Sickness and midterms do not mix well
Despite the weird warm weather that Guelph has been experiencing in recent days, flu season has arrived. The sounds of coughing and sniffling starts to echo around the library as students cling to their health hoping to make it through just one more midterm. With temperatures hitting normal fall levels soon, it is important to take care of yourself to avoid the dreaded fall flu.
In a time of year where it is understandably hard to reduce stress levels, the number one way to avoid flu season is to get vaccinated. However, if you are not vaccinated, here are some other tips to help avoid getting caught up in flu season.
Wash your hands
We’ve all heard it a million times before. Frequent hand washing throughout the day is one of the best protections against the common cold. Wash your hands even if they don’t feel dirty. Hands should be scrubbed for at least 20 seconds or more. A good trick is to sing yourself “Happy Birthday” twice while you scrub away the germs. You don’t know who was sitting at that open desk you found in the library. Wash your hands before and after studying in public spaces.
Get lots of sleep
Listen to what your body is telling you. As tempting as it is to try and squeeze as many hours out of the day as possible to get work done, sleep is necessary to help your immune system battle viruses. Don’t let yourself get run down for that extra hour of studying. If your body is telling you to sleep, listen to it. It is way more effective to study with an awake and alert mind then to let yourself get bogged down with exhaustion. When your body is tired, your immune system can’t fight off a flu in the same way a rested immune system can.
Try to avoid being close to people who are sick
Keeping your surroundings clean will keep more germs at bay. It is really difficult when you’ve scoured every floor in the library and suddenly you see an empty chair, the only downside is that it is beside a sneezing fellow student. It is not worth desk space to forfeit your health to an onslaught of viruses. As hard as it can be to leave a golden spot like that, walk away. Listening to your instincts in those situations can help you to avoid contracting a cold on germ-filled campuses.
If you do happen to get hit by flu season, it is important to remember to take care of yourself. Something as simple as giving yourself one day off to rest can save the rest of your semester from constant wheezing and headaches. Always cough and blow your nose into tissues, and if you are sick be respectful of other students. Campuses tend to all get sick at the same time as we pile down under loads of stress, taking a day off can not only help you, but the students you see every day as well.
Photo courtesy of Arlington County (CC BY-SA 2.0).