Hey everyone-
I am most definitely under the weather today, which is why I am only just now grabbing my laptop to type this at 10:30.
I have caught some kind of crud (is it Omicron? something else? I dunno.) and I do not feel good. I’m going to be fine overall (I am vaxxed to the max!) but I do feel pretty crummy right now.
So, this might be shorter than usual, but I at least wanted to get this post up so you could make your lists in the comments.
This week, I am thankful:
that I got sick this week and not next
The college semester starts next week, and I am sure I will be feeling just fine by then. There’s never a great time to get sick, but there are times that are worse than others!
Next week = definitely worse timing than this week.
that it’s been so long since I’ve been sick
I had kind of forgotten how much it stinks to be ill, and that’s something to be thankful for!
that this is going to be short-lived
Since I had hyperemesis 4x over, when I get sick, I often think, “Well, at least this will be shorter than pregnancy!”
No matter how funky I may feel at the moment, it is comforting to be quite sure I won’t be feeling funky for 9 months.
for ibuprofen
I remember during my pregnancies (which, yes, were a long time ago! 16 years since the last one.), my doctors did not want me to take ibuprofen; only Tylenol.
And I personally find that Tylenol has almost no effect on my aches and pains. I feel like I might as well be taking M&Ms if Tylenol is the only option.
Anyway, I don’t take ibuprofen very often, but when I feel sick and achy, I am so grateful to have access to it.
for an immune system that is busy working
I know the main cause of my achiness and exhaustion is my functioning immune system. I don’t like these symptoms, but I am trying to remember to be grateful for what they represent.
for a laptop to type on
My desktop is my favorite machine to work on, but a laptop definitely is preferable when you’re sick. Then you can rest on the couch while typing, and that is somehow massively easier than sitting in a desk chair.
And now I am going to go make a cup of tea. 😉
Amanda Gibson
Friday 21st of January 2022
I'm feeling thankful on a Friday here that:
1) I made it to work and back safely this week. I commute weekly a very long way away from home. With snow on Sunday and then again yesterday I was concerned about the roads. Luckily the roads were almost completely clear the whole time.
2) For audiobooks. I love to read and feel especially blessed that I get so much commute time to listen to piles and piles of books.
3) That I switched out my computer. I was working on my personal macbook air. Then my university issued me another macbook air. Mine is old and needed a new battery, but it takes energy to swap things out. I finally bit the bullet a couple weeks ago when I took my laptop for service. The new laptop just feels so nice and new! I have my old laptop ready to fire back up when I have to return the new one to the university.
4) That all of my children are in school all day. To say the least life has been a rollercoaster the last two years for those of us with young children. Most of our children started back in person in the fall but because of various issues out of our control we didn't have aftercare for our daughter. (School gets out at 2:45! So aftercare is not optional for working parents.) FINALLY just this week we were accepted back into aftercare. I am gloriously appreciative of the fact that I can actually work--by myself--for the entire work day. I will never take it for granted again.
5) For a warm, comfortable home on these cold days and everyday.
Gina
Friday 21st of January 2022
Kristen, I hope your symptoms are mild and short-lived. God Bless! No fun being sick.
Danielle Zecher
Friday 21st of January 2022
I hope you feel better soon! And I hope it's not COVID.
This week I'm thankful that we didn't lose power during the snow and ice, that our dog's surgery only got pushed back a week and a half, and that we have really good vets.
J NL
Friday 21st of January 2022
We hope you'll feel better soon Kristen!
This week I am grateful for my outdoor swimming buddies, who differ widely in background and views (on vaccination, for instance) but who are respectful, supportive and fun. I am also grateful for the recognition I received from colleagues this week for the quality of my work. That is a great boost to see if I can keep the quality up of course! Hugely appreciative I am of the increasing daylight. I cannot wait to routinely line-dry my laundry, and am especially looking forward to bedsheets smelling of sunlight :-)
Irena
Friday 21st of January 2022
Feel better, Kristen. And definitely test for COVID as several people I know felt bad, like a cold. But...it was Covid. Knowing that, after testing, they could take appropriate cautions to ensure others were not exposed to them. (Quarantining in their own homes, for example, by staying in rooms, not sharing bathrooms when possible, and NOT eating together at meals.)
Given that you are vaxxed to the max, as you say, your symptoms will hopefully be mild and not last long.
I bring this up because two people I know got covid from their friends who had "colds" that turned out to be Covid. Another got it from their spouse who kept saying "No, it's a cold." and resisted testing. Luckily she made him test and could then protect the others in their household.
EVERYONE I mention was vaxxed and boosted. The common advice now is: If you think it's a cold, just test. Hopefully you have access to in-home test kits.
I love your good attitude towards being sick. I, too, make comparisons to past sickness and add "If it came out of the blue, it will go away, too." (Applied only to non-serious stuff, of course.)
Rest. Really rest and just take one hour at a time.
Even when we feel bad, it's sometimes hard to just do nothing. But...our bodies signal us that they need rest. So...