It Sucks To Be Sick

I have a compromised immune system. When people around me are sick, I panic. Because a little cold for someone else means serious illness for me. It can get, and has gotten, scary how sick I can get from a little cold germ.

It's not something I really ever talk about, and a lot of my family & friends think I'm just prone to illness or unlucky to catch so many bugs. The truth is, my body can't fight off germs the way other people do. For example, strep throat doesn't just stay strep throat for me. It attacks other parts of my body & it's horrible to live with for months on end. I have been warned that at some point it won't stop there & I'll end up in the hospital with much worse. I like my internal organs (the ones I have left), thank you very much, so strep makes me freak out.

Last Tuesday the lady in class next to me was coughing. Uh oh. I asked her if she needed some water or something I could get for her because I felt bad for her. She told me she's been battling this cough for 3 weeks. As I was thinking of how to discreetly disinfect my entire table, books, & pens that her cough could have come in contact with, I was freaking out inside.

This lady said how it's just an annoying cough, she doesn't really "feel" sick. That's great & dandy for her & I'm glad she can go about her life. But what about me? I don't just get an annoying little cough. And I didn't get just an annoying little cough.

I'm extremely sick & can barely lift my head. I'm on a boat load of medication. Again. Because not only do I get much sicker than others, it can trigger much worse illnesses & I don't want to be in the hospital. So I take the medication for what I have & medication to prevent what I could have. If I don't get treated immediately upon feeling a sore throat, I'm looking at months of illness & medications that seriously mess up your body. The medications are better than the alternative though.

3 of my kids are sick with a cold that seems to knock itself out in about 24 hours. I'm very happy they're not as sick as I am. It's hard for me to watch my kids not feel good. It's also a point that we live in the same house, breath the same air, and yet my illnesses get scary.

So for everyone out there who thinks, "Oh, I just have a cough, I'll continue with my life," take precautions to not get others sick. You never know when the person next to you might not be able to handle that little cough you're carrying around. You won't know if you send them to the hospital or if they spend a week in bed unable to move, but what if you did? If you knew you were responsible for that, would you still have gone on with your life or would you have thought about it a little longer?

A simple thing like excusing yourself when you have to cough so you're not near anyone & then washing your hands immediately afterward. Coughing into your elbow around others. Not shaking hands. Wearing a mask in public may be embarrassing but if it helps someone else, why not do it when you're in close quarters & have signs of being contagious? Doing these things can help not spread an illness so you & everyone else can go on with their lives.

None of us want to be slowed down by illness. So go on with your life, cover your cough, don't share things you touch, and everyone else can go on with their life too. And this Mom of Many with a crazy busy life won't have to check out of real life unwillingly.

If anyone wants to bring me homemade chicken & dumpling soup, you will be escalated to my favorite person in the whole world. You can ring the doorbell & leave it on the porch, like Ding Dong Ditch. Only Ding Dong Soup.