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Tuesday 3 February 2015

tips for getting out of the cold and flu blues

Dhbd

Having been suffering from a bit of a cold lately, I've found myself constantly in bed watching Grey's Anatomy with a jar of Nutella and throat lozenges (Vick's cherry menthols, you are the best) to accompany me. For three days I don't think I even went out into my garden, yet alone into the rest of civilisation. However, after feeling sorry for myself for about five days straight I decided to actually do something to make myself feel better.

  • Get up and moving!
This may feel difficult when your joints are aching and your head hurts and you want to lie in bed forever, but if your blood is pumping then eventually you'll start feeling a bit more refreshed. Now, I don't mean go for a 5k run, I mean take a walk around the block, or do some gentle yoga. Heck, go play Wii golf if you want. Just try and get out of bed for at least thirty minutes.

  • Pamper yourself
Have a piping hot bath, or a nice long shower, making sure there's lots of steam. Steam helps clear out the mucus (gross, I know, but you'll feel better), giving you relief from your sickness and also opening up your pores. Treat yourself to an expensive but luxurious bath bomb, or your fanciest soap and body lotion, and give yourself a nice facial afterwards. You might feel crappy on the inside, but the outside will be squeaky clean and smell pretty awesome too!

  • Drink your fluids
Lots of water is super important when you're sick. Try some nice iced water for when you're all hot and sweaty from fever, or a good old cup of tea for when you're chattering despite the layers of blankets your under. If you can manage 8 glasses of water a day that's fantastic! If not, aim for at least 5-6. My favourite drinks to have are rosehip tea with a spoonful of creamed honey, and home made lemon tea. To make this, combine the juice of half a lemon, two tablespoons honey, and half a teaspoon of sugar in 250mLs boiling water. Instant relief from a sore throat!

  • Treat yo'self, but also eat healthy
You know that when you're sick, you feel like doing nothing more than lying in bed with Nutella. And you know what? That's fine! When you're sick, your heart needs a little something too, which is why chocolate flavoured anything feels so healing. But you also have to remember that when you're sick you should be eating lots of fruit and veggies too. Think about it this way: the more colours, the better. Some of the best food for combating colds are grapefruit, kiwi fruit, mushrooms, garlic, kale, cinnamon, ginger, blueberries, sweet potato, fish, and dark chocolate. That's right, chocolate can cure your cold!

  • Get some vitamin D
Ugh, outside. Where everyone is happy and healthy and the sun is shining. That might make you feel grumpy at first, but after a while the nice weather will lift your spirits, not to mention you'll be feeling the benefits of the sun. If you're in the middle of winter, don't forget to snuggle up in lots of layers (you're sick after all), but try to get some fresh air in you. Stuffy bedrooms don't do anyone that much good.

  • Hug it out
Not many people might want to touch you at the moment, but perhaps you have a significant other that doesn't mind getting sick as long as they look after you. Otherwise, your friend might be sick too. If not, there's always your furry friend! Whoever it's with, hugging someone always feels good, and it releases endorphins, the feel-good chemical, so you'll feel better afterwards. Even snuggling your pillow can help.


I hope wherever you are, you're feeling better than I am! And if you're not, maybe follow these steps to feel better. Hope everyone is well, feel free to leave your thoughts in the comments. :)

xx Silje

2 comments:

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