Saturday, October 5, 2013

How to Cope with a Stomach Flu.


Stomach flu: 3, Chelsea: 0.

It has been 3 days since I have been sick with this stupid stomach bug. It's nasty - I can't eat, I can't drink and I can barely move around without irritating my stomach. I have had to take the past three days off work because I don't think I could survive the drive, or being away from my bed/couch for longer than 20 minutes. Plus I don't think its fair to bring whatever this is into the workplace. I know I got it from work, and I am not impressed. I am a firm believer that when you are sick, stay home! Anyways ... 

To better cope with this flu, I have trying extra hard to do the following: 

1. Re-hydrate. 

This one is key. Drink as much fluid as you can keep down, such as water, Gatorade, etc. Make sure to avoid alcohol, milk, caffeine and anything too acidic. I have been drinking a lot of ginger tea and gingerale (I know gingerale isn't the best, but it makes my tummy feel better).

2. Eat bland food, or better yet, home-made soup. 

This is also very important. To avoid irritating your already-inflamed stomach, try eating foods that don't require a lot of digestion, such as: plain bread, soda crackers, bananas, and rice. Before realizing how bad my stomach was, I decided to stick to a macaroni and cheese diet for dinner -- big mistake! Processed food does not help. Tonight I had a baked potato, it went down okay, but I think an all-liquid diet right now would be better. Thankfully I have a super mom who is making me homemade turkey soup. Mmmmm!

3. Rest as much as you can. 

While your body tries to fight the stomach flu, its vital that you get more than enough sleep. I have been taking a gravol each night and have been getting 10+ hours of sleep per night. I have also been taking naps, lots of them! Sleeping is necessary for your body to repair itself and recover. 

When you're sick with the stomach flu, what do you do to feel better?

10 comments:

  1. sorry to hear that you are sick! hope you get better soon :)

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    1. Thanks Britta! Finally starting to feel a little better.

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  2. Nothing makes me feel better other than rest and water! I hope you feel better soon!

    Kate | Diaries of an Essex Girl

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    1. Rest is definitely good! Thanks Kate, I am finally starting to feel a little more 'normal.'

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  3. I'm so sorry you've been sick! It is totally miserable! I hope you get to feeling better soon!

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    1. Thanks Shana. I think I am finally on the mend, I hope!

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  4. Ugh, the stomach flu is the WORST. When I taught preschool, I got it 4 times in 2 months. Drink lots of pedialyte! Stopping by from the GFC Collective... feel better!!!

    xo,
    Stephanie
    Diary of a Debutante
    www.stephanieziajka.blogspot.com

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    1. Oh my, I could not imagine going through this another 3 times in 2 months!! Thanks for the tip about the pedialyte!! Have a great week :)

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