The COVID-19 pandemic has shifted the global health focus away from the common flu, but people across the world are still susceptible to its groggy pitfalls. Flu symptoms typically last around a week and range in degree of severity, with people generally experiencing aches, chills, a cough and fatigue throughout the period of illness.
Nobody wants to get the flu, it really sucks! So, here are six ways in which you can treat and reduce the flu’s impact on your health (including getting the Afluria Quad flu vaccine).
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Table of Contents
Stay home & rest
The last thing you should do when struck down by the flu is attempt to continue your normal, active lifestyle. Doing things like grocery shopping, exercising and going to work will only prolong the virus and make you sicker over time.
What’s more, you really don’t want to be that person, you know the one we mean: the one who goes around, sick as anything and potentially spreading their illness to colleagues, strangers etc.
That person is frowned upon even more in the pandemic era: stay home, rest up and allow your body to heal without putting too much stress on it.
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Get plenty of nutrition
Nutrition is the natural way to beat the flu, as your body needs plenty of vitamins, minerals and antioxidants to flush out those nasty flu particles and get you back on your feet.
Sure, we often lose our appetites when we’re struck down with the flu – this is normal, but it is important to try and get in your regular meals each day (healthy ones at that!) so that you maintain your strength and can fight the infection properly.
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Sleep
Not that you really want to be awake throughout the depressing, nauseous feelings of a flu-ridden day, but it’s important to try and get as much sleep as physically possible throughout your influenza period.
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Make breathing easier
Your breathing passages may be clogged up during the influenza period – it’s best to try and calm your nasal passage. Be sure to do the following:
- Prop your head up with a pillow when sleeping to ease or alleviate sinus pressure.
- Use a vaporiser or humidifier in your room when sleeping.
- Take a hot shower or bath before bed to clear your sinuses.
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Get super hydrated
When you fall victim to influenza, your body loses a lot of liquids. Through sweating, diarrhea and vomiting, your body will lose a lot of liquid and thus needs to be hydrated as much as possible.
Water, naturally, is the best remedy, but herbal teas can also help with hydration and other aspects of flu; be sure not to drink alcohol or coffee!
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Add moisture to the air
Your room should be vaporised to help clear congestion especially when you’re in bed. There are plenty of vaporisers and humidifiers you can purchase online and in stores around town.
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Take your time to heal!
There’s an air of optimism for when you notice you are feeling better, but this shouldn’t mean rushing back into your routine (especially if the flu was a bad one!). You still need to wait a day or two before you start getting back into your everyday routine, as you still need to regain some of the strength lost in the influenza period.
Giving yourself that little bit of extra time to fully recuperate will ensure that you won’t find yourself weighed down by the flu’s lingering effects when you are trying to get back to your routine!
