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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To go to work after being sick?

28 replies

Flairhead · 26/12/2018 06:54

So with yesterday being Christmas and me being by myself, I decided to have a fry up for breakfast. As I was about to cook the bacon, I noticed it was a couple of days out of date. I sniffed it, it smelled a little funky but I decided it was probably fine.

The rest of the day went smoothly, I watched TV, had a bath, read my new book, ate some chocolate and later went to a friend's for dinner. After I got home I finished my chocolate and went to bed. My stomach felt a little funny but I'd had a big dinner so put it down to that.

Woke up at about 2am, stomach feeling weird. Went to the bathroom, vomited, cleaned myself up and went back to bed. I now feel fine. I reckon the iffy bacon was the cause.

I'm due to go in to work later today. I'm not infectious and feel absolutely fine now, but since I've been sick, WIBU to go in? I'd feel bad if i didn't as there's only three of us in my team working today and I'm not sure how busy we'll be. What does everyone think?

OP posts:
OhioOhioOhio · 26/12/2018 06:57

Id go but not mention it at all.

Jammysod · 26/12/2018 07:00

If you're sure your fine, i'd probably go... Work would be more annoyed at me being off than potentially spreading germs.

Puggles123 · 26/12/2018 07:04

As long as you know it’s not a bug and you feel okay then I would go in.

FixTheBone · 26/12/2018 07:05

Depends on what your job is.

If you work on a paediatric intensive care unit, or flying a jet airliner, probably don't go in.

If you clean an office for a living, its probably not going to be a disaster if you have to leave half-way through the day.

AnyOldPrion · 26/12/2018 07:11

If the vomiting was due to bacterial toxins in the bacon, the vomiting would have occurred sooner. So it’s quite possible there is an infectious cause for your vomiting.

There’s a good chance it won’t spread as long as you’re very careful with hygiene. Whether you should go in or not depends what your job is.

Original poster
Flairhead · 26/12/2018 07:14

I work in an office. Normally with quite a few other people but with it being boxing day there's a lot less people in.

OP posts:
ElizabethMainwaring · 26/12/2018 07:16

Like pp said, if the bacon was at fault, you would have been sick sooner.

adaline · 26/12/2018 07:23

Please don't go to work and potentially spread a vomiting bug around the place! It's so selfish - stay home and keep your germs to yourself!

Why risk making loads of other people sick over Christmas just because you "feel fine" a few hours after spewing everywhere?

NeedAUsernameGenerator · 26/12/2018 07:27

It may not have been the bacon, if you cooked it thoroughly and it tasted ok it could quite possibly be a virus. 2 days out of date isn't that much for a highly preserved product like bacon.

AnyOldPrion · 26/12/2018 07:29

Are you desperate to go to work? Will you be in trouble or lose wages for not going in? Personally I’d stay home, but I recognise it does depend on your circumstances. Can you work from home?

Original poster
Flairhead · 26/12/2018 07:33

No, I wouldn't be in trouble or anything. Not possible to work from home though. I've always thought it can take several hours for out of date food to make you sick, am I wrong about that? I was sick about 15 hours after I ate it.

OP posts:
GaryBaldbiscuit · 26/12/2018 07:35

why did you eat funky smelling out of date bacon??

Original poster
Flairhead · 26/12/2018 07:48

Because i thought it would be fine. I'm not someone who throws away food if I think it's okay, despite the date. It's possible I was wrong on this occasion. That said, now I've been up for a while my tummy does feel a little delicate, so maybe I should play safe and call in?

OP posts:
errorofjudgement · 26/12/2018 07:51

If you’ve only been sick once and feel fine now it sounds like food related, it might have been something you are later in the day maybe some creamy or spicy food disagreed with you.
Personally I’d make sure I ate something and felt ok before going out today, eg tea and toast then wait half an hour. If still felling fine then get on with your day.

errorofjudgement · 26/12/2018 07:51

Sorry x-posted.
Yes if you feel unwell then call in.

GrumpyOldMare · 26/12/2018 07:53

Food poisoning can start half an hour after eating or up to 6 hours after (from what I remember of my food safety exam) so it could possibly be the bacon.

How do you feel now? Have you had any more D&V episodes?

adaline · 26/12/2018 07:55

Please don't go to work even if you do feel fine. The rule is there for a reason - unless you know it's caused by pregnancy sickness (or similar) you absolutely shouldn't be going to work.

It's not fair on everyone else who then gets exposed to your germs!

Original poster
Flairhead · 26/12/2018 07:55

There was no D, surprisingly, just the vomiting. Maybe I should have some toast or something and see how I get on. I'm not due to start until 11.30 so still plenty of time.

OP posts:
AnyOldPrion · 26/12/2018 08:07

There are two ways the bacon could make you vomit.

Some (including common ones from your skin) produce toxins. Some of those toxins are not destroyed by heating, even if you kill the bacteria. If toxins were the cause of the vomiting, it would have occurred earlier, within a few hours of eating.

If you failed to cook the bacon well enough (unlikely) then some bacteria could survive. That would take longer, but would potentially be infectious.

Alternatively, you might have picked up a viral infection (very common at this time of year). That would also be infectious.

If you ate way too much and vomit easily, there’s a tiny chance that could cause vomiting and of course there are othe possibilities.

But there’s a good chance it’s viral. Viruses affect different people in different ways. It would be kindest to your colleagues not to go, especially if you’re feeling iffy again.

adaline · 26/12/2018 08:09

So you're going to go in anyway and spread your germs to everyone else anyway Hmm

AnyOldPrion · 26/12/2018 08:12

Apologies, some BACTERIA can produce toxins...

whenwillthetwitchstrike · 26/12/2018 08:28

Wherever I have worked (professional; office based) a one-off vomit would never be considered to be a reason to be off sick and certainly not for 48 hours. At this time of year, it would also be seen as skiving and you would be perceived as less reliable than you had been.

DeepanKrispanEven · 26/12/2018 08:44

What sort of work is it? If you can keep to yourself and make sure that you wash your hands thoroughly after going to the loo you may as well go in.

adaline · 26/12/2018 08:45

It's still bloody selfish to go in knowing you've been sick and have the potential to affect others Angry

Original poster
Flairhead · 26/12/2018 08:52

I'm not worried about possibly being seen as unreliable, I've been working there 11 years and never had any issues around that. I hadn't had a drink as I was driving so it wasn't that and I've never been sick from eating too much. Thinking about it, pregnancy is possible but very unlikely.

I've had a shower and something to eat, tummy still feeling slightly delicate but I don't feel ill enough to justify not going in. I think I'll mention it to one of the managers when I get in though, just in case.

OP posts: