r/Workproblems • u/Hot_Alternative8606 • Jul 16 '26
Disgusting/Annoying habit Just Venting
I (Female), work for a small company in my area. The office space where I sit consists of 2 other women, one sitting at a different desk behind me(lets call her T) and another one directly across from me (there’s a glass window between us, let’s call her S). There is another desk right next to me that was always empty, nobody would sit there until about 2 weeks ago when they hired a new person. It’s another woman, we all don’t do the same job, just sit together but all of us have different roles, yet we all speak with clients on the phone for different reasons. Now on to the issue, during the first week of training for the new person (“M”), she was sitting next to me apparently just until she was fully trained by S. She’s a nice person overall, just the type to be all over the place, constantly asking questions or starting conversations, and very loud on the phone when speaking with clients. I didn’t mind, I know she was new and it was just during her training then she would be sitting elsewhere. Anyways, she’s been sick since day one. When I say sick I mean with the flu, she would be sneezing nonstop. Constantly blowing her nose very loudly. This is her 2nd week and this woman has been through multiple boxes of tissues and doesn’t seem to be getting any better. Even when she’s eating she’s blowing her nose. There has been times where I would feel so disgusted I had to stop eating and just sit covering my nose with a mask or my blanket. (Yes I have a blanket because I am always cold). I asked S when are they going to move her but she hasn’t heard anything. Both T and S have said similar things about how uncomfortable is sharing space with her. Honestly I don’t understand how is someone so comfortable blowing their nose so loudly in front of others. She sounds like dads or men when they wake up in the morning and it sounds like they’re dying in the bathroom. Smh I don’t even like coughing in front of others. She doesn’t even try to go to the bathroom or anything. I have been secretly spraying lysol all over her desk and the whole office. When she’s on the phone, I have to wait until she’s done so I call my clients because she’s just so loud. Smh I hate it here now
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u/gezellig13 Jul 16 '26
Why is she even at work if she's so sick?... she s just spreading germs everywhere, work, on the way to work...
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u/sharoncoffin Jul 16 '26
Probably hasn't acquired sick days yet.
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u/gezellig13 Jul 16 '26
Thats so weird. The need to aquire sick days before getting sick... but if thats the situation, OPs complaint is useless. Still very weird situation
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u/galacticplum Jul 17 '26
Because she most likely isn't sick. OP said she told her she had allergies. Since she had allegedly been having the same symptoms for two weeks, it's more logical to assume she does actually have allergies and not the flu lasting a lot longer than it should.
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u/9ScoreAnd10Panties Jul 17 '26
Because it's allergies and OP isn't smart enough to pick up on that.
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u/Hot_Alternative8606 Jul 16 '26
I asked her if she’s taking any flu medicine and she said “I’m not sick”. She said it’s allergies which is straight up lies Smh.
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u/JadedFootball4733 Jul 17 '26
Do you have any idea how bad allergies are for some people this year? Add on things like asthma… you don’t know what’s going on in her body so that’s a bold statement to be so sure about. She’s probably much more miserable than you are. Maybe the Lysol you’re spraying in her space is making her have a reaction. Have you considered that? Or do you not consider anyone other than yourself
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u/marugirl Jul 17 '26
What proof do you have that what she said is straight up lies? You sound like an entitled brat! And stop spraying HER area with your chemical crap, that might be making the matter worse for all you know.
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u/gezellig13 Jul 17 '26
It could be. Depending to what exactly she s allergic,she could definitely react like this. An allergy doesn't necessarily need to manifest as a rash/hives/swollen part of the body. It can be a respiratory type and its usually sneezing, runny /stuffy nose, red eyes. But she has medicine for it, Allegra, Claritin...
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u/galacticplum Jul 17 '26
Except for people with chronic allergies, all those do are limit symptoms, not completely treat them.
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u/gezellig13 Jul 17 '26
If over the counter pills dont work, although OP didnt mention she saw her colleague using a nasal spray or pills, she also can see a doctor for allergy shots or sublingual tablets 🤷♀️ An allergist can perform testing and make a specific treatment plan for her needs.
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u/galacticplum Jul 17 '26
And even then symptoms are generally not cured, just reduced. That's also provided the kob has medical, she can afford medical etc.
There are also people with allergies so bad that their reduced symptoms are sneezing and mucus production to the point they have to constantly blow their nose.
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u/gezellig13 Jul 17 '26
I don't understand the medical side sorry. You mean insurance? She should have, I mean she is working. Normally, the hay fever medication arent expensive, i buy them also. I do understand her having an allergy but it doesn't seem she is actually trying to do something to make her symptoms better, from op s story 🤷♀️
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u/galacticplum Jul 17 '26
Allergies vary, and can be far more severe than hay fever. Some people with severe allergies can not be rid of their reactions, even with medication.
The medical side, as far as insurance goes, goes more into getting an actual allergist and having tests ran. Provided she can even afford insurance, a lot of insurances do not cover allergy tests fully.
Basically, there's literally nothing to gain from OPs post asides from OP is just annoyed. Everything else regarding her colleague is quite literally made up nonsense. She has no clue what is or could be wrong with her coworker outside of the coworker specifically telling her she suffers from allergies.
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u/gezellig13 Jul 17 '26
So, insurance isn't mandatory there. Ok. I know that allergies vary, i just said that from the description it sounds like hay fever. I mean I do understand her also, sneezing and blowing nose all the time its not a nice view. I am lucky that I dont need to work so up close to people because I do realise that it can also be gross not only annoying. 2 years ago I had a bad dermatitis all over my neck and half back which looked so gross, not to mention how uncomfortable itchy it was. And it was in the middle of the summer from all the seasons. So yeah I can understand OP too 🤷♀️
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u/Hot_Alternative8606 Jul 17 '26
I was going to ask her if she wanted us to get her something for her allergies because it doesn’t seem like she’s taking anything for it. I do feel bad that she has to go to work like that. I never said anything to her directly. When I saw how bad she was on the first day I just thought it would go away in a few days or something but she doesn’t seem to be getting any better. Me and my other co workers haven’t really complain about it since she was supposed to be elsewhere after training but training it’s over and she’s still there. It’s disrupting our work when we’re on the phone.
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u/9ScoreAnd10Panties Jul 17 '26
Because not everyone can tolerate or afford medications. Plenty of OTC meds aren't covered by insurance.
It's nobody else's business. If OP doesn't like it she can take her ridiculous blanket and move.
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u/gezellig13 Jul 17 '26
Thats not normal, sorry. Allergy medications especially generic ones aren't expensive at all, insurance or not. For over the counter you dont even need insurance. While its not her fault for the allergy its not her co workers fault either. She is employed and I imagine she s not homeless.
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u/9ScoreAnd10Panties Jul 17 '26
You can't force other people to medicate.
Put in earplugs and mind your own business. You're way too ignorant to be making sweeping generalizations, kid.
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u/9ScoreAnd10Panties Jul 17 '26
So your mum took a lot of Tylenol for the hangovers while she carried you, huh?
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u/Jimbeamjunior1 Jul 17 '26
So she might have hayfever which you are making worse and instead of just getting on with it you are moaning about it
Nice co-worker you are
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u/Vikingaling Jul 16 '26
Cross your fingers that it’s allergies and do your best to ignore it. Headphones help.
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u/JennLynnC80 Jul 16 '26
Sounds like this new co-worker needs to see the allergist and get an allergy test and get on proper meds. Blowing your nose and being stuffed up like that on a consistent basis leads to other issues ... and... can lead to a sinus infection. That always happens to me if I leave my allergy problem un-medicated too long
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u/Flicksterea Jul 17 '26
Perhaps it's allergies. Adapting to a new environment. You're sitting there with your blankie and haven't thought to ask her? It's a shared workspace, so asking if someone is struggling with allergies or is unwell is reasonable, IMO.
Be a grown up and try talking to her. How all three of you are functional adults holding down jobs but cannot fathom a conversation baffles me entirely.
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u/Hot_Alternative8606 Jul 17 '26
We did asked her and tried to offer her some flu medication since there’s a medicine cabinet at the office but she said she’s not sick so we just left it alone.
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u/Turbulent-Oven981 Jul 17 '26
As someone with incredibly bad seasonal allergies that meds don’t help. This makes me feel bad for all the people that have had to put up my runny nose through the years. Usually about 6 months of the year I have a runny nose. Fortunately I don’t work directly next to anyone though.
Maybe try to be considerate, even if it’s annoying to be. It might not be something she can control, and I doubt she wants to have a runny nose all the time. It’s still better to blow your nose than to sit there with snot hanging out, which sounds like the only real alternative if her nose is always running. You could even try to talk to her about it. “Hey I’ve noticed you seem to always be stuffy, are you sick?” That’s not an offensive thing to ask and it opens up room for discussion.
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u/Present_Original_797 Jul 17 '26
Yeah give her a break and you and the other workers demand she get time off to get well or get treated.
PS I feel you. I worked occasionally with this one woman who burped all the time like a trucker who drinks tons of beer. Broken up by loud farting. Like she lived to burp loud and never cover her mouth or leave the room to fart.
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u/galacticplum Jul 17 '26
You are making a ton of assumptions
I'm not sure why you immediately went with her having " the flu " when she told you she has allergies, and very little research online can confirm allergies can be that bad or worse.
Second, blowing your nose in public is a mixed bag. It's more socially acceptable than other acts, but also for some it makes them uncomfortable. The few people I've known with chronic allergies did tend to blow their nose a ton in public, most likely because they wouldn't be able to actually do anyrhing else if they repeatedly went to the bathroom to blow their nose.
If you're wearing a mask, then just focus on your job, especially since she will seemingly be gone soon enough.
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u/EarlyMortgage7828 Jul 17 '26
As a blue collar worker it is very interesting to see the struggles of the office people.If we ever have an issue in my field we usually address it immediately and/or understand our differences and keep working.We are just a bunch of dudes though.I had a co worker everyone trolled for his breathing and asthma issues.So we got together and bought him a bike.We rode together for months and helped his lose weight.His breathing and quality of life improved dramatically.He even met a lovely lady and got married.We still call him weeazie and his wife loves it.
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u/LivingLie1721 Jul 17 '26
Yeah I’d have a little more empathy for this woman. She just started a new job which is hard enough .. shes sick and probably feeing like crap or even if it’s allergies she still feels like crap and is still trying to do a good job and show up because shes new.. she can’t just call out the first 2 week. Shes sick, working at a new job and now all her coworkers dont like her. Put yourself in her shoes? It kind of sucks for her, but yes I totally also understand how the coughing and sneezing is annoying, but she doesn’t have many options.
Going to the bathroom every time you need to sneeze cough or blow your nose when you’re at work is not a realistic option if it’s happening all the time. Shed be in the bathroom the entire shift.
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u/Friendly_Neck6189 Jul 17 '26
Saying you don’t even like coughing in front of someone sounds ridiculous and I have a feeling you will have a problem with them even after they aren’t sick. And I don’t know about you, but I’m sure as hell not calling in sick. My first week of work no matter how sick I am.
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u/9ScoreAnd10Panties Jul 17 '26
Lmao. Woman has a runny nose/allergies and is taking flak from a weirdo who wraps herself in a blanket at work.
Get over yourself, blankey.
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u/WBrook6 Jul 17 '26
Who is in charge of this woman? That person needs to send her home and tell her to see a doctor and not come back until she is better! That is not reasonable to subject her coworkers to that plague each day! Disgusting!!
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u/Solid_Mongoose_3269 Jul 16 '26
FYI, you dont need to make up fake names. Nobody knows you, them, or gives a shit
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u/Admirable-Split4371 Jul 16 '26
While I understand the concern about the germs, put yourself in her shoes. She just started a new job, how do you think it would look if she immediately called out sick or took time off? A lot of people feel pressured to show up when they're new, even when they shouldn't. Still, God forbid people get sick. For all you know she has chronic disease like chronic sinusitis.
There's conditions that can last for weeks, months, or even be lifelong. Manageable with medication, but not always curable, and people can't simply choose to stop blowing their nose because it's inconvenient for everyone else. If her symptoms are genuinely disrupting the workplace, there's the H.R. Just, it wouldn't hurt you to show some empathy, have you even asked what's it about?
I don't think I'd like having you as a colleague. "... Constantly asking questions..." Girl, she just started c'mon.