It’s November, which means pie and turkey (if you celebrate Thanksgiving) and an overabundance of early Christmas commercials, no matter if you celebrate it or not. However, November also means rapidly falling temperatures and a 99% chance that you’re going to get sick. If you’re like me, you’ve never been sick away from home before, and you’re not quite sure how to deal with it when the medicine cabinet is no longer a room away. My girlfriend has been sick for the past week, and it’s taught me a lot about how to handle it--especially now that I think I’m getting sick too.

1. Start treating your symptoms as soon as they appear.

I’m a contradictory being myself. When I first start getting the sniffles, there’s part of me that is determined to remain positive and refuse to admit I’m sick, but there’s also part of me that goes out and buys three bags of cough drops at the first sign of a sore throat. I’ve found that a balance between these two approaches is best--don’t freak out, but when you start feeling like you might be sick, go out and get some cold medicine. It’s better to start helping yourself feel better right away than to wait for your symptoms to get worse.

2. Make sure you stay hydrated (and eat proper meals!)

It can be hard to find the time to drink plenty of water and eat enough in college, especially if you’re approaching the finals season. However, if you’re worried you might be getting sick, it’s more important than ever to make sure that you stay hydrated and healthy. Eating full meals and drinking plenty of water can help to stave off sickness, or in the case that you’re too late for that, can help you feel better and get well sooner rather than later. Drinking water is especially important if you have a fever: dehydration is no joke.

3. If you feel really bad, let your professors know.

When you’re feeling under the weather, it’s hard to drag yourself to class. Sometimes, it’s worth it--if you’ve got a test, it’s probably better to push yourself through the cough you’ve got and make it to class. However, if you’re feeling really bad, it’s probably better for you to email your prof and let them know that you’re sick. That way, you don’t have to worry about going to class when you feel horrible, and you also don’t have to worry about getting other people sick.

4. It will be hard, but try to stay on top of homework.

This is the tricky one. Miss one day? No big deal. Miss several days of class? This is when the work starts piling up and the stress levels reach an all-time high. No matter how hard it is, try and find the time to put aside an hour or two to get some work done. It won’t make you feel better, but this way when you’re done being sick, you don’t have to worry about making up a full four days’ worth of homework all at once.

5. If it’s available, go to the health center!

Last but not least, please use your resources. I know it’s hard. I know that you don’t want to admit that you’re sick and I especially know that you don’t want to drag yourself to the health clinic that’s a block away. But waiting until you almost can’t get out of bed is not the right time to go to the health center. When all of your friends are telling you to go--yes, this is directed at my girlfriend--then that means that you should go to the health center. They’re probably right.

Overall, the most important thing is to pay attention to what your body is telling you. If you’ve barely got a sniffle, then you’re probably fine. But if something really feels wrong--take care of yourself. Your education is important, but take care of yourself first. That’s even more important.