It’s the time of year when the sickness is upon us. That’s right. The sun is starting to hide. Kids are going back to school. Temperatures are dropping and rain is coming more frequently. All of that combines to stress the immune system and colds and flu are now in season.
It can be hard to avoid getting the sickness. No one enjoys it, at least no one I know. My kids are both showing some symptoms already and have missed a day of school here or there. When you get sick, how do you take care of yourself? Do you think of going to your chiropractor? Well, you probably should.
The symptoms that you get that are so horrible don’t really come from the virus that’s infesting your body. It comes from your body trying to fight it off and restore balance. The fever, runny nose, cough, shivering, and achy sensations are all happening because your body is fighting a war inside of itself. The fever drives up temperatures that can kill bacteria and viruses or slow them down enough to let your white blood cells take them out. You’re expelling dead viral bits out of your runny nose. The cough is basically the same thing from the lungs. You’re shivering because of the fever and your body wants your help to drive your temperature up. As inflammation increases along with your parasympathetic nerve system, you will ache more.
Do not suppress these natural, helpful symptoms. Most of the medical approach is to shut that down. All cold remedies are not cold remedies. They are drugs so you don’t have to feel like you’re sick, when you are. And that will have you be sick longer. Think about it. If you don’t allow your body to do what it needs to do to be well, then you won’t get well. Stopping a fever will make it harder for your immune system to function. Shutting down the aches will have you get up and do more, robbing energy from your system that it needs to fight infection. Stopping a cough or runny nose prevents you from clearing out the dead stuff.
So listen to your body and obey its symptoms. Take the rest, blow your nose, bundle up and keep warm, and drink lots of water to give your body the juice it needs to fight the infection. Sometimes you don’t feel hungry when you’re sick. That’s fine, don’t eat! And if you are hungry, eat.
It is also important to get adjusted! Visit your chiropractor, and don’t blow off your appointment unless you’re feeling so crummy that the idea of getting out into the world makes you feel like you want to die. Chiropractic helps the body function better, including the immune system.
When my son was sick with a bad cough for over a week, my wife and I realized we hadn’t been adjusting him. I vowed to do so. I adjusted him three times in one day. By the end of that day his cough was gone, and he was feeling fine the next day.
So get some chiropractic care to keep your immune system functioning great. Don’t get down with the sickness!