Do you think festival should have helped me?

[MyAppleTree]

Not really a big deal, but home and musing. Went to a festival this weekend, on my own. Had an ok time.

For context my stuff was really heavy, 8 man tent huge heavy, only one I could borrow and obviously had to bring it back.

The night before I’ve left my asthma inhaler ran out, and I’ve started bleeding and cramping from a minor procedure I had done last week. I had an asthma attack about a week ago too.

Anyway the car was absolutely miles away, through mud and hills. Sincerely worried I could not physically make it. So I thought I was sensible going to camp welfare and asking if there was any way to hire a buggy to take the stuff to the car. They said no but sent me to first aid to see if I could get an inhaler to manage the asthma doing the drag.

First aid wouldn’t give me a spare inhaler unless I was having an actual attack, not just feeling wheezy. No help available obviously for the cramping as I need a gp to assess that.

So basically no help.

Now I did make it to the car. Very very breathless and in pain, car got stuck in the mud and had to be towed. Stupid gear and I fell down a few hills too!

Hence not a big deal because while breathless I have made it home (2hr drive) and have my inhalers. And yes it’s my own fault for not picking up my spare!!

So just a hypothetical really, were they unreasonable not to help me when I asked? It could have ended differently.

Still not sure how you got that 8 man tent up on your own. And do you have a preventative inhaler?

You didn’t take what you needed.
Your tent was too large to manage easily, you didn’t take your medication, I have no idea how you put it up without help as you’ve refused to reply to all the questions on that point.
When you travel anywhere, you need to be as self-sufficient as possible and ask for help in unexpected emergencies. Rather than thinking the festival organisers should help you because you were incompetent.

YABU
You are a grown adult. It's up to you to make sure you have essential items like an inhaler with sufficient doses left for you duration of the festival. You knew you'd had a procedure and you knew the tent was big - did you not think about the implications of making that trip? You could have hired or borrowed a trailer. It's your responsibility to make best efforts to look after yourself. First aid and festival support are there for unforseen issues and emergencies. Your issues were neither, just dow to bad planning.

First aid tents are for medical emergencies, not to hand out inhalers like bandaids!

You sound way too lax about your health. If you think you have an infection like that you could get sepsis. Your throat could swell & close. You literally drove into the bush knowing your asthma has been playing up & you’re experiencing complications after a medical procedure. Mind boggles at how chilled you seem about that risk...

You still haven’t explained how you put up an 8 man tent alone

YABU. You are the mini version of people who go up mountains unprepared for the conditions and have to be rescued at cost and risk to others. You put yourself in that position. Why should others help you get out of it? That’s not what the welfare tent is for.

@LuckyLou7

WHOOOIOOOSH

That was the sound of sarcasm going over your head

You didn't say your spare inhaler was forgotten, you said you were aware that it had run out the night before at home.

Ok and again - procedure was having a contraceptive coil put in, I HAD NO COMPLICATIONS before I left, I’ve obviously picked up an infection while there.

I put up the 8 man all on my lonesome and took it down again, it’s a fancy dan inflatable one so fairly simple. Never have I said I had or expected any help.

I asked to HIRE A BUGGY not be given help for free, they were hiring them on the way in, just clearly not on the way out.

Zonkin I take one that is 2 in 1 - white and red click top one?

I thought I had my spare, I didn’t, already said to everyone mea culpa on that one. Said it when I posted in fact.

@LuckyLou7 - agree with you about the inflatable flamingo. At Glastonbury you do have to pre arrange the disabled help. I would imagine that's the same at most festivals.

Perhaps at festivals next year mumsnetters will all be turning up with our inflatable flamingos.....

If OP managed to get home she wasn'thaving a health crisis. The organisers would never take that chance. Imagine the headlines. The festival would never happen again

I had an asthma attack in the town centre and the pharmacy at ASDA gave me a blue inhaler to take there and then. Afterwards, I filled in a form and paid them £5 (don't know why it was only £5). So I can only speak from my own experience but some pharmacies will help.

Sneaky the night before I left the festival not the night I left my house! I had an inhaler for the festival, it ran out the night before I left and my spare wasn’t in my bag which I thought it was.

I didn’t just rock up without one at all. Sorry if that was unclear.

@Catsandchardonnay so true! Every year hapless tourists come down here (aus) and decide to drive woefully unprepared through the desert, or go on random bush walks with no supplies. They either get rescued at great cost to the taxpayer or perish.

I predict the OP had some help setting up the tent

Come on, OP, how did you put up your enormous tent single-handed? And how did you manage not to piss off all the other campers by taking up so much space for just one person?

Despite your update you are still being unreasonable. You didn't actually need their help, you manged ok on your own but are just a bit pissed off with yourself.

That's not what they are there for.

And if you had to go for work then work should have provided a suitable tent.

YABU

YABVU I'm afraid.

No-one else is responsible for 'looking after you' now that you're an adult, it's all on you. Grow up. Make better choices.

You need to learn to think your choices through, and it looks like you're gonna learn fast if you keep making such obviously poor choices :(

There's no way anyone at the festival would give you inhalers or escort you (i.e taking responsibility for your health) !!! All they could have done is call an ambulance if you needed one !

And why anyone else would want to add to their own work to help you carry a massive tent etc then trudge all the way back to get on with whatever else they had to do is beyond me :(

Time to realise it's no-one else's responsibility to help bail you out.

@BlueSkiesLies

Whoosh indeed

Having re-read fuzzyduck's post, I can now see she is taking the piss. In my defence, I am still drying out after going to Let's Rock in Liverpool yesterday where it rained relentlessly for the duration of the festival, and I don't think I have ever been so cold, wet and miserable in my life - despite wellies, cagoule and brolly and some superb music. I'm just glad it wasn't an overnighter, I'd have cried.

It sounds like you made a series of not great choices. It would have been nice of the festival to help bail you out of the consequences of those choices but I don't think they were obliged to.

Does anyone actually read posts?

Lucky I said, it’s an inflatable, totally possible alone and I did. Blow it up, stick some pegs in, job done.

Spam for the umpteenth time, never asked anyone to help me. Asked to hire a buggy.

You all know I’ve already said IABU?

The inflatables are still 2 man to put up. And even heavier than a standard 8 man tunnel tent.

Plus they are really expensive - no way would i take one to a festival

You didn’t have a minor procedure.

You had a coil inserted. I agree, I wouldn’t expect complications after a week of none when you can have intercourse 24 hours after fitting. I can understand the confusion and posters picking up on this comment.

But as for asthma and such a large tent, you were rather fool hardy. Work was also ridiculous expecting you to sort yourself out last minute. If you didn’t have a tent they should have provided you with one.

@MyAppleTree was it CarFest? There was a post in the Facebook group asking for help from a lady with a toddler who was also 20 weeks (I think) pregnant. Very muddy, toddler cold and unhappy, mum worried about packing up and getting all her stuff to her car and slipping in mud.
Loads of advice, signposting and empathy.
Also there was a post on here from a worried mum/drunk husband had abandoned teenaged son with additional needs. Empathy, suggestions, signposting.
...anyway...getting to the point...you probably would have been better off asking some fellow campers for help, they tend to be more community spirited. Sorry you had a rough time, sometimes it feels the universe is conspiring against you at the worst time. I would have helped as, from experience you learn something new or best practice each time you camp from other campers.
Not unreasonable to ask for help - YABU to ask/expect it from who you did ask.
Oh...and these days...don’t expect any sympathy from Mumsnet!

TBH anyone who thinks it’s ok for one person to take up the space of an 8 man tent at a festival where space is a premium, is probably always going to be unhappy when others don’t do what they want.

As an adult I think you made the wrong call to go. Given your health and recent medical procedure. It’s usually a hike to and from your vehicle anyways.

Hope you fell better soon and enjoy future festivals in better health.

So your AIBU is simply 'AIBU to ask to hire a buggy?'