This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at HWS chapter.
Flu season is upon us everyone! It’s especially difficult to keep up your health in college, and not stressing are important, here are some basic things you can do to avoid getting sick, but also how to get over feeling icky if you got stuck with the flu. Take it from someone who got sick within the first week of college and had to suck it up!
- Emergen-C: This little packet that you stir into water for a packed punch of Vitamin C has a few more benefits that just boosting your immune system. There is also lycopene in the drink, which reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease. Furthermore, there’s glucosamine and chondroitin, which manage osteoarthritis. There’s also different types and flavors of Emergen-C, with some promoting sleep and relaxation and others that target supercharging your energy-naturally, of course.
- Tea, tea, and more tea: Tea is so much better for you than coffee, which is hard for me to admit because I live off coffee! There are certain teas that help you get better, though. White tea is supposed to help you destroy pathogenic bacteria throughout your body—so it’s good for any old cold. Sore throat soothers like lemon, ginger and sage teas are easy to find and so easy on a sore throat.
- Spicy everything: Spicy Ramen, chili flakes and flavored (but mostly spicy) foods are pretty important for the sick. It can clear your sinuses pretty quickly and even give you the flavor you have been missing out on in Ramen!
- Have a mini Purell bottle in your backpack: My friends and I always walk into the dining hall and pull out Purell. It’s so helpful to kill germs and just to make yourself feel cleaner! Of course you should definitely keep washing your hands often. There are some great hand sanitizers from Bath and Body Works that smell amazing, with bursting beads that have great scents, which are just as effective as Purell.
- Taking breaks between work more often: Banging away at the keys on your keyboard as you finish a paper you have been non-stop working can be a great idea, but when you are sick it can also be straining and stressful. Taking breaks more often will give yout he rest you need while completing all the readings and studying you have to get down. Lie down every 15 minutes and take some deep breaths, or sip a cup of tea after doing around a half hour of work. Or, work for 15 minutes and take a 5 minute break. Continue the cycle until you can’t. Sectioning your work and staying organized while you are sick is essential, because sometimes you cannot get everything done, and seeing what you have left will help you be more productive later too.
- Stay in: So you hear your friends laughing and singing to the music pumping throughout the hallway of the dorm, and you get the sudden urge to go out. It’s so tempting, it seems like you can’t resist. Coming from someone who’s been in this exact scenario, take it from me: STAY IN. There’s going to be parties that pop up next weekend. And if you’re not feeling better by next weekend, there will be the weekend after. While you stay in, make it worthwhile: get into your most comfy pajamas, cuddle up with a cup of tea and binge your favorite Netflix show.
These are just a few things I did when I got sick, but there is so much more to the list. It is also about finding what works best for you when you are sick, and realizing that you are limited when you are sick. I hope this article gave you a little more insight to what can help you overcome your flu or cold!