Legionaries disease worry, garden hose

[Nighttime pacer]

Hi all
I've found something new to worry about, as if I didn't have a big enough list already!
I've read that you can get legionnaires disease from stagnent water and am worried because earlier tonight I went out to water my plants.
I haven't used the hose for 2 days and didn't notice there was a kink in it so no water was coming out. I turned the tap off and then pulled the end of the hose off to see if it was blocked and water sprayed up into my face. Not that much as it was only a few drops on my face but I'm still worried.
I read that it's the fine droplets of water you breathe in that cause the legionaires disease in your lungs. I always leave the end of the hose with the hand gun bit switched on then turn the hose off so I assume less water is staying in the hose.
I think most of the water that I got sprayed with must have come from the tap rather than already have been in the hose but I'm still really worried. I wonder if a hose not being used for 2 days would have been long enough to get loads of bacteria growing in it.
Sorry for rambling, as always I'm panicking about this.
I'm planning on phoning the british lung foundation helpline tomorrow for more info.
Thanks for reading this.
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---------- Post added at 03:33 ---------- Previous post was at 03:25 ----------

I'm now panicking even more as I've just read that a man died from contracting legionaries disease from his garden hose.
I'm soooo scared. I just hope I'm ok.

[NancyW]

Oh my goodness, where did you read such a thing?

[Nighttime pacer]

Hi NancyW,
I read it in an online article from the daily mail and the daily mirror. There was also an australian site talking about the dangers of hoses. I spoke to someone at the British Lung Foundation this morning but she said she wasn't medically trained and frankly wasn't much help. I've booked an appointment to see my asthma specialist on Tuesday. I just keep reminding myself that it's very rare, but that's not helping much.

[Nighttime pacer]

Hi all
I'm still worrying about this but realise that as my health anxiety always seems to find really specialised problems no one can really comment. I keep reminding myself that if hardly anyone has heard of legionnaires disease and garden hoses it must be mercifully rare. My anxiety often seems to mean even though I logically understand I'm worrying about almost nothing it doesn't stop me worrying.
I really wish there was a cure for health anxiety. It always seems to be in the background ready to pounce. At times life seems so tiring.
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[MyNameIsTerry]

When we normally hear about outbreaks of it, it's about water collecting in air conditioning systems.

But any water system under the right conditions can have it in as the HSE say:

http://www.hse.gov.uk/legionnaires/workplace-risks.htm

Even indoor fountains!

But like the NHS Say:

Legionnaires' disease is rare in the UK. In 2013, 284 people were reported to have the infection in England and Wales. Of these cases, 88 people (31%) were exposed to the infection while travelling abroad
– mainly to Mediterranean countries, but also tropical countries such as India. However, given the millions of trips made abroad each year, 88 cases is a very small number.

So many of us must get sprayed with stagnant water. But still it's rare to get this.

[Nighttime pacer]

Hi all
I spoke to a pharmacist yesterday and he knew a little bit about legionnaires disease and thinks I have nothing to worry about.
It's reassured me a little and now just have to hang on for hopefully more reassurance from my asthma specialist on Tuesday.
My is it that with health anxiety unless we get 100% reassurance we still worry?
Thanks all for reading my rambling!
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[ScaredLizard]

Don't worry about it friend. Do you know how many children play and splash in hoses? Probably thousands a day in the summer and we still very rarely hear about legionaires. If you had a pool and were not treating it for months then you might need to worry but with a hose I think you are safe.

[Nighttime pacer]

HI all
I've just scared myself again!
I went into the garden and I've got a large sort of trolley which is like a big bucket on wheels. I saw it was full of rain water. I think the water may have been in there for weeks.
I decided to empty it. I walked away from it and took a deep breath and then held my breath and walked up to it and lowered it forward so the water could run out. I then walked away and breathed again. I then waited a minute and walked back to it holding my breath again and tipped it completely upside down to get any remaining water out. I then walked about and breathed.
I've read that it's the fine spray from showers and things that causes you to catch it by breathing it in.
I hope I did what I did safely enough.
I'm sick off all this worry!

[Fishmanpa]

With respect, and I realize you're scared... BUT... from an outside perspective do you recognize the irrationality? This is a lot like some of the rabies and ALS threads. There is no viable possibility in this. Before today, you would have watered the garden or emptied that wheel barrow with nary a thought other than I'm gardening.

But today, you read an article in the Daily Mail of all things and you're totally having a meltdown! You're talking about something ridiculously rare!... something like a .000004% chance of catching! Five 0's and a 4 man!

Truly, I hope you can see this from the perspective I'm seeing and you can ease your mind.

Positive thoughts

[ScaredLizard]

HI all
I've just scared myself again!
I went into the garden and I've got a large sort of trolley which is like a big bucket on wheels. I saw it was full of rain water. I think the water may have been in there for weeks.
I decided to empty it. I walked away from it and took a deep breath and then held my breath and walked up to it and lowered it forward so the water could run out. I then walked away and breathed again. I then waited a minute and walked back to it holding my breath again and tipped it completely upside down to get any remaining water out. I then walked about and breathed.
I've read that it's the fine spray from showers and things that causes you to catch it by breathing it in.
I hope I did what I did safely enough.
I'm sick off all this worry!

Are you seeing a dr for your anxiety? It sounds like this is starting to severely affect your life and I think you need to try and get some help with you anxiety.

I have an outdoor fountain that is filled with water. I put bleach in it every 2 weeks or so and never worry about Legionaire's disease

[Nighttime pacer]

Hi all
Thanks for your replies.
I do realise I'm blowing this way out of proportion. I am seeing a therapist and the frustrating thing is that for the last few months things have been much better. I need to chill out and smell the flowers!

[ScaredLizard]

Hi all
Thanks for your replies.
I do realise I'm blowing this way out of proportion. I am seeing a therapist and the frustrating thing is that for the last few months things have been much better. I need to chill out and smell the flowers!

That's how anxiety works my friend. We can't really cure it and it's always hanging out waiting. I go through times where I have no anxiety for months and then BOOM!! It's knocking :hugs:

[caterpillars]

Last summer I started coughing after putting my AC in and I googled if you could get a cold from air conditioners and found out about how legionnaires disease could cause it. then I started developing a bunch of other symptoms and rushed to the doctor the next day. it turns out I was fine and just imagined most of it. if you had legionnaires disease it'd be VERY noticeable, my doctor said. if you develop symptoms maybe go to your doctor just to be reassured but you probably don't.

[MyNameIsTerry]

HI all
I've just scared myself again!
I went into the garden and I've got a large sort of trolley which is like a big bucket on wheels. I saw it was full of rain water. I think the water may have been in there for weeks.
I decided to empty it. I walked away from it and took a deep breath and then held my breath and walked up to it and lowered it forward so the water could run out. I then walked away and breathed again. I then waited a minute and walked back to it holding my breath again and tipped it completely upside down to get any remaining water out. I then walked about and breathed.
I've read that it's the fine spray from showers and things that causes you to catch it by breathing it in.
I hope I did what I did safely enough.
I'm sick off all this worry!

Remember the figures from the NHS which show cases of it are rare in the UK?

Now think about how people leave buckets & containers outside all year long. Other than tipping them out they only empty by being knocked over or through evaporation.

How many millions of people across the UK have to empty buckets in theor gardens? And how many times per year?

I bet you the same value in millions of £'s that they don't even know what you fear can be caused by what's in some of those buckets (subject to the right conditions). They won't be taking the care you just did and I know I don't when I empty ours out.

[Nighttime pacer]

Hi all
I'm really sick of my health anxiety over legionnaires disease. I can't believe it's worrying me again.
Tonight I was emptying out a drawer underneath my wardrobes and there were a few things to be got rid of. One of them was a water bottle I used to use at the gym. I last went in February! I opened it before I threw it away and there was a dribble of water in the bottom of it.
I'm now panicking I may have caught legionnaires from opening it.
Legionnaires disease is caught by breathing in droplets of stagnant water.
I've read that the water has to be above 20 degrees C for the bacteria to multiply. I'm guessing that a drawer underneath a wardrobe which isn't next to a radiator wouldn't have got that hot. Also as it's only a dribble of water which wasn't spraying out I'm doubting that even if it did have legionnaires disease in it I wouldn't have caught it from that.
I keep trying to rationalise everything but still keep panicking. The problem is symptoms don't show for 2-9 days sometimes up to 18 days.
I wish my health would just STOP!
Sorry for rambling.
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[nomorepanic]

What help are you getting for your health anxiety?

[Nighttime pacer]

I'm seeing a talking therapist but I'm not sure how much it's helping. I tried CBT in the past but that didn't seem to help much.

[Fishmanpa]

Legionnaires disease??... Really? I think that was thing back in the 70's! Does your therapist know you're posting on an anxiety forum?

Positive thoughts

[Nighttime pacer]

People do still get Legionnaires disease. Only about 300 cases a year in the uk.
I always tell my therapist if I've "let myself down" and ended up on here.
Healthy anxiety is sooooo tiring!

[Fishmanpa]

People do still get Legionnaires disease. Only about 300 cases a year in the uk.

That's a .0005% chance right? Frankly, that's a waste of time to even think about :lac:

Positive thoughts

[WorryRaptor]

I feel your pain. I fear everyone waterborne! I just tipped out a big tub of stagnant water in my garden. This tub has been sitting in the sun for a few months and has lots of green algae in it. It was been slightly hidden behind a pot so I forgot about it. Today, like an idiot, I absentmindedly tipped it out down the drain and probably splashed myself with it. I too am terrified of legionnaires and even botulism which i hear can grow in rotting vegetation in low oxygen (stagnant water). I imagine the tiny bit of water in the bottom of your bottle won't have harmed you in the slightest :)

To actually inhale it, the water droplets would have to be pretty small, from a hose or shower for example. It's so so so doubtful that you inhaled any of it, and even if you did, and the worst happened, many people recover from legionnaires with a healthy immune system or don't even contract it in the first place. Elderly people or immune compromised people are most at risk.

[Nighttime pacer]

Hi all,
I can't believe I'm going through this worry again. I'm so sick of it.
In the last 2 or 3 years I've got into gardening. Today I decided to do something about the collection of old compost bags and empty flower pots I've gradually accumulated at the bottom of my garden.
A previous massive worry has been legionnaires disease which can be caught by breathing in droplets of stagnant water if it splashes into the air.
Some of the old compost bags had water in them that may have been there over a year. The more stagnant water heats up in hot weather the more dangerous it becomes as the bacteria needs heat to multiply.
I put on a disposable breathing mask which I got from Homebase and some gloves.
As I put the compost bags into a black rubbish bag some water spilled out onto the floor.
Even though I had a mask on and was holding my breath as I did it I'm still concerned something could have got into my lungs.
I know I'm over reacting but my stupid brain won't stop worrying.
I'm so disappointed as my HA has been ok lately!
Thanks for reading and sorry about the long post.
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[Elen]

Hi

This is just a courtesy reply to let you know that your thread was merged with another of your threads.

Please when posting on similar topics add it onto your previous post rather than starting a new one.

It is nothing personal it is just to make it easier for people to follow your story and to give you advice as a whole.

Elen

[AMomentofClarity]

Hi all,
I can't believe I'm going through this worry again. I'm so sick of it.
In the last 2 or 3 years I've got into gardening. Today I decided to do something about the collection of old compost bags and empty flower pots I've gradually accumulated at the bottom of my garden.
A previous massive worry has been legionnaires disease which can be caught by breathing in droplets of stagnant water if it splashes into the air.
Some of the old compost bags had water in them that may have been there over a year. The more stagnant water heats up in hot weather the more dangerous it becomes as the bacteria needs heat to multiply.
I put on a disposable breathing mask which I got from Homebase and some gloves.
As I put the compost bags into a black rubbish bag some water spilled out onto the floor.
Even though I had a mask on and was holding my breath as I did it I'm still concerned something could have got into my lungs.
I know I'm over reacting but my stupid brain won't stop worrying.
I'm so disappointed as my HA has been ok lately!
Thanks for reading and sorry about the long post.
Nighttime pacer

1/1,000,000 chance of anything happening from what you describe.

[Nighttime pacer]

Thanks for that Amomentofclarity, It's crazy how mad anxiety can be. Even though I'm worrying about the same thing as before as it's a different context in my mind it's a totally different problem.
But anyway, I realise I'm probably ok. Great name by the way!
Thanks
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[MyNameIsTerry]

My dad was a landscape gardener for over 40 years. They never worried about this issue. They never wore masks for these reasons.

I think we have to consider how common this is. Considering millions of people do plemty of gardening all the time, if this was common we would know about it. It would be a serious public health risk.

According to Public Health England in their 2016 report:

- 359 cases reported.
- 355 were confirmed.
- >60% in the over 60's.
- Over a 3 year period (2014-2016) the mean cases per million population were 6.1.
- 147 of the confirmed 355 were from travelling abroad and 6 in healthcare settings leaving 202.

So, this surely tells us that considering millions of us do some gardening, potentially many times a year, that the risks are absolutely tiny? 6 people per million population and that's all cases, not cases from gardening.

[Nighttime pacer]

Hi Mynameisterry, that puts it in perspective. The crazy thing with my anxiety is it'll calm down for a bit while I'm busy and then when I'm on my own I start thinking about it again.
I've made up my mind that tomorrow I'll deal with the rest of the rubbish that's in my garden and then just move on.
I get too much pleasure from gardening to let this ruin it for me, especially as I've got about 15 plants I bought yesterday which need planting.
Thanks again,
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[MyNameIsTerry]

I think that's true of many of us. Too much thinking time when alone or not immersed in something. That's why distraction and healthy activities are good at shifting our focus away. Learning to accept sitting with the anxiety is a tough one to crack but all part of beating this stuff.

Glad to hear you aren't going to let it stop you :yesyes: It'll still try to have it's way so intrusive thoughts are going to be likely when you are exposed to triggering scenarios again but the more you don't engage negatively with those thoughts and learn not to panic or be more anxious, it will stop as the subconscious learns it's not important anymore. And pushing through stops the avoidance these fears crave to reinforce themselves too.

It's just the weather for the garden now. Even more enjoyable when you see everything flowering and the bees loving it.

[Andrash]

Thanks for that Amomentofclarity, It's crazy how mad anxiety can be. Even though I'm worrying about the same thing as before as it's a different context in my mind it's a totally different problem.
But anyway, I realise I'm probably ok. Great name by the way!
Thanks
Nighttime pacer

I hope you have learned a lesson - never ever to read Daily Fail again. Especially not the health section. :)