It seems we’ve hit one of those times when there’s illnesses floating around and allergies acting up at Grand Valley State University. There’s been quite a handful of people I know who’ve had some sort of bug this past week. I myself had to deal with something this week, too. Whether it was allergies or a small cold, it definitely brought my energy levels down quite a bit.

Whenever I start to feel a bit under the weather, I almost always ponder whether or not I should go to a certain class or work. Typically, my colds and allergies aren’t too terrible, so I usually end up going anyway to avoid missing a day of instruction, especially if attendance is an important factor in my grade for that class.

Most classes require attendance, though professors make room for the occasional “life happens” scenarios by allowing a few absences with no penalty to the final grade. Personally, I enjoy having that safety net and would hate having to miss an important class. Unfortunately, sickness doesn’t always work with our schedules.

Working isn’t much better. For obvious reasons, missing a shift at work is not optimal due to the demands of the customers and bosses, but trying to serve people while battling symptoms isn’t fun.

Our health and safety is always the most important thing, so there’s absolutely no need to push ourselves beyond what we can bear. Allergies and minor colds may be one thing, but flu season is upon us at GVSU in full force. The last thing we want is to push ourselves through school or work with major headaches, stomach bugs and a fever.

Be smart with your health, take care of yourself, and if you do get sick, don’t be reluctant to stay home if need be. It happens to all of us from time to time. Your classmates and coworkers will thank you.