A Vow Not to Get Sick in 2013

How am I going to do it?

• I have a comprehensive plan that I started putting into effect as soon as I determined that this was going to be one of my points of emphasis in the Dream Big 2013 plan.
• Step 1: Listen to your body. [This step takes the most attention and the highest position of importance because it requires nuance. So far, this one step has proved to be the single most important piece of the STAYING HEALTHY puzzle.] 
• Here are some of the examples of what that has looked like so far:
• If my mouth feels dry, stop whatever I am doing and drink a glass of water. This seems simple, but historically, I have often found it difficult to pause an ongoing project to do this seemingly very simple item, which means that I have been "pushing through," when I needed to take a pause. [Stopping writing to get water.]
• When I start feeling a bit of roughness in my throat, (which includes everything from my tongue, tonsillar pillars, uvula, soft tissue of the posterior sinus (nasopharynx)), I take 1000mg of Vitamin C.
• This weekend I led a group of students in a youth retreat. We spent Friday and Saturday nights sharing from the heart, learning about God, and playing games. We stayed up late. Very late. When you spend a weekend with 20 9th graders in one house together, some of them have had the flu last week, some have sinus infections, some have a fever. Needless to say when I woke up this morning with a bit of a sore throat and some green mucus, I realized that I am treading the fine line of my vow. I took a 4 hour nap this afternoon. (Thank you Katie for helping make this possible. When you have responsibilities, having supportive people around you makes it easier and more feasible to listen to your body.) This brings us to step 2. 

• Step 2: Address things early, before they get out of control.
• Upon determining that I am teetering on the precipice of the K-hole that is sinus-related infection, I immediately did a self assessment and called my doctor.
• So, let's go over some of the basics of the most common illnesses so that everyone knows what they are looking at: if the secretions are clear, it is usually a viral infection. Viral infections of the sinus frequently present with inflamed sinus tissue, which may close off the orifices of the sinus cavity making it hard to breathe. This inflammation may also be present with allergies, which is also frequently clear runny discharge. Allergies may have an itchy component, where a person may feel the need to scratch at their eyes, nose, their throat may even itch, whereas viral infections often are somewhat more of a painful burning sensation, and maybe more dry. In either case, if the sinuses close off completely, (where you cannot breathe through your nose, which is common), allergies and/or viral infections may be followed by a bacterial infection. Once the mucus space is closed off and trapped, this allows for bacteria to multiply exponentially for two reasons: 1. the sinus can no longer be cleared and 2. anaerobic bacteria can now move in and occupy the sinus.
• Bacterial infection: So, you have green and/or dark yellow mucus, you have a sinus infection, get an antibiotic before the bacteria is allowed to run wild.
• Viral infection: You have clear and painful sinus drainage with a fever, and your throat is on fire. Zicam has zinc which has been shown to shorten the duration of the common cold. Try Mucinex (guaifenesin) if you need to loosen the secretions. Be sure to follow the instructions and take it with a full glass of water. If you need to remove the mucus add the -D.
• Allergies: You have itchy eyes and watery drainage from your sinues. You have been exposed to an allergen (e.g. mold, ragweed, pollen, dust mites, grass, etc.) Managing allergies is easiest and best when you do it ahead of time. For instance, it is wise to take an antihistamine before you mow the grass, or spend time near a cat, or go to an event with a live Christmas tree. But, those indications will vary from person to person. You might want to try Claritin, or Allegra. Either of those can have the -D added and this means that they have decongestant pseudoephedrine, which may or may not be necessary when addressing allergies.

•  Step 3: As soon as I knew that staying healthy was a key priority to a successful Dream Big 2013. I went out and got my flu shot (12/27/12). There are a lot of people spreading misinformation about the Flu vaccine. So, let's just address that right now! According to the Texas Department of State Health Services, Influenza type A (H3N2) has been close to 97% of the influenza A this year has been and guess what - they predicted correctly - H3N2 is covered by this year's flu shot. According to the Jan. 11th CDC article,  influenza A has been 57% of the flu, where influenza B has been 43% of the flu. If you get the flu shot, your chance of getting the flu is significantly diminished. The CDC states, "the 2012-13 influenza vaccine has moderate effectiveness". So please stop telling your friends and co-workers, things you 'heard from your friend'. 
•  There is obviously more to planning an entire year of not getting sick, but these 3 steps offer a great start.