So there I am at work, in what I hope are the last stages of a cold, running on generic DayQuil, GatorAde, and Fisherman's Friend menthol lozenges, blowing my nose whenever the store's empty, and hoping that bottle of hand sanitizer is keeping me from playing Patient Zero ( Read more... )

Argh.

Last week, a flare-up in joint pain heralded another bout of Serial Flu, that one-symptom-at-a-time never-really-sick variation of influenza that hits me now and then. Body aches most of last week; congestion and post-nasal drip over the weekend; digestive upset on Monday, after work. As usual, I never felt bad enough to really consider ( Read more... )

Ever feel rotten, non-specifically?

About an hour before the end of my shift today, I realized that I felt tired, without actually being tired. I felt like I hurt all over, without the actual hurting part ( Read more... )

That last post reminded me that we had an exceptionally long Fire season last year, lasting through most of the "Summer" and into early "Autumn". For months, the air in the Bay Area ranged from Unusually Smoggy to Choked With Smoke, and nearly everyone was coughing and dealing with sinus headaches -- even those who don't normally suffer allergies. ( Read more... )

The mild case of the flu that I've been fighting since Tuesday has transmogrified into a day of Coughing Up Globs of Unpleasantness, Mental Incoherence*, and General Misery ( Read more... )

When I have a cold, nothing makes me feel quite so good as a visit from ( my favorite vixen: )

Yes, this is following all the patterns of " Serial Flu": aches, pains, tiredness, runny nose -- just not all at once. Today is starting off with the sinus pressure/headache, which, if this follows the same pattern as last time, means I might spend the afternoon with Unhappy Stomach.

Oop, I think I'm getting confirmation on that last already. ( Read more... )

According to the U.S. Center for Disease Control:

Influenza usually starts suddenly and may include the following symptoms:

• Fever (usually high)
  
• Headache
  
• Tiredness (can be extreme)
  
• Cough
  
• Sore throat
  
• Runny or stuffy nose
  
• Body aches
  
• Diarrhea and vomiting (more common among children than adults)

Having these ( Read more... )