How Do You Keep Yourself Occupied When Sick?

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Being sick is never fun, but it can be incredibly disheartening when you’re stuck in bed throughout your recovery. Rationally, you know you have to rest and deal with your symptoms carefully. However, you can only spend so much time sleeping and taking your next dose of medication. So, if you’re searching for something to keep yourself occupied through your illness and recuperation, look no further—not only can you stay busy, but you can find ways to be productive despite convalescence. 

Do the things you never have time for.

Of course, there are some things that all too often get pushed aside by work, home maintenance, and other responsibilities. More often than not, unfortunately, these include hobbies and other forms of entertainment. For example, maybe you love League of Legends but rarely have free time to play. So, while you’re stuck in bed, explore the League of Legends characters, and the latest challenge Riot Games has sent your way. In most cases, gameplay with Ashe, Garen, Leona, or Caitlyn won’t be stressful enough to detract from your healing. You may even find that you’re an LoL champ by the time you’re back to 100 percent!

Connect to the people you care about.

Not everyone is into Janna, Gwen, Amumu, or whatever League of Legends champion is your favorite. But that doesn’t mean they have to recover alone. Instead, use this time to connect with real-life friends and family members. Whether a neighbor offers to drop off dinner, a friend is excited to FaceTime, or your mom calls more often than usual, you’re sure to have someone to chat with through the healing process. Alternatively, you might connect with online friends and loved ones on social media or other platforms. Or, in contrast, you could turn to snail mail for a little extra connection. The social aspect of these connections can help you feel better, too. 

Learn something new. 

You’ve turned back to your favorite hobbies and reached out to your loved ones. Now what? Think of ways you might learn something new. There are tons of websites and apps dedicated to teaching new skills. Whether you want to refresh your long-lost knowledge of Spanish or you’re starting with the basics of HTML, you can find lessons on nearly anything to study from bed. Best of all, you can almost always find these new skills at an affordable rate, if not for free. 

Work on feeling better. 

Your top priority must be feeling and getting better. Whether you’ve been dealing with a common cold or something severe, like chemotherapy treatments, ensure that your most crucial bed-bound task is your healing process. This may mean taking a nap when your fever leaves you fatigued, or it may be booking a home phlebotomy service to continue your recovery. In any case, you should listen to any guidelines your doctor has put forth and use common sense to promote your healing and recuperation. This is the single most effective way to stay occupied, if only because it makes it that much easier to climb out of bed soon. 

No matter what ailment has you out of commission, you can find ways to stay occupied while recovering. For some people, this will be primarily napping and taking medicine regularly; for others, it means finding distractions like video games or online classes. In any case, a bit of diversion can help keep you from focusing on your pain or discomfort. As a result, you may find you’re feeling better in no time at all, or at least it will seem like it. After all, you’ve spent the past few days (or longer) exploring League of Legends and learning how to knit!