Advice for Awkward People

Dear Izzy,

I'm super stressed because I'm super sick!! Fall in Pittsburgh is great and all (I could do without all the rain, though), but the fact that Pittsburgh can't decide whether to be sunny or torrentially down-pouring has been frustrating for me and my health. Now, I'm left as a sniffling mess with midterms on the horizon, and I can't seem to conquer it — or worse, I'll get better and then immediately get sick again. Please help!

Sincerely shivering,
Feeling Low, Ugh

Dear FLU,

Ah yes, autumn. The leaves are changing, Starbucks is rolling out their Pumpkin Spice Lattes, and Mother Nature warns us of winter by sending down gusts of wind and buckets of rain in Pittsburgh. As someone who was sick for the entirety of her first semester at Carnegie Mellon, let me impart you some wisdom from the wise.

Take care of your body, obviously. Eat healthy, and stay away from fried food and things with lots of sugar. Tea should be one of your closest pals. Try to drink decaffeinated tea, because although caffeine will keep you up during class it can mess with your system a bit more than usual. Tea is also incredibly calming in general — for your systems, for your mind — so you can never go wrong with drinking tea!

Listen to your body. If your body is telling you that it's tired, or if you're up late at night and falling asleep while doing work, honestly just go to sleep. You'll be thankful in the morning, and no assignment is worth pulling an all-nighter for while you're sick and suffering. You'll have a clearer mind to finish it, and if you email your teacher about your situation they will usually understand.

Most importantly, relax. If you're sick, put yourself first. Relax your mind — watch something on Netflix, read a book, take a nap, and feel free to take a break from work if you need to. Your focus should be to get better, so that you can walk into class well-rested and with a clear mind. Your teachers want you to prioritize getting better too, so if you can't do work, listen to your needs and take the time to fulfill them.

Happy flu season,
Izzy