Pretty Upset - Quizno's Commercial

Okay, this may end up being a little ranty but there is just something I need to blog about in a little different way than I usually do (which is more creative writing than ranting and "normal" blogging). Have any of you seen the new Quizno's commercial for their chicken carbonara sandwich? The one that has the guy hooked up to an IV because he's "done with eating, it's just not worth it anymore" and then he is talked into trying the new sandwich? If you haven't, you can see it here (you need quicktime or windows media player to view it). Now I have to say most people probably just watch the commercial, maybe chuckle at it, think the sandwich looks really good, and go on with their day. But from the first time I saw this commercial, I've been disgusted by it. And what has prompted me to write this is that I have found other people who are disgusted by it, too, and I needed to write/rant about it a little.

I hope all of you out there see the insensitivity of this commercial now that I have pointed it out. I find it very offensive and disrespectful as someone who relies on IV hydration, as someone who has many friends who are on or have been on TPN (IV nutrition) because they cannot eat enough or at all, as someone who knows how awful and difficult it is to deal with gastrointestinal problems that leave you facing the prospect of relying on IV nutrition (although I never did end up going on it, first because of insurance issues and then because I was able to get on treatment for my gastroparesis and started being able to eat a little better). How can a company think this is something that people should watch and laugh at? I know, there is insensitivity everywhere - TV, commercials, movies, music are disrespectful towards this group or that group all the time and no one says anything. But I think that's a big problem. If no one says anything, then people will continue to think it's okay to make a joke at the expense of one group or another.

So today I wrote to Quizno's (along with a lot of other people, as I found out from some of the groups I belong to) calling them on the commercial's insensitive nature. Who knows if anything will come of it, but maybe if enough people write to them something will happen. If you're so inclined, you can write something to them on their website here.

Okay, so maybe this isn't as ranty as I thought it was going to be. I just don't understand how people can take something as serious as needing IVs to survive and turn it into a joke and a way to sell sandwiches! I'm all for comedy in advertisements, but there is no need to go in this direction. There are plenty of funny commercials that don't poke fun in this kind of way. I know there is no one out there who wants to rely on IVs to survive, but it is a reality for too many people. If it were a matter of choosing to eat or not to eat...I don't even know how I want to finish that sentence, I really am just getting myself more upset about the whole thing when this was supposed to help relieve some of those feelings so I'll stop here. Please, if you have any inkling to write an e-mail or a letter to Quizno's, do it.

Oh, and I just realized that many of you may not know the details of my medical situation (although I'm sure most of you know enough for this post to make sense), here's the short version. I have chronic Lyme disease, dysautonomia, gastroparesis, and a handful of other medical conditions. Everything is probably as a result of the Lyme disease in one way or another. The dysautonomia causes my blood pressure to drop dangerously low and because medications failed to help I rely on daily IV hydration to keep it in check and keep me as stable as possible. I also receive IV vitamins and minerals in my hydration everyday and I infuse IV amino acids every night to help my overall nutritional status because I am malnourished from being unable to eat well because of the gastroparesis. I am unable to eat very much at a time, I rely on numerous medications multiple times a day to keep my stomach working as well as possible but I still experience symptoms, sometimes severe, including nausea, abdominal pain, severe reflux, and occasionally vomiting. I came close to being put on TPN (IV nutrition) in the winter/spring of 2006 when I had a severe gastrointestinal crash which made it impossible for me to eat more than a few hundred calories a day and I was rapidly losing weight. I have since gained back the weight and stabilized although I still am unable to get enough balanced nutrition in my diet and require a lot of help from IV medications, fluids, and oral medications and supplements. If you'd like to read more about my story and day-to-day medical life, feel free to visit my Caringbridge page.

Yours,
Penguini