I don't like flu shots. Their results seem too unpredictable. The last time I got one, years ago, I felt exhausted for days. I have friends who get sick right after getting them. I also know plenty of people, including my oncologist, who experience no ill effects whatsoever. But even she admitted that a colleague got sick right after the shot.
The shot is, of course, recommended especially for people with my diagnosis, namely metastatic breast cancer. But I don't think I could cope with getting sick and exhausted while cooking three meals a day, doing laundry, looking after my husband and children, teaching eight courses, grading a bunch of student essays, term papers and exams, taking two writing courses, producing various essays, and fielding the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune. That's a partial listing of my daily activities. I am also afraid of the flu shot in the same irrational way that I am unable to follow the German custom of inviting everybody out for your birthday and paying for them, or at least throwing a massive, catered affair. The thought of the shot fills me with fear; the thought of following that particular German custom makes me burst into tears. Isn't that silly, especially the latter? Probably I have too many fond memories (tinged with my hometown, New York) of being the Birthday Girl and being fêted by friends.
So I invested in ten or twelve bottles of hand sanitizer that sit in various coat pockets and on my desk at work. At home, I've also got peroxide, which is said to be especially efficacious at combating germs from stomach flu.
I slather my hands religiously with these substances. I am more focused than an obsessive-compulsive person when it comes to keeping my hands germ-free. Right after I touch the button that opens the tram door, the handle of the cart at the supermarket, the keypad for entering my pin, I whip out the hand sanitizer. Every time. So far, so good, but we're only in March. If I can stay healthy for the next month, I'll breathe a sigh of relief and feel that I was right.P.S. Of course I use hand cream, too. The kind that restores moisture.
What about the red onion and wine drink you suggested way back in 2012? Do you still drink that? Gloves need to come back in fashion - I have a hat box where I store very old ones from my grandma - her hands were much smaller. Cheers.
ReplyDeleteOh, I haven't tried that lately! But I do have red wine and almost everything I cook has sautéed red onions in it, so ... I'm kind of doing the same thing, still!
ReplyDeleteThanks for writing.