Quick And Easy Tips To Prepare For Cold And Flu Season

Yep, it’s that time of year again: cold and flu season! I have a few tips to help you prepare for cold and flu season along with some ideas to get you through it if you do get sick.

This post has been sponsored by Pfizer Consumer Healthcare. All thoughts and reviews are my own.

For me, preparing for cold and flu season means trying to avoid it at all costs as well as stocking up on our “Sick Day Survival Kit“necessities, just in case! Because, sometimes, even with all the steps to remain healthy, we still catch something.

With that said, here are a couple things my family does to avoid germs – most of them simple common sense things:

• Wash hands often – we all know this but it really does make a difference
• Hand sanitizer after shopping – we keep a bottle in the car and use it as soon as we get in the car after shopping
• Wash hands after handling mail – mail travels and goes through many hands before arriving in your mailbox
• Avoiding sick friends and family – not always possible but if you know someone is sick, stay away!
• NO sharing of food, drinks or eating utensils
• “Quarantine” sick kids – give the kids a room to themselves (if possible) with books, coloring pages, movies, snacks and tons of fluffy blankets and pillows, so they can recuperate in peace and not infect siblings. If your kids share a room, like mine, a guest room works great and can be disinfected once everyone is well.

These are all just common sense, really. But they work to help avoid colds and flu. And sometimes, we’re just so tired we don’t think of it. So I wanted to make a note of some of these things to, hopefully, give your memory a jog when sickness strikes.

If you or your loved ones do catch something here are some tips to help ease the discomfort These tips are also listed on our post detailing our “Sick Day Survival Kit“.

To prepare for colds and flu, stock up on and have on hand:

• OTC medications
• Tissues
• Throat lozenges, honey, lemon, cinnamon, herbal tea
• Vapor rub
• Stock up on blankets
• Get a reusable ice pack
• Heating pad
• Ice pops, juice, water
• Easy to eat snacks, fruit, etc.
• Family friendly movies
• Waste basket and liners
• Hand soap
• Hand Sanitizer
• Nausea bags – for upset tummies
• Thermometer – in case of fever

Ok, those are many of the things we keep on hand just in case we get sick. Here is what we use them for:

1)      For headache, the Children’s Advil® along with an ice pack and a dark room works wonders.

2)      OTC medications we use for the kids include:

• Children’s Advil® Suspension (various flavor)
• Children’s Robitussin ® DM Day/Night Pack
• Children’s Dimetapp® Cold & Cough

3)     Vapor rub with menthol helps with stuffy noses and cough but we mainly use it as aromatherapy. I like to just open the jar and sit it on the bedside table. The vapors are then lightly inhaled while you sleep, helping to keep nasal passages open. The aroma is soothing and helps me rest when I’m sick.

4)      Home treatments including honey, cinnamon and lemon juice for sore and irritated throat work well in between doses of OTC meds. Mix the 3 ingredients and drizzle it slowly into throat.

5)      Drink plenty of liquids including warm herbal teas and warm lemon water for irritated throats. A second mixture using herbal tea (one with spices is great) and add in the same honey, lemon, cinnamon mixture as before warms you and soothes. Have them drink it slowly. If your child doesn’t like tea, you can do warm lemon water with honey and cinnamon instead. The warmth of the drink combined with the cinnamon, honey and lemon helps to soothe the throat and warm the body. It is very soothing and comforting and it tastes really good. Parents, you can use this too.

6)      I have a few movies that we reserve as “sick day movies”. We only watch these on those days when one of us is feeling crummy so we’re not burnt out on the movie. We rotate them each year and add new movies.

7)      If you’re having chills, use a heating pad for 15 minutes and stay covered up.

8)      Be sure to continue good hand washing, cover mouths when coughing and/or sneezing and don’t throw used tissues on the floor. Keep a waste basket lined with a grocery bag right at bedside so you can easily discard of them when you’re feeling better.

[easy-tweet tweet=”For headaches: Children’s Advil®, ice pack & a dark room works wonders.” user=”cinnamonhollow” hashtags=”SickJustGotReal, headache”]

Unfortunately, there’s really not a lot you can do for a virus other than treat the symptoms and wait it out. Keeping yourself and your loved ones as comfortable as possible is key.

I hope our tips help you this cold and flu season!

 

Check out Sick just got real.™ online and on  Facebook.

Giveaway

One lucky reader will win the following:

• $25 virtual visa gift card (online purchases only – can’t be used in-store)
• (1) Children’s Advil® Suspension (various flavor)
• (1) Children’s Robitussin ® DM Day/Night Pack
• (1) Children’s Dimetapp® Cold & Cough

To enter, follow the instructions in the giveaway widget below. Giveaway ends 11/24/17. Winner will be notified via email and will have 48 hours to confirm or a new winner will be chosen. Open to US residents only.

We are not doctors and this is in no way intended to be used as medical advice and we cannot be held responsible for your results. As with any product, service or supplement, use at your own risk. Always do your own research before using.