DEAR HARRIETTE: I have been suffering from a bad cold for a couple of weeks now. I still have had to work and go about my life. I had taken several COVID-19 tests -- and every other test that the doctor would give me. All they say is it’s a cold. But I continue to cough, so people look at me like I’m going to kill them when I am out. I often pipe up and say that I don’t have COVID. I stayed home as long as I could, but I have to work. I feel bad that the cough is lingering. How can I make others feel safer when I’m still hacking up a storm? -- Lingering Cough
DEAR LINGERING COUGH: While you are still coughing, you may want to wear a mask. That will help prevent you from sharing your germs with anyone else and will show others that you aren’t feeling well. That is the new sign of precaution, thanks to COVID-19.
While you say you have to continue with your life, you may also want to give yourself some grace and get more rest. Even though a cold is not the flu or COVID or something even worse, it is still real. When our bodies are fighting off germs, the best thing we can do for them is to treat them with TLC. Go to what you must, but stay home as much as possible and allow yourself time to heal fully. When you are out, the mask will help you to send a precautionary message to others.