This year, I haven’t really made New Year’s resolutions. No diet or workout plans. But I have contemplated my life — I’ve considered how I want to spend time and what lifestyle changes to make.
One change is prioritizing rest. This is important both for myself and for our community in this time of the pandemic.
Shortly after the CDC started recommending wearing masks, I became hopeful that once we got through COVID, wearing masks, especially during cold and flu season and in enclosed public spaces, would be normalized.
Even more, I hoped that staying home when sick would be normalized. I often push myself to keep working and socializing when I don’t feel well, and I know I’m not alone in this.
I hoped that consciousness about the dangers of spreading illness would change our habits: That employers would encourage employees to stay home when not feeling well, and that we would all understand the necessity of staying home even if we just have a cold so as not to spread it to others.
In February last year I got a sinus infection that put pressure on my ears. I didn’t rest — it was maple syrup season, so I worked on boiling sap. Then I went out for a beer with friends. I took my daughter to playdates.
I kept work-related appointments and out-of home activities. I went to doctors’ appointments that I had to drive a ways for, and just gave myself no room to rest. No one I interacted with thought much of it. Sure, my family encouraged me to rest, but continuing my typical activities while sick was normal.
Then I had to rest — the sinus infection moved into my ears and I ended up in bed for a week, and homebound (driving increased the pain) for about two weeks longer. I went out a couple days for work, and then the COVID shutdown started.
My ears still ache in the cold and other times, randomly. So far I’ve learned my lesson, and as soon as I feel under the weather, I start taking lots of immune support supplements and rest.
The way I would like to see us move forward out of this pandemic is to make infection-spreading behavior unacceptable.
Of course, I know how complex the issue is — people who do not work from home have less flexibility, and those whose work does not offer paid sick time may also not have a choice whether to push through illnesses or rest.
Unfortunately, even without considering economic impediments to staying home when sick, I fear our attitudes towards communicable diseases (including those we are acclimated to, like colds and flu) will not change.
We are still in this pandemic, and I already see people pushing through illnesses instead of staying home.
The employer of one of my family members gave permission for them to come to work, interacting with many people, with sore throat and runny nose while waiting on COVID test results. Stories from friends and family indicate this was hardly a unique incident.
I know how hard it can be to allow time to heal, and to give up things we want or feel we need to do.
I know it is hard to admit to ourselves that we may carry and spread infections, and to stay home with the idea of keeping others safe. But for our own health and that of our community, let’s all try to stop saying “I’m good” when we don’t feel good.
