It’s just now starting to get colder outside here in Kansas. We had a very moderate fall, so our leaves are barely changing here, which is very unusual. Have you started to see more colds and flu viruses going around? Our family has just experienced our first one. My 16 year old daughter got it, but, amazingly, she managed not to spread it to anyone. I was shocked! Finally, what I’ve been telling them has paid off!
We have 9 people in our family and it seems like when one person gets sick, we all end up sick. It’s miserable and somewhat dangerous for my daughter who has a pretty bad case of asthma! Of course, me being the main caregiver, I never enjoy it when they’re all sick.
Sometimes, we get lucky and don’t actually get infected, but I actually don’t think it’s luck. It’s the art of doing certain things during cold and flu time. The more experience I have as a mom, the more I have learned different tips and tricks to keep us healthy. Let me tell you about them……
- In cold and flu season NEVER go around someone who you know is sick, unless you absolutely have to. I do realize that we all have to at some point or another, so if you do have to, wash your hands as soon as you can after you were exposed. Sometimes, I take it a step further and wash out my nose and ears with hydrogen peroxide. The ears and the nose is the first place a new virus settles, so if you can eliminate it before it gets into the rest of your body, you’ll be doing great!
- If someone in your family gets sick, try to isolate that person to one bathroom. Let everyone else use a different bathroom.
- Continuously, disinfect anything that the potential germ holder has touched or handled. We usually use disinfecting wipes or spray.
- Don’t allow the person who is carrying the germs in the kitchen. We don’t allow them to handle any food that other people in the family may handle nor do we allow them to dish up their own food. Even using the serving spoon is out of the question, because this can infect anyone who uses it after they did. While I realize that germs cannot live on stainless steel, we often have plastic utensils that germs could live on. We decided that just having a blanket rule, no matter what the utensil is made of would help eliminate any confusion or passing of germs.
- Keep hand sanitizer with you at all times. You never know when you’ll need it.
- If you plan to travel to another area, be sure to check out the Cold & Flu Finder to see just how safe you need to be. Here you can learn more about cold & flu conditions in your area by visiting the map.
- Keep medications and tissues on hand to help ease any symptoms of the one who got sick. You can find coupons to help you with some of your favorite meds here. Or you can pick from any of the following cold and flu medications and symptom easers below:
I hope that the coming cold months do not leave your family in a cold and flu stupor. Do what you can ahead of time, and if you end up getting infected, rest, rest, rest.
*This is a sponsored post. All opinions and suggestions are 100% my own.
Leave a Reply