The "P.U." Movement! (Perfume Unwanted, That Is)

@Maggiepie (7816)
United States
July 8, 2010 12:01pm CST
Years ago I worked in a large office at the University of Texas, & a couple of my co-workers were in the habit of bathing in perfumes. The thing is, certain scents give me migraines--especially the cheaper ones, which are ethanol-based. They literally raise my blood pressure, & I go into a sort of mini-shock...clammy skin, experiencing being lightheaded, feeling faint, & of course, the brain-breaking headache. If you have them, you know what it is to feel light hurting your face, & the need to purge lunch.... Fortunately, this didn't occur very often, but when I even entered a room, I could instantly tell who'd been there before me, in some cases for an hour or so after the offender had since left! I finally spoke to my supervisor (I'll call her Betty...not the most brilliant bulb in the chandelier), & asked her if we couldn't make a rule about wearing strong scents at work, since they could be distracting (it was a library). I pointed out that we already had a rule of no radios or loud talk, so why not view it as just another distraction? I told her about my allergies, & in fact, there was one woman who had seizures if she smelled anything like naphtha, or even fingernail polish. For her, as well as for me, such scents could be debilitating, & in her case, would send her to the hospital. Betty seemed skeptical of this even being a problem, plus--she actually said this--"How would we enforce this? I can't see me standing at the door & sniffing everyone who enters to see if they're wearing perfume!" Oy veh. Facepalm time. Obviously she didn't get it. One only had to be in the vicinity to know an offender was there, or even HAD been there! Finally she resorted to the typical bureaucrat's solution: turn it into S.E.P.--Somebody Else's Problem. She said I was free to write HQ about the desire to create a new rule, & if they responded in my favor, she'd implement the new rule, provided she had some idea of how to enforce it. Realizing I was up against the brick wall (as usual) with her, I took her at her word. I carefully gathered thorough medical research on the problem, added to it the problem of the distraction from work it caused, mailed it to the PTBs & waited. Lo & behold--the university said yes! What I'd like to know is one, have you ever done anything like this, & changed something, & two, do you know about this problem. Last, if you suffer from certain scents, how do you deal with the problem? In my case, I wasn't allowed (university rules) to address the people who were the ones responsible for my problem. I knew & liked both co-workers, & I knew I could have handled it with tact. Which would you prefer--to talk directly to the over-scented friends, or have someone else do it? In either case, why? Your turn to type! Maggiepie “The strongest reason for the people to retain the right to keep & bear arms is, as a last resort, to protect themselves against tyranny in government.” ~ Thomas Jefferson
5 people like this
13 responses
@Lakota12 (42600)
• United States
8 Jul 10
My perfume froze yup froze one year in Tenn. and after that I couldnt wear any kind at all with out getting sick or get that blastd headacke. and if any one came nearme with any on I would make thiem go wash it all off if they were going to talk or ride with me.
2 people like this
@Maggiepie (7816)
• United States
9 Jul 10
I'm not sure I understand...your perfume froze, & then it smelled bad? Maggiepie “I cannot undertake to lay my finger on that article of the Constitution which granted a right to Congress of expending, on objects of benevolence, the money of their constituents.” ~ James Madison
@dawnald (85146)
• Shingle Springs, California
12 Jul 10
I would prefer to talk to them directly and just say straight out that it's an allergy, emphasize the fact that it's a medical problem and let them know that the scent is making you sick.
1 person likes this
@Maggiepie (7816)
• United States
13 Jul 10
Any normal person would! But bureaucrats aren't normal. That's the only thing that kept me from going to my friends at work & telling them! I could've gotten into bad trouble had I done what I would've preferred to do. It's a really stupid rule. I mean, I suppose it's there to protect employees from being outright attacked, but the way I see it, that would get the attacker fired, anyway! In fact, we had this squirrely little man who basically did just that, & the cops hauled him off. Why couldn't these non-human rule-makers have recognized that normal people prefer to settle mild differences amongst themselves, rather than drag in a third party--especially one as dumb as a box of dirt like my immediate supervisor Betty was??? Bureaucrats! Stupid rules! Go figure... Maggiepie “The cost of freedom is always high, but Americans have always paid it. And one path we shall never choose, & that is the path of surrender, or submission.” ~ John Fitzgerald Kennedy
@gabs8513 (48686)
• United Kingdom
10 Jul 10
Hi Maggie, how did that Betty ever become a Supervisor I mean really she should be aware of the Fact that if something has to be put in Place you do not call in the Person concerned at first, you get all the Staff together and have a meeting about the new Rule then if they still do it she calls them in separately and puts the Rule to them, if still no joy then she gets tough and starts with Discipline If they are aware that People are allergic to it they should consider this
1 person likes this
@Maggiepie (7816)
• United States
11 Jul 10
You wouldn't believe how many times I asked myself that same question (how she ever became a supervisor). The thing is, though, that the UT rule took it out of her hands, anyway, so I went over her head to the top & proved to them it was a health hazard & a distraction, & after that, the problem disappeared, as no-one in particular was told, "Betty" or "Maggiepie" got this new rule established. It was simply announced to UT in general, in meetings & memos (& added to the big, thick rule book), & that was that...except perhaps she had the method of detection explained to her. I mean, how stupid was she that she'd imagined one would have to stand at the door & sniff people coming in?! Duh? Maggiepie "Life is hard. It's harder if you're stupid." ~ John Wayne
@ANTIQUELADY (36440)
• United States
9 Jul 10
Good morning Maggie, i know exactly what u are talking about. I love good smelling things but it can be overdone. I had a few customers that i did their hair that would about lay me out standing over them w/too much perfume. One ladies made me sneeze every time she walked in the door,lol. I couldn't very well say anything to them but would have liked to.
1 person likes this
@Maggiepie (7816)
• United States
11 Jul 10
Sigh...yeah. I know what you mean. Perhaps that other poster above has the right idea: introduce them to perfumes you like ("Here! You must try this! It's my favorite!"). The things one must do to be polite / keep one's job! Maggiepie "Life is hard. It's harder if you're stupid." ~ John Wayne
• United States
9 Jul 10
I would rather ask someone personally not to wear it then to go through someone else and have them say, no they wont tell people not to wear it. I use to have a friend that would go through a whole spray can of body spray in one sitting, she would walk in my house and you couldn't get rid of the smell for a week. I told her one day she wasn't allowed in my home because my daughter has asthma and the perfume made it hard for her to breathe, So now she doesn't even call me on the phone. Truthfully I couldn't care less if she came by or not, but I can tell you this, she herself has been to the doctor lately due to breathing problems, I think its all that perfume. Truthfully it use to make me sick smelling it.
1 person likes this
@Maggiepie (7816)
• United States
11 Jul 10
I'd rather have been allowed to approach them privately, too! It was that stupid rule at UT that forced me to go through Betty! Maybe if you had told that woman that you regretted having to ask her not to come unless she refrained from using scents, & you knew she wouldn't mind accommodating a sick child, she'd have complied? I don't know her, but these things must be always handled with delicacy & tact, & not a little bit of butter (you would have given her a way to feel good about herself, with the implication that she would want to help your child). I mean, had you worded your wish differently than she "wasn't allowed in your home," then she might have been more inclined to be nice about it. Or, maybe not. It could be she was just embarrassed. Some folks are really thin-skinned. In any case, either way, your child got what she needed--fresh air! Maggiepie "Life is hard. It's harder if you're stupid." ~ John Wayne
@jennyze (7028)
• Indonesia
9 Jul 10
I love perfumes, and often perfume scent reminds me of an occasion in my days years ago. I have several from different producers, but they all have the same basic scent - floral or woodsy. I don't like it sweet, citrus or strong with ethanol as you mentioned. They give me headache and nausea. I just avoid being too near to the people wearing scents that I don't like. Sometimes, when they are good friends I would dab mine in front of them after lunch time and asked them to try. Usually they would ask me to get one for them the next time I shop. Of course, I would not want them to smell just like me, so I would change my perfume after I got them one that I used to have.
1 person likes this
@Maggiepie (7816)
• United States
9 Jul 10
I also usually try to avoid strong scents others wear, but in the case of one of the friends, she had a home-made blend (it smelled like rotten fruit to me, PLUS I was allergic to it), & I didn't have to be around her to smell it. I once walked into our large, open office, & I could smell that she'd been there. Her desk was a good 15 or 18 feet from mine! I like your suggestion, & I think it might have worked on the other person, but not on the one of whom I just wrote. She thought very highly of her expertise with her blends, & would never wear anything "off the shelf!" Maggiepie “I cannot undertake to lay my finger on that article of the Constitution which granted a right to Congress of expending, on objects of benevolence, the money of their constituents.” ~ James Madison
@GardenGerty (160708)
• United States
8 Jul 10
There have been a number of us in the church choir who had problems with scents, including me. I do not react as severely as you do, but it is bad. Our choir president from time to time had to ask people to please all "go bare" and not use scented grooming products. The thing is some people use so many scented laundry products that it is just as bad. Just think how stinky it can be under lights in the summer with robes on and fifty different fragrances. Yukky!!. I was not always so sensitive, but I did try to be thoughtful after a friend in college told me once, nicely "I can't sit with you, you wear too much perfume."
@Maggiepie (7816)
• United States
9 Jul 10
Oy...I can just imagine. You know, the amount some folks wear has given me the idea that there is such a thing as "scent blindness," not the best term I've ever coined, but I think it conveys the meaning well enough. Just as some folks have more taste buds than others, perhaps there's some physical equivalent to that in the nose..some kind of olfactory...what, nose buds? Someone will surely tell me! LOL! Anyway, either their nose simply can't detect the scent until they're swimming in it, or perhaps they just get so used to it they don't smell it as others can. I don't know. I just wish folks would spray the air, then walk through the mist. I was shown that method ages ago, & I've held to it ever since. Thank you for being considerate! (No more than I've come to expect from such a lady as you...:o) Maggiepie “I cannot undertake to lay my finger on that article of the Constitution which granted a right to Congress of expending, on objects of benevolence, the money of their constituents.” ~ James Madison
@ElicBxn (63595)
• United States
8 Jul 10
As you know, the roomie's mom, while taking a med that did have a history of causing strokes (Vioxx), also had reactions to certain scents. Her boss wouldn't stop allowing the others to wear these scents, even after she had proven to have problems with them (the stuff was from Bath and Body Works.) Then, she did have a stroke that could've killed her. I told her that she should also go after that job, but she chose not to.
1 person likes this
@Maggiepie (7816)
• United States
9 Jul 10
Yes. I'm sure you also recall sweet Pam, who finally had to leave her job & stay safe at home. For her, it was serious! I still see her in my mind, having a seizure on the floor, & being carried out on a stretcher! Maggiepie “I cannot undertake to lay my finger on that article of the Constitution which granted a right to Congress of expending, on objects of benevolence, the money of their constituents.” ~ James Madison
• Canada
9 Jul 10
I too develop migraines when people wear cheap perfume or calogne. I find it distracting to eb working with someone who must have bathed in the entire bottle before coming to work. Alas, I work in a retail store with a perfume section so the option of making a "no scented products" rule is not an option where I am employed. A lady at the perfume counter told me that it is not only cheaper perfumes and calognes that cause migraines but when they use flowers in the mixture as well. She said that scented products using fruit or other scents won't cause as severe headaches. I wear Britteny Spears Midnight Fantasy and do not get headaches from that. I think it would depend on who was the over scented wearer and what the situation was for me to talk to them. There are some people who I wouldn't mind telling to lay off the calogne bathing but for the most part I avoid confrontation. iprefer to tell someone and let them handle the situation. I have never started or enforced a no perfume rule but I have told someone on the bus once to stop wearing it. He must have sprayed about 5 squirts of axe all overhimself and his friend stated that people were allergic and he said it was a wives tale. I butted in and said "actually I'm allergic to it, it gives me migraines." There wasn't much that could be done at that point but at least he knew.
@Maggiepie (7816)
• United States
9 Jul 10
Wow, you might want to find a better job! Somewhere safer for you! And as for my being able to talk to them, read my response in the 5th letter above. Sigh...bureaucrats!!! Maggiepie “I cannot undertake to lay my finger on that article of the Constitution which granted a right to Congress of expending, on objects of benevolence, the money of their constituents.” ~ James Madison
@alaskanray (4636)
• United States
8 Jul 10
I love scent but there are some that smell good and others that can make me ill. This trend of putting food smells into colognes and perfumes makes me positively nauseous, especially the vanilla and coconut smell! All my perfumes are florals and woods and light and airy. I have a friend who is very sweet but the cologne she wears has that vanilla/coconut smell to it and when she wears it, it is all I can do to stay pleasant to her! It is just too nauseating!
1 person likes this
@Maggiepie (7816)
• United States
9 Jul 10
I like some of the lighter flower scents--Mueget du Bois, e.g.. Too sweet a perfume, though, & I start to gag. It's not an allergy, though. I might actually enjoy the coconut, however. Still, were someone to ask me not to, I wouldn't. I rarely wear any perfume, but if I do, I use a woman who was once my supervisor's measure. She said, "A person should have to be hugging you to smell your perfume." Way to go, Mary Beth! Less is better! Maggiepie “I cannot undertake to lay my finger on that article of the Constitution which granted a right to Congress of expending, on objects of benevolence, the money of their constituents.” ~ James Madison
@paresh89 (30)
• India
9 Jul 10
definetly i do pick things up ..
@Maggiepie (7816)
• United States
9 Jul 10
I beg your pardon? Of what are you speaking??
9 Jul 10
definitely you can talk to her but you have to do it with style he! he! he! ask her or him can we have a drink sometimes and when you see the timing that his okey then can we talk in a serious matter but promise you don't get upset about this thing. just want to tell you that your perfume is making my head dizzy and blah! blah!and please! can you wear something mild or something that are not going to affect everyone on that smell don't get wrong me.I'm just telling you this to avoid problem with everyone.I am telling you this things because I want you to be cautious and as a friend and co-worker i just thought that you might want to know our reaction. if she accept or not its up to her. well, atleast she know that you care.
@Maggiepie (7816)
• United States
9 Jul 10
No, see, that's just it. I couldn't talk to her--it was against the rules! See my response in the 5th letter above! I would have preferred to speak directly to the offenders! Maggiepie “I cannot undertake to lay my finger on that article of the Constitution which granted a right to Congress of expending, on objects of benevolence, the money of their constituents.” ~ James Madison
• United States
8 Jul 10
My first course of action would be to talk to the over scented friends. Sometimes people respond better when you address them first. Let them know why you are making your request or complaint and then see what happens. If there is no change or things seem to get worse then the next step is to speak with someone in charge. At least you can say that you tried to resolve the matter yourself.
@Maggiepie (7816)
• United States
9 Jul 10
It's my preferred way of dealing with such things, too, but I once used that method for another reason, & discovered that the university forbade such action. I was forced, thereafter, to approach my supervisor. I would have been in serious trouble had I not followed the rules! Maggiepie “I cannot undertake to lay my finger on that article of the Constitution which granted a right to Congress of expending, on objects of benevolence, the money of their constituents.” ~ James Madison