So now we come across one of the drawbacks of being on Humira--if you get sick, you have to go off the medication in order to allow your body to heal.
And last week, due to one colleague who refused to stay home when she was sick (don't get me started on this miguided work ethic that says you're noble if you work stick instead of taking care of yourself and respecting your colleagues), I caught a cold. Erg. So I've been off the medication for five days now. I didn't notice much of a change at first, but by Saturday (day three with no Humira), I woke up with stiff hands and knees and in need of a hot shower before facing my day. My tasks were harder that day--I was cleaning the house in preparation for Thanksgiving, and I kept having to rest/stretch as my joints got sore and stiff.
The good news is that the cold seems to be healing quickly--by Sunday, I wasn't sneezing or blowing my nose much at all, and my sore throat seems to be gone. I'm still low-energy, so I'm going to wait another day or two to finish fighting this infection before going back on Humira. All in all, I suppose it wasn't too bad as far as colds go, but it's still pretty annoying to have to be in pain (off Humira) for five days just because someone else decided she simply couldn't take a day off work.
In the future, I'm considering refusing to work in offices in which people are sick. I might not always have the choice of this as an independent contractor, but what do you think? If you're in this situation, what do you do to avoid getting sick and having to go off Humira?
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