Getting sick is exhausting and fairly debilitating, regardless of where you are when you have it. Everything in you wants to slow down, and sometimes it just isn't possible. However, every now and then a sickness sneaks up and there is no choice but to succumb to bed for a few days and wait for it to pass you by. This is even more difficult in college than it is at home, and my first experience getting ill at school was a little more draining than expected. While it's not the end of the world, here are a few reasons why getting sick at school is less than ideal.
1. You still have responsibilities.
Taking a day off from class is OK when you're sick, but the responsibilities still haunt you even if you're not in class. Oftentimes they build up even more with an absence. While an email to a professor can excuse you for a couple of hours, the organizations will meet and the papers will be assigned with or without your active participation. Yet there is only so much you can do about that; sometimes the only thing to do is pretend the world is on pause and resume it the next day.
2. You get other people sick.
When living in such close quarters with other people, it's impossible for these illnesses not to spread. Everyone touches the same handles and breathes the same confined air. It makes it even tougher to air out the sickly spaces when a lot of the windows refuse to open. All the necessary precautions can be taken to try and contain your sickness, but the reality is that it is out of your hands. Just try to keep washing them.
3. It affects your roommate.
When I had strep throat, I was so careful to continuously sanitize the room so my roommate wouldn't get sick by default. It's also tough when you just want to lay in bed for a day or two—they still need to carry out their lives as usual, even if your plagued figure remains immobile in bed. I remember just trying to stay out of her way the best I could, which wasn't difficult since I didn't venture too far from my bed.
4. There is no way to take care of you the way they can at home.
Friends can be great, but there is a limit to what they can do while still protecting themselves from your germs. With family, it doesn't seem to matter. I still love when I get sick at home, and my mother makes me hot soup. It's just not as comforting when I have to trudge my way to CVS for some Progresso.
5. There's no way to completely avoid other people.
The swelling of my throat during my sickness made me sound like Kermit the frog when I spoke. All my of muscles also ached, but there was still no way to completely avoid seeing people. Whether it's friends coming into the room to borrow something or classmates passing you on your way to the clinic, remaining a total recluse never seems to be an option, despite its appeal.
