Or…achoo?
I don’t recall ever being as ill as I was this past weekend. I consider myself a multitasking pro, and can usually handle any sicknesses that come my way with sheer tenacity. Oh, no. Not this time.
As a typical fan of getting the vaccine, I missed it for the second year in a row. I could blame the lapse on the fact that I no longer worked in an industry where it was required. In reality, since there isn’t anyone hounding me to get it done, I easily forget. Needless to say I won’t forget again.
This was a dry coughing, 600lb-baby-elephant-sitting-on-your-chest, can’t-stand-up-straight-for-longer-than-10-minutes, sweating-like-a-televangelist-preacher, sinus shutdown, everything hurt, please-don’t-make-me-laugh-or-I’ll-literally-DIE, level event.
Despite my aforementioned tenacity, I do get sick from time to time. But like all moms/workaholics, we push through and keep moving forward (my personal motto, by the way). Here was one of the few instances where I couldn’t do ANYTHING but stay in bed. And I despise lying in bed. Beds, to me, are for random bouts of sleeping and the most basic of coital shenanigans. Any extra time in bed is time wasted. This is because I’m used to working insane hours (which I love), and not making time to shut down until I absolutely have to. My friends have been teasing me for years about my sleeping habits. Hey, everyone’s not wired the same, you know?
I wish I could have avoided it. It was not meant to be. Getting the flu is the GOAT of making people get their shit together.
The moral of today’s story is: Slow down, take the time, get the shot. I know a lot of people are against getting vaccinated against the flu (or vaccines in general). I’ve heard people say they get sick immediately afterward, though I think most people often confuse a cold for the flu. Or they don’t realize that their system could already be compromised. Now, I’m not here to change anyone’s point of view or beliefs, but, the reality is that it’s 2020, and people are dying of influenza as if this was 1918.
A preventable disease. It makes no sense.
If you haven’t already gotten vaccinated for the season, I urge you to do so. I wouldn’t want anyone to feel the way I felt.
To your health!
Liz K
Classy With An E 