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Recently, I got really sick. (big yikes) I felt pretty tired on a Sunday and then on Monday morning, I had an annoying sore throat. I spent the day taking it easy in my room on my bed, drinking a lot of water, watching a lot of YouTube, and willing myself back to health. I ordered some of my favorite takeout and devoured that with even more water and orange juice.

Tuesday rolled around and, unfortunately, I felt worse. I was starting to lose my voice and could tell that this wasn’t going to be some ordinary cold. I thought it would be best to seek medical advice. And because I’m at Michigan, it was as easy as taking the Bursley-Baits bus to the stop right in front of UHS (University Health Service).

I went for a walk-in appointment and got to see a doctor within a couple minutes of arrival. They checked all of my symptoms and tested me for strep throat (negative, yay!) to make sure that I would be alright. The doctor also provided me with a letter to excuse me from classes until the end of the week. All of this was covered under the health service fee as part of being a student at Michigan!

Once I got back, I ordered a feel better meal from the dining hall (included in the meal plan, which all residents of the dorms have) so that I could rest more and still eat while not spreading my germs. The feel better meal allows you to order from what’s on the menu for the day at the dining hall, and add on things like fruit, yogurt, and chicken broth. For added convenience, you can put down the name of a friend or RA to pick it up for you.

I spent the rest of the week generally doing one of three things: eating food, watching YouTube videos, or sleeping. At some point, I got tired of watching YouTube and decided to work on catching up with some of the classes I had missed.

Lecture recordings made this painless. I was able to watch videos of the lectures I’d missed while I ate chicken soup from my room. Saturday morning, I went home for the start of break and got to spend time with family and felt nearly completely back to normal!

The bottom line is, don’t worry if you become ill. At Michigan, you have access to doctors and nurses at UHS to make sure you’re okay and help you out if you’re not. If what you have is serious and you need to go to the ER, you’re cared for by some of the nation’s best doctors at the University of Michigan Medical Center.

It’s never fun to be sick, but rest up, drink lots of fluids, seek convenient expert care when you need it, and you’ll be feeling better in no time!