It’s either that or throw it in her mouth, hold her down, and stroke her neck until she swallows.
Or maybe until she does the other thing that she’d probably do if Dorothy did that.
Whatever gets the pill down.
ResRam
Try stuffing the pill in some lubricating goop to swallow.
Yoghurt, mashed banana, even a spoonful of raw cookie dough or meat patty – dependent on pill-receiver – have been known to work well with pill-shy animals and sick folk. Feed with soft plastic spoon and “force” recipient to suck the food off the bowl, the pill reliably follows suit.
Home nurse Lore….
eh, whatever
Try stuffing the pill in some lubricating goop to swallow.
You’re aware not everyone drinks dough, meat patties (!?!), or even yoghurt, right? Some people eat those. As in “chew”.
What really surprises me is that Joyce is canonically able to swallow sushi rolls whole. Apparently it really freaks her out to have something… tiny in her mouth? Or her hands even?
Tan
My go-to for the first ~17 years of my life was apple sauce. Eventually I managed to (fairly) reliably take with just water. Half-fill mouth with water, then put pill in, then swallow with more water. In an absolute pinch, a build-up of saliva can work, but isn’t 100% and doesn’t feel good at all even when it does.
I mean, Joyce swallowed an entire california roll without issue, I’m sure you could hide the pill in *something*.
Throwatron
this is extremely relevant and I’m not sure why Dorothy hasn’t thought of it yet XD
Li
At the risk of ruining a bit, I’m not sure how seriously to take that moment, because it was definitely also a comedic beat.
.
But I think a crucial element was that in the moment Joyce forced herself to swallow the sushi whole, it was either that or:
.
1. Bite into the sushi and risk tasting it
.
2. Admit “defeat”, which would have ramped up Walky’s teasing, as well as disappointing Dorothy, both of whom were present (and Dorothy had paid for the sushi).
.
If I were Joyce, I think I’d feel like: there’s a difference between what I was willing to make myself do back before I understood that some of these issues AREN’T just me being dumb and weird, when I was both trying to avoid mockery on one side and only somewhat consciously trying to impress a crush on the other side.
.
And, of course, the sushi was also a one-time thing. Whereas she’s going to be taking these pills every day for, like, at least the next 30 years (and there will be more pills along the way)….
.
Or, TL;DR: did she really swallow the sushi without issue, or was that just a one-time feat of strength made under several types of duress, heh.
Li
…
.
“there’s a difference between what I was willing to make myself do back before [blahblahblah], and now, when I know my issues aren’t just that, when Walky ISN’T watching, and when I have Secured My Crush as a girlfriend”
.
or something like that, didn’t mean to leave my sentence hanging that way.
thejeff
If it’s not physical difficulty swallowing things, but specifically about tiny things like this strip suggests (along with the previous mention of mini-m&ms), then she might not have a problem taking a pill wrapped up in something. Not so much hidden as just big enough not to trigger this particular reaction.
The issue with the sushi at the time then would have been more her known issues with unfamiliar or touching foods.
Pills don’t bother me, but there definitely are things that bother me like this, and so I really sympathize with Joyce. However, there’s got to be something better than 2 liters of Sprite every day.
I swear, every Doctor Pepper fan fan I’ve known has had serious recurring issues with those until they switched up to other, equally unhealthy but less kidney-stoney beverages.
clif
I have never ever, in 76, going on 77 years, had kidney stones. I will admit that would be enough to take me off Dr. Pepper if it was an issue.
…
I’m not at all sure it’s related, but the doctors do tell me that I’m in the earliest stage of kidney failure, but not to worry about it on account of there’s bound to be something else that kills me before it’s an actual problem.
One time I got strep throat and had to do the usual round of antibiotics for a week, as you do. I was really proud of myself because I was able to swallow the pill every time… except for the very last day where, while I was at work, I took my pill with a swig of water and it just! It got caught right at the back of my throat. Awful feeling. I hacked the pill up along with the water I drank, at the same time that a coworker walked into the room. This was during the height of COVID so she immediately freaked and grabbed the manager, who fearfully poked her head in and asked “You’re not sick are you…?” Thankfully her husband has similar troubles swallowing pills so she understood the situation. All this to say, Joyce is me and I am Joyce.
Those things are horse pills. I can swallow any normal pill, but antibiotics come in these half inch pills that are as fat as my pinky. I got some for a case of pneumonia recently and they were awful. If you ever want to get rid of your gag reflex take those for a month.
…I mean sure, it’s not perfect, but just by touching the pill at all Joyce has completed Parts One through Three of The Pill-Box Master Plan. That’s progress!
Apparently one’s ability to overcome feelings of disgust can be directly proportional to how horny someone is. If that wasn’t the case, very little sex would be had, I think.
So, clearly, Joyce needs to develop a pill-swallowing fetish. Problem solved!
ZombieKyrik
I’m sure Dorothy can pull some Pavlov-esque training with Joyce. I don’t know if she will or not, but she’s certainly capable.
I don’t have any trouble swallowing pills at all. But I find it extremely easy to sympathize with. My own strong aversion to heights is every bit as irrational. And just as arbitrary, as airplanes don’t count. But basically, humans are like that so what are you going to do?
…
Now it’s possible that Joyce’s issues in total may be too much for Dorothy to cope with, but we’ll have to see. It’s equally possible that Joyce may perfectly fit Dorothy’s need to be needed. Nothing like unaccustomed closeness to stress test a relationship.
Joyce I can sympathize with not wanting to take a pill, but flinging it across the room isn’t helping anyone.
.
On the bright side Dorothy agrees to the shower, so hopefully we’ll see some new nsfw work in the near future. Right?
How do you live, Joyce? Literally, how do you stay alive with this kind of neurosis about putting things in your mouth? Do survival instincts override the disgust if you get hungry enough? Is being alive, ultimately, more important to you than feeling a momentary discomfort about touching things with the inside of your mouth? It’s a question of priorities.
The fun thing about texture issues like this is that sometimes if you put too much food in your mouth, or the wrong kind of food, or hell, just going to the dentist and they put the x-ray pad in your mouth the wrong way or pop in the silicone putty in your mouth without a warning, it will indeed trigger a gagging response. Ask me how I know.
Ugh, I have to pre-apologize to the dentist every time I need an x-ray or anything needs to go in there past my pre-molars, I have such bad gag reflex issues. It’s so friggin embarrassing
This is 100%. i can’t eat mashed potatoes or baked potatoes or pumpkin pie or even really thick french fries. I LOVE baked apples, my roommate used to make them for me, and one time she cooked them just a little too long and they got that texture and my tongue was like YUMMY and my throat was like ABSOLUTELY NOT NOPE!
She doesn’t have an issue with putting things in her mouth. She has an issue with swallowing pills, which I completely understand as someone who likewise started college being unable/barely able to do it! But at the same time, I did eat food multiple times a day, gasp gasp shock. Pills can be difficult for an autistic overthinker because you are deliberately skipping the “chewing” step of ingesting things. Your brain is yelling at you YOU’RE GONNA CHOKE BECAUSE YOU DIDN’T CHEW IT!!!! even though the pill is objectively smaller than mouthfuls of chewed food you’ve swallowed before.
I don’t know why people are being so weird and judgemental about this. Some people have a hard time with pills, it’s not a dumb trait Willis made up without thinking through.
When I was young, I struggled to get used to swallowing pills. I also, for unrelated reasons, built up my pain tolerance. The latter was easier.
That’s not a boast about me being tough — I’m just a wimp about pills. I try to swallow mine when I’m at least a little thirsty, because they’re not going down remotely dry.
Like most sensory issues and texture squicks, this is not a rational thing you can simply decide to overcome. Joyce is merely vocalizing all of her internal disgust and revulsion and anxiety that she has no control over. If you watch TADC, there’s no actual logic behind Jax’s fear of corn, other than that it “looks gross.” The only solution is to confront the phobia and find out the world doesn’t end.
She doesn’t have a neurosis about putting things in her mouth. We’ve seen her put things in her mouth happily, like mac & cheese, chicken fingers, and her partners’ genitals. She has a neurosis about putting *tiny* things in her mouth, like pills and M&M minis.
Joyce had a lot of little somethings going down her throat when she gave Joe that blowjob as thanks for a weighted blanket. Just pretend you’re swallowing more of that. Problem solved.
1) To be a bit crude, we don’t know that she swallowed.
2) Given Joyce’s total lack of sex ed, she may not know those tiny things exist.
3) Even if she does and did, neuroses are not logical and can’t be overcome by logic.
I imagine that if she knows they exist, it’s the same as something she or Mx Willis expressed a while back with regards to some sort of beloved fast food: “no no that’s not different ingredients touching, it’s all one homogenous thing, and I will Not accept thinking of it otherwise.”
.
If one could control this mental categorization, it would help a lot, but my understanding is that it doesn’t work that way.
Maybe she’d be better off putting it in some food. Something small enough to swallow whole but large enough to not have that “small thing in my throat” feeling.
Personally I always try to eat something after taking any pills.
I can only imagine what Joyce would think of something like Contac C capsules. When I was a kid in the ’70s I wanted to get my hands on them, because a pill with a bunch of tiny little balls in it was cool. In the end I never took one before they were pulled from the market in 2000 because one ingredient could cause strokes.
I find it crazy that so many people voted for Joyce having “no idea and doesn’t think about” what’s in her burrito knowing all her aversions like this.
We have literally seen that she considers certain things like casserole not as separate ingredients so it makes complete sense to me, that she may do this with other things at times, where she doesn’t know what’s in it, and tries not to think about it.
I have chronic health issues and have to take a LOT of pills every day. In the morning I have to take five, two tiny, one small, one regular size, and one horse pill. I can take them all at once (normally with a swallow of diet Pepsi through a straw to wash it down. But occasionally I will unknowingly have an empty cup, and I discovered that I can swallow them just fine using the ANTICIPATION of swallowing the Pepsi. Note, this will not work if I KNOW the cup is empty, or even have substantial doubt. The swallow reflex has to be COMPLETELY hoodwinked.
137 thoughts on “For Love! And Shower.”
Dara
SOMEONE GET JOYCE PILL POCKETS STAT
Doctor_Who
The pills are tiny, I bet you could slip one in a piece of EasyMac.
Dara
It’s either that or throw it in her mouth, hold her down, and stroke her neck until she swallows.
Or maybe until she does the other thing that she’d probably do if Dorothy did that.
Whatever gets the pill down.
ResRam
Try stuffing the pill in some lubricating goop to swallow.
Yoghurt, mashed banana, even a spoonful of raw cookie dough or meat patty – dependent on pill-receiver – have been known to work well with pill-shy animals and sick folk. Feed with soft plastic spoon and “force” recipient to suck the food off the bowl, the pill reliably follows suit.
Home nurse Lore….
eh, whatever
Try stuffing the pill in some lubricating goop to swallow.
You’re aware not everyone drinks dough, meat patties (!?!), or even yoghurt, right? Some people eat those. As in “chew”.
What really surprises me is that Joyce is canonically able to swallow sushi rolls whole. Apparently it really freaks her out to have something… tiny in her mouth? Or her hands even?
Tan
My go-to for the first ~17 years of my life was apple sauce. Eventually I managed to (fairly) reliably take with just water. Half-fill mouth with water, then put pill in, then swallow with more water. In an absolute pinch, a build-up of saliva can work, but isn’t 100% and doesn’t feel good at all even when it does.
Dara
honestly tho’ the easy mac is a good idea, that would totally work
i mean i was joking about the pill pockets but only so much
Steamweed
Heck, you could stuff one of those lil’ things inside a single piece of elbow macaroni. Cheese it up, and swallow whole.
Heavensrun
I mean, Joyce swallowed an entire california roll without issue, I’m sure you could hide the pill in *something*.
Throwatron
this is extremely relevant and I’m not sure why Dorothy hasn’t thought of it yet XD
Li
At the risk of ruining a bit, I’m not sure how seriously to take that moment, because it was definitely also a comedic beat.
.
But I think a crucial element was that in the moment Joyce forced herself to swallow the sushi whole, it was either that or:
.
1. Bite into the sushi and risk tasting it
.
2. Admit “defeat”, which would have ramped up Walky’s teasing, as well as disappointing Dorothy, both of whom were present (and Dorothy had paid for the sushi).
.
If I were Joyce, I think I’d feel like: there’s a difference between what I was willing to make myself do back before I understood that some of these issues AREN’T just me being dumb and weird, when I was both trying to avoid mockery on one side and only somewhat consciously trying to impress a crush on the other side.
.
And, of course, the sushi was also a one-time thing. Whereas she’s going to be taking these pills every day for, like, at least the next 30 years (and there will be more pills along the way)….
.
Or, TL;DR: did she really swallow the sushi without issue, or was that just a one-time feat of strength made under several types of duress, heh.
Li
…
.
“there’s a difference between what I was willing to make myself do back before [blahblahblah], and now, when I know my issues aren’t just that, when Walky ISN’T watching, and when I have Secured My Crush as a girlfriend”
.
or something like that, didn’t mean to leave my sentence hanging that way.
thejeff
If it’s not physical difficulty swallowing things, but specifically about tiny things like this strip suggests (along with the previous mention of mini-m&ms), then she might not have a problem taking a pill wrapped up in something. Not so much hidden as just big enough not to trigger this particular reaction.
The issue with the sushi at the time then would have been more her known issues with unfamiliar or touching foods.
Li
@thejeff: good point!
Stormtide Leviathan
That sounds like mixing food i fear
Reltzik
Joyce would KNOW that there was an extra ingredient mixed in. As much as she hates taking pills, she hates having complicated meals even more.
Longshot97
Ms. Maggie, we thank you for your service.
Steamweed
And your patience!
clif
Particularly the patience.
Astariel
Pills don’t bother me, but there definitely are things that bother me like this, and so I really sympathize with Joyce. However, there’s got to be something better than 2 liters of Sprite every day.
clif
Two liters of Dr. Pepper is infinitely superior.
Azhrei Vep
If you like Kidney Stones, maybe.
I swear, every Doctor Pepper fan fan I’ve known has had serious recurring issues with those until they switched up to other, equally unhealthy but less kidney-stoney beverages.
clif
I have never ever, in 76, going on 77 years, had kidney stones. I will admit that would be enough to take me off Dr. Pepper if it was an issue.
…
I’m not at all sure it’s related, but the doctors do tell me that I’m in the earliest stage of kidney failure, but not to worry about it on account of there’s bound to be something else that kills me before it’s an actual problem.
Ellie
Yeah, this really made me realize the ‘feeling’ Joyce is experiencing at the moment, very familiar.
NGPZ
oh dear XD
how much longer we have till the NRE REALLY starts waning? o3o
Astariel
It’s probably going to take more than three days.
Dot
We’re gonna be in this for a while
Li
I mean. Check the alt text.
.
I don’t think this specific thing is gonna be a breaking point for Dorothy.
Doopyboop
One time I got strep throat and had to do the usual round of antibiotics for a week, as you do. I was really proud of myself because I was able to swallow the pill every time… except for the very last day where, while I was at work, I took my pill with a swig of water and it just! It got caught right at the back of my throat. Awful feeling. I hacked the pill up along with the water I drank, at the same time that a coworker walked into the room. This was during the height of COVID so she immediately freaked and grabbed the manager, who fearfully poked her head in and asked “You’re not sick are you…?” Thankfully her husband has similar troubles swallowing pills so she understood the situation. All this to say, Joyce is me and I am Joyce.
GreyICE
Those things are horse pills. I can swallow any normal pill, but antibiotics come in these half inch pills that are as fat as my pinky. I got some for a case of pneumonia recently and they were awful. If you ever want to get rid of your gag reflex take those for a month.
RassilonTDavros
…I mean sure, it’s not perfect, but just by touching the pill at all Joyce has completed Parts One through Three of The Pill-Box Master Plan. That’s progress!
darkoneko
it’s a work… in progress.
Anna Grant
I think it might be time for our girl to look into a subdermal implant
Jon
Or at least disposable latex gloves. My wife works with resin, so we order them in boxfuls.
Mollyscribbles
mouthful of water, at least. It’s not that bad if you’re not taking it dry.
Steamweed
Joyce, my dear, my dearest dear, you’re gonna be a right ass-pain as a student learning oral sex.
ZombieKyrik
Funnily enough, I feel like she’ll take to that long before she gets comfortable with pills, and weird foods.
Trip
Apparently one’s ability to overcome feelings of disgust can be directly proportional to how horny someone is. If that wasn’t the case, very little sex would be had, I think.
So, clearly, Joyce needs to develop a pill-swallowing fetish. Problem solved!
ZombieKyrik
I’m sure Dorothy can pull some Pavlov-esque training with Joyce. I don’t know if she will or not, but she’s certainly capable.
Doopyboop
I dunno about that one, she didn’t seem to have any issues with Dorothy or Joe as far as oral goes.
Sirksome
I wanna sympathize with Joyce’s pill problem, but that’s kind of difficult. Almost as difficult as it is for Joyce to take a pill.
clif
I don’t have any trouble swallowing pills at all. But I find it extremely easy to sympathize with. My own strong aversion to heights is every bit as irrational. And just as arbitrary, as airplanes don’t count. But basically, humans are like that so what are you going to do?
…
Now it’s possible that Joyce’s issues in total may be too much for Dorothy to cope with, but we’ll have to see. It’s equally possible that Joyce may perfectly fit Dorothy’s need to be needed. Nothing like unaccustomed closeness to stress test a relationship.
Amós Batista
don’t be self-aware about swallowing pills don’t be self-aware about swallowing pills don’t be self-aware about swallowing pills
ZombieKyrik
Joyce I can sympathize with not wanting to take a pill, but flinging it across the room isn’t helping anyone.
.
On the bright side Dorothy agrees to the shower, so hopefully we’ll see some new nsfw work in the near future. Right?
clif
I am reasonably sure that flinging it across the room was not a conscious decision.
Amelie W
How do you live, Joyce? Literally, how do you stay alive with this kind of neurosis about putting things in your mouth? Do survival instincts override the disgust if you get hungry enough? Is being alive, ultimately, more important to you than feeling a momentary discomfort about touching things with the inside of your mouth? It’s a question of priorities.
Doopyboop
The fun thing about texture issues like this is that sometimes if you put too much food in your mouth, or the wrong kind of food, or hell, just going to the dentist and they put the x-ray pad in your mouth the wrong way or pop in the silicone putty in your mouth without a warning, it will indeed trigger a gagging response. Ask me how I know.
Shiro
Ugh, I have to pre-apologize to the dentist every time I need an x-ray or anything needs to go in there past my pre-molars, I have such bad gag reflex issues. It’s so friggin embarrassing
Allen Alberti
This is 100%. i can’t eat mashed potatoes or baked potatoes or pumpkin pie or even really thick french fries. I LOVE baked apples, my roommate used to make them for me, and one time she cooked them just a little too long and they got that texture and my tongue was like YUMMY and my throat was like ABSOLUTELY NOT NOPE!
spinspinspin
She doesn’t have an issue with putting things in her mouth. She has an issue with swallowing pills, which I completely understand as someone who likewise started college being unable/barely able to do it! But at the same time, I did eat food multiple times a day, gasp gasp shock. Pills can be difficult for an autistic overthinker because you are deliberately skipping the “chewing” step of ingesting things. Your brain is yelling at you YOU’RE GONNA CHOKE BECAUSE YOU DIDN’T CHEW IT!!!! even though the pill is objectively smaller than mouthfuls of chewed food you’ve swallowed before.
I don’t know why people are being so weird and judgemental about this. Some people have a hard time with pills, it’s not a dumb trait Willis made up without thinking through.
deliverything
When I was young, I struggled to get used to swallowing pills. I also, for unrelated reasons, built up my pain tolerance. The latter was easier.
That’s not a boast about me being tough — I’m just a wimp about pills. I try to swallow mine when I’m at least a little thirsty, because they’re not going down remotely dry.
Jon
I suspect it may be more about who is having the issue than what the issue is, frankly.
DashWallkick
Like most sensory issues and texture squicks, this is not a rational thing you can simply decide to overcome. Joyce is merely vocalizing all of her internal disgust and revulsion and anxiety that she has no control over. If you watch TADC, there’s no actual logic behind Jax’s fear of corn, other than that it “looks gross.” The only solution is to confront the phobia and find out the world doesn’t end.
Astariel
She doesn’t have a neurosis about putting things in her mouth. We’ve seen her put things in her mouth happily, like mac & cheese, chicken fingers, and her partners’ genitals. She has a neurosis about putting *tiny* things in her mouth, like pills and M&M minis.
nadamás
Can you cut down on the condescending tone please? There are actual autistic people in this comment section you know.
Adam Black
Willis, Yeeting Maggies Birth Control
Li
Pff. Oh, Joyce.
IntangibleMatter
Dorothy can work her down to a cup of apple juice, I believe in her
Shogo
Joyce had a lot of little somethings going down her throat when she gave Joe that blowjob as thanks for a weighted blanket. Just pretend you’re swallowing more of that. Problem solved.
Astariel
1) To be a bit crude, we don’t know that she swallowed.
2) Given Joyce’s total lack of sex ed, she may not know those tiny things exist.
3) Even if she does and did, neuroses are not logical and can’t be overcome by logic.
Li
I imagine that if she knows they exist, it’s the same as something she or Mx Willis expressed a while back with regards to some sort of beloved fast food: “no no that’s not different ingredients touching, it’s all one homogenous thing, and I will Not accept thinking of it otherwise.”
.
If one could control this mental categorization, it would help a lot, but my understanding is that it doesn’t work that way.
Random832
Maybe she’d be better off putting it in some food. Something small enough to swallow whole but large enough to not have that “small thing in my throat” feeling.
Personally I always try to eat something after taking any pills.
Leadsynth
It’s so odd to me how some folks would apparently rather swallow a big horse pill than an “eensy small” one.
tim gueguen
I can only imagine what Joyce would think of something like Contac C capsules. When I was a kid in the ’70s I wanted to get my hands on them, because a pill with a bunch of tiny little balls in it was cool. In the end I never took one before they were pulled from the market in 2000 because one ingredient could cause strokes.
Shakes
I find it crazy that so many people voted for Joyce having “no idea and doesn’t think about” what’s in her burrito knowing all her aversions like this.
clif
The option wasn’t “doesn’t think about it.” It was *TRIES* not to think about it.
An important distinction.
Yumi
I think her food aversions were exactly why people picked the “tries not to think about it” option.
Sam
We have literally seen that she considers certain things like casserole not as separate ingredients so it makes complete sense to me, that she may do this with other things at times, where she doesn’t know what’s in it, and tries not to think about it.
Random832
It is made of burrito.
That is the real answer, and “doesn’t think about it” is close enough.
Big Steve
I have chronic health issues and have to take a LOT of pills every day. In the morning I have to take five, two tiny, one small, one regular size, and one horse pill. I can take them all at once (normally with a swallow of diet Pepsi through a straw to wash it down. But occasionally I will unknowingly have an empty cup, and I discovered that I can swallow them just fine using the ANTICIPATION of swallowing the Pepsi. Note, this will not work if I KNOW the cup is empty, or even have substantial doubt. The swallow reflex has to be COMPLETELY hoodwinked.
Dragonfire
I… but… the teeny ones are so small you can’t even feel them go down! They’re easy!
Those pentagonal fuckers, on the other hand, like amlodipine comes in? Hate those assholes. They have corners and hurt.
deliverything