Keeping My Germs to Myself
In recent weeks, it hit home for me how I need to be extra careful when I get sick from now on.
I came down with a very bad head cold: stuffy nose, sore throat, that kind of thing. Three days into the illness, my mother wanted to drop something off for me since I was staying home from work. It took me a few minutes to think clearly, and I said yes, but only if she did not come in. She seemed okay with that.
Sitting there with my breathing issues, feeling quite stuffed up throughout my head and sore in the throat, I thought of how my mom is having trouble swallowing and how that might affect her in the future should she get a cold, flu or some other sort of upper respiratory illness. While I’m always fairly careful not to share my germs, I decided then and there to be extra cautious regarding her.
Like many others, I work in an office environment with coworkers, some of whom have kids and other family members living with them. They catch a cold or whatever is going around at home, and let’s face it, many folks bring those germs to the office. I’m sure people can’t afford to take time off work, so it’s not like I don’t understand the motivation to show up even when one is ill. But what might be a simple cold to some might end up much more dangerous to someone else - and we never know what might be going on with the people around us.
We all learned a lot about the spread of germs during the COVID-19 pandemic, and that knowledge can be handy no matter what type of illness we are talking about. My tactics are to, first and foremost, avoid in-person contact with my mother when I know that I am ill, especially if I have a fever or am sneezing and coughing. I wash my hands multiple times daily and remind her to do so when she’s been around me. I also use a “clean key,” a tool on one’s keyring that can be used to open doors, push elevator buttons and alarm panels, navigate the appliances in my work kitchen, and turn off and on lights without touching them with my hands. This way, I’m not giving or getting germs.
Of course, many germs are airborne or spread through droplets, so if I am sick and must be around my mom, I plan to wear a surgical mask or an N95. N95 masks are great at keeping germs OUT, and surgical masks are great at keeping them IN, so if I’m the one who is sick, a surgical mask should do just fine. It’s been done for many years in other countries, and if I think it will help keep germs from my mom, I’ll wear one. I realize at some point, masks became politicized here in the US, but politics are unimportant compared to the health and welfare of my mom.
While I am now much more aware of my potential to spread germs to others and am being extra diligent, I know that going overboard is not helpful. I want to spend time with my mother, so I need to be wise about using isolation to handle any potential contagiousness but not overly anxious. It’s important to support her by being with her, just like supporting her by not sharing my germs with her. But by using a bit of extra precaution, I can help my mom avoid upper respiratory infections that can make her life miserable or even lead to pneumonia. Colds are bad for all of us, but when a person has trouble swallowing, they can be even more devastating. I want to do what I can to help her live her best life. Let’s be honest: sneezing into our elbows, keeping our distance from others when we feel unwell, and using hand sanitizer and soap are not hard. They are the least we should do for our loved ones and strangers, just like we hope they do for us.
“All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.”
This blog post is based on personal experiences and is not meant to provide medical advice.
Always consult your healthcare professional for personalized guidance on your health journey.