What’s This Bug Floating Around?
Call it what you will, but being sick is the great equalizer among adults the world over. Even if you're in peak physical condition, the tiniest little stomach bug can render you utterly worthless for a day or two. Can't keep anything down, can't find relief, can't sleep without self medication, and worse yet, can't find anything good on the web to pass the time. All in all, I think the worse thing about coming down with the sickness might be the initial realization that there's nothing you can do to stop the inevitable.
It always starts out the same. That familiar feeling deep in your body that something isn't quite right. You don't feel necessarily bad yet, but you can't help but shake the fact something isn't right. Then, like a ton of bricks, it tends to hit you all of a sudden in a way that is unmistakable and unforgiving. Worse yet, after that first initial episode of "Yep, I'm sick" comes the other part of being sick. The inability to get comfortable.
In all my years, I've managed to pick up some pro-tips to dealing with sickness. The type of general knowledge things most adults should already know. Like, how Tylenol is your best friend when you're running fever and getting those really intense cold and hot flashes. How handy a five-gallon bucket is to have next to your bed or recliner. How you can take the edge off of nausea with antihistamines like Benadryl, and most importantly, how staying on a Benadryl regiment can help you get the rest your body needs, even if it interrupts your normal sleep cycle. It's all about comfort when you're sick, and you take it when you can.
I think the most amazing thing about this round of incredible sickness is this... After this past year of obsessive hand washing and social distancing, it's amazing we can still get sick as careful as we've all been. Whatever this bug is floating around, I'm hoping it's a short 24-48 hour thing. I certainly don't think I can take another day of food and drink-less self-medicated lethargy.