To wonder why some MNetters need their bed to be sterile.

[Lookingforbargains]

Inspired by another thread (and by the general madness that is part and parcel of anything cleanliness-related on MN)…

Why are some people so determined that no (shudder) outdoor germs/nastiness gets anywhere near their bed? I mean, I can understand a basic level of care - not putting your outdoor shoes on the duvet, or your handbag on your pillow - but some people seemingly have to put on a full hazmat suit before sitting on the end of their own bed.

Now I understand wanting to keep it fresh, but why the fear of supposed germs that MNetters seem to think will be transferred to the bed? Why are these germs not scary on the sofa? Do people lick their beds, or perhaps want to keep open the option of performing surgery therein?

It’s pretty clear from other threads that it is mumsnet law to shower in the morning, so how much can it really matter if your bed isn’t totally sterile?!

This isn’t a thing in our house.

I’m picking hay off my pillow after falling asleep without changing out of clothes worn to muck out my horse. DD is snoring in her bed wearing the party dress she was out in yesterday as it wasn’t worth a tantrum.

We’re in midst of kitchen renovation and the bed sheets are entering week 3 as have no washing machine at present. I’ll be pleased to have clean sheets again don’t get me wrong, but I can sleep just the same in ‘dirty’ ones.

Cats have always shared my pillow too.

Most/a large proportion of MN posters seem neurotic to me with high levels of anxiety. I just smile at most of it and am glad that these things don't bother me.

I haven’t got time to do the clothing hokey-cokey every time I go out. On non-working days I might go out three times, and when the kids were small and I had a school run twice a day it might have been more than that. And what do you do once you’ve taken off the outdoor clothes? Wash immediately, or store for then next time you leave the house?

And what do you do once you’ve taken off the outdoor clothes? Wash immediately, or store for then next time you leave the house?

Into the laundry basket, or hang up?

Same here. I find it interesting too that some of these posters try to shame other posters for not being as anxious as themselves (by calling them vile, mingers, etc), yet all they actually are doing is demonstrating just how ill they are.

I hope that by reading about how other posters manage to live without the fear of germs ruling their lives, they will eventually seek help for their anxiety.

That's the point though. Outdoor coats 'festering in piss, shit and vomit' from the tube are then nicely hung up in a wardrobe to infect everything they touch. Griiiiiimmmmm!!

My outdoor coats are vacuum sealed in an ante room we created before our entrance way lest the germs transfer to any surface I pass indoors and they are sent to a sterile facility for treatment before they are worn again. Given I sat in the car before arriving home we fumigate the car every night just before me and DH have sex on plastic sheeting that is burned after climax. Obviously we fumigate ourselves before that because otherwise that would be griiim. And afterwards obvs.

That's the point though. Outdoor coats 'festering in piss, shit and vomit' from the tube are then nicely hung up in a wardrobe to infect everything they touch. Griiiiiimmmmm!!

I wouldn’t hang an outdoor coat (clean or dirty) in my wardrobe though , I hang those in the porch with the other outdoor coats.

I agree. I’m surprised at how prevalent these mental health issues seem to be . Or perhaps it’s just that these threads attract people with them, who then validate each other.

If they live alone, it’s their choice I guess to live like this. But it must be pretty miserable for children to be brought up in such a home and they probably get sick a lot.

And all that time, energy and money wasted with the constant changing and laundering of bedlinen, towels and clothing and the spraying of bleach and anti bacterial cleaning products everywhere .

There is nothing anyone can say or do to convince others with poor hygiene standards. It’s usually lots of people with questionable hygiene agreeing with each other on threads like these.

Yep😂

Even if you are right, at least we are happy sitting here in our dirt, with more time and money , lower energy bills, damaging the environment less, having more sex and probably in better physical and mental health.

Our children have fewer medical conditions like asthma and fewer tummy bugs and respiratory infections.

And also people like you @sst1234 don’t come to visit us because of our “questionable hygiene “ ( though most visitor don’t lick my bed ).

Its a win all round.

But it must be pretty miserable for children to be brought up in such a home

Yes. My DM is like this, we used to joke about how "OCD" she is, but actually, it wasn't nice to grow up feeling like your own mum cared more about the house than she did about you. All those chemicals used to make my chest tight and I'd be wheezy, but if I complained she'd act like I was making it up.

though most visitor don’t lick my bed

🤣

What do parents with tiny children do when they want to nap when they’ve got the babies to sleep? I wouldn’t waste time changing and showering before closing my eyes for a sanity-saving hour.
There are far higher infection risks than sitting on a bed in a dress. How do people take their tights off without falling over?
What do people do about coins, tea towels/dishcloths and hands? Those are somewhat higher ‘germ’ carriers. Peoples skin must be washed off their hands if they’re a bit worried about a pair of shoes on kitchen flagstones.

Excess cleanliness is very bad for you in all sorts of ways. I’d think most people would think our house was clean (certainly for rural living) but some of the ridiculous measures people take are so unhealthy. Shockingly bad for environment too. Can’t imagine it’s terribly good for relationships either - husband arrives home, flowers in hand and grin on face to have you shake the flowers outside to get rid of potential bugs, then insist he strips and showers before putting on clean indoor clothes. Unfortunately he sat on the bed to take his socks off, so the flowers are left dying on the side whilst you strip the bed completely to put everything on a boil wash. You then have to clean the bathroom with bleach and replace the lavatory paper because he might have touched that. Hands under a UV light to check they’ve been cleaned properly before realising the dog has crept upstairs so the carpet needs steam cleaning. The children meanwhile are bored and crying. Husband is sulking because the moment has been lost - again. How do people live like this?

But surely, if you do that you may have to answer the front door if some random person dares to knock?? Shock horror!!

"before me and DH have sex on plastic sheeting that is burned after climax. "

@HairyMcLarie
Hairy you grimmer. Why are you only burning post sex? Why not before during and after? 🤣

Germaphobes? They don't understand that our immune system needs constant contact with various pathogens in order to function optimally. I would bet they are often sick and think being ill and having children ill with infections once a month is normal.

There is nothing anyone can say or do to convince others with poor hygiene standards. It’s usually lots of people with questionable hygiene agreeing with each other on threads like these.

if these people are healthy and happy, what on earth would be 'questionable' about their hygiene?

Hygiene isn't some religious virtue. It's a means to an end (optimal health).

Nah that’s what the kitchen counter tops are for…..

Hygiene isn't some religious virtue. It's a means to an end (optimal health).

I think this may be the deep lying reason behind some people's cleaning obsessions though.

I can remember my mum saying that cleanliness is next to godliness. I don't think that anyone actually believes it anymore, but I do think it's where it all started in some cases, and was passed down through generations.

I don't wear shoes when festering on my bed but apart from that anything goes. Happy to lounge about on it wearing clothes I've worn all day, I love eating in bed and am often found watching tv in bed accompanied by the dog and cat. We all have a lovely time on my bed. My ex used to hate animals on the bed and used to make a big issue of sweeping non existent crumbs off the sheets, but now he's off the scene it's back to toast or crackers in bed!!

But what is the upside to having these superior hygiene standards though?

If you are hugely increasing your workload through the need to be constantly washing stuff and giving yourself anxiety worrying about microbes (which will still be there however much washing you do), what are you actually gaining by being neurotic and fastidious?

Its not going to make you any less sick: in fact it’s probably a net negative for your immune system. It’s not going to improve your mental health either.

Instead of judging people for minor breaches of arbitrary hygiene etiquette why not focus on developing a healthier attitude to something which in the scheme of things doesn’t matter?

Just looking in my wardrobe for indoor or outdoor clothes. Can't find any. My wardrobe only has clothes. So I'll just put them on. I will even sit on the bed while I put my socks on
Just about to wash my bedding simply because today I have the time. Might do it again next week might not.

I'm genuinely interested to hear what germophobes think about the fact that we, as humans, contain so many "germs" : www.bbc.com/news/health-43674270

Human cells make up only 43% of the body's total cell count. The rest are microscopic colonists.

Does it bother you? Or do you just accept that the "germs" inside of us are ok because they are part of us?

@Strugglingtodomybest

Human cells make up only 43% of the body's total cell count. The rest are microscopic colonists.

Exactly. How do the hygiene freaks think that relentlessly washing everything and distinguishing between "indoor" and "outdoor" germs will even make a dent in this huge microbiome?

It's a fool's errand which benefits nothing apart from bestowing a Victorian whiff of moral superiority.