The 5 Stages of Getting Sick in China.

Well, it's finally happened. I got sick in China. It started with a slight cough and stuffy nose. The next thing I know I am stumbling around like an extra on the Walking Dead. Here are the five stages of being sick in China:

You start feeling the tickle in your throat and blame it on the pollution.
China is one of the last places I've ever wanted to be sick. Not only do I have no idea to get to the only hospital my insurance covers, but I don't know how to communicate that I feel like the end is near. This is my waking nightmare. I was just hoping to blame  200+ pollution... please, no sickness right now. I leave for vacation SO SOON. Please, please, please. No, no, no.

Denial. 
I assume I'm fine and just a bit congested because it is Beijing and it is February. This place is cold and dry. I roll into work and one of my work friends says, "I mean this in the nicest way possible, but you look like train wreck". Not only that, but students were telling me, "I lost my sound once, it took six days for me to get it back".  Of course he was recounting a time he lost voice and of course he meant I'd lost my voice.... and it was then I finally admitted I could barely talk, let alone teach.

All your Chinese coworkers start giving you health advice like such as:
"Drink hot water."
"Stay away from spicy food. Bad for health."
"Eat Porridge. It's bitter, but helps".

I'm not going to lie, I do enjoy hot water quite a bit now, but I don't know if that is going to make me quit hacking like a smoker or get rid of this horrific headache and sinus pressure.

You finally muster up the courage to visit a pharmacy to buy medicine and you are directed to take roughly 26 pills in one day.

I want to say I'm exaggerating this, but I' was supposed to take 6 nasal decongestants 3x a day and 4 cough suppressants 2x a day. When this got translated to me, my first question was, "is this going to kill me?".....

SWEET FREEDOM. 
It took me nearly a week, nearly 185 pills, and lots of sleep to get over what ever vile monstrosity had taken over my body, but I will forever swear by Chinese medicine.....

.....and hot water.