It's early in the morning. You've just poured yourself a hot cup of coffee on the way out the door. You grab your backpack, your keys, your beanie, your Thermos, and you start your trek to class...
Every other student who passes by you is sniffling -- some are even holding boxes of tissues in their hands. Just the sight of them is enough to give you a tickle in the back of your throat.
Next thing you know, you're one of those tissue-hogging snifflers. You've got a cough, you're taking Robotussin, and you've emailed your teachers to tell them that you're going to be MIA for the next few days. You close your laptop and look around your room and think, "...now what?"
5 Things To Do When You're Sick
Drink a lot of water.
Yes, tea is incredible and coffee is a basic human right; but you need to make sure you're getting enough fluids and nothing will do that better than regular H2O. Fresh water, maybe with a little lemon juice if you've got that around, and you'll be doing yourself a world of good. Besides, it's not like you're too busy to get up and go to the bathroom every 30 minutes.
Try to keep up with school.
It's super tempting to immediately start binge-watching Netflix or to immediately go scroll through Facebook, but keeping up with your school work can be incredibly helpful. If you've got reading to do or papers to write, try to at least start some of those assignments so that you won't be too overwhelmed by the time you're well again.
Sleep.
Okay, contrary to what I just said, you do need to make sure you're resting. This isn't a day of playing hooky! If you're into naps, make sure you take the time to get in at least one good nap. If you're more like me and you'd rather just go to bed earlier, shoot for 9pm as a bedtime. Sleep is when your body recovers!
Eat.
I know that when you're sick, it can be really hard to get out of bed and cook yourself something or to walk somewhere for food, but it is incredibly beneficial! Your body needs nutrients and vitamins to get better! If you absolutely cannot get out of bed, text a friend and ask them to bring you some soup and green tea. *Note: Repay this friend later with some coffee or an alcoholic beverage.
Use this time to destress.
After you've started your paper or read a chapter, eaten a good meal, had a good nap, and consumed your fair share of water, it's nice to let yourself have a nice mental health day. Often we get sick when we're the most stressed and busy, and I take getting sick as my body's way of saying pause. I paint my nails, do a face mask, call my mom, start some laundry: nothing difficult, but things that will help me feel at ease.
Next time you're sick, make sure you include these five things into your downtime. Getting sick is a part of every adult's life, unfortunately, but it doesn't have to be the end of the world.
