Colds and Flus and The Apocalypse, Oh My.

I’m sick. I have a cold. It’s loud and uncomfortable and I’m full of medicine.

How am I supposed to deal with a cold during the apocalypse?

I can’t pile up pillows and alternate guzzling night and day medicine.

I should try some hippy apothecary shit while I have the chance but I really just want to sleep peacefully, breath without coughing, and not be in constant minor pain.

And speaking of noise, there is no way to hide someone coughing the way I’m coughing.

There is almost no suppression for sale that can tame this noise.

Seriously, fuck this noise.

I’m the worst thing in the office and I’m sleeping on the couch to be polite.

One thing that has worked for me a bit that will be around post-apocalypse: honey. I put it in water or drink it straight from the bottle.

Most of the articles I’ve read discount the use of Zinc or echinacea to boost the immune system or combat colds, they also seem to agree that vitamin c can be helpful but is not a remedy or preventative. Boo. I guess I need a wizard and a spell book.

WebMD offers 8 Tips to Treat Colds and Flu the ‘Natural’ Way, a list that includes gargling with salt water and keeping the right fluids in and out of your body.

Do you know any solutions? Solutions to have handy in case of apocalypse.

So, I don't know what day it is.

Apparently today is Thursday. Has been all day. Unfortunately it took me until about 5:00pm to fully come to terms with this. I don’t know how or why, but I seem to have skipped a day and lost track of time.

I was there, at work actually, for all of these days.

I think.

I even looked at my calendar last night and thought I’d placed things in the wrong days because I was convinced yesterday was Tuesday. I was convinced that my calendar was wrong and I didn’t have any appointments today so I could use this spare time to prep for my Thursday meetings.

Oh, today is Thursday?! Well… Now, I have a 10am meeting, a post or two to write, and a looming deadline tomorrow.

While I can’t give any insight as to how or why this happens I think either I had a stroke and didn’t realize it or Char isn’t the only one suffering from being disorganized. And Ann isn’t the only one suffering from sleep deprivation.

Taking care of self and making the time to make sure you’re in a healthy, sane space will make present and post-apocalyptic life safe and bearable.

Normally everything is a joke to me. But today I was concerned. How had I be going so hard that I didn’t know what day it was?

Why couldn’t I remember where I disconnected from the functional basics of daily life?

We’ve talked about mental health and morale here before. And while I’m not a medical professional or a patient, as a person, I can — sometimes not soon enough– recognize my own signs of damage.

For instance: I should know what day it is. I shouldn’t feel sad about waking up. I shouldn’t feel overwhelmed at the thought of adding buying toilet paper to my to-do list.

Mental health and emotional well-being are about more than being depressed or not being depressed, being sick or not being sick.

Sometimes it’s just about being in balance and taking care of yourself– more than physically.

Check out this checklist from Lisa Kift Therapy of some questions you should ask yourself every once in a while.

There is no right or wrong with this checklist but can hopefully guide you either celebrate the great place you’re in or to consider further work around sensitive areas.

So now I know today is Thursday and tomorrow is Friday and I have to take the time to sit down and honestly ask myself how I’m doing sometimes.

Then, if I don’t like those answers I owe it to myself and my family to course correct.

In the post apocalypse, I will be sleep deprived

I recently realized that in the post-apocalyptic world, I will be horribly sleep deprived. That is, assuming I actually survive and aren’t eaten by a horde of hungry zoo escapees because I’m too fuzzy brained to realize that the panda coming toward me has run out of bamboo shoots and hey, I’m Asian so I’m basically the same thing (only with more meat. And fat).

When did I come to this realization?

I’d say it was probably the last time I was trying to do stuff with my kids, but zoned out because I was rather close to falling asleep. Or possibly the last time I slept in and was late for a session with my personal trainer (I haven’t the foggiest idea why I didn’t set up my appointment time later in the morning–clearly more evidence of my muddled, sleep deprived brain).

It’s probably not as big a deal now, when, in the grand scheme of things, life is fairly leisurely and easygoing. I mean, in comparison to what life will be like after the world bites the dust and we’re running around trying to fend off hungry pandas who may or may not know kung fu.

That’s not to say it’s healthy though, because it’s not. After all, I’m less productive, end up sleeping through my alarm, and am just generally cranky.

But I’m not running around trying to beat off…uh, things and having to stay on my toes and develop spidey senses just to stay alive.

But let’s face it: sleep deprivation means sluggishness and slow reaction time. When quick thinking and ingenuity might just save your life, having your brain go at the speed of molasses will probably get you killed.

Which means, of course, that I will most likely get eaten by an escaped zoo panda who has substituted me for bamboo.

That actually sounds like a terrible way to go. I should start getting some sleep then, shouldn’t I?

Simple Biology.

There are a lot of things that could get in our way, post apocalypse, and perhaps the most simple one is ones that post apocalypse games, literature and comics rarely cover (perhaps cause it’s gross, perhaps cause it’s dull) and it’s a fairly simple one. Our basic biological needs.

Our needs to eat, drink, shit, piss and sleep(yes, I’m going to swear in this one. Are you honestly surprised?).

We have other biological drives as well- the need for sex, being the first one I think of – but most of those can be ignored when the danger is really intense.

We can’t ignore the others.

Continue reading “Simple Biology.”

Quick Survival Tip: Avoid Stress

English: Effects of stress on the body.
English: Effects of stress on the body. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Stress can have extremely damaging effects on the body if not properly managed or avoided. Survival situations are hard enough without adding the chaos caused by stress.

According to the American Institute of Stress (AIS) some of the more dangerous symptoms include: Difficulty concentrating, racing thoughts, Difficulty in making decisions, Feeling overloaded or overwhelmed, Feelings of loneliness or worthlessness, Overreaction to petty annoyances, Excessive defensiveness or suspiciousness, Increased anger, frustration, hostility.

If you know what causes you stress, plan for or avoid it. Some people need to feel that they are supported, in control, have something to look forward to, or just that they know what to do next.

Continue reading “Quick Survival Tip: Avoid Stress”