Getting Sick in College

By Maria Martinez
Blog Content Contributor

This past week, I didn’t want to know anything about anyone. I didn’t have the energy to work or even to think straight. I had a toilet paper roll inside of my backpack since I ran out if tissues, and I am pretty sure that everyone that saw me felt pretty bad for me or were grossed out. Getting sick in college is the worst. There is no one taking care of you, you are on your own. You don’t have your mom to make your favorite vegetable soup or your siblings to bring you water and medicines. Whenever I am sick I just want someone to spoil me for the whole day. I need someone who is constantly asking me if I feel better or what they can do for me; but unfortunately, this doesn’t happen in college.

If you are feeling down over a sickness and you want to make it go away, this is what you have to do: The first thing to do is to go see a doctor. It is important to go to the health center so you can know what is making you feel sick. Do not auto medicate yourself or wait until you can’t even move to go get help. It is better to go in the early stage so you can prevent a flu from becoming pneumonia (well, that’s what my mom says). Campus is a place where we are exposed to many germs and viruses since we share computers and touch classroom equipment that has been handled by many others every day. Don’t forget to keep your room clean too. I know many of us don’t feel like cleaning our rooms constantly but it is important to keep our space germ-free and prevent sickness from spreading.

I drove back home because I wanted my hometown doctor to see me. He told me that one of the main reasons we get sick is because we don’t eat and sleep well (which totally applies to me). I only get few hours of sleep each night and my diet consists of eating junk food all day or not eating anything at all. The next day my parents made me go to HEB to buy healthy food and made me promise I was going to take care of my body. I know you’ve heard this before, but actually eat your fruits and vegetables! Our bodies need the nutrients these foods provide us so try to at least eat one fruit or vegetable a day. What I am doing now is eating a banana every morning before I go to class and an apple at the end of the day.

Don’t go partying when you are sick. I know its tempting but your best option is taking a shot of NyQuil and go to sleep. Resting and hydration are key aspects to get better, and unfortunately these are the two things that suffer the most during a night out with friends. The last thing you want is to get more sick because you didn’t take care of yourself; so sleep as much as you can. If you have to miss school, it’s okay! You may be doing everyone a favor by staying home. But don’t miss class and then go partying. Remember how hard it is to miss class in college, you have to beg for class notes that may or may not be good enough or miss a test that could drop your grade. If you do miss class, make sure you let your professor know what is going on. They will most likely understand, especially if you bring a doctor’s note.

I hated going to class feeling sick. I couldn’t stop coughing and sneezing and I felt bad for my classmates and professors because I was spreading my germs all over the classroom. One day my professor said, “take care, I’ve noticed you haven’t been feeling well.” So I hope you will do just that: Take care of your bodies and don’t let a sickness get out of hand.

Featured image by Jasmynne Flores.