Beyond the Book: Colds

 How do you treat colds in your house? 

I used to get colds all the time when I first started teaching, but as time went by I didn’t have too many. I don’t usually catch them now either. I think it’s because when I was teaching I was in a small room with sick teenagers all day. I heard that once you’ve had a cold you become immune to that particular virus so if you get a cold it’s a new variety that you never had before. 

Anyway, I treated colds the same way in the past as I do today. Truthfully, I don’t do much. I usually get a headache with a cold so I take some ibuprofen for that. If my nose is all congested I may use Mucinex to unstop myself. I always drink plenty of liquids especially water or a soft drink. My husband is a firm believer in Nyquil so maybe I’ll take one of those but not usually. When I have a cold I could go to sleep standing up. I don’t need the Nyquil. I don’t like cough drops, but I do suck on hard candy sometimes.

The thing that helps me most, though, is rest. I don’t have children to take care of so when I get sick I rest. I don’t do housework or cook. My husband gets takeout for us which I do appreciate, and he’ll straighten out the house too.

So, in short I rest and stay hydrated, and after a few days I’ll feel better. Does anyone have a special remedy that your family used? My husband said his mother put Vick’s on their throats when they get a cold.