Prevention:
1. Get a flu shot
The most obvious way to prevent the dreadful flu is to get the flu shot. If you’re like me and absolutely dislike vaccines, toughen up because those couple of seconds of pain will prevent the potential weeks of being miserably sick. If you didn’t visit your doctor during break, there are plenty of opportunities to get the vaccine here in Williamsburg. During the fall semester, the Health Center was vaccinations free of charge. If you’re interested, give them a call at (757) 221-2998 to ask for further information. Also, the Walgreens located nearby on Richmond Road offers the vaccination as well.
2. Get plenty of sleep
Getting a sufficient amount of sleep each night is essential to a healthy immune system. When you stay up late or pull all-nighters, your body is left vulnerable and increases your susceptibility to illness. Although there is a collective acceptance on campus that, as William & Mary students, we might never enjoy those precious eight hours or more of sleep each night that we indulged in as kids, it is still important to manage your time well enough to allow for at least six hours of sleep each night. Come on, do yourself a favor.
3. Wash your hands
We’ve been hearing this one since we were toddlers. It’s common knowledge that washing your hands gets rid of the bacteria and germs that may linger even after hand sanitizers. Think of all the surfaces you touch in a day: door knobs, desks, countertops, chairs, and much more. Unless you want to look a little odd wiping down your desk in each class with an anti-bacterial wipe, your best bet to staying germ-free is simply washing your hands.
Sickly Solutions:
1. Drink tons of water
Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate! It’s already recommended to drink eight glasses of water each day, but when you’re sick and under the weather, your body needs all those fluids to cleanse itself out. If you have a hard time reaching the eight glass goal, try setting a couple of reminders on your phone throughout the day to keep yourself on track.
2. The dynamic duo: Hot tea and Chicken noodle soup
As a young child, whenever I came down with an illness, I could always count on getting chicken noodle soup and hot tea. Now that we’re in college and no longer have our mothers nearby, there’s no need to give up these essentials. Although nothing compares to homemade chicken noodle soup, all it takes is a quick trip to Wawa or the Student X-Change for pre-made, easy to microwave soup. Once you’re feeling better, pencil in some time to make a Target or Food Lion trip to stock up for next time.
For all your sore throat issues, here’s a cure-all recipe for a Honey and Lemon Tea:
1 Tbsp lemon juice
2 Tbsp honey
1/2 cup or more of hot water
3. Health Center note/desk note
If you wake up in the morning and can’t seem to get yourself out of bed, email your professor(s) immediately. Inform them of your illness and they will most likely ask for a note from the Health Center. Use the day off to rest and re-gain your strength, but don’t forget to drag yourself out to the Health Center the very next day. They do allow walk-ins, but since it might take a while to see the doctor, appointments are encouraged. The doctors at the Health Center are both friendly and sympathetic to students, so don’t be intimidated to ask for a note.