How To Deal With Being Sick At College

1. Stock up:

If you feel like you are starting to get sick make sure that you stock up your dorm room with supplies to make sure you can get through the upcoming weeks. Some essentials to make sure you have on hand are tissues, soup, medicine, cough drops, and vitamins. Other things to have that make being sick easier is having a comfy pair of sweatpants and a good movie.

2. Hydrate:

When you are sick your body craves hydration. So make sure to keep your body  hydrated while it is recovering. But you don’t always just need to stick to plain water, although that is important, instead you can add fruit to your water for more flavor. Try and  replace your coffee in the morning with tea, because although coffee is a lifesaver it actually dehydrates your body. Also make sure to incorporate vitamin c into your diet, this can be through eating fruit such as oranges, grapefruits, etc. or you can easily add Emergen-C to your water.

3. Listen to your Body:

I know it can be hard to miss a class if you are under the weather for fear of missing out on important material. But if you really are sick it may be more beneficial to stay in your dorm and in bed for the day in order for your body to recover faster. So make sure to have at least one person in all of you classes that you can go to for missed notes/ assignments in the event you get sick throughout the school year. Also, just listen to your body, don’t force yourself to go out with friends or to the gym if your body is telling you it needs rest.

4. Sleep:

Another part of listening to your body is making sure you get enough sleep. Make sure that when you are sick you get around ten hours of sleep if you can. And if your roommate is up with the lights on, think about investing in a sleep mask in order to ensure you truly get the sleep your body needs without distractions. In college, especially, it can be hard to not be sleep deprived, so allow this time when your sick for your body to catch up on some serious rest time.  

5.   Be Kind to Yourself:

You should always be practicing self care in your daily life, but when you are under the weather this is so essential. Make sure to take part in some of your favorite self care rituals in order to allow your mind to relax and your body to recover. Some easy and common self care tips are face masks, meditation, napping, reading a good book, or watching your favorite Netflix series.

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• flu season
• health
• sick