Finding a used bandaid or mystery fibers in shared laundry
Unexpected items like used bandaids or silvery fibers in shared laundry equipment trigger immediate panic, disgust, and compulsive cleaning urges. This distress leads to physical injuries from constant hand washing and severe avoidance behaviors, such as refusing to leave bed for extended periods.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
- 1Planning elaborate multi-step disinfecting procedures for laundry machines and clothes
- 2Delegating cleaning tasks to a cousin
- 3Waiting for a parent to come home to help handle the situation
- 4Seeking reassurance online and from AI chat tools
- 5Avoiding cleaning the room or packing belongings
- 6Going to a laundromat to wash clothes
In their words
Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.
“I know :( This definitely isn’t the first time I’m asked someone about this, I asked it earlier on another subreddit and it got deleted for that reason.”source ↗
“I opened the dryer to see if it was empty because i knew my cousin washed and dried the rugs. I immediately saw a folded bandaid near the lint trap/ door. I was disgusted and irritated.”source ↗
“Anyways i immediately panicked and i wanted to cry.”source ↗
“i also have multiple small wounds on my hands due to constant hand washing.”source ↗
“One of my biggest fears is fiberglass contamination, and since then, we would find little silvery threads on our clothes in the wash and they were stuck in the dryer lint tray forever.”source ↗
“Only a few times when my mom asked me to remove the cover from the dryer for her did I recall feeling itchiness, but I never got a rash.”source ↗
“In a panic at the time I totally shut down and refused to leave my bed for most things for the next three years and it practically ruined my life”source ↗
“Anyway, in the time since I had a total relapse in my anxieties after recovering for a while and started asking the stupid Google AI questions. I really regret this, I feel like a total idiot.”source ↗
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
- 2Why do roommates put unwashed dishes on the drying rack?
- 2How to sanitize a house for Giardia without bleach
- 12How to stop feeling like a full-time maid for young kids
- 2When is it safe to unbag electronics after pest treatment?
- 3How to keep a messy house clean with kids and a full-time job
- 6Why is there so much dust and hair in my bed every day?