As my trip draws ever closer, I have begun to arm myself against an old foe - the airplane germ. It is almost a given that if I am going to be on a plane, I am going to catch a cold. Well, at least it used to be a given. The past few years have been cold-free...::knocks on wood:: However, the past few years have not included a plane trip that was longer than 3 or 4 hours. This trip, I am determined to kick both airplane and travel germs asses like a ninja with my super immune system tactics.
Getting sick while traveling has got to be the WORST. I have told my sad story before, with the world's tiniest violin player sitting on my shoulder, playing as I typed out my woes...the story of how sick I was on my last full day in Rome back in 2002. How I forced myself to tour most of Rome in the morning, but just could not continue any longer by mid day. How I spent the rest of the day miserable and uncomfortable under the covers in my hotel room. No relief. No medicine. No Tylenol. No Tussin'. Not even a cough drop to soothe my fiery, swollen, sore throat from hell. I was shit out of luck because it was Easter Monday, and apparently on Easter Monday there are approximately zero stores open in Rome and the surrounding areas. (My Dad says that there should have been at least one pharmacy open...but such was my luck that day...)
But the story gets even more upsetting- The next day, even more sick than the previous day, I had to get onto a plane back to America.
FML.
It was the worst experience I have ever endured. The pressure from my sinus combined with the pressure in the airplane all but convinced me that my eyeballs were going to explode out of my head. At some point I swallowed a sip of water or something to that effect and went deaf in one ear. (which, hours and hours later whatever fluid that clogged up my ear unclogged and BURST like a gun shot going off in my eardrum...no THAT wasn't painful AT ALL) I sat in silent torture for hours on that plane. I continued to be sick and miserable for the following week before I finally got better. So the moral of this sad story - don't get sick while traveling.
The funny thing is, I have an extremely good immune system. Under normal circumstances I pretty much never get sick. I have been at my current job for about 3 years- never called out. Same with the job before that. If I do feel a little under the weather, my body usually fights it off within hours. My Dad is the same way, just Never. Gets Sick.
It's just that the thought of how ill and miserable I was on that last day in Rome, and my not so great track record of airplane colds has, I guess, traumatized me into taking extreme precautions before any trip - especially a trip to Europe that requires long hours on planes/trains/busses and what have you.
So, starting a few days ago I began loading up on as much vitamin C as humanly possible. I am trying to consume lots of any vitamins, really. The more the better, right? I want to make my body an extremely hostile environment for any potential virus. I have also been taking allergy medicine- just in case. Lastly, I purchased a personal air purifier that does not emit ozone. Unfortunately I can not use the air purifier on the plane - which would really come in handy. But I can use it on the bus rides from country to country, and I am CONVINCED that is what caused me to get so sick all those years ago in Italy.
I am determined to conquer the wily and formidable enemy that is the airplane/travel cold. You will not get the better of me this time! ::shakes fist at sky::
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