Lauren Wille

As we all know, the swine flu has swept through Mexico and into the United States. Scary for sure, but are US citizens now becoming paranoid? A friend who attends the University of Illinois told me that the health clinic was overloaded with students claiming to have the swine. The line not only crowded the waiting room, but leaked outside and wrapped around the sidewalk. Facebook statues, AIM away messages, and Twitter updates are showing the extent of how many people think they are infected. For the sake of the nation and their lives, I sure hope not. 

But the question I am asking my friends who are obsessively washing their hands and popping zinc, is are you guys paranoid or do you legitimately think you’re sick? Diarrhea…it happens. Coughing…every now and then. Headaches…yeah, sure. These things happen to us all the time and we don’t think twice about it, but now that theres an epidemic sweeping through seven countries and claiming lives, the little things we usually ignore become a problem.

My advice, if you’re feeling weird, get it checked out. It could be nothing, but there’s still that chance it could be something. I really don’t want to start seeing Chicagoans wearing medical masks around. I also don’t want to become increasingly worried  I’m going to catch this and die. 

Things to look out for:

Fever

Diziness

Headache

Fatigue

Coughing