Health reporter goes viral, but not in a good way
Wash your hands. Get your flu shot. And, please, cover your cough.
As the health care correspondent for MPR News, I've delivered that advice on an endless loop this winter. Sometimes, though, even the best prepared among us are no match for those nasty illnesses.
I knew this year would be tough. I have a daughter, younger than 2, who gets sick if you look at her the wrong way. So, when a respiratory virus hit our house in early December, it was no surprise she bore the worst of it. That week was stressful. But I figured, hey, we're probably in the clear now for the holidays.
No.
Create a More Connected Minnesota
MPR News is your trusted resource for the news you need. With your support, MPR News brings accessible, courageous journalism and authentic conversation to everyone - free of paywalls and barriers. Your gift makes a difference.
I did not count on getting slammed the very next week by a completely different virus, one that made the previous bug look like a pimple.
You know when the health department sends out those discreetly worded press releases about stomach viruses? Well, I can now tell you what it's really like to have four people in your house dashing for the toilet or racing to find a plastic bucket. It's a noisy, nasty ordeal.
We limped into Christmas week looking nothing like the carefree family on our holiday card. But, with some much-needed rest, surely the New Year would be better.
No.
When my toddler finally returned to daycare the next week, it was pajama party day. Her teachers videotaped her dancing with the other kids. They were holding hands and hugging. They looked so happy. It wouldn't last.
When I picked her up that night I learned three of the children in her classroom were sent home that afternoon with high fevers. I thought, well the only thing my daughter hasn't had yet is flu, but she's only been back to school for one day. What are the odds?
Thirty hours later, her first flu symptoms appeared. I got my flu diagnosis two days later.
I am fortunate, of course, that I have sick days to tap. It's hard to imagine the alternative. But I can't help but stew a bit over the fact that I followed all of the public health precautions and I don't think we avoided a single virus this year.
Good thing winter is almost over, right?