Snotty McSnotter

Illness and missing being healthy!

I had a period about a year a go, where I was ill constantly, mainly due to "Burning the candle at both ends" as the oldens' would say, but that has been put behind me, since I quit working at the nightclub, sleeping more, relaxing and I mean proper relaxing, and just general well being, such as taking vitamin tablets and acupuncture, as well as becoming the ambassador of Peppers and other mediterrean vegetables, they'll come with every meal and will be served in various ways...ahh, they are so joyous and yummy!
But for some reason, when I do get a cold or other illness, they takes forever to arrive and forever to leave, properly.
Take this thing, I've recently contracted, well I actually contracted it about 2 weeks ago but will it arrive or go, hell no...I'm almost in the believe that it's been 3 different cold/flu/illnesses in one...On the morning of Tuesday 31st October, I had a tickle in my throat and a slght clogging at the back of my nose, I'm guessing my sinus...well anyway. I had a rest and a sleep, later that night I celebrated Halloween in sober stylee, due to feeling a little pants and having work the next day.
For the following few days the symptoms would appear worse in the morning but clear up during the day.
After a week of this crap, it turned in to a dry throat and hacking cough, with intermitant headaches. I chose to take the Monday off work, in the thinking that if I took a day off, when I felt crappy, I could stop it before it took hold, so I rested up and slept...but low and behold by the end of that week, it turned in to a blocked nose and general grogginess and now I have this full on cold, with running eyes, tension headaches, runny nose, blocked everything, the only part of me that feels fine is my throat and even that feels a little tender.
My biggest problem, is that I'm not a big fan of admitting that I'm ill, I like to think that with a little extra sleep and keeping my fluid intakes up, will budge it. But once I have admitted that maybe I'm a little ill, I generally over react, with eating soup, drinking everything and anything that has cold/flu/remedy/medicine on the box/bottle/tub/tube/packet, upping my already vast water intake 10 fold and occasionally eating ice cream to make myself feel better. I try not to see people, as I'd hate to spread it and I generally have to tell everyone I see that I've got a cold and would rather not pass it on (is it not better to warn people and then be able to not get blamed, when they contract it? Plus I work with and know some people who are so health conscience and anal, that they'll run a mile and avoid you, if they witness you sneeze). Plus it also explains why I look like death warmed up and have dried, cracked skin all around my nose.
The one thing that annoys me most is, when everyone else I know has a cold, they have the luxury of loosing their scent of smell. I however do not, I have a pretty good sense of smell normally, so when I have a cold, I can still smell everything and I mean everything. I suppose this isn't a bad thing but when bad smells come on in, I can still smell them, I've never had the joy of saying 'Ha, I can't smell it due to my cold", although I shouldn't complain. About 2 years ago, I complained that I'd never lost my voice and had always had it, since my complaint, I've grown vocal nodes and now loose it, at the smallest quiff of a dry throat or a slight strain from shouting and I've lost a part of my range for good, well at least until/if my nodes ever go!
What's worse is that during this period, I've had a number of friends who have suffered colds and after a good nights sleep, been fine and got on with the world. So what is so defect about me and my immune system? Maybe it's my magnetic personallity that makes the cold/flu/illnesses hang about or my pure charm and wonderfully rose tinted views on the world or maybe it's my impaitence?! One person gave me the sound advice of: 2 cartons of Covent Garden Carrott and Coriander Soup, lots of Orange Juice, loads of sleep and pint after pint of water. Another advise loads of green veg, sleep, water and hot honey and lemon. Maybe I just need to master the art of my personal salvation from cold/flu/illnesses, who knows?!

What fun the seasonal change is, if nothing more it's entertaining.

My heart goes out to those of you with cold/flu/illnesses...keep your fluids up and get your head down for a nice little kip.