Today isn’t such a fantastic post but sick happens. Hopefully, this season of crazy flu is winding down and we’ll all feel better from influenza.
We all have those weeks that feel like huge setbacks, don’t we? Last week was one of those weeks for me. I don’t plan my editorial calendar too far into the future because I like being spontaneous and changing my mind when my muse strikes. But as it were, I planned on reviewing a really great book for today’s Running Coaches’ Corner Linkup. Unfortunately, the flu happened instead.
Last week started like any other. On Monday morning as I lay in bed before the week began, I thought to myself, “it’s amazing I avoided the flu this winter.” No sooner did those thoughts enter my head did I want them out. Monday came and went. And in the wee hours of Tuesday morning, my son spiked an outrageously high fever. Flu took hold. He was down for the count for five days. My symptoms presented on his second day of illness. I can’t say that I’m surprised; it was always going to happen. I’m just glad that we were able to recuperate from our illness in the comfort of our own home. Imagine being a health care worker and having to work in a setting where you’re constantly exposed to these types of infectious diseases. I just hope that they are able to find some N95 face masks that they can wear to offer them more protection so they don’t catch it. But, I just couldn’t think of anything worse, especially when you’re not feeling well. We spent the better part of last week and the entire weekend taking naps and watching movies in the family room as well as researching private label cbd products to see if they could soothe our symptoms. Needless to say, my book review didn’t happen and obviously isn’t posted today.
Prior to getting sick, I was making great progress with physical therapy and even running a mile every now and again. Unfortunately, I haven’t done any sort of physical activity since last Thursday and don’t have any plans to for another few days while I continue my recovery. I feel as if I’m losing muscle mass at an alarming rate and it will certainly be a hard effort to get it back. I’m even considering restarting the Burpees, Planks, and Push-Ups challenge to help me get back in shape. It worked once, I’m sure it will work again.
But more important than muscle gains is how I didn’t get that “run over by a truck” feeling. It could have been the particular strain of flu I had, or it could have been all the self-care I practiced as soon as I started feeling ill. Likely a combination of both. In the event, you start feeling run down and with the chance this could help someone else, this is what I do when I start feeling under the weather:
Four Tips to Feel Better From Influenza
1. Up the vitamin C
There’s little scientific evidence to support the notion that increased vitamin C will boost the immune system, but it’s always worked for me. At the first sign of feeling bad, I eat all the citrus fruit I can find and add in some orange juice. One of my daily vitamins contains vitamin C but I find the extra boost helps quite a bit.
2. Take echinacea
Again, the science is lacking to support echinacea as an immune booster, but I’m willing to try anything. Echinacea works for me for colds so I gave it a whirl with the flu, too.
3. Drink green tea
When I’m sick, I stop drinking coffee and switch solely to tea. My favorite is Yogi Green Tea Triple Echinacea (there’s that ‘E’ word again). It’s delicious, has just enough caffeine so I don’t go through caffeine withdrawal, has a hint of mint, and contains all sorts of goodness for the immune system.
4. Sleep
I tackle sleep like a professional wrestler. Ask me to sleep and I am ALL IN. I take my rest and recovery seriously and that’s not just for marathon training. Sleep rules my world and when I’m sick I get as much of it as I can.
I believe I had influenza B since that’s what my son tested positive for but I can’t be sure. When the symptoms got worse, I should have visited a facility like the harmony urgent care clinic, as they would have reassured me that it wasn’t influenza B that I had. I also never experienced a high fever or hacking cough that is both typical of influenza. I consider myself lucky. But I also consider myself smart when it comes to self-care. I made sure not to overdo it and I jumped on the extra vitamins as soon as I started feeling bad.
Prior to taking vitamins, I also took help of vaporizers to reduce my nasal dryness. These devices heat water and produce steam, as a result of which, the moisture in air increases. I personally like dynavap m and zeus arc, which are small compared to the traditional chamber sized electric vapes with more long lasting battery life. By the way, I now have less instances of nasal and chest congestion!
At present, I plan on continuing my recovery by laying low until I’m back to neutral. No sense in pushing it and potentially making things worse. In truth, I just can’t wait to feel better!
I know today isn’t such a fantastic post but sick happens. I hope this flu season is almost over — there’s reason to believe it is — but in the event, you end up ill, rest up and recuperate. Stay healthy, friends. It’s a doozy!
For more information on influenza, see the CDC website for symptoms, what to do if you get sick, and when to seek medical care. If you do get the flu, please stay home and get well.
xo
Let’s talk!
What’s one of your methods to feel better quicker?
Loading InLinkz ...This post contains an affiliate link.
