With the holidays quickly approaching, my calendar is filled with so many events & parties.  In the chaos of preparing for the festivities ahead, I realize the last thing any of us want is to get sick during this busy time.  Unfortunately, many don’t realize the severity & risk that an infection can pose to someone in treatment. It’s important to educate not only ourselves so that we can actively work to prevent infection, as well as to educate our loved ones so that they can help to keep us safe through this festive season as well.

Since chemo doesn’t identify good cells from bad, it kills both & our immune systems can become severely compromised through treatment.  Thus, making it so much harder for your body to fight any virus or infection through treatment.  An infection during this time can be extremely dangerous & could lead to sepsis, a potentially life threatening complication that results in damage to the body’s tissues & organs.

As we make our way through this busy holiday season filled with parties, shopping, travel, etc.  I wanted to take a minute to remind of us all, of some basic precautions we can take to help keep ourselves & loved ones safe throughout this time.

Keep in mind that viruses are spread by germs that can survive on hard surfaces, some for up to 30 days & people can be contagious without yet showing symptoms.  Doctors often caution patients with low blood cell counts to avoid risk of exposure to infection.  So, if you’re attending a party, there are a lot of risks involved & several precautions that should be taken.

• Wash your hands frequently or use sanitizer & request others do this as well. Go all out & pick up a bunch of little bottles of sanitizer & give each as a gift or set sanitizer around the party to promote frequent use, decorate them & make them festive if you want.
• Keep your hands away from your face & mouth. Yes keep others hands away from your mouth or face too, in other words be careful around toddlers & babies.
• Keep skin & lips moisturized to prevent small cracks & cuts that can easily open the door for bacteria & germs.
• Serving Utensils at parties are often shared, spreading germs at one of the worst possible times, right before you eat! Use your own utensil or forgo any buffet style food all together.
• Wear a mask. It’s not very fun but it offers a lot of protection from airborne pathogens.  Have fun with it & draw a face on your mask or decorate it in some way.  Maybe the kids will want to follow suit & join, you could make a whole craft time of it & keep them occupied for a bit.
• Ask family & friend to stay home if they are ill or show signs of infection such as sore throat, sniffles, etc. It’s not fun, but it’s one year & your life is worth the sacrifice.   Kids with runny noses are especially dangerous since they’re often not as conscious to be careful not to spread germs & can quite frankly cover a lot of space in a short time.

If you feel the risk is too high, you may opt to skip some of the holiday festivities altogether.  It’s unfortunate, of course, but we’ve got to put our health first as we’re going through treatment.  It’s easy to get swept up in the holiday festivities & think we’re invincible but we’re not.  An infection during this time could be potentially life threatening & I don’t know of any party or event worth that risk.  Hope that others will understand & be supportive of your decisions, but know that not everyone realizes the severity of the risks involved & some may still be offended.  Let them, their pride will surely recover faster than your body would from an infection.

If you’re traveling through the holiday season, it’s important to be especially careful.  If you’re flying or using any form of public transportation, it’s advisable to wear a mask.  Use sanitizer or wash your hands thoroughly before removing it.  Most would probably opt not to travel during treatment if its avoidable.

Shopping might be a difficult task as you go through treatment as well.  If you’re tired & don’t want to face the crowds, opt to do your shopping online.  Watch for coupon codes or sign up for emails to receive coupon codes to use toward your online purchases.  If you do venture to the stores, try to go during less busy times like a weekday if you’re able to.  It’s also a smart idea to wear a mask during these trips as well just to avoid any addition risk of exposure.

Always be sure to take steps to build your immune system up as much as possible in advance.  It’s so important to eat a protein rich well-balanced diet.  Get plenty of rest & listen to your body.  If you do show any signs of infection be sure to let your physician know right away.  Watch for things such as fever, chills, cough or sore throat & irregular or fast heartbeat.

Don’t spread germs yourself, nobody wants to get sick this time of year.  Stay home if you’re not feeling well!  We’re so driven to maintain social commitments & make it to work every day, but a cold of flu virus is a gift nobody wants to receive, so stay home & keep it to yourself if you can.

For more information about protecting yourself through chemo, check out my post Infection Protection During Chemo