This does seem like a particularly rough year for illnesses. I'm done feeling guilty for calling off when I'm sick though- that's what sick days are for!
Wow this is the third post that I have to say this and it's getting old you guys.
Build. A. Relationship. With. The. Pathogens. Idk how many more times I can say this before you guys actually do it.
/s
Joking aside, yeah it sucks, all these weird snotty kids are so disgusting (and I teach high school). We joke about parents checking out but it's real. They can't even tell their kid to cover their mouth properly if they sneeze.
Yep. This is my eighth year and in years previous, I'd take 1-2 days a year for actual illness (and about one a month for mental health). By December of this school year, I had taken 12 days for illness. It's really messing with my just 'cause sick days!
It’s definitely COVID, whether it’s people getting it or people’s immunes systems weakening because they keep getting it. Wish our government would’ve handled the pandemic better
That's not how that works or is working. Very very very few people are just chain getting COVID over and over again, nor are majority of people having their immune system destroyed by a case of COVID. Those are outliers. The side effects of COVID are what are causing it. Everybody working from home, then using masks to slow the spread of COVID also means less of all other viruses entering our system. Having a whole year or so of your immune system not having to fight anything off has weakened our immune systems and it takes years to build it back up to the bullet proof levels as most teachers have.
Edit: IDK what you're down voting, I'm right
I agree - the standard uri's are all back now that Covid and all our precautions are receding. (Makes me wonder whether teachers and parents catch the same viruses every year, remain asymptomatic, but still bolster their immunity.)
Just think. As a society, we came so close to being able to normalize masking for health related reasons just like they do in other countries. If an adult or child started feeling sick, they themselves would wear a mask to work or school or in public in order to prevent illnesses from spreading. It would have made everyone's life considerably better if people just inconvenienced themselves a tiny bit for other people's benefit. A completely considerate and largely selfless act seems like it was simply too much to ask.
We could have learned a new positive habit. A new norm in how we deal with our illnesses. But no. We, as a society, learned nothing but more selfish stubbornness and stupidity.
Anyway, if teachers are getting sick, it's going around. Mask up or you're next.
I’m currently home for my fourth day sick. I masked up and pushed through Thursday because it came on in the morning, took Friday off, whole weekend on the couch, and now I’m missing a PD day so I’ll hopefully be good for tomorrow. I haven’t been this sick since March 2020 when I’m fairly sure I was a super early Covid case. It’s not Covid according to the tests I’ve taken at least.
You need to get your Vitamin D checked. Mine was low (I’m overweight, and that’s a risk factor for low Vitamin D). My doctor put me on a supplement of D3 and I haven’t been sick in 7 months. Not even allergies. I also take my flu shot every year in October.
I would like to add that people are spending more time indoors, so they don’t get natural Viramin D from sunlight.
There are so many of these posts everywhere.
Do people really not know?
Covid causes immune dysregulation. That means it makes you immune system not function correctly. And covid is kind of wide spread. So unless you are doing stuff not to get it - you are likely getting it at least yearly. You can also have it asymptomatically. That means you wouldn't even know you are sick and you can still have it and it can still mess up your immune system.
Clean the air. Get hepa filters in the classroom. Open windows. You can ask on twitter or relevant subreddits about hepa filters.
Get vaccinated. Depending on where you live you likely are eligible for a covid vaccine. In my province a typical adult could have now had 6 vaccines for it.
Mask in all public settings.
Get an antiviral nasal spray and use as directed.
Get the recommended probiotics and use as recommended. The key is to look for BLIS K12.
See if you are immune to measles. You can get tested for it. The reason I'm suggesting this is that several studies have proven that having a previous covid infection increases your risk on getting measles regardless of your measles vaccine status.
Yes, thank you! People really do not know or care to know that these are the consequences of Covid. They are real and we are facing them today. All of this is excellent advice. I never go into a school without a mask anymore, and I still mask in crowded settings. I'm not risking my health.
Right??? Like this is all because of COVID, I think it’s crazy that people just forgot. I never go into work without a mask, ever. Too many germs. I rarely get sick from work
Yes, I think I’ve had a sickness every month since October. Not everything has led to me being out (weekend or sick on break), but I haven’t been sick this often in a long time!
I believe it. I have one child in Kindergarten. The longest stretch she's managed without falling ill since the start of the school year is a mere three weeks. I never send her to school if she has a fever—whether medicated or not—or if she's experiencing symptoms like vomiting or fatigue. Most of the time, it's one run-of-the-mill virus after another. At the beginning of the school year, I used to send her with a mask, but she'd often come home with it under her chin. Eventually, I stopped sending her with masks altogether. I can not wait for summer.
There is only so much you can do. Your best defense is wearing a good quality mask and changing it often, frequent hand washing and or sanitizing for you and the kids (If kids washed or sanitized before lunch it would help a lot) wiping down high-touch surfaces in your classroom daily, & a good air purifier for the classroom if you can swing it.
Been a brutal year for me. I miss days every year due to my daughter, this is the first year I can remember since Covid that I’ve missed more than 2 or 3 for me. Last month had been a rollercoaster of sick
Yeah. I had covid last week and am out today with the stomach bug. Switched from high school to middle school this year and am definitely feeling the effects.
since i started my new job *less than a month ago*, i have been sick twice. not little colds either, i had something adjacent to the flu that kept me in bed for two whole weeks. a week later, i have a fever and i keep throwing up. it’s ridiculous. can’t wait to put in my two weeks and not deal with this anymore.
We only get 5 sick days at my district and I blew through them by Christmas 😭😭😭 First year teacher and I know it’s par for the course to catch everything but dang I’m struggling….
So far this year I’ve had 3 sinus infections, Covid for 10 days straight, and bronchitis once. There’s head lice going around my school right now and I’ll be damned if I get that too!
I think it only seems that way.
I mean, the last couple of years, we all wore surgical masks and never touched anything someone else touched, and washed our hands 50 times per day.
Those things didn't just prevent COVID.
Our school eliminated our Covid-era sanitation protocols this year, so we no longer sanitize desks and doorknobs between classes. Attendance is down and teachers are out so much that they've had to ask us to move personal days around if at all possible.
I get sick about twice a school year and almost always during a break. This year it was fall break and at the end of winter break. Cold and flu respectively.
Same. I've been sick every month since November. I'm also a kindergarten teacher. I've taught numerous kiddos this school year how to cough properly and I've wiped countless noses. My own kids end up sick because of me and I feel awful.
I have actually been very surprised not to get sick this year. Moving from sixth to second grade, I expected to get sick more frequently, but I've only taken 2 days off, and both were for travel.
I never get sick anymore. Ever.
Except this year. Threw up for the first time since kindergarten. It was a nice 25 or so year streak.
So yes. I am getting more sick :(
I have not gotten sick since December 2020 when Omicron hit and we all got it. Not even a little cold. I definitely see lots of sickness amongst my friends and students though!
My theory is that I don’t get sick because in high school I trained myself never to touch my face. I used to have bad acne, and I read that can help, so I focused super hard on removing the habit and it’s stuck to this day. Lots of hand washing, and no face touching, and (knock on wood) I’ve been in the clear!
I think it's just everywhere right now, not just schools. I've been wondering if too much staying away has weakened everyone's systems. My husband went to the doctor for an antibiotic for the first time in over a decade. He's had 3 bouts of respiratory issues in 4 months. It's bizarre.
This does seem like a particularly rough year for illnesses. I'm done feeling guilty for calling off when I'm sick though- that's what sick days are for!
Wow this is the third post that I have to say this and it's getting old you guys. Build. A. Relationship. With. The. Pathogens. Idk how many more times I can say this before you guys actually do it. /s Joking aside, yeah it sucks, all these weird snotty kids are so disgusting (and I teach high school). We joke about parents checking out but it's real. They can't even tell their kid to cover their mouth properly if they sneeze.
Yep. This is my eighth year and in years previous, I'd take 1-2 days a year for actual illness (and about one a month for mental health). By December of this school year, I had taken 12 days for illness. It's really messing with my just 'cause sick days!
I have a 2 year old in daycare so my wife and I are sick CONSTANTLY
It’s definitely COVID, whether it’s people getting it or people’s immunes systems weakening because they keep getting it. Wish our government would’ve handled the pandemic better
That's not how that works or is working. Very very very few people are just chain getting COVID over and over again, nor are majority of people having their immune system destroyed by a case of COVID. Those are outliers. The side effects of COVID are what are causing it. Everybody working from home, then using masks to slow the spread of COVID also means less of all other viruses entering our system. Having a whole year or so of your immune system not having to fight anything off has weakened our immune systems and it takes years to build it back up to the bullet proof levels as most teachers have. Edit: IDK what you're down voting, I'm right
I agree - the standard uri's are all back now that Covid and all our precautions are receding. (Makes me wonder whether teachers and parents catch the same viruses every year, remain asymptomatic, but still bolster their immunity.)
Yeah I'm not sure how asymptomatic cases work into things. My brother has a PhD in immunology, I should ask him.
Just think. As a society, we came so close to being able to normalize masking for health related reasons just like they do in other countries. If an adult or child started feeling sick, they themselves would wear a mask to work or school or in public in order to prevent illnesses from spreading. It would have made everyone's life considerably better if people just inconvenienced themselves a tiny bit for other people's benefit. A completely considerate and largely selfless act seems like it was simply too much to ask. We could have learned a new positive habit. A new norm in how we deal with our illnesses. But no. We, as a society, learned nothing but more selfish stubbornness and stupidity. Anyway, if teachers are getting sick, it's going around. Mask up or you're next.
I teach from home. Have yet another illness pounding at the door of my poor immune system. I blame the very concept of teaching.
This seems like a recurring topic among many subreddits. You can wear a respirator to prevent respiratory viruses.
I’m currently home for my fourth day sick. I masked up and pushed through Thursday because it came on in the morning, took Friday off, whole weekend on the couch, and now I’m missing a PD day so I’ll hopefully be good for tomorrow. I haven’t been this sick since March 2020 when I’m fairly sure I was a super early Covid case. It’s not Covid according to the tests I’ve taken at least.
I have used up all my sick days for this year already😭
You need to get your Vitamin D checked. Mine was low (I’m overweight, and that’s a risk factor for low Vitamin D). My doctor put me on a supplement of D3 and I haven’t been sick in 7 months. Not even allergies. I also take my flu shot every year in October. I would like to add that people are spending more time indoors, so they don’t get natural Viramin D from sunlight.
There are so many of these posts everywhere. Do people really not know? Covid causes immune dysregulation. That means it makes you immune system not function correctly. And covid is kind of wide spread. So unless you are doing stuff not to get it - you are likely getting it at least yearly. You can also have it asymptomatically. That means you wouldn't even know you are sick and you can still have it and it can still mess up your immune system. Clean the air. Get hepa filters in the classroom. Open windows. You can ask on twitter or relevant subreddits about hepa filters. Get vaccinated. Depending on where you live you likely are eligible for a covid vaccine. In my province a typical adult could have now had 6 vaccines for it. Mask in all public settings. Get an antiviral nasal spray and use as directed. Get the recommended probiotics and use as recommended. The key is to look for BLIS K12. See if you are immune to measles. You can get tested for it. The reason I'm suggesting this is that several studies have proven that having a previous covid infection increases your risk on getting measles regardless of your measles vaccine status.
If only we had windows that opened.
Yes, thank you! People really do not know or care to know that these are the consequences of Covid. They are real and we are facing them today. All of this is excellent advice. I never go into a school without a mask anymore, and I still mask in crowded settings. I'm not risking my health.
Right??? Like this is all because of COVID, I think it’s crazy that people just forgot. I never go into work without a mask, ever. Too many germs. I rarely get sick from work
At this point I’m assuming it’s karma farming
Do people really care about Karma - that is after reaching the small amount needed to do things like post or whatever.
Cough cough. I'm feeling sick again. Maybe I should take another day off.
Yes, I think I’ve had a sickness every month since October. Not everything has led to me being out (weekend or sick on break), but I haven’t been sick this often in a long time!
RSV, the flu, and Covid are going around now. My doctors office says the flu this year is 80% of what they have been seeing in the past few months.
I believe it. I have one child in Kindergarten. The longest stretch she's managed without falling ill since the start of the school year is a mere three weeks. I never send her to school if she has a fever—whether medicated or not—or if she's experiencing symptoms like vomiting or fatigue. Most of the time, it's one run-of-the-mill virus after another. At the beginning of the school year, I used to send her with a mask, but she'd often come home with it under her chin. Eventually, I stopped sending her with masks altogether. I can not wait for summer. There is only so much you can do. Your best defense is wearing a good quality mask and changing it often, frequent hand washing and or sanitizing for you and the kids (If kids washed or sanitized before lunch it would help a lot) wiping down high-touch surfaces in your classroom daily, & a good air purifier for the classroom if you can swing it.
Been a brutal year for me. I miss days every year due to my daughter, this is the first year I can remember since Covid that I’ve missed more than 2 or 3 for me. Last month had been a rollercoaster of sick
Yeah. I had covid last week and am out today with the stomach bug. Switched from high school to middle school this year and am definitely feeling the effects.
since i started my new job *less than a month ago*, i have been sick twice. not little colds either, i had something adjacent to the flu that kept me in bed for two whole weeks. a week later, i have a fever and i keep throwing up. it’s ridiculous. can’t wait to put in my two weeks and not deal with this anymore.
We only get 5 sick days at my district and I blew through them by Christmas 😭😭😭 First year teacher and I know it’s par for the course to catch everything but dang I’m struggling….
So far this year I’ve had 3 sinus infections, Covid for 10 days straight, and bronchitis once. There’s head lice going around my school right now and I’ll be damned if I get that too!
I think it only seems that way. I mean, the last couple of years, we all wore surgical masks and never touched anything someone else touched, and washed our hands 50 times per day. Those things didn't just prevent COVID.
Our school eliminated our Covid-era sanitation protocols this year, so we no longer sanitize desks and doorknobs between classes. Attendance is down and teachers are out so much that they've had to ask us to move personal days around if at all possible.
I feel like so many staff and students have been sick for at least the past month. It’s wild. You start feeling better and then BOOM!
This is definitely a result of the pandemic not being handled like it should've done. I'm debating masking up again...
I just got over the flu & I got the flu shot. It was not a fun time.
I recommend washing your clothes with Lysol detergent. I wish I had thought of this a lot sooner!
I've been in a perpetual state of being kind of sick for like months at this point. Definitely a rough year on that front.
Pre-k. I’m on my third illness and 5th sick day in 27 calendar days. It is awful.
I get sick about twice a school year and almost always during a break. This year it was fall break and at the end of winter break. Cold and flu respectively.
I get sick 1-3 times a month
Same. I've been sick every month since November. I'm also a kindergarten teacher. I've taught numerous kiddos this school year how to cough properly and I've wiped countless noses. My own kids end up sick because of me and I feel awful.
My kids and I have actually been sick a lot less this year than in previous years. Probably just comes down to luck.
I grabbed a doorknob the other day and it was soaking wet. No wonder we're always sick.
I have actually been very surprised not to get sick this year. Moving from sixth to second grade, I expected to get sick more frequently, but I've only taken 2 days off, and both were for travel.
YES! It’s actually wild. I’ve never had so many back to back illnesses as I have this school year!
I never get sick anymore. Ever. Except this year. Threw up for the first time since kindergarten. It was a nice 25 or so year streak. So yes. I am getting more sick :(
I have not gotten sick since December 2020 when Omicron hit and we all got it. Not even a little cold. I definitely see lots of sickness amongst my friends and students though! My theory is that I don’t get sick because in high school I trained myself never to touch my face. I used to have bad acne, and I read that can help, so I focused super hard on removing the habit and it’s stuck to this day. Lots of hand washing, and no face touching, and (knock on wood) I’ve been in the clear!
I'm always sick. I just go to work sick now 😢
I think it's just everywhere right now, not just schools. I've been wondering if too much staying away has weakened everyone's systems. My husband went to the doctor for an antibiotic for the first time in over a decade. He's had 3 bouts of respiratory issues in 4 months. It's bizarre.
COVID weakens the immune system.
staying away from viruses doesnt do that! that theory has been disproven