Kick Sick

So part of what I have been learning this week is how to kick being sick. I think sleep is one of the absolute best things. I also believe that it is possible to minimize the possibility by eating healthy, getting regular exercise, and sleeping the right amount.

There are so many people all around us right now who are, or have recently been, sick. Mostly it is colds but there have also been some people with strep and some with fevers and other symptoms that may indicate H1N1.

This week after not sleeping very well one night I also started sneezing and needing to use a lot of tissues, etc. I still felt pretty well and even did my usual run that morning. So I didn't think twice about going to work and did my best to stay away from people. It helped that there were only 7 others in my class and we could spread out in the classroom. I also tried to get a lot of sleep that night and all those after that. I slept between 8 and 9 hours a night and got to rest before going to sleep for a while. This is the most I have slept for more than a couple of days in a row since "I-can't-remember-when." Besides feeling more tired than usual for a couple of days and needing to use tissues at the breaks those days it wasn't too bad.

I think it was on the same day this happened that we had all received what I would call "an Email lecture" at work about not coming to work sick because it is irresponsible. I totally agree. But where do you draw the line? I have a hard time staying home from work, especially when it is literally impossible to do it again, when my symptoms don't seem that bad. Do I draw the line at a cough, a sneeze, a headache, a fever, a stomach-ache, a doctor visit, a stay in the hospital? I don't want to get others sick and I do want to be responsible. I was glad I went and don't think I made others sick. (But that's probably what someone else said who got me sick.) What do you think? Where do you draw the line?

I was able to take all but my oldest to get the H1N1 vaccine yesterday. They are still only offering it to adults who are "high risk." It went pretty quickly. I was grateful for that. My youngest threw a fit because he decided just before arriving at the mass vaccination that he did not want the nasal vaccine, only the shot. Great. He wouldn't talk for about 20 minutes, only scream, grunt, and gesture. We finally persuaded him that it was okay to spit so he could talk to us. The good news is that everyone was in good spirits again after a Slurpee.

I loved learning more about Southeast Asia again this week. I had a ton of reading at the beginning of the week, but it was interesting. Learning is a wonderful thing. I am done with the course and received a certificate of completion! Now on to other training, formal and informal.

Now, if only I can keep the sickness away from me and my family as it swirls around here. I better stop writing and go to bed so I can keep kicking the sick.