As I type this, I’m not feeling the best. My stomach is doing flip-flops and I think just going back to bed would be a good option.
Sound familiar? If you’re like most people at this time of year, some malady or another has probably knocked you around a bit. Sometimes it might just be a stomach bug that lasts 24 hours and other times a cold or sinus infection that can stretch out for weeks. Either way, you sometimes wonder, during the course of this illness, if you’ll ever feel 100% again.
I’ve been very fortunate in my life. I wasn’t sick much as a child; in fact, the only time I missed school during my high school years was for a funeral. I’ve built up so much sick leave in my job that I lose some every year because we have a cap. As with many of you, I find that sometimes I have to muscle through since it’s more work when you’re gone.
Working in a school is probably second only to working in a clinic or hospital when it comes to being exposed to germs. Kids hack and sneeze. They come to you for help when they might not even be aware they are carrying a virus of some sort. Like many other teachers, I routinely wipe down the tables in my room along with door handles, light switches, and other surfaces that might carry the little bugs that make us sick.
I really think we’re TOO clean sometimes. By trying to keep all bad things out of our system, we’re only making them stronger. Germs evolve when we find ways to kill them, and they come out of the process stronger than ever. This might be why influenza seems to pop up worse than ever each year. And now we’re dealing with the re-emergence of pertussis, known more commonly as whooping cough.
Pertussis has been a regular epidemic at our school this year, with double-digit confirmed cases. It got to the point that, when I called in to see if I should get tested based on some symptoms that may or may not have been pertussis, I was just placed on medication, sans test. I was flabbergasted. The nurse said they were being proactive in preventing the spread, and since I had been exposed to people who had whooping cough, they were going to medicate me to make sure.
I suppose I should have been thankful I didn’t have to try to crowd in to the overflowing waiting room at the same day clinic in Owatonna. I was told about wait times of over two hours there. In fact, I saw it in action when I needed a vaccination: people draped over chairs, little kids crying, and a general fear even to breathe in the air around you.
And for that I was thankful. Not just for not having to sit there, but also for avoiding the cost. Health care is one of the most important pillars in our lives, but the cost has gotten so out of hand that I know I can’t be alone in questioning whether or not I should try to see my doctor. Do I really need to go? Should I wait awhile and see if the symptoms clear up? Or do I want to pay the $200 to go in and get told I’m fine or that I should just let it run its course?
It’s very sad when people have to wonder whether they can afford to see the doctor. Or, like many of us have done, put it off until the new year to start working toward our new, very high deductible. Why have we reached this point? Is it because so many people have taken advantage of the system, suing medical professionals with outrageous claims and using the emergency room when it wasn’t needed?
Or are there people making a lot of money off us? When you hear about insurance companies making record profits, it makes you stop and think. Why are my monthly premiums being jacked up? I understand companies want to make money, but when many Americans can’t afford basic health care, that stinks.
Why does it cost more to do a procedure at one clinic or hospital than it does another one down the road? Sometimes you’ll hear about a difference of hundreds and even thousands of dollars. It’s one thing if you’re going to Mayo Clinic in Rochester; you expect a higher cost with the very best the medical field has to offer. But other than that? Costs should be remarkably similar, but clinics know they’ve got you. If that is the one you live closest to, you’re very unlikely to change.
Might this reach a tipping point? We can only hope so. Other countries seem to have figured all of this out, but until American politicians stop bickering and looking out for their own interests, it won’t appear in our country.
I guess we all have to do our best to stay as healthy as possible. Stop the spread of germs by covering coughs and sneezes. Wash our hands when needed. And maybe I should stay home from work more often when I’m under the weather; I might be part of the problem!
Word of the Week: This week’s word is hypercathexis, which means excessive use of mental energy on a problem, as in, “After much hypercathexis to solve the issue, she found her body was worn down and got sick.” Impress your friends and confuse your enemies!