If you’re recovering from a long-term illness, you need to listen to your body and ease back into your regular routine. Try to push yourself too soon and you may hinder your progress. Recovery can take time, but the good news is that there are ways to speed up the process. The following five ways of recovering from a long-term illness will ensure that you can heal as quickly as possible and live life fully once again.
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1. Consider IV therapy
IV therapy can be a very useful component for your recovery from a long-term illness. A long-term illness can deprive your body of vitamins and nutrients because you tend to lose your appetite and may have difficulty eating. IV therapy can help to reintroduce much-needed vitamins directly into your bloodstream. It can boost your immune system by replenishing what was lost during a long illness. IV therapy is a safe and effective at-home treatment with few side effects.
Drip Hydration, Wasatch, Prime Hydration, and other private in-home services offer mobile St. George IV therapy, Covid-19 testing, and mobile medical services to boost illness recovery in your own home. Many different IV treatments are available, all of which are administered by certified nurses. Treatments take 45 to 60 minutes.
2. Go for foods that will help you to heal
Even if you lose your appetite when you’re sick, you must consume nutrients or your body doesn’t have the fuel it needs to fight off illness. The value of eating chicken soup when recovering from illness is not just an old wives tale – it contains an amino acid called cysteine that can clear up congestion and reduce inflammation. The protein in the soup helps with the recovery process and is essential for restoration and repair.
You may want to drink your nutrients in the form of healthy smoothies. You can include superfoods rich in vitamins, minerals and antioxidants in your smoothies to promote healing.
If you’ve had digestive problems and your stomach has been upset, greasy foods, dairy, high fiber, and salty foods can be difficult to digest. The classic BRAT diet (bananas, rice, applesauce, and toast) is a good option. Taking probiotics can help to promote a healthy balance of bacteria in your gut.
3. Stay hydrated
Staying hydrated is critical when you’re recovering from an illness. Illness can result in the loss of bodily fluids due to high temperatures that cause sweating. Nausea and diarrhea also cause fluid loss. You need to replenish fluids for your body to maintain optimal function. If you don’t drink enough fluids, your body won’t flush out toxins efficiently. When you drink enough fluids, your immune system works properly and distributes white cells throughout your body so it can fight the remaining traces of illness.
Try to consume enough healthy fluids in the form of water, teas, and clear broths. Warm lemon water with honey can help loosen any congestion. Avoid drinking alcohol for a week or two during your healing process because it can slow down your recovery time and may conflict with any medications you are taking
4. Don’t push workouts too far
Chances are you’ve spent plenty of time in bed during your illness. Your muscles and joints have probably become stiff. Returning to your regular exercise routine too quickly is a mistake and you could even injure yourself. Start with some stretching exercises to help your body become more flexible again before you go back to exercising the way you did before you fell ill. Beginner Yoga moves can get your body moving again without overdoing it.
Start building up gradually. Try walking for 10 minutes three times a day and build up to 30 minutes of walking daily. Light, regular exercise will help you get back up to speed faster than trying to do intense exercise when you’re not ready for it.
5. Sleep well
Sleep is when the repair work takes place in your body. This happens in the early stages of your sleep cycle, so make sure you go to bed at a reasonable time. Sufficient sleep will help you to recover and make sure your immune system is functioning optimally. A steamy shower can work wonders to ease any congestion that is troubling you and give you a better night’s sleep.
You may have been napping during the day while recovering from an illness, but you will need to start trying to avoid that daytime nap if you want to get back into your regular wake-sleep cycle. You are likely to get a better night’s sleep once you cut out daytime naps.
