How to combat the nasty virus that’s plaguing NC [infographic]

Nadia Butt, Reporter
September 2, 2015

Once again, allergy season makes its yucky return. The common cold has been spreading among students and teachers, and no amount of hand sanitizer and Lysol seems to cut it out. Students and teachers alike have been targets of the infection, making the number of students in class dwindle as seemingly everyone falls victim to its nastiness.

“It was awful. I couldn’t do anything. I had no energy at all, and yeah…I couldn’t go to school. My nose was stuffy. I was sneezing a lot. I was coughing a lot. Yeah, it was really bad. I didn’t come to school for like two days,” explains Melina Espinal, a sophomore who missed school for two days after catching the cold.

Many students at NC have caught the common cold. Some symptoms of this cold include an aching feeling in the back of the throat, a stuffy nose, and sudden bouts of fatigue after simple actions such as standing up from sitting in class (and not just from back-to-school Monday blues).

“It is typical of this time of year. Unfortunately, and I guess fortunately, being a school nurse, I come in to the school season with allergies then it rolls into flu season, and then we roll out allergy season. So this is the sick season of the year, so I’m not shocked by any of it that’s going on,” says Mrs.Gerald, school nurse.

To Mrs.Gerald, these symptoms do not come as a surprise, and she also has plans to deal with the upcoming flu season.

“The one simplest and easiest thing you can do to prevent illness is handwashing. I’m noticing a lot of students are sharing beverages and snacks. And that too spreads infection. And just take medicine for it. it’ll make you feel better,” explains Mrs. Gerald.

Lack of handwashing is a common culprit. A student could touch a doorknob or even a desk that an infected person contaminated. Then, they lean their head on that hand, or they eat with that hand without washing, and then they have introduced those germs into their bodies. Most likely, that student will get sick and repeat the cycle of infecting more people.

“If you know you have allergy symptoms, start taking allergy medicine daily, and that gives you protection. If you start to develop fever or if you start vomiting or unfortunately, diarrhea. Well, if you just feel cruddy, then yes, I would recommend you stay home, because you’re not gonna retain anything that you learned that day, and that is a Cobb County policy,” said Mrs.Gerald in regards to whether or not students should be coming to school after they have been infected and what they should do to feel better.