<p>I regularly take 3.5 hour Amtrak trips. Not infrequently, I feel a bit under the weather the day after I get home, but I always shake off whatever I picked up quickly. Not this time.</p>
<p>I was on a train last Thursday, and someone near me had an awful cough. I hoped I wouldn’t catch anything, but no such luck. By yesterday, I was congested and coughing. This morning I also have a headache and I am losing my voice. </p>
<p>I do not catch things easily, and I almost never get sick. I think that the air in the train cars must be stale and full of germs, and spending hours there gives those germs a good chance to take hold.</p>
<p>Without turning into Howard Hughes and avoiding all humanity, or wearing a mask everywhere I go, how can I avoid picking up whatever is in the air?</p>
<p>I am scheduled to fly to MI on Thursday to help take care of my mother (who will either still be in the hospital or be at home recovering). I don’t want to make her sick.</p>
<p>I don’t have scientific answers, but I can tell you what I would do in public places like trains.</p>
<p>I would not touch any hand rails or any other parts of the train or station. If my hand does touch something like that, I would have a hand sanitizer in my purse and I’d use it immediately. If I wanted to eat anything, I would use hand sanitizer again.</p>
<p>I have seen it suggested that irrigating their nasal passages and gargling with salt water after flying might prevent illness. I have done this after flying (have not flown in years though), but not after taking a train. Perhaps that is something to consider.</p>
<p>It may or may not be scientific, but I do use Airborne when I am in public places like the one you described. I do feel that it helps a lot, but I have gotten sick even while having taken Airborne. Even when I do get a cold, I find that often it is less severe than my usual colds (in terms of duration and symptoms of a cold) if I immediately start taking it at the first sign that I might be coming down with a cold. This is just my opinion, and many may not believe that this works.</p>
<p>NYMom, I wish you and your mother speedy recoveries!</p>
<p>Editing this to say, that after reading my post, it sounds as though I get sick quite a bit. I don’t. At most, I average one cold per year and have not had something more serious like a flu in over 20 years. I have never had any respiratory illness more serious than a cold (never had bronchitis, etc.).</p>
<p>Thank you, northeastmom. My sisters swear by the Neti-pot. I haven’t been able to bring myself to try it, but maybe I’ll do it now. I can certainly gargle with salt water or Listerine. </p>
<p>I am careful about washing my hands before eating, but I don’t like hand sanitizer. Maybe I’ll have to start using it anyway.</p>
<p>I have seen Airborne and wondered whether it works. I’ll try it next time.</p>
<p>I’m wondering whether what I have now can be treated with antibiotics. I normally don’t rush to take them, but I don’t want to be contagious when I go to MI, and I don’t want to have to cancel the trip. Sorry to be disgusting, but I’m coughing up some yellow mucus. Should I go in to a walk-in clinic?</p>
<p>I have seen Neti-Pot, but never tried to use it. I have just purchased Ocean drops (saline solution) and used that.</p>
<p>This is just my own testimonial, but I feel that Airborne cuts down on my colds by at least 50% (sons also feel this way), and I feel that if I do get the cold very often those symptoms are not as severe and it shaves time off my feeling blah, when I take it. JMO.</p>
<p>Uh…the simplist thing is to get to a sink soon as manageable WASH YOUR HANDS. Yes, in my morning and evening commute I try to avoid grabbing handrails, but sometimes you cant’ follow that rule. In any event, as soon as I arrive at the office I WASH MY HANDS, all the way up the wrist to the forearm joint, warm water and lots of suds. Don’t forget to wash the handles of any bags or briefcases you carry. Ladies, try to never set your purses on the floor. Wash the bottoms of purses to get rid of the MILLIONS of germs they can pick up from being set on the floor.</p>