10 Things People Who Are Always Sick Understand
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Health and Wellness

10 Things People Who Are Always Sick Understand

To my fellow sick people, I feel your pain...literally

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10 Things People Who Are Always Sick Understand
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Everyone gets sick at least a few times a year, especially if they are in an environment containing 1,000's of people, like at college. Some of us rarely ever get sick, while others end up getting sick at least once a month. Is the immune system to blame? Partially. Most of the time, those of us who are prone to sickness may just be under tons of stress, not practicing proper hygiene, or just so happen to be around someone who coughed/sneezed in our direction.

Unfortunately, I am one of the unlucky few who gets sick literally every damn time an illness breaks out on campus. I'm actually sick right now as I write this. Anyways, here's 10 things that people who are constantly getting sick will understand:

1. Hand sanitizer is your best friend

Between all the things you touch throughout the day on top of being susceptible to illness, you know the importance of hand sanitizer. You wipe your cell phone down at least twice a day, and you always sanitize your hands before or after eating/touching your face. I always have a bottle of sanitizer in my room and one for the road.

2. When someone coughs/sneezes into their hand, you cringe

Don't people understand how gross that is?? When you sneeze or cough into your hand and then touch something, those germs get spread around in a matter of seconds and can infect people for miles. Please, cough/sneeze into the crook of your elbow and wash your hands. Is that really so hard? Please, us constantly-sick people would really appreciate it.

3. When your friend is sick, you know that there's a 99% chance that you will be, too

Friend, I love you, but for the sake of my health, I'm going to have to avoid you for the next few days until you're better.

4. You get asked the questions, "Why are you always sick?" "You're sick again?" etc

Gosh if I knew why I was always sick I wouldn't be sick right now, would I? I don't know why I get every illness known to man, and I wish I could answer such questions.

5. You always stock up on Kleenex, Advil, and lozenges, since you know that there's a good chance you'll need them within the next month

Every grocery trip I make I try to grab an extra box of Kleenex or Advil just in case. Because with me, I could be feeling on top of the world one day and sick as a dog the next.

6. You have mastered how to hide a red nose and flushed complexion

I hate looking like Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer and a character from the Walking Dead. Nothing some foundation and makeup can't fix...until I have to blow my nose again.

7. People assume you practice poor hygiene

There are tons of reasons why one gets sick. Yes, proper hygiene measures help to reduce the number of times you get sick, but really you can get sick from multiple different causes. Most common is touching something that someone who is sick has touched and then eating or touching your face. Also, when someone coughs or sneezes in the air, those germ particles travel so far, and its impossible to avoid breathing them in (gross, I know).

8. You manage to always get sick when there's an important/fun event coming up

It's like my immune system knows just when to ruin my life. Whenever there's a holiday, fun event, trip, etc I always come down with a cold/flu. Like I wasn't able to celebrate Easter this year due to being bedridden with a fever...ughhhhh. Maybe I should just take cold medicine daily like a vitamin, or get the flu shot both during and after flu season. I'm sure on my eventual wedding day I'll come down with Swine Flu (cries).

9. If someone merely coughs or sneezes near you, you know you're doomed

Yep, you're now infected. Don't even assume you're going to dodge this sickness, it's too late. Time to break out the tissues, Advil, and soup and accept your fate.

10. Your bed and sweats become your world

When I'm sick, I have no desire to get dressed up. It's sweatpants and baggy shirts for me. And sleep. Hours and hours of sleep. Being sick feels like being hit by a bus, and any energy I have goes out the window. But there's nothing more comfortable than being warm in bed recuperating.

Being sick sucks. It absolutely sucks. You can't avoid it forever. No matter how cautious you are and how good your hygiene is, sooner or later you're going to get sick. If you're stressed out, sleep deprived, or eating poorly that also plays a huge role. Stress and lack of sleep weaken the immune system. Having a poor diet lacking specific vitamins and minerals contributes to this as well.

But, it's college. Such factors are common among many of us and are almost unavoidable. However, you can work to keep yourself as healthy as possible by simply washing your hands and taking time to care for yourself.

With that said, I'm off to take a nap. Currently so sick that simply writing this article has drained me of any energy I have left. To my fellow sick people, I feel your pain...literally.

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This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
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