There is knowing your eczema is not normal and privately dealing with it, then there are those moments where it seems you are holding a sign in public that says, "I have tons of weird allergies and my skin is the worst!"
I started a new barre class and, because I am impulsive, I purchased an entire month of classes before trying the first one. I enter the studio and my eyes instantly go to the wall-to-wall carpet. Carpet?! It's a barre studio, not a 90's office building. Why aren't there hard wood floors? No, no, no ...
Dust mite allergies have changed the way I live my life. I have hard wood floors with minimal rugs, a memory foam mattress, very particular bedding, leather couches, etc. Not only is carpet, in my opinion, ugly and dirty, I absolutely cannot be rolling around on it, because of my allergies. In the barre class, I follow the norm, though. Nobody else is on mats, just directly on the carpet, so that's what I do. It's not until later in the class that the mats come out for the remainder of the routine. I'm nervous throughout the workout, because I've been increasingly itchier the last few weeks and know that carpet is a trigger.
I spent a good chunk of money for the one-month barre studio pass and want to get on a good workout routine, so I decide to go again two days later. I grab a mat from the start, though. So I'm the one with the brightly colored pants awkwardly trying to stay on the only mat in the crowded room, moving it around often as the workout progresses. At least I didn't buy the one-year pass; being "that mat girl" isn't very fun.
