By Staff Writer: Charles Tucker
Well, it’s that time of year again. With the wide number of viral illnesses going around, it can be hard to feel any sense of security in your health. To many people it often feels like a viral infection can crop up at any time and ruin one’s next few days or even weeks with no warning and through no fault of their own.
This is especially true for those in service or care jobs, as well as anyone who regularly attends in-person classes or social events. A bad outbreak of cold, flu, RSV, COVID-19, or other virus can sweep through an entire establishment and infect everyone in no time at all. More often than not, it can be difficult or downright impossible to place the initial source of the pathogen.
However, getting sick doesn’t have to be an inevitability or a crippling blow to your livelihood. Practical everyday choices can decrease one’s odds of getting sick as well as help one to get better quickly and avoid spreading the infection.
The most obvious way to avoid infection with any given illness is to know the signs of it and avoid them. Knowledge is power. Pay attention to news about family, friends, and coworkers who have become ill, as well as local news in general. Do your own research as necessary to find out exactly what illness is going around and what you should do to prepare.
If a vaccine is available and you are not contraindicated for it, it can be a good idea to get it. However, since viruses constantly mutate and have the potential to become vaccine-resistant “superbugs”, a vaccine isn’t guaranteed to work in every case. It’s always good to take additional precautions, whether you have taken a vaccine or not.
It’s generally wise to make sure you are eating a healthy, varied, and vitamin-rich diet, especially during flu season or any similar uptick of viral infection. A regular diet of pizza, fast food, ramen noodles, soda, energy drinks and ice cream aren’t exactly optimal for basic health, let alone fueling an effective immune system.
Of course, you should always attend to your mental health needs as well. Your brain is the supercomputer keeping the rest of your body running and if your brain is dealing with an issue, so is the rest of you. Overall, if you struggle with maintaining healthy habits and a healthy mindset on an average day, your body will certainly let you know it once you get infected with something.
When you know that an illness is going around, eating plenty of fruits and vegetables as well as taking vitamin supplements can prepare your body to resist infection more easily. In my experience, daily consumption of elderberry, zinc, fish oil, and vitamin C supplements has been highly effective in keeping minor illnesses at bay and mitigating some of the negative effects of active infections. These and other supplements might be just as if not more effective for you.
If you have been around a person who has since started showing symptoms of an illness, or if you have been traveling in areas which are currently experiencing upticks in infection rates, it makes sense to self-isolate until you are sure that you have not been made sick as well. If you wake up and feel that something is off, such as a cough, a fever, sore throat, excess mucus, an upset stomach, brain fog, or a general malaise that you can’t otherwise explain, start thinking under the pretense that you may be sick with something.
Don’t assume that you are healthy and that symptoms will go away on their own or be expunged by your sheer force of will (though a great degree of willpower certainly doesn’t hurt).
Don’t think that your health is something that should be disregarded in the interest of your workload. If you know you’re sick, the responsible thing to do is withdraw from social situations and find other ways to go about meeting your deadlines. The illness is not your fault, but it is your responsibility.
Don’t ever be ashamed of calling in sick if you have symptoms of infection. A sensible employer will choose to let a sick employee stay home rather than let other employees and themselves become sick as well. If your workplace falls apart in your absence, that says a lot more about the workplace than about you.
Responsibility in managing one’s own illness is especially prudent in cases where children, elderly individuals, and those with compromised immune systems may be at risk. As much as one might want to attend their great-grandparent’s birthday party or hold their friend’s newborn baby, one’s awareness of their own health condition should always win out. If a sickness is making you miserable, it will most assuredly be worse for those with less resistance to it.
On the other side of the coin, no one should be alone in their sickness. If you need help with something while sick, ask someone you know for help. Reach out if you’re in need of something. Take advantage of no-contact delivery services if necessary. If your condition is worsening or not improving, visit your doctor or the local urgent care. There’s no honor or sense in suffering in silence.