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I shouted at the pharmacy staff today and I feel really shit about it

290 replies

lboogy · 12/09/2019 19:32

I went to boots to buy some lemsip and calpol for me D.C. and DH who are sick with cold.

The rule about not selling more than 2 paracetamol items applies. I've got 2 packs of lemsip, calpol and one pack of cold and flu tablets. Fine. In the past the staff just do 2 transactions.

I get to the till which is long. They call another member of staff to help out. Lady on the beauty counter tells me to come to her for service. Scans the calpol and lemsip and says I can't buy anything else since I've exceeded my 2 paracetamol limit. I said just split the transaction in 2. She says no she can't do that. If I want more than 2, I need to go to the pharmacy. I said if I left the store or even left the queue and came back I'd be able to buy those items again. She's like, I don't make the rules.

Fuming, I walk to the pharmacy. Pharmacist isn't there. Waited for 7 minutes. Even more annoyed I go back to the original queue. New staff says can't buy more than 2. I politely asked her to do 2 transactions. Nope, can't do she says. Before I know it, I'm shouting at her about this ridiculous rule and how I've now been in 3 different queues / tills trying to buy some bloody lemsip.

Anyway, she refuses to serve me. Walks off😡

Now new staff at the till: I said I'll pay for these 2 lemsip and re queue. I paid and walked back to the pharmacy with my 2 other lemsips where the pharmacist or possibly manager is serving. She said she was really sorry the staff are allowed to split the transaction. She doesn't know why they didn't. At this point I started crying - I guess being ill and the stupid staff not using their brain plus finally being validated set me off.

Anyway, now I'm gone and I feel really shit for shouting at the staff. I remember being on the texting end of terrible customers and it's awful. I want to go back and apologise to the staff member but at the same time I'm pissed that 3 different people lacked the ability to use their brain over some bloody lemsip!

OP posts:
cricketmum84 · 12/09/2019 21:11

Not the original question I know but I do think this rule is ridiculous. One shop refusing to sell more than 2 boxes of paracetamol is not going to prevent suicide... if you are that desperate you will just go to 5 different shops!

youarenotkiddingme · 12/09/2019 21:12

It is a stupid rule and I don't see how it works with suicide prevention.

Me and ds went on holiday recently and he gets pain due to muscular disorder and needs liquid/sociable/chewable and I wanted to top up tablets for me in case I needed them.

I went to boots, savers and then Superdrug all with 30m of each other die to the rules.

However ..... I agree that you should apologise. It's awful for the poor people stuck behind the tills having to remember umpteen different rules and apply them.

Hike you feel better soon. Colds just make you feel horrid Thanks

londonrach · 12/09/2019 21:13

Stress can make you a nasty person so im sure it just a one off as if you do realise if the staff had done what you demanded they lose their job. Hope everyone better soon

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RosesAndRaindrops · 12/09/2019 21:15

@goodwinter Personal attacks and talk guidelines I'd have thought Smile

Quartz2208 · 12/09/2019 21:16

The lady on the beauty counter could not split it but a pharmacist could its the rules.

and they were using their brain lemsip plus cold and flu equals bad

Its not JUST about deliberate overdosing its about accidental when people are not aware just how dangerous it could be

SuperSara · 12/09/2019 21:17

@doublesheesh

The pharmacist was WRONG if that is truly what they said.

The staff were doing their jobs properly.

GemmeFatale · 12/09/2019 21:22

The walking between shops is shown to reduce these types of suicides.

It’s also the reason paracetamol is in blister packs not bottles. The time taken to ‘pop’ each pill is shown to reduce suicide rates.

BadBehaviour · 12/09/2019 21:23

We are make mistakes Op, of it’d make you feel better just go back & day I just want to apologise for how I acted yesterday, I was stressed/unwell and I’m sorry for the way I acted x

Oldraver · 12/09/2019 21:25

YABU for buying Lemsip...why buy this shit ?

Aridane · 12/09/2019 21:27

FFS - if I lost the plot like you did and behaved in an utterly cuntsome way and burst into tears, never mind apologising, I wouldn't darken their doors again

ArthurMorgan · 12/09/2019 21:28

I remember a woman reducing me to tears about this exact same issue. The only difference is though that I was the cashier...

It's not all about you and your cold, op.

redredrobins · 12/09/2019 21:29

These stupid rules is why when on holiday in the USA I buy a bottle of 200 Tylenol (paracetamol).

redredrobins · 12/09/2019 21:30

They don't assume everybody is suicidal over there!

GabsAlot · 12/09/2019 21:31

I had by accident 3 packeds of para in my trolley it wouldnt scan and i wasnt allowed to do it another transaction so the pharmacist is wrong

Dyrne · 12/09/2019 21:35

Why are people calling it a Stupid and Pointless rule? When the restrictions were first brought in it reduced paracetamol suicides by 43% - that doesn’t sound Stupid or Pointless to me...

Having even to pop next door gives that bit extra time to think, to reconsider, for someone to ask “are you ok?”

greyspottedgoose · 12/09/2019 21:35

I wouldn't risk my job to serve you more than we are ALLOWED to sell, and if you started getting ratty with me security would have removed you, sorry you're feeling shitty and hopefully you feel better soon but you where out of order

NerrSnerr · 12/09/2019 21:35

They don't assume everybody is suicidal over there!

There were 6507 deaths attributed to suicide in the UK last year (there'll be more that were attributed to other things like misadventure etc). Is a rule that tried to reduce that number really 'stupid'? If one of your family members wanted to end their life and tried to buy a load of paracetamol would you think the rule was stupid?

Templetonstunafish · 12/09/2019 21:36

@Quartz2208 I had no idea about that! Thank you for the information. It's actually quite scary how dangerous paracetamol are. I read once that if they were licensed now there's no way they'd be available over the counter.

OP YABU, it's so horrible and dehumanising o be shouted at by a customer for doing your job. If you are actually contrite, which honestly you don't sound, you should take in a box of biscuits for the break room or something nice like that.

raskolnikova · 12/09/2019 21:37

They don't assume everybody is suicidal over there!

Confused

They didn't assume anyone would get hooked on prescription opioids either and look how that turned out. I'm not sure we should be looking to the USA as an example of how many meds to sell people.

SherbetSaucer · 12/09/2019 21:37

@lboogy you honestly sound like such a shitty entitled person. The staff were following the rules and you treated them like shit. If I was the Manager on shift I’d have banned you from the store for trying to encourage staff the flout the rules that are there to prevent suicide and accidental overdose.

You absolutely owe them an apology but from looking at your attitude in some of the responses I don’t think they’ll get one from you! Hmm

maidenover · 12/09/2019 21:45

I’ve never heard of these paracetamol rules before, are they just in England?

FattyPeddledFuriously999 · 12/09/2019 21:49

A lot of the people on this thread are being rude and shitty and attacking the OP, not sure it makes you much better, did none of you RTWT or could you just not resist being the 100th person to repeat the same thing...

OP you are human, had a bad day and got stressed, feel remorseful albeit still frustrated, one day if you keep trying you will no longer make mistakes like the righteous people on this thread.

FattyPeddledFuriously999 · 12/09/2019 21:51

@sherbertsaucer - you sound equally as shitty.

NorfolkRattle · 12/09/2019 21:52

Saucery. Some people do overdose on paracetamol in the way you describe, by visiting several pharmacies, etc. A determined person who has thought it out carefully will not be deterred. But deaths from paracetamol poisoning have decreased since this rule was brought in, largely because it has become that little bit harder to overdose on impulse. Another reason for the decrease is, you can no longer buy a bottle of 50 or 100 tablets.