Third degree phoning in sick

[Pinkpowerofthought]

I've been at my work for a year now. No sick days previously.
I phoned in this morning with flu and said I won't be in because I have flu.
My work is super busy this time of year so is a pita for them but I phoned at 6.30am.

They asked about my flu symptoms and said maybe it's just a head cold. Um no if it was a head cold I could just muddle on. I've got sore throat, headache, swollen eyes and achey muscles. I also feel really sick and have pains in my stomach.
They suggested I call them at lunch time to see if I can come in tomorrow and they can find something for me to do even if it means something lighter.
Aibu to think they were totally unsupportive, pressuring me to come in before I'm better and making me feel like I was exaggerating my symptoms?
They asked if I was going to see a doctor. I told them bed rest and fluids would be all he would tell me to do.
Aibu to think this was ridiculous?

Surely though there are different versions of the flu, like some people would get it worse than others?

Even if she is not writing her will, it could still be the flu.

Nurse, so not as qualified as the doctor above but it sounds like flu to me. Please ignore the idiots saying it can't possibly be it, not every strain of flu is identical, nor does it cause the same symptoms with each individual. Get well soon op.

Well not everyone dies of flu so presumably some strains are worse than others. I had flu about 14 years ago at Christmas and I felt truly awful but managed to drag myself out of bed and "do" Christmas. I still doubt the people who get it twice a year.

it's not just the strain of flu but also how well you are. some people with underlying conditions/elderly/etc are more likely to get more I'll than someone generally fit & well

Yes of course but some strains kill the young and fit as well. I think everything in life is on a spectrum and you can get the mild or aggressive form of anything from cancer to flu.

I’ve posted on here before about the boss I had when I was pregnant with dd and was in HDU with sepsis. She asked me for a ‘guarantee’ that I wouldn’t be sick again during my pregnancy.

She also harassed me when I was off work, with text messages and phone calls to find out when I’d be back, where my sick line was, who my husband had handed it to, etc. Utter twat.

I sympathise, OP!

If it was flu you would not have the energy to be on here posting. That said you can feel really grotty even with a cold.

I wonder what managers who do this are expecting to achieve? Do they really think the employee will go, 'oh do you know what now you've questioned me I will actually be in work'
It's just s way to exert power and to make an adult who is ill feel even worse when they should be getting better.
If there is a question over the validity of the illness do it in the Return to work meeting or something.

I offered to go into work when I had noro although I hadn't been 'ill' for 24 hours at this point but still felt awful. I was told I would be escorted out if I went in. This was a black Friday weekend in retail.
That is how you manage people by respecting that as they are humans not robots, they will sometimes be unwell.

Just needed to rant.

If it was flu you would not have the energy to be on here posting.

YOU crimsonlake might not have the energy, but other people will. And that's assuming that all the strains of flu are identical, which.. they are not.

If it was flu you would not have the energy to be on here posting. That said you can feel really grotty even with a cold.

You must have missed the posts from medical professionals saying that she could well have flu.

Or you're being deliberately obtuse.

crimsonlake ignores all previous posts .....

I actually read all posts Painting byNumbers. It is a fact that if you have flu you could not bend down and pick up a five pound note. I was not implying that the poster was well enough to work, I was debating whether it was flu or not as others on here were doing. I suggest perhaps you did not read my post correctly yourself.

It is a fact that if you have flu you could not bend down and pick up a five pound note

Please can you supply a source for that? Maybe from the HNS website?

OP - your employer is unreasonable. And you are not obliged to disclose any information about your illness. It's confidential and they have no right to ask. If they do, you don't have to go into detail. Just say you feel unwell, end of story.

It is a fact that if you have flu you could not bend down and pick up a five pound note.

If this was true, then how would children survive when their parent has the flu, lasting for a week or so?

You don't have to justify yourself because you felt like lying down for a week or so whilst someone else had to get on with it somehow.

I did have the flu, on my own, with young children. They survived very well , were fed, watered, nappies changed, and they watched a lot of tv!

If you are using ‘fact’ as a synonym for ‘myth’, I suppose that could be right.

Read but not inwardly digested perhaps then

Sorry but it's not flu. If you had flu you wouldn't be on mumsnet. You wouldn't even be able to manage that! You know the old adage that if you would get out of bed to pick up a ten pound note off the floor then it's not flu!!

You sound like you have a horrid cold. I wouldn't want you in. But be honest. Upping the stakes to flu makes it less believable.

I have jumped swathes of posts just to reply to this one:

DailyMailReadersAreThick - Why are you all parroting this myth you heard on the internet? Severity of symptoms is irrelevant. About 30% of people with flu have NO symptoms at all (they're the ones who spread it around). Very few people with it will be so ill that they can't get out of bed.

Daily Mail readers may well be thick and I suppose according to you, what with your superior internet research, so is the NHS advice line?

www.nhs.uk/conditions/flu/symptoms/

Main symptoms
Flu can give you any of the followingsymptoms:
a sudden fever– a temperature of 38C (100.4F) or above
a dry, chestycough
a headache
tiredness and weakness
chills
aching muscles
limb orjoint pain
diarrhoeaorabdominal (tummy) pain
nausea and vomiting
a sore throat
a runny or blocked nose
sneezing
loss of appetite
difficulty sleeping
Is it flu or a cold?
It can sometimes be difficult to tell if you have flu or just a cold, as the symptoms can be quite similar. The main differences are:
Flu symptoms:
come on quickly
usually includefever and aching muscles
make you feel too unwell tocontinueyour usual activities
Cold symptoms:
come ongradually
mainly affect your nose and throat
are fairly mild, so you can still get around and are usually well enough to go to work

Can all the armchair doctors please give it a rest now, it’s very tiresome

OP if you’re still feeling ill, do not go in tomorrow. You need rest, and consecutive days would count as one instance of sick.

I had a boss who demanded to know how long I was going to be ill and when I would be back. When I was put on a waiting list for surgery she insisted that I tell the consultant that I could only go into hospital during my annual holiday. I said I would need ten weeks off afterwards and she said that was not possible, I must return to work after three weeks!
Bullying at work is alive and well.

Sounds awful OP. I don't think it's helpful to pass comment on whether it's flu or not. Loads of flu-like viruses can make you feel crap for weeks.

I'm worried that you'll go back to work tomorrow and make yourself more ill. Be firm, keep repeating you are too ill to work. No way should your day off count as sickness and this should only be one instance. May be helpful to email work when you feel up to it and clarify their sickness policy then run it by a union.

If you could take tomorrow off then rest Friday and the weekend you'll have a better chance of getting better. Worst thing to do in your active job would be to go in tomorrow.

I had an X who told me I didn't have flu every year for the first 5 years of my life, because you don't throw up with flu. I wished he could have argued with my childhood GP.

Your employers are cunts. Just keep telling them you can't come in.

Get well soon Pinkpower.

@Splinterz I posted a link earlier to a page on the NHS site that showed more than 75% of people with flu have no symptoms, with research links, etc.

You might find it interesting.

I had a certain supermarket phone me (before mobiles) to check I was home. I didn't answer (in bed) and got accused of not being in the house so must be faking when I went back.