The plan for Not Getting Sick Anymore in 2012

Just to recap, here are the illnesses I have endured in the past 4 months:

1. Nov 1 through, oh, I don't know, the 30th? or longer? Deep, hacking cough that worried the grandmas in my church choir, every time we gathered. (antibiotic Z-pack).
2. Dec. 25 - 30: Sore throat (lost my voice) that didn't materialize into much else, because of the power of my Dad's Hot Toddies.
3. Jan 17 - Feb. 1: That's three weeks, y'all -- Double ear infection! (antibiotics! Amoxicyllin).
4. Feb. 12 - 17:  Garden-variety cold. Stuffy nose, small cough. (Dayquil FTW.)

I mean, WHAT THE HECK, people? I don't go around licking the doorknobs of public restrooms or anything like that! I eat fruits and vegetables and lean proteins and leafy greens. I don't kiss my kids on the mouth when they're sick. But somehow I am not providing a strong enough defense, and starting this week I am going to remedy that. I will be FIGHTING the GERMS in an active and pre-meditated way -- that's right, pre-meditated. If one could get arrested for killing a germ, I would get a life sentence after today. The Plan:

1. Take my stinking daily multivitamin. I hate those big, fat horse pills. DH used to dole them out to me in the morning, and I'd stick it in my pants pocket to save until lunch, when I had a drink handy, and then I'd forget. ALWAYS. The pill would drop onto the floor when I hung up my pants before bedtime every night. Or I'd store it in my jewelry dish for the next day. Questionable tactic. I've stopped doing that; instead I keep my vitamins at work now, on my desk, and take it first thing when I get here. But I still hate them. I have seen the Adult Gummies, but have mixed feelings. Do they really just taste like a gummy? I suspect not. I might give them a try when I finish this bottle of One-A-Day-like Target brand Women's Daily, but... come on. A gummy? Am I five years old?
2. Take Vitamin C daily. This is a plan I like. I keep a bag of the Halls Vitamin C drops in my cabinet, and a stash of them in my purse, at all times. I can commit to having one of those daily, especially the grapefruit flavored ones.
3. Continue washing my hands and be even more diligent about it. Okay, I admit there are times when I go into the restroom at work and  (don't be grossed out) don't use soap. I rinse quickly, but I know I'm going to squirt some hand gel on my hands as soon as I'm back at my desk, so sometimes I feel like it's unnecessary to also soap up. I do love the anti-bac hand gel. But from now and forevermore: soap. Every single time.
4. Continue drinking lots of water. I typically drink at least 48 ounces a day (plus other drinks, which may or may not count toward the total - does anyone know for sure?), and I do think this helps wash the ick out of our systems.
5. And finally, this is going to be the big one: GET 7 HOURS of SLEEP as many nights as possible. Not on the couch, but in my bed. It's so HARD to go to bed at 10:00 pm but everything I read says 7 hours improves the immune system greatly. Specifically, this means I'll need to not sit down (something I've needed to work on for a long time, anyway) after 8:30 pm, in order to get anything done in that hour and a half. So goodbye, lolling about on the couch. Goodbye, cozy afghan.

Hello, clear sinuses and better health. I hope. If I get any type of cold the rest of this year, I am going to be TICKED.