Constantly sick

[FastHands]

Besides sick days, how tolerant is your org./boss? When I get sick I get sick real hard. It's absolute torture coping with runny nose and cough, especially if you have to talk all day. I'm talking about allergies and flu.

I've heard the you shouldn't be sick so much and there's something really wrong with you. I definitely noticed some people are very very resistant getting sick while I get down really quick. I mean I genuinely get sick but why so often? My mom gets sick just by drinking cold tea.

Edited May 24, 2016 by FastHands

[MidwestUSA]

Do you eat properly? Get regular exercise? Take vitamins?

 

If I were to recommend one supplement to boost your immune system, and not just to colds, it would be the combo of echinacea/golden seal. Have a look. It's readily available and not expensive. I swear by it. Good luck.

 

Echinacea & Goldenseal - Informed Opinion - NHRI

[BC1980]

Do you always go to the doctor and get an antibiotic if you are sick? Usually, people have viral infections that you should let your immune system fight off on its own. Take meds to relieve symptoms (cough syrup, decongestants) if necessary. Unless you are running high temps for days, have a sore throat that doesn't go away after a few days or gets worse, are coughing up green phlegm, or have genuine flu like symptoms (aches, chills), then I wouldn't run to the doctor every time you get sick.

 

I have practiced the above for years, and I rarely get sick. I have taken an antibiotic once in about 10 years, and I was very reticent to do it that time. I probably had the flu, so I shouldn't have taken that antibiotic. When I get a cold, I let my body fight it off on its own, and that has served me well. I can't say that will work for everyone, but it worked for me.

 

Other than that, I would consider some sort of disease that suppresses your immune system. Do you genuinely have the flu? Do you have positive flu swabs? Do you get pneumonia? Or are we just talking seasonal allergies and colds that most people get.

[preraph]

You should have a thorough check up. I like to take Emergen-C packets you mix in water which have B and other vitamins and a lot of C. I really do think it helps minimize colds.

 

I will tell you, though, where I live, most people don't stay home for a cold. I wish they would, but if your boss comes to work sick, you have to too.

[RecentChange]

I agree that you should look into why you get so sick so often. Diet, exercise, sleep (that's a big one too!), healthy habits (no smoking etc). Allergies can also screw with your immune system making you more susceptible to colds etc.

 

I do not get sick often - it's every 5 years or so that I get a cold or flu that keeps me out of work for 1-2 days.

 

Personally I joke that I never get sick because I am the opposite of a germaphob. I ride public transit everyday, and get exposed to all the filth San Francisco has to offer (the day I punctured my ankle on the NASTY escalator at the train station I declared "I have now been inoculated for every funky street disease in the city!")

 

I am out at the stables all the time, getting good and dirty, exposed to all sorts of allergens and pathogens.

 

I eat really questionable stuff from schetchy restaurants.

 

I joke how it's all immune boosting

 

And it's lucky that I don't get sick, because the culture in my office is that you better be practically dead if you are going to call in. People I work with very rarely take sick days (maybe 2-3 days a year at most). Meanwhile, I know someone who works for the local govt and its basically expected that every sick day will be taken. Different organizations have different cultures.

[preraph]

Last year, I had three colds that lasted too long. This year, I only had the bare start-up of a couple. I too must have a decent immune system, but different things can drag you down and rob you of that. Although I have been known to use a sanitary wipe on the grocery basket and my keyboard if anyone else has been using it, in general I am quite the mud pie maker. In fact, just a few moments ago I saw my dog burying something in the mulch by my thorny Pride of Barbados and knowing I'd have to be digging mulch out from there next spring, I thought I better investigate and steeled myself for the worse, which would be a rotting animal or a snake. I got lucky and it was only a new pear baby. So I left it. I'll probably scare myself next spring, having forgotten about it, and think the rotting thing is a squirrel head.

[Tayla]

Contingent on how much traffic comes in and out of your work area, its common to transfer ailments thru air born or contact.

 

I would caution the "go to" of anti biotics, Have a Doctor decide and monitor.

 

Have a physical and some blood test done. Stress and the environment could play a factor as well...

 

As for company policy on ailments, review with HR. I have found it to be a mix bag.

 

Some places may not have a written policy but will write you up in a heart beat if they see a pattern of when you are calling off and the reasons....

[basil67]

Poor diet and high stress levels contribute to a poor immune system.

 

If hayfever is getting to you, make sure to take antihistamines. If they aren't sufficient, talk with your doctor about nasal steriods. They are excellent at preventing allergic symptoms.

 

The cough and sniffles you describe aren't flu - these are symptoms of a cold. Influenza will leave you with a high fever and unable to leave your bed for any extended period and lasts a few days - and thankfully the average person only gets it once ever four years or so. As for a cold....make sure to wash your hands if there's germy people around. And it's possibly to reinfect yourself, so wash your hands lots if you are sick too.

[Els]

Allergies aren't really a 'sickness' that is valid for sick leave unless they are extremely severe, IMO. It's not infectious, and for mild/moderate allergies a simple antihistamine tablet usually suffices. Have you tried those?

[Els]

 

I would caution the "go to" of anti biotics, Have a Doctor decide and monitor.

 

Are antibiotics really the 'go to' for colds over there??? That's really concerning. The vast majority of cold-like symptoms are caused by viruses do not require antibiotics, so even doctors here rarely prescribe them unless there are additional symptoms that hint towards bacterial infection (like white patches on the throat). And definitely do not try to self-medicate with antibiotics even if they are easily available (where??).

[RecentChange]

I had a co-worker who would run to the dr any time she got a tiny sniffle or sore throat.

 

They were constantly giving her antibiotics! It was crazy!

 

I understand if a cold has knocked everything down so much that a secondary bacterial infection has moved in (which can happen), but unless that is the case (which isn't infectious) and unless it's severe ans has been going on for weeks (or needs medical intervention) - in my opinion is wreckless to be taking antibiotics.

 

They do more harm to your bodies natural defenses than good when given for minor bacterial infections that can often accompany a cold or flu. Plus - at this rate we aren't going to have any effective antibiotics in the future due to their over use now.

 

I was treated with antibiotics for strep throat (one shot rather than the pill series) in 2001. I have not taken antibiotics since.

[Tayla]

Are antibiotics really the 'go to' for colds over there??? That's really concerning. The vast majority of cold-like symptoms are caused by viruses do not require antibiotics, so even doctors here rarely prescribe them unless there are additional symptoms that hint towards bacterial infection (like white patches on the throat). And definitely do not try to self-medicate with antibiotics even if they are easily available (where??).

 

Its like candy to some medical doctors.

Correct colds rarely need anti biotics, sometimes the cold is a secondary to the pneumonia or varying infections in the respiratory .

 

A family member had been on a course of anti biotics and got Mrsa. Each time more drugs to fight the increasing decline of health. It was a vicious cycle.

 

I agree with you, unless educated in medical compounds, self medicating is rarely in line with what may be the underlying cause. I happen to be versed more in the homeopathic regime. Which carries some caution in purity and compound reactions.

[Miss Peach]

I recommend getting your vitamin D level checked. There are a lot of studies that show vitamin D can help ward off the flu. I recommended it to a friend who was always getting sick (in where fevers caused convulsions). It didn't stop all of them but it reduced their frequency to a fraction of what it had been. If you decide to use a supplement, remember to take vitamin D3 with K2 and fat.

[Mind-Chants]

Its like candy to some medical doctors.

Correct colds rarely need anti biotics, sometimes the cold is a secondary to the pneumonia or varying infections in the respiratory .

A family member had been on a course of anti biotics and got Mrsa. Each time more drugs to fight the increasing decline of health. It was a vicious cycle.

 

Over-use of antibiotics (read as abuse) creates anti-microbial resistance. Gradually many of the traditional meds are becoming ineffective due to such developed anti-microbial resistance. So same dosage may not be effective each time. That's why there are so many restrictions on over the counter sale of most antibiotics world wide.

 

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antimicrobial_resistance

Edited May 26, 2016 by Mind-Chants

[Els]

Its like candy to some medical doctors.

 

 

I have never actually had a doctor in a developed country prescribe me antibiotics for a cold, though. In fact, none of the doctors I know (as their patient or otherwise) would, which is why I was surprised by your post. Has this been your experience when visiting doctors?

[acrosstheuniverse]

I have never actually had a doctor in a developed country prescribe me antibiotics for a cold, though. In fact, none of the doctors I know (as their patient or otherwise) would, which is why I was surprised by your post. Has this been your experience when visiting doctors?

 

 

It's a pretty big problem here in England. There are even public health campaigns trying to educate patients that they don't need antibiotics for a cold, because it seems doctors hand them out like sweets. They tend to decline to give them at first but the most common thing I hear is 'the patient wouldn't leave without something', if the patient demands them they seem to be given them. It's just beyond insane, I work with a lot of doctors and there are plenty who will give them out just to get the patient out the door. It's like, you're a fully qualified expert medical professional, it's your job to dish out medication according to indications, not to hand over anything the patient asks for! If a doctor would rather hand over antibiotics knowing they clearly won't work than explain to the patient they don't work and stand their ground I honestly question their professional judgment.

 

OP if you're getting sick that often, that bad, something is wrong. Have you seen a doctor? How's your overall lifestyle? Under much stress? When I was incredibly stressed at work (working 80+ hours per week over seven days for months on end) I got so sick so much, I got everything going. Monday I'd have a cold, then a chest infection, then a UTI, then the flu, then a cough so bad I couldn't speak without hacking up buckets, then another cold, then another chest infection, it was insane. The month I cut back down to regular 40 hour weeks, I stopped getting sick barely ever. Even now when I get a cold i find it easy to work through. It's amazing what stress can do to you.

[Kics]

Every since I started to eat healthy, exercising, and drink herbal teas I haven't gotten sick. It's worth inventing in your health

[FastHands]

Thanks to everyone for posting. I think I have a mix of allergies as well as getting the flu often. What gets me is once I have symptoms of getting sick, I feel like I have no energy or just slow. I feel like taking it easy as its a struggle to get through the day at work or just over stressed in addition to the cold.