What I learned from being ill
I don’t get ill often. But last Saturday I picked up a stomach bug and spent the night throwing up until I had nothing left inside me. As it’s a new experience for me I spent a bit of time thinking about what I’ve learned from it.
I couldn’t drink Diet Coke
I used to drink a lot of Diet Coke, eight or ten cans some days. But since being ill I can barely manage one can a day. It tastes wrong and it upsets my stomach a bit. It took me a few days to realise that the sudden reduction in Diet Coke was also a sudden reduction in my caffeine intake and was contributing to my tiredness. On the upside I drink a lot more water now.
I went to work
Without even thinking about whether I should have called in sick, I went to work. I don’t know if it made me feel worse but it certainly didn’t speed up my recovery. I don’t think I’ve ever called in sick, but it’s certainly something I’ll consider next time I’m ill.
I expected to feel better sooner than I did
I thought that once I’d finished throwing up I’d be back to normal. But actually it wiped me out for nearly a week. I didn’t eat or sleep properly for a few days, which made me even weaker, and not having the caffeine from the Diet Coke affected me too.
It took me a while to understand that all of the consequences of being ill were having a compounded negative effect on me because my assumption about myself was that I could handle being ill and just bounce back. I must be getting old.