My head is pounding, my throat hurts, and I am super cranky. But let me go back a bit...Yesterday was a busy day for me. I ran all over the city, walking, taking the subway, going to a hospital, a coffee shop, a restaurant, a couple of stores, and a mall. And everywhere I went everyone was coughing or sneezing. I was perfectly healthy yesterday. Now--see above.
I know people are busy and have important things that need to get done. Apparently taking a sick day would bring civilization to its knees or something. But before you decide to be "brave" and go into work or school or out to run errands even though you're sick think about some of the other people you're affecting:
- You could be coming into contact with people who have lowered or suppressed immunity. People with serious illnesses, the very young, or the elderly. What is an inconvenient cold to you could easily become pneumonia in them with consequences that are a little more than inconvenient.
- The person you give your cold to might be the caregiver for someone with suppressed immunity. Whether they accidentally pass on your germs to that person or end up having to avoid the person who relies on them until they're no longer contagious, their lives just got a whole lot more difficult.
- You might end up giving your cold to a pregnant woman. I don't know too much about this subject but I'm pretty sure cold medications aren't allowed during pregnancy. The woman who was already dealing with plenty now has to go through the misery of a cold with little to no relief.
- You might affect someone's health in a different way. For example, diabetics have a hard enough time keeping their blood sugars at a reasonable level in order to avoid the serious consequences that come with out-of-control sugars. There are a lot of things that can throw it out of whack, including stress and illness. You know what causes a diabetic stress? Getting sick and watching helplessly as their sugars go crazy. I know because I've been diabetic since I was eight years old.
- In Toronto we have a downtown hospital district. The place is rife with medical staff and students, as well as researchers. I know they take every precaution to keep healthy (except maybe for quitting smoking--what's up with that, guys?) but it doesn't take much to catch someone's cold. And they don't have the option to just go into work anyway. Take a second to think about how many people that ends up affecting.
These are just some of the examples of how a cold can be much more detrimental than you may have thought. So please, the next time you're sick and contagious--stay home. The world won't come to an end, your job won't suddenly disappear, those errands can wait. Honest. In the meantime rest, drink juice, eat soup, watch soaps and read trashy tabloids. Sleep works wonders. It also doesn't hurt to take extra garlic, vitamin C, zinc and echinacea. Get better and show some consideration for your fellow humans.
2023 Edit
As I write this, my SO and I are slowly recovering from one of the worst colds we've had. Last week, after three years of avoiding crowds, I took the subway. I wore a mask, despite the current lack of mandates, because the COVID 19 pandemic is still raging, even though the majority have decided to pretend it's not a thing. Because of rampant head-in-the-sand syndrome, hardly anyone else was wearing a mask, which is likely why I picked up this horrible bug and passed it on (I'm just grateful it's only a cold).
Everything I wrote in this post in 2012 goes triple now, thanks to the flu and especially COVID. Illness and germs don't care how healthy you think you are, what you want to believe, where you live, or what political party you vote for. An entire segment of society has launched itself over the cliff's edge of selfishness and wilful ignorance, choosing to believe any ridiculous conspiracy rather than trust science, with the result being the worldwide deaths of millions of people, not to mention the long-term debilitation of countless others. Sorry if you don't like what you're being told, but-- like illness and germs-- science doesn't care how you feel.
Too many people still need to learn to stay home when they're sick-- and employers need to get over themselves and support employees in order to preserve everyone's health and safety. Public health comes first: it's not up for debate.
Besides staying home, everyone needs to do their part and:
- wear a mask in public
- avoid crowds as much as possible
- wash your hands frequently
- GET VACCINATED, including boosters
Nobody deserves to get sick or die because other people just can't be bothered. End of rant.
Follow me on my official site: AspasiaSBissas.com
Photo by freeimages.co.uk
No comments:
Post a Comment