Staying Healthy

After spending few hours asleep each evening, and many hours awake and running around campus for class, work or meetings, I realized that I need to be thankful for not ending up with the flu or sick in any way. The past few months have always been quite busy for me as I juggle homework, sorority meetings, my vice presidential responsibilities for the organization, my resident advisor position, my job on campus and other things, just to name a few.
With the current outbreak of the Swine Flu and the “seasonal” flu this year, college students have been hit extremely hard. With the close living quarters in the dormitories, or the numerous encounters with other students in the handful of classes attended each week, AND the lack of sleep students experience, they are the targeted age group of students.
How I have not gotten sick? Knock on wood that this does not jinx my health in any way, but I have to attribute some of it to my smart up keeping of vitamins, fruits and vegetables and the flu shot. According to ABCNews.com, “In addition to the 30 percent reduction in flu illness, vaccinated students were 47 percent less likely to visit a doctor for flu, 32 percent less likely to miss class and 47 percent less likely to do poorly on a test. In addition to the reduced illnesses for the students themselves, the study authors noted that immunizations of college students could help keep influenza from spreading.”
I received the flu shot on LMU’s campus two weeks ago, knowing that many of my residents in the upperclassmen apartments have come down with flu-like symptoms and that I was bound to come across them as they were trying to get healthy. With my $15 in hand and my LMU One Card ID, I waited in a long line for a simple pinch of my skin on my upper right arm.
“Keep your arm in motion for the next few hours,” the nurse told me. I walked off swinging my arms in circles—knowing that I looked like a complete fool. However, being out of service for days and suffering from flu symptoms does not sound appealing at all.
Just the thought of how far I would fall behind scares me. So I am drinking that orange juice; attempting to get in enough sleep; exercising; washing my hands constantly and doing all that you can possibly do to avoid the flu.

-Monica Augustyn

Quote from: http://abcnews.go.com/Health/ColdandFluNews/story?id=6370879&page=1&page=1
Photo from: http://www.karendecoster.com/blog/archives/flu_shot.jpg