig smoke is precisely normal.

Like shooting someone and calling it death by lead poisoning.;)

[sendero]

9. Actually..

... I think it is possible to have a classic allergic reaction to cigarette smoke.

I agree with you in principle, most people who claim "allergy" are probably not actually having such a reaction.

[Pithlet]

18. People can be allergic to cigarette smoke.

That is a fact. Cigarette smoke contains a number of chemicals. It isn't just one homogeneous irritant. To semantically split hairs and state that the smoke itself isn't an allergen is disingenuous.

[Robb]

34. I humbly disagree

You're right, cigarette smoke contains a number of chemicals, many of which are irritants.

People with other allergies are often more sensitive to those chemicals and irritants. They are equally likely to be irritated by other chemicals, which can cause chronic or acute damage to respiratory tissue in anyone.

Bad reaction to cigarette smoke is not immunologically based. It is not abnormal or inappropriate. It is not a pathological immune reaction to an antigen. It is not an allergic reaction.

It's not semantics, it's accuracy. FWIW, nicotine is actually immunosuppressive -- which explains why smokers rarely feel the effects.

[Midlodemocrat]

5. My mom died from smoking.

and I haven't actually been 'tested' to see if I test allergic, but I do get a stuffy nose immediately, and my throat gets scratchy and I get a headache. So I think I would probably qualify as allergic.

[lakemonster11]

28. It definitely aggravates my sinuses, especially

if I'm already congested at all.

I like going to bars and hanging out with my friends, but I usually beg off if they want to go someplace smoke-filled. It can be fun occasionally, in spite of the smoke, but it's usually more trouble than it's worth.

[sendero]

7. I was...

... but then I took to smoking 2-3 cigs a day and problem solved :)

[greatauntoftriplets]

10. My ophthamologist can confirm that I am allergic to smoke.

Also to air pollution and too much sun, which is why I always wear sunglasses and some kind of hat in sunny weather.

My eyes start to burn and several times, I have had a reaction in which I feel like someone is poking me in the eye. Also, blood vessels in the eye burst and the white turns red. Fortunately, there is medication to relieve both conditions.

[Blue-Jay]

13. I will never again smoke in your vicinity, my dear friend.

See? That was easy!

[greatauntoftriplets]

15. Don't worry, I deal with it....and you are a polite smoker.

You don't blow it in people's faces.

:hi:

[ZombieNixon]

11. I am genuinely allergic.

Tobacco smoke makes my throat swell shut and I can't breathe.

[strategery blunder]

12. I have really bad allergies

although technically, they do not include cigarette smoke (edit: though I've never been actually tested, I'm sensitive to poor air quality in general, especially in desert climates).

However, I hate the smell, and I know it can't be good for my lungs.

I fake asthma attacks when in close, unavoidable proximity to smokers. A few, the ones who give all smokers a really bad name, will blow their death stick fumes right in my face; when I try to move away, they follow me. By this point, I have visions of super soakers dancing through my head, that I may smite the evil smokers...:mad:

/end rant

[Blue-Jay]

14. Thank you for your honesty.

I appreciate it. I really do.

[miss_kitty]

16. Nicotine is a toxin

I am allergic to nicotine as I am to cyanide or arsenic. It causes an adverse reaction in my body. I smoked for decades, BTW. So I just let people smoke. I feel their pain

[Floogeldy]

39. Sugar is a toxin.

;)

[miss_kitty]

40. Dose makes the poison

It's something I learned in pesticide classes.

[Monkey see Monkey Do]

17. I can't resist posting this Bill Hicks quote

"Tell you the worst kind of non-smoker's the kind where you're smokin' and they just walk up to you... (starts coughing affectedly) I always say 'Shit, you're lucky you don't smoke. Thats's some cough you got there dude. I'm smoking you're coughing, wow.' Thats kind of cruel man, going up to a smoker and coughing. Shit! Do you go up to crippled people dancing too, you fucks? 'Hey Mr. Wheelchair, whats your problem? Come on ironside, race ya!'

[Blue-Jay]

22. Haha! I borrowed from Drew Carey* one time.

Some upright citizen once approached me while I was having a cig outside (OUTSIDE!), and told me "Ya know, smoking is bad for you. It'll kill ya."

I feigned shock and said made a spectacle out of vigorously snuffing my butt and said "What? REALLY?! Thanks, buddy! You may have just saved my life!"

That nearly started a fight, but I thought it was pretty funny at the time. :D




*this post is in no way to be considered an endorsement of Drew Carey, his comedy, or his politics. (so stop saying that!)

[Misunderestimator]

19. As someone who used to smoke... it does make me sneeze sometimes...

and can definitely stuff up my sinuses... but I wouldn't say I'm allergic.

[Blue-Jay]

25. Slightly off topic here...

Most of the vocal majors that I went to college (especially post-grad) with were smokers. I didn't start until grad school, and that was due in part to the fact that I always got drunk with the opera/theatre students. They threw the best parties.

[Pithlet]

20. Cigarette smoke stinks, and is an irritant.

Edit. People aren't just trying to offend smokers. Cigarette smoke is an irritant. I appreciate smokers who understand this and are considerate, and don't jump to conclusions that the person is just faking it.

[GirlinContempt]

21. I *love* the girl that comes to the bar I DJ at

and asks me to try and make sure the fog machine doesn't go off too much. 5 mins later she's smoking like crazy.

[obxhead]

23. Ha Ha Ha I had a friend...

who claimed to be alergic to smoke, yet would smoke about a half ounce of pot a day with no problems.

[Blue-Jay]

24. Pot smoke doesn't count.

or so I've been told. :eyes:

[obxhead]

26. you met him too huh?

:eyes:

[Missy Vixen]

27. According to our MD, yes

Being around cigarette smoke usually means an instant sinus infection for me, typically morphing into bronchitis within a few days. As a result, I don't go to bars, we haven't been to an arena-type rock concert in ten years, and nobody is allowed to smoke in our home.

I don't care if others smoke. I just don't want to have to breathe it. Since I'm the one who gets sick, I do my best to avoid being in places where there's a lot of it.

Julie

[XemaSab]

29. Hideous asthma

If you want to pay for me to go the ER, you're welcome to smoke around me.

[flamingyouth]

30. Yes, I am.

My parents first noticed the signs after I spent time with my chain-smoking grandfather. My eyes would almost swell shut. Now I just avoid smoky clubs/bars.

[Floogeldy]

31. LMAO. People smoked everywhere through much of the 70's.

I even smoked in class when I started college.

Bunch of anti-smoking wimps are out there, now.

;)

[shanti]

32. same thing with cats!!

people say they're allergic to them, but they really are afraid of them ("they're so sneeeeeeeky").

[Thtwudbeme]

33. I wish I had a nickel for every person that has diagnosed themselves

This country has turned into a bunch of pansy asses....or maybe we always were....I don't know.

But, I get so tired of the, "I am allergic to..." garbage.

Sorry for the rant; I have an anger problem this evening that is hurricane related.

btw---ya'll's (yes, that IS a word in the South) will probably be just gorgeous by the time you get on the plane, and I am equally sure that your location will be made good by then too-- :)

Thinking of weddings makes me smile, and I need that right now---

Stephanie

[bliss_eternal]

36. I've never claimed to be 'smoke allergic'...

what I do claim--which is true, is that smoke can trigger an allergic reaction or asthma attack.

I don't discriminate--all smoke is pretty bad for me, not just cigarette smoke. During horrible fires in California a few years ago, I got sick from all the residual smoke and ash in the air.

I do get peeved when others that don't have asthma or other breathing issues 'talk shit' and say things like 'it's all in our heads'--or 'it's not that bad.' (Yes--I heard this kind of crap during the fires). If you've ever not been able to breathe, that's really scary and very real.

I can't speak for others, but that's what the deal is for me. I try not to shame anyone for their behaviours. If I am in the presence of someone that feels the need to light up, I excuse myself.

[tyedyeto]

37. I call bullshit to those who claim they are allergic

I can't stand to be around those who lather themselves in perfumes and aftershave products but I never claim that I'm allergic.

[progmom]

38. ooooh - this is a first

a DU anti-allergy thread. fun stuff!

[fortyfeetunder]

41. The first god-awful sinus infection sealed the deal

It was disastrous. I spent my entire life (except at school) breathing second hand smoke from the family.

When I was 8 I was getting headaches. When I was a sophomore in high school, I was getting recurrences of bronchitis.

I was a sophomore in college (still at home) when I got this horrendous sinus infection, that migrated in my throat and made me unable to swallow. I was down for 2 weeks. The MD told me if I didn't get out of a second-hand smoke environment, I would be in trouble down the road.

[KitchenWitch]

42. Not technically an allergy

I have both asthma and radiation fibrosis of the lungs. Being around ciggy smoke can land me in the hospital.

[DanCa]

43. I get physically ill but i dont support bans

Today at dinner my parents and I went out they were directly blowing smoke in my face. I was getting ill from it. Note I dont support bans I just think it's the amount of smoke that make me ill and not one or two puffs. When I am by myself I sit in no smoking sections and that's fine enough for me. Besides I try to remain a neutreal in all things and I dont get in other people way if i can avoid it.

[terrya]

44. Nope. I don't mind cigarette smoke at all.

Doesn't bother me, any.

[Mutley]

45. I used to say that...

then I started smoking. :evilgrin:

[Callalily]

46. I loathe smoking

Can't stand to be around anyone who smokes. It's just disgusting and although I don't think I'm truly allergic, I get headaches, and my throat hurts. Smoking should be banned in every public area.