Hey guys, Emily again.
Some days it is just not your day. Today is not my day. It started off really good. I had a field trip with my Biology 100 class to the Genesee County Park (I live 10 minutes away from said park so, yay, I got to sleep in a bit) to look at biodiversity and natural habitats.
I arrived at the park feeling sleepy but not overly terrible. I had been to the park a few years ago and was interested to go back and see if anything had changed. I soon found out that it hadn’t. The park still looked the same as it had the last time I was there, however, there was one thing that had changed.
I was no longer feeling well.
Now, for at least a week and a half, I have been suffering from a “college cold.” We college students, as a general rule, do not eat healthfully, do not get enough sleep, and do not get enough exercise. With the exception of not getting enough exercise (I teach dance 3 times a week and am a proud gym member [go me!!]) I fall into the college kid mold of not eating right and not getting enough sleep. Because of this, I usually spend the majority of the semester sick with college induced colds.
This weekend though, my college kid cold has gotten worse. With the exception of Sunday (My Bills won……I have been a 
die-hard fan of the Buffalo Bills for 20 years now….yesterday was the greatest game of my life) when it looked like football might cure me of my weirdo symptoms. I had been suffering from a psuedo-headcold (stuffiness without congestion + dizziness and exhaustion) and a chest cold (shortness of breath + pain and congestion).
Today, it returned to my body with full force.
Now, I’m not a wimpy chick. I’ll come to work without feeling 100%. In fact, I sit here typing this at my desk in Student Activities. If you happen to come to the office for whatever reason and you see a blonde girl sitting behind the desk looking like she is dying A: its me and B: no worries, I’ll make it.
But its annoying to suffer from “college colds” because I know that I did this too myself.
As college students we need to take a greater responsibility in keeping ourselves healthy. We pay good money to receive a great education, so why do we jeopardize our chances with bad health habits? We need to start saying “no” to things which are going to perpetuate the cycle of getting sick, getting run down, and getting discouraged. There are many resources available to us college kids that can help us achieve a healthy lifestyle so that we can achieve our goals.
If you are not feeling well physically, feel free to talk to our nursing staff. The Health office is located at the bottom and to the right of the steps that lead from the cafeteria and into the Student Union. The nurse will be able to help you to understand what your illness might be and how to help your symptoms.
Maybe you are feeling sad or lonely. There are counselors available in the Dean of Students office that are there to talk to you. Their offices are safe, confidential places for you to discuss what is going on in your life that might be bothering you. All of our GCC counselors are kind, friendly people who you can trust to be professional and helpful with whatever you may be going through.
There are also many resources on the Internet that can be just as helpful as talking to a person one-on-one. I have found two very helpful sites and will post the links to them below. Please, feel free to check them out if you’re not feeling well like me, or maybe even for future reference.
Remember, it’s only Monday, your week can still be fantastic even if your Monday was not!!
Until next time,
Emily
http://www.zencollegelife.com/99-cheap-and-easy-ways-to-stay-healthy-in-college/
Genesee Community College Blog 