Ahhh-CHOOO

I've been sick with a nasty cold that turned into a sinus infection. After two rounds of antibiotics, lots of hot tea, hours spent in bed watching Grey's Anatomy on my iPad, and much sympathy from my housemates (both two-legged and four-legged), I think I'm starting to feel better.
I'm a pretty active person and being sick forces me to be sedentary and rest. I don't like being in bed thinking about all the things I could be doing, all the places I could be going, and all the things that aren't getting done. I can remember feeling good, but I can't imagine that I will ever feel better.
And of course I always think I can force the cold to go away through sheer mental power. Then I start my usual round of activities and end up back in bed.
I don't get sick often - my last cold was December 2011 and my last sinus infection spring of 2009. I'm not a pleasant sick person so it's probably good I'm mostly healthy. When I do get sick, I remember all the previous times I was sick and how annoying it was.
When I was in 9th grade (about 1973) I had a bout of not wanting to go to school. I was convinced I had rheumatic fever or mono and wanted to stay in bed. (I probably read about some suffering heroine with rheumatic fever.) I remember my mom taking me to the doctor (a female doctor, rare at that time) who said I didn't have anything medical but had some reason for not wanting to go to school so my parents humored me and I stayed in bed.
At the time, I was going to a local evangelical Christian school and starting to realize my beliefs didn't fit their teachings (no, my Jewish friends were not going to hell - even I knew that). I think those ideas partially led to my "sickness." I wasn't exactly sick, but I wasn't happy.
About halfway through that year, I switched schools and went to St. Paul Open School. The summer of 1974, I went to New Mexico and lived with my cousin and her family.  I came back for another year at Open School which mostly meant I spent a year reading whatever I wanted to. I knew I needed a stronger academic program since I was sure I wanted to go to college. My parents knew I thrived in an all-girls atmosphere so they decided to try Convent of the Visitation High School in Mendota Heights. I started in the fall of 1975 in 10th grade (I repeated sophomore year since my attendance had been spotty). I loved Vis and didn't have any desire to spend weeks in bed.
Now when I get sick, I worry that it might be something worse. I'm in my mid-50s and have started seeing friends with debilitating illnesses, parents ailing and passing away, so I know what being really sick means. I'm protective of my health, keep up with my checkups and tests, watch my diet, and exercise. I'm not a hypochondriac but I'm definitely more careful now than I was in my 20s and 30s. I'm a lot more willing to take a doctor's advice than I ever was before.
So this round of cold/sinus crap seems to be on its way out - it better not be back anytime soon!