Tips for tackling sickness during the semester

Whilst at university and school, we often live stressful lives: studying, trying to socialise as much as we can, perhaps skipping healthy meals here and there, and getting less sleep than we would like. So it is not surprising if you get sick, and these are my tips for how to deal with getting sick during the semester.

• Tell your Teacher- If you are sick and miss class, email your teachers and tell them (in a nicely worded way) that you will unfortunately be missing class and that you would like to know if there is anything you need to catch up on. If you put in the effort to catch up they will most likely be more than happy to help you.
• Take time to rest- You need to give yourself the time to get better, do not rush back into classes/work if you are not up to it, that could make you worse and end up resulting in you needing more time off.
• Don’t leave tasks to the last minute- Your lecturers and teachers do not like to hear that you need a long extension because of a head cold- this typically suggests that you left the assignment to the last minute. If you are organised throughout the semester and on top of your work, when things such as sickness happen, it will be easier for you to stay up to date.
• Do what you can whilst your sick- Obviously this depends on the type of sickness you have, but when I had a bad head cold or flu during my undergraduate degree I still tried to do some work whilst at home with my soup and blanket. I often could not concentrate enough to write comprehensively, but I would listen to the lectures I missed or sort out my exam notes.
• Know your body- I learnt that during stressful periods (exam time) I would often get sick because I was anxious and slept less and ate crappy snacks. So I tried to change these habits to ensure I ate healthier, slept enough, and exercised during these periods to try to minimise the chance of me becoming sick.