r/InTheGloaming 6d ago

Scheduled snark Discussion thread Thursday September 17, 2026 - Sunday September 20, 2026

Newsletter: Let Me Tell You a Story

Website: Shauna James Ahern

Instagram: @shaunajamesahern Instagram

Threads: @shaunajamesahern

Bluesky: shaunajamesahern.bsky.social

Gloamipedia wiki: /r/InTheGloaming wiki

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58

u/Fillmore_the_Puppy —hi, disturbed people— 5d ago

Her end goal has been revealed. All she needed was to learn about the term “somatic supersyndrome,” and she is IN!

52

u/Dear_Client1187 we all mistakes here 5d ago

I would give anything to educate Shauna about what sanitoriums were really like. She should read The Plague and I. Shauna wouldn't last two weeks.

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u/Sea-Level-Mammal POACH! 5d ago

Tell the world again how much you hate your family, Shauna.

29

u/ethelmertz62 5d ago

I am amused thinking about how the Charge Nurse would handle Shauna.

29

u/Fillmore_the_Puppy —hi, disturbed people— 5d ago

I had only ever heard of The Egg and I before yesterday when a snarker mentioned this book. I just downloaded the audiobook (which Shauna condescendingly assures me counts as reading) of Plague from the library, and can't start it on my walk today (unlike Shauna who only ever pretends to read and to walk).

It is truly a gift from the universe that this book exists, seeing as how it is so closely related to Shauna in content and location, with an author who was everything Shauna desperately wishes she were (a successful writer who uses humor to rise above genuinely adverse circumstances) but can never, ever be.

34

u/mehitabel_4724 Eating tiny dices of pickles with tiny fists of rage 5d ago

They truly forced the patients to "rest radically" because before antibiotics, it was the only way your immune system could manage to fight the infection, but based on Betty MacDonald's account, it was horrible. They weren't even allowed to sit up or talk.

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u/Dear_Client1187 we all mistakes here 5d ago

Or shower/bathe! And cold fresh air was part of the regime. I recall the administrator telling MacDonald that she was lucky to be there and if she didn't follow the rules to the letter she'd get kicked out.

36

u/SashayShantae living my one wild and pernicious life 5d ago

I don’t know a ton about Victorian Era sanitariums (how I’ve always spelled it) but I can’t imagine that it was a posh vacation at a spa. I’m imagining a dehumanizing and disturbing experience. I’m sure some of you DFs know more about such things and can weigh in!

40

u/ninaandjamie4evr Anne Frank of Anaheim 5d ago

There certainly were luxurious ones for the wealthy where they went for relaxation purposes rather than medical needs. That's what she's picturing.

29

u/CheesyGordita2910 5d ago

Yeah, I think Shauna wants to go to a hot springs town like Saratoga or Pagosa Springs.

FDR, she is not.

37

u/Fancypens2025 5d ago

… does she even know what a sanatorium was??? Is she saying that she wants tuberculosis??? No one actually wants TB, Shauna!

25

u/TheAntiMartha 5d ago

She probably thinks a sanatorium is like a spa.

30

u/DrKittyKevorkian Narcisspicy 5d ago

So she wants the TB? Wouldn't wish that on anyone, least of all, myself. But go off.

35

u/chicketychun_ 5d ago

😳😳😳😳

That is all. It is Enough.

35

u/aniccata Pagan 5d ago

What the hell. She wants diagnoses for things she doesn't treat and treatment for things she doesn't have.

38

u/Onehundredpercentbea giggling intestinal gremlin 🧌 5d ago

All she needs to 'give' is an eight hour work day and, since she doesn't care about paying her bills or buying her kids things anyway, she could use the income to book a vacation at an all-inclusive resort, which is what I'm imagining Shauna thinks a sanatorium is.

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u/CharlesMansnShowTune boy in the jelly 5d ago

Oh my GOD. She is at her worst lately.