By Jasmine Brockington
As fall time approaches us, the pretty leaves and pumpkin spice may be on the way, but so does the infamous college sickness. We all know it as that ‘college cough’.
It’s something that everyone goes through at the beginning of every school year. I can probably describe the moment before it even pops up because it’s so universal.
It’s been a few weeks since you’ve gotten on campus, the vibes are great, weather is fantastic, classes are starting to assign actual work, maybe you’ve gone to a few parties and had some fun. Then you wake up on a Sunday morning and your throat is itchy, you have the worst headache, and now you have no appetite and you can’t stop coughing.
Yup, you got that college cough and it genuinely won’t go away for about a week or 2 and if you’re a first year, you probably have no idea what to do. I was in the same boat last year and felt so lost because I was sick and didn’t have my mom to bring me soup and medicine!
Now that it’s a new school year, I hate to say I already got that college cough but I knew how to handle it better so here are some tips that can help prevent or make it last shorter.
Drink tea– Now, I know drinking tea sounds like a ‘grandma’ thing to do. You’re probably thinking,” Girl I am not going to just sit down, do some homework and drink some green tea with lemon and think that’ll help me feel better”. But hear me out!! Drinking tea on a normal basis has many benefits, such as boosting your immune system and helps lower your blood pressure. Plus, you know if your mom was with you when you’re sick and hands you a mug of hot tea, you would most definitely drink it. So you might as well do it on your own!
Take Vitamins- Taking multivitamins everyday would definitely help with boosting your immune system so you don’t get sick or if you do, it won’t be as severe. Sometimes it may seem annoying to wake up everyday and take a little vitamin. But hey, what would be better, taking a little gummy vitamin everyday or getting sick and having to miss class for a few days and then get behind in your work? One vitamin that definitely helps with your immune system is elderberry. I take a dose of that everyday and I feel as if my immune system gets stronger every time!
Get lots of sleep- In college, with the amount of stress we go through, I understand that getting the ideal 8 hours of sleep doesn’t seem imaginable. But a large lack of sleep can heavily affect your immune system so please try to catch those Zs each night. If you have trouble sleeping, I recommend either taking melatonin or read a nice book each night to calm your mind before falling asleep
Wash your hands- This should honestly be a given tip. We’re all adults here so washing your hands everyday should be a routine thing. But hey, you never know so I’ll just say it again! Washing your hands as often as you can will stop any spread of germs. Using antibacterial soap and a nice smelling hand sanitizer from Bath and Body Works will get you right!
Well, after reading this, I hope you’ve learned a few new ways to stop that college cough. But if you get it, girl get some cough drops and medicine from the school store and you’ll be good I promise!