Trey Smith
For all my various structural and neurological issues -- Fibromyalgia, congenitally-diseased left hip and right shoulder, and now disc problems in my lumbar spine -- I have been able to dodge infections. It has been nearly 20 years since I last I had the respiratory flu or pneumonia and, at least, 5 years since a case of the stomach flu. I even have managed to avoid catching the common cold...until today.
To be sure, I have suffered from seasonal allergies, but I can't remember the last time my head felt like a block of cement, my sinuses felt like they were on fire and sneezes came frequently and violently. That's where I find myself today.
This head cold serves as yet another reminder that there are two forces alive in the cosmos. There is a constant interplay between them. Most of the time, one or the other exerts more force and it holds sway until the pendulum swings back in the other direction.
Though I feel really miserable right now, chances are that the taillights of this temporal misery will seem like a tiny speck on my horizon in no time at all. Of course, I'm dealing with the here and now, so that tiny speck currently looms very large. ;-)
While most of us do not enjoy being under the weather, it is a typical part of each journey. One of these days, when my time has come, sickness or some other variable won't lead to recovery; it will begin the procession toward my death. That too is part of each journey.
Consequently, though I don't relish suffering with a cold, I need to embrace it as another step along my path. Where it will lead, I do not know. But it will lead somewhere and, whether I like it or not, my ticket is punched to go along for the ride.
I've never liked being too wu-wei en it comes to a cold. I know the cold will run its course, but why be miserable, and make other people miserable, with runny nose, coughing and hang-dog mood. I haven't had such illness since I came back from China in May, when my guide insisted I got sick because I wasn't wearing socks. She was probably right. She also provided an armload of Chinese medicine that was quite effective.
ReplyDeleteI highly recommend banlangen keli, an herbal you drink like a tea; you can order it on line.
But when I don't have the Chinese meds, I highly recommend Alka Seltzer Plus! (I always travel with it, just in case.)
I can't take Alka Seltzer because of the fizz -- same reason I don't drink carbonated beverages. I'm thinking of taking some DayQuil, but I need to hear back from my pharmacist first because I recently started on a new med and I want to be sure there will be no adverse drug interactions.
ReplyDelete