HannahTaylor

The winter mantra for Marian girls seemed to be, “wash your hands, eat enough, drink water and stay away from those who are sick!” Seasonal sickness has historically been a problem at Marian, with many girls feeling burnt out mentally and physically by the second semester. However, this year has felt particularly overwhelming with the amount of sickness going around not only at Marian, but seemingly everywhere. 

There are multiple plausible causes for this spike in extra stubborn sicknesses, with some reporting these illnesses have come back or lasted longer than before. “In the cold months… a lot of the reason [for sickness] is that big gatherings happen during that time… and you’re indoors not outdoors,” Jessica Dugger, Marian’s nurse, who also works at Christ the King and St. Gerald’s, explained. 

Marian girls’ illnesses consists of, most commonly, influenza and other viruses such as strep and even pneumonia. According to the Network survey, more than 50% of girls had been absent in quarter three due to illness. Many of them also reported that they didn’t just get sick once, but often twice, three times or even four plus times over the span of just a few weeks. 

Not only did Marian girls notice themselves getting sicker, but so did the front office. Every day in February, the overwhelming reason for girls’ absences was due to illness. For example, on Feb. 3, 36 out of the 45 absences that day were due to illness. That’s 80% of absences being due to sickness, and the trend continues throughout the month of February. 

However, it is important to note that not all absences have been reported with a reason linked to them, so numbers may be slightly skewed. Still, in spite of this margin of error, it is still obvious that extraordinary numbers of girls have gotten sick this season. “In my four years, this is the greatest number of sick students,” Mrs. Lisa Brewster, Marian’s front office and attendance manager, said. With the unusual amount of sickness going around this year, some conclusions can be drawn. 

Perhaps more gatherings were taking place this year, especially since the weather was not particularly treacherous. “We had a tendency to share sickness more because we didn’t have the cold days, we didn’t have the break, we were here,” Brewster said. And not only were Marian’s halls more populated, but it can be assumed that so were people’s homes. “In general, things go in waves… you have events on the weekends… small spaces, larger groups of people, germs are spread easier,” Dugger said. The concentration of people has presumably led to the excessive illness this year in particular. 

With such an overwhelming number of illnesses, Marian has experienced ripple effects, especially the girls. “The Marian mantra for the girls is they don’t want to get behind, so sometimes even if they don’t feel the best… they still came to school,” Brewster said. While students may have “felt” better, it doesn’t mean that they weren’t contagious. “If you’re running a fever, wait the 24 hours after your fever has stopped before you are coming back to school,” said Dugger. This is because without that waiting period, you could be “potentially exposing those viruses to other students,” Dugger said. The fear of falling behind, however, led to many students deciding to “tough it out” rather than take that extra day. 

While Marian has reached spring and has survived another sickness season, much can be learned and remembered for next year. In particular, “hand washing is always the number one thing…. get your vaccines [and] if you’re not feeling good stay home,” Dugger said. These simple actions can keep oneself and those around  them safe from viruses not only through the cold months, but throughout the year. So, whether one successfully evaded the illnesses plaguing Marian this year, or were unfortunate enough to be one of the few who got sick multiple times, taking measures to care for one’s physical and mental health throughout the year is vital to productivity inside and outside of school.