First-year Plague. The Class of 2027 either had it, has it or is bracing for the inevitable. Some of us have tried to power through, continuing to go to sports practices, classes and social events. Others have flocked to vitamin C supplements for immune support, while some have become best friends with the nurses at the Health Center. Stubbornly, I tried to power through, but like most people, that only made things worse. So how is the mighty sick class of 2027 getting through?
The first way students are combating the illness is by powering through the plague, but that method does not seem to be going well for most people. Caroline Wieland ’27 “tried taking cold medicine, resting and drinking lots of water,” but her sickness was prolonged due to her “going out on the weekends and getting poor sleep.” It appears as though most people get more ill from trying to power through, yet most students across the board continue to ignore whatever mystery sickness they encounter. Some refuse to miss class, others refuse to miss Margarita Monday. If we just took one or two days off, we would probably be back to fine in no time instead of being sick for weeks at a time. We don’t do that, and probably never will because our student body seeks some sort of extreme validation, whether that be social, athletic, academic, etc., it keeps us adamantly going.
One way students are battling the plague is through taking supplements. Wes Peot ’27 noted that, “I got the plague and started taking an absurd amount of Vitamin C.” Although the Vitamin C ended up helping him and many others, would it have been more beneficial to go to the health center?
To the freshmen who flocked to the health center right away, I commend you. You knew what was wrong, you took care of it and probably got back on your “A game” in no time. After I took the walk of shame to the health center, I got antibiotics within three hours and was feeling the best I’d been feeling in weeks within 24 hours. I recommend doing that treacherous walk sooner rather than later, speaking from personal experience. If taking antibiotics is not appealing to you because that means experiencing FOMO (fear of missing out), I assure you that missing one weekend of Bucknell’s social culture was a blessing in disguise and the FOMO really wasn’t that bad.
Other than going to the health center, taking Vitamin C or being in denial of the first-year plague, there are a number of different ways students have been trying to stay moderately healthy. Anna Solar ’27 emphasized the importance of just “getting sleep,” but that’s easier said than done, especially when gossip hour and socializing are usually more appealing. Regine Escher ’27 accurately noted that “going out to parties definitely makes you sick, or more sick.” As I am finally getting over the first-year plague, I recommend taking the upcoming long weekend off from traditional Bucknell social activities. Although it may suck at the moment to miss out on midnight bonding with your friends at the Flying Bison, it will pay off next Wednesday when you are no longer the loudest cougher in class.