Sick Days

I'm a person who gets sick a lot. At least once a semester I'm down and out for almost two weeks with some sort of flu and let me tell you, that is something you cannot afford to have happen to you in engineering. I got sick Tuesday night and felt the full force of it all yesterday and today. Being a university student, staying home isn't something you can really do unless you have a day off or your day consists of lectures (and they're recorded). I had to trek to the city today for a long day at uni and I was dreading it. I decided to put together a little 'tip' post to help you get through your sick days…

#1 Have a little 'emergency' pack in your bag
My little emergency pack consists of some throat soothers, a pack of tissues, antibacterial wipes, and hand sanitizer. I also included my tube of Lanolips' 101 Ointment, which I use for my lips and for my poor nose. It really helps to soothe the dryness from keeping a tissue glued to your nose for the whole day. The antibacterial wipes and hand sanitizer are good to have just to keep yourself from picking up more germs and possibly getting even more sick. Also helps when you're feeling a bit sick in the tummy and have to go throw up and clean yourself up (It happens).

#2 Put on a brave face
Usually being sick comes with red eyes, a sallow complexion, and the overall aura of not wanting to be out, but sometimes you just have to put on your brave face and get out there to do what you have to do. I picked out some brightening products which are easy to apply. The NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer (I have the shade Vanilla) is perfect for making you look a little more awake than you really are. I also included the Benefit Gimme Brow because I always think that doing your brows up a bit can really make you look put together.

#3 Take some meds! 
Find a flu medicine which works best for you and stick to it; I personally prefer taking Codral as it has been the most effective for me. If you are taking paracetamol, I'm going to share something with you that I learned today: don't take too much of it if you're not used to it. I took paracetamol yesterday (2 tablets about 3 times in a day) and it upset my stomach so much. Everything went really acidic and you end up feeling absolutely horrendous. If you're not sure of how you're going to respond to the medicine you're taking, take 1 tablet first and go from there.

#4 Bundle up
If you get sick in winter, the most important thing is to keep warm. Keep your chest, hands, and feet warm and try to stay out of the wind. Sydney Uni isn't very sheltered, so walking from class to class we have to brave the wind or the rain (or both) and when you're sick it can make you feel a whole lot worse, so bring a warm scarf, a thick jacket, and put on some wooly socks.

#5 Go get your rest 
Being sick means that you might not be as productive as you would want (or have to be), but don't force yourself. You end up feeling much worse and there's a good chance that you'll be a little bit dazed and unable to understand what's going on in the first place. Take little power naps or just lay in bed a little when you get home and set aside time after dinner for when you need to do your work.

So, those are my 5 tips for how to cope when you're down with some sort of sickness. How do you deal with being sick?