Namastè!
Aughhh, this cold and flu season has been horrid. (I said that in a previous post. I like themes, so here we are.)
This particular trip might seem a bit odd considering we didn't actually prevent the flu 100%. We have managed to avoid hospitalization though. Our kids were seen and diagnosed by a doctor but used zero prescriptions and minimal medications period. We beat it just the same, using simple, common sense remedies and preventive measures to keep its reign over our home very short.
NOTE: I'm not some whack job who will tell you to avoid medical care. I clearly stated we were seen and diagnosed by a doctor. We did not accept antibiotics (influenza is a virus), and our medical team agreed that the best way to treat it would be to let it run its course and keep the kids as comfortable as we could in the meantime. Don't take this as a surefire treatment plan, but rather an account of resources successfully managed and utilized.
That being said...
Once we knew for sure it was flu (and adenovirus for our princess), we set out to relieve as much discomfort as possible.
No antibiotics!
The flu and/or adenovirus and their symptoms cannot be treated by antibiotics.
Why?
Because true influenza and adenovirus are not cause by bacteria. They are viral infections. Antibiotics kill off LIVING infections--but viruses are neither living NOR dead. They must run their course.
This doesn't mean the body has no defense, though...
Don't be so quick to quell that fever!!!
When the body mounts a defense against a virus, we often get a fever. It's very important to NOT blindly suppress this reaction--that fever is how your body inactivates the virus.
Once the virus has been inactivated, it no longer replicates its DNA. Which, in layman's terms, means the body has successfully "beat it." This is why the symptoms tend to taper off after 24 hours or so of no fever. No replication (i.e., "spreading" through the body by hijacking your DNA in order to "copy" its own) means the virus has run its course, and you'll begin to feel better.
NOTE: I said, "Don't blindly suppress this defense." I did not say, "Completely ignore temperatures." We must be mindful and vigilant of the fever. You needn't medicate for "regular" temps (see chart), but ANYTHING higher than indicated safe by the American Academy of Pediatrics needs to be treated and/or addressed by an actual MD. While I have a vast grasp of medical info, my experience is still limited to nursing. I'm not an MD--and I can't treat or even diagnose your child via online interaction. This post is intended to be a guideline for comforting and preventing, NOT diagnosing or curing.
Here's the tea, per the AAP, regarding fevers. It shows what actually constitutes a fever. We often think a fever (hyperthermia) is anything over 98.6--but if that were true then anything below that point would be hypothermia, which is when the body temperature drops way too low! Crazy, right?
Wash your hands.
Common sense. Was your hands!!! You touch things that others touch, and an exchange happens--you leave your germs,but take some of theirs along when you go.
We often joke that we would rather eat a sandwich off our store's toilet seat than from the hands of someone who touched a doorknob and didn't wash or sanitize afterwards.
Drastic?
No. In our stores (we are, among other professions and ventures, a convenience store family) the toilets are literally sanitized after each use. We wipe down the door handles and knobs fastidiously as well--but those doors see far more visitors than our bathroom. Because those doors see more visitors, they see more germs. There isn't even time on,the average shift to clean the door handles and knobs after every touch, so imagine how nasty they get... *shudders*
Think about that the next time you're in public. Then wash your hands. (And PLEASE Lysol your doorknobs & other common TREATABLE surfaces at home. You'd be surprised at how much bacteria/potential sickness you can eliminate.)
Eat well.
A good diet does more than keep your clothes fitting right and your kids growing well. It also helps boost your immune system!
We're far more likely to get sick if, in addition to the added strain of fighting off an infection, our bodies are lacking vitamins and/or nutrients. Good food fuel is key to staying well in the first place, and can greatly reduce the duration of an illness should one occur.
Should you fall ill, eating (or drinking) better will help give your body the fuel,it needs to heal. That's why the best "remedies" are black elderberry, ginger, honey, and lemon, among others.
Stay hydrated!
You would not drive your car without the right levels of oil, water, and gas. That'd be hell on your engine. So...why would you push your body tho work without proper hydration?
Hygiene matters.
I bathe at night and shower in the morning. If I get pooped/peed/puked on, that's another shower. If I am sick, I skip the evening bath in favor of a shower. My kids have the same routine--a wash off in the mornings (or if they get particularly grubby) and a bath in the tub at night. We all brush our teeth twice a day. We wash our hair a couple times a week. Nails are cleaned and trimmed as needed. We wash our hands often during the day.
Excessive?
Not to me. The very bacteria and viruses that cause these "epidemics" are commonly found on our bodies--on our hands, under our nails, and in our mouths! Simple hygiene eliminates them.
Clean that house.
A clean body means nil if the house is dirty.
I'm a bit of a neat freak--I don't let laundry pile up, I don't let dishes sit in the sink unwashed, and I don't let more than two days lapse between vacuuming. Not just because I don't like clutter, but because I don't like the dust, allergens, and general ickiness that would pile up if I let the house get too out of hand.
Note: I'm a mom. You'll find toys in my floor and hair elastics on the sink. I don't always empty the dishwasher. When I say clean, I don't mean PERFECT. I mean there aren't vermin skittering across the countertops and plates of yuck under the couches. I consider a room clean if I can take a photo and not need to crop anything out for presentability. Your mileage and preference may vary!
I just wipe countertops, doorknobs, and common surfacess with Seventh Gen dish soap and hot water with a dash of bleach. After that I run a vacuum over the floor, run the dishwasher, and fold up whatever blankets the kids have dragged out. Twenty mins tops and the house looks great--and I feel like the absence of excess keeps the ickies down.
STAY HOME.
If you are battling a cold, OR just getting over the hump, STAY HOME.
I know, I know...you have a litany of reasons,why you have to go out. But bear this in mind--you are not only exposing everyone else to YOUR germs. YOU ARE EXPOSING YOURSELF TO EVERYONE ELSE'S GERMS WHILE YOUR DEFENSES ARE DOWN FROM FIGHTING YOUR OWN.
I inflected on that last sentence there. It's a true story. It is how my Princess ended up with both flu AND adenovirus. Taking her to be diagnosed wasn't optional. Despite the precautions we took, she still encountered and contracted the adenovirus. She was out, with limited resistance, and the current strains of both influenza and adenovirus are airborne.
...so, I am adamant that home is where you (and I) belong when we are sick and potentially contagious.
It's not a utopian idea. Stay home as much as possible. (And take precautions like masks and hand sanitizer when you must go out!) You can greatly reduce Your chances of getting sicker, or sharing your sickness with others simply by staying put.
Just because your fever is gone, doesn't mean you need to mix and mingle!
If not for YOU, think about all the immunocompromised people--transplant recipients, tiny babies with no immunity, elderly people!!!--for whom YOUR cold could be THEIR pneumonia or worse.
Some of what works for me might seem like unicorn ideals to you, but of I share it and it helps even one of you, I'll proudly be your unicorn blogger mama. Come to think of it, I dig unicorns anyway...new tagine, perhaps?!
Namastè!
-- Tayè K. ♡
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