There were three things I prayed not to happen on my wedding day: getting the flu, getting an indigestion and rain. getting sick before my wedding
I could imagine nothing worse than walking down the isle and suddenly wanting to rush to the toilet. Or blowing my nose the whole day and looking red-eyed in the pictures. Or getting my hair and dress all wet before the ceremony.
I was very careful what I ate the days before because I have a weak stomach.
But somehow, a virus made it into my system. Two weeks before my wedding I caught a harmless but annoying cold. It started with a sore throat, then sneezing, coughing and then it got stronger.
I took medication, tea, lemon, honey, mint, everything I knew that was good for a sore throat or mild fever. The next day it got worse.
Usually my colds and flus last about 4 or 5 days before I start getting better. getting sick before my wedding
When the week was over and I still felt like crap I started to panic. What if I didn’t get better in time?
Earlier that year I had a flu like that which turned out to be a bad bronchitis and kept me in bed for a month. The last thing I needed was a second round. So I patiently waited for Monday and went to the doctor. But over the weekend it had gotten a lot worse and by Monday I could not speak.
In whispers I struggled to explain to the doctor that I was getting married that Saturday and had to be well by then. I can’t say “I do” if I have no voice! She joked about me getting jitters about my wedding and deliberately losing my voice. Then she declared I had laryngitis, tracheitis, pharyngitis, sinusitis and I pretty much every itis there is. She gave me a cocktail of antibiotics.
Between feeling awful and taking medication, my diet and work-out plans went down the toilet, so the few pounds I wanted to lose remained just where they were. Also, expecting to get well soon, I knew eating was crucial, so I couldn’t do the ridiculous “just soup” or “just juice” plan that I had in mind.
As if by a miracle, the medicine worked on schedule and by Friday I was feeling well enough. At least I could speak and I didn’t blow my nose every minute. I still coughed a bit, but I made it through the day with dignity.