Our little family of four got hit HARD by influenza a few weeks ago. It started with our youngest, Rowan, and slowly knocked us down one by one. Our symptoms of fever, aches, fatigue, and congestion persisted until it finally relented a week later, and we were able to crawl out of our house and return to normal activities again.
Whenever I get sick it causes some reflection – how is my body doing? Why did I get sick? Obviously, it's not fun and no one wants to spend winter dealing with colds and flus, and the best solution would seem to be a complete avoidance of any illness. But what does a well-functioning immune system look like?
Our immune system starts developing while we are in the womb, and it learns and adapts significantly throughout childhood and on. The cells involved have specific roles and have to distinguish between foreign invaders and how to amount an immune response to protect our body. This is why kids get sick so often; their immune system is still being exposed to everything for the first time, and has to learn what is ‘bad’ and what is not and what to do about it. This is also why it’s so important for kids to play with dirt, and to let a minor fever run its course – it’s an opportunity for the immune system to grow stronger.
As adults, we still get sick, but a well-functioning immune system will be able to amount an attack and finish the job fairly quickly. It’s actually a good thing to get sick every so often – it's a sign that the immune system is continuing the checks & balances and able to amount a response. However, if an illness is dragging on for weeks on end, or we are getting sick frequently, it’s usually a sign that something is impeding our immune function – usually, it’s stress. But it can also be hormones, digestion, or an imbalance of vitamins/minerals (for example, iron deficiency is much too common!). There is no reason for us to be suffering from colds and flus all winter long. Instead, we can help our body find the balance it’s looking for – and who better to help than a Naturopath? :)
As for my family and I, we understand that our stage of life of having young kids will likely mean a few more illnesses – but it only emphasizes the importance of our self-care. That means checking in with our stress levels, leaning on our health care providers, and choosing the things that make our bodies stronger.