Ill Too Often? You Might Be Stressed.

“You need to listen to your body because your body is listening to you.” — Phil McGraw

A couple of years ago, I was the team lead at a start-up. Start-ups have their fair share of challenges and stresses. As a team lead, I was determined not to fail so, that added to the pressure. To an extent, I delivered on my deliverables but it took its toll on my body.

I noticed that I frequently had sniffles and migraines. I barely recovered from one sniffle before I came down with another. It was also a bother, but I just lived with it. It did not help that I spent some of my weekends at work. To be fair, I had developed the habit of always having breakfast and taking time off whenever my weekends were available. I guess my body needed more.

This went on for a full year. In the first quarter of the second year, I fell seriously ill. One Saturday evening, I had this unrelenting headache. It was unresponsive to Tylenol. By midnight, I started throwing up. Soon after, I passed out.

Apparently, my dad took me to a nearby hospital. The doctor ran many tests and his verdict: my body was raging with infection. It was circulating in my blood and must have gained entry through a portal, and my immune system could not keep up.

When I gained consciousness, I recalled all the many times I had felt unwell and barely recovered before the next attack. My body had been speaking. I had noticed but had not taken effective action. That incident earned me a week's stay in the hospital and another three weeks at home.

Because my body had taken a serious beating, I was thinking of a way ‘to beat the system’. My strategy; I began eating a salad every day. If I couldn’t, I would get a vegetable smoothie instead. Did I see a change? Yes! The frequent sniffles disappeared first, and it was quite a while before I had another.

It rather surprised me that my body responded the way it did. Yes, I had a high-intensity job and the vegetables perhaps provided some defense to deal with the many stresses I was under. I still took breakfast and time off seriously. One thing I can say with certainty is, for the rest of my time in that role, I never took ill again.