What If You Are Sick on New Year’s Eve?


New Year’s Eve is a night of reflecting on the last year and celebrating the coming one. As the clock runs down, many people often dance, drink, and tell stories of days gone by while presenting goals for the coming year. People are hopeful and have extraordinary enthusiasm about the new year. But unfortunately, some people become sick on New Year’s Eve, so in that case, what do you do?

It’s possible to still celebrate even if sick on New Year’s Eve by managing health and adjusting plans like seeing a doctor, resting, and staying home. Though some think it’s bad luck to be sick on New Year’s Eve, in actuality it happens to everyone now and then.

Read on and learn what to do if you are sick on New Year’s Eve and why some people consider it bad luck. I’ve also included some tips for staying healthy during the holidays.

Contents

Is It Bad Luck to Be Sick on New Year’s Eve?

Falling sick any day is unfortunate. In fact, it’s only natural for everyone to prefer health to sickness every day of your life. As such, you could see any day, more so New Year’s Eve, that you’re sick as bad luck.

Some believe that falling sick on New Year’s Eve is a bad omen or a sign of what might happen in the future. It could also mean you might have some misfortunes for the rest of the year.

My mom is prone to saying whatever you do on New Year’s Day is a sign of what you’ll do all year. There’s some truth to this statement, but it’s basically common sense, and certainly no real ‘prediction.’

However, others believe there’s no mechanism that can bring that about and that your year won’t probably be ruined because it started off with some illness.

– How Many People Call in Sick on New Year’s Eve?

While the exact figure is unavailable, a good number of people are genuinely sick while others are prepping and planning for holiday parties on New Year’s Eve and call in sick in anticipation of events to come.

Granted, many have the next day off already, considering it’s a federal holiday. So given that, some might want two days off in a row to make travel easier and more feasible.

Obviously, the New Year holidays carry specific stressors such as family and might involve schedule changes and overindulgence in drinks and foods.

Unfortunately, some New Year’s Eve incidents can lead to fatalities. For instance, the National Safety Council experts estimate that over 400 lives are lost on the US roads during the New Year holiday.

You might also like to read these holiday articles:

Why Do People Get Sick During New Year’s Eve?

People get sick on New Year’s Eve because we push ourselves too much, lowering our immunity response. Too much partying, not getting enough rest, and even cold weather can put people at higher risk of suffering illness. As well, the winter season is typical for flu and colds, too.

According to the US CDC, flu season tends to peak between December and February, and hence people often call in sick on New Year’s Eve due to flu-related illnesses.  

Sometimes, it’s an unexpected incident, such as popping the cork of a champagne bottle. These corks can come out at high speeds and may result in eye injury. And road accidents or slipping on ice can put people at risk during New Year’s holidays.

Each New Year’s Eve, urgent care centers and emergency rooms also see patients that resemble the July 4th victims because of the burns from fireworks or even cooking. If a patient is lucky, they might only get first-degree burns on the hands or elsewhere in the body. But unfortunately, some get second or third-degree burns, eye injuries, or have severe wounds that may require surgery.

Is It Bad to Go to The Hospital on New Year’s Eve?

While hospitals are open on New Year’s Eve/Day, unless you have a life or death emergency, it’s better to make an appointment with your regular medical provider than go to the ER.

On New Year’s Eve, there are several party-related issues. First, the hospital might be more crowded than usual with firearms, DWI, and fireworks/cooking injuries. Besides, your illness might be a low priority, and then you may have to sit and watch all the shootings, stabbings, car accidents, and various emergent situations take precedence over you.

Moreover, you’re more likely to have temporary, or lower-ranking caregivers tend to you on New Year’s Eve. That’s because seniority offers the longest employees the privilege of not working during the holiday, making your quality of care less.

Why Are First Responders Spread Thinly on New Year’s Eve?

New Year’s Eve is among the busiest nights of the year for first responders. Many people require their services during this holiday, whether they be law enforcement, paramedics, or firefighters. Since the first responders have innumerable emergencies, they might take longer to offer immediate medical services.

As well, there are limited supply of fire responder workers on holidays like New Year’s Eve and Day because more people have time off then.

What To Do to Remain Safe and Healthy on New Year’s Eve

New Year’s Eve is an excellent time to party and celebrate with family and friends. But before you make any plans, you should remember it’s essential to stay safe and healthy. As such, there are some things you can do to be proactive about staying safe and healthy on New Year’s Eve.

Below I’ve listed some suggestions.

Eat Healthy Foods

Paying attention to your eating habits and other healthy tips can keep you well during the holidays.

Consume foods with carbs, veggies, fruits, and are rich in omega-3s and magnesium. Eating healthy food can enhance your stamina and maintain your immune system. Using a healthy eating cookbook (available at Amazon) on non-celebratory days will assist in keeping a nutritious eating plan.

Healthy foods won’t interfere with your body organs’ functionality and protect you from being sick on New Year’s Eve. Moreover, they can slow the absorption of alcohol into the bloodstream if you plan to go on a drinking spree.

Moreover, you should be careful not to overeat during New Year’s Eve since that can be a recipe for making yourself sick. Also, you want to make sure what you do eat has been prepared carefully, cooked completely, and maintained at correct temperatures.

Everything In Moderation

Everyone loves a good party on New Year’s Eve, and that includes drinking. However, drinking too much alcohol has been known to make people sick. That’s because it can result in alcohol poisoning, and you end up in urgent care centers or emergency rooms.

Hence, you should pace your drinking and pay attention to how much you’re consuming. Also, stay hydrated by drinking juice, water, or soda.

One tip is to not have two alcoholic drinks in a row. Space out your alcoholic and nonalcoholic drinks alternatively. This is an easy way to keep moderation.

And this goes for eating too. Pace your eating so that it’s in balance. If you know you’re going to indulge later in the evening, avoid eating during the day or eat lightly then.

Stay Warm

New Year’s Eve can sometimes be very cold. So, if you plan to spend it outdoors, you should stay warm. Wear clothes that will ensure you don’t catch the flu or lower your immunity for fighting it, that is.

Layering is the key to remaining warm and comfortable in the cold.

Start with a breathable wick away moisture base layer, have a mid-layer or two, and then have a fashionable outer layer (usually a coat). Pay attention to footwear too. You don’t want to spend your evening with your feet wet.

Don’t Drive Under the Influence

It’s unfortunate that people drive under the influence, especially during New Year’s Eve. And this is entirely avoidable!

You might get home safe without hurting anyone, but you should remember that many lives have been lost because of drunk driving accidents.

By planning ahead, you can ensure you and others are safe! Whether you choose a designated driver, schedule an Uber or taxi, or party close enough for walking, don’t leave it up to chance!

Moreover, note that driving buzzed is still deemed drunk driving. If you smoke marijuana or consume marijuana-laced products, it’s going to impair your ability to drive and it’s illegal.

Avoid Fireworks

New Year’s Eve is a time for a good firework show. However, not everyone is a pyrotechnics pro. Hence, it’s wise to leave fireworks to the professionals and enjoy the show put up by the local organization with trained specialists.

Usually events with fireworks advertise well in advance so take a look at what’s going on in your area for fireworks.

Sometimes these events fill up quickly too, so you might have to consider that when planning your celebration.

Sick on New Year’s Eve Activities

Of course, at some point in our lives, it’s likely we’ll be sick at the holidays, even on New Year’s Eve or New Year’s Day. When this happens, we need to address it. Besides medication and other healthy habits, there are actually some ‘more fun’ things to do in order to still celebrate that don’t involve attending parties or being around other people.

For one, you want to avoid parties because you’re tired and your body needs its strength to recuperate and get over your illness. For another, you don’t want to pass anything possibly contagious to others. So with that in mind, here are some alternatives for your New Year’s Eve or Day celebrations when sick.

Watch Movies At Home

One of the simplest and easiest activities to do when sick is watch movies. Since being in bed is probably the best spot for you (or maybe relaxing on the sofa), watching TV/Films is a no-brainer.

Feel free to binge watch your favorite movies, catch up on some new streaming releases, or even watch sentimental movies from your childhood…anything to take your mind off being sick and give you some positive vibes.

A few recommendations of mine at the holidays are The Waltons’ Homecoming or any of the Harry Potter films. As Catholics, we’re still celebrating Christmas at New Year’s, so I’m apt to continue watching Christmas movies too!

Play Board Games With Your Family

As said already, it’s expected that we stay away from people when sick anytime, even on holidays like New Year’s Eve or New Year’s Day, but in this case, family aren’t ‘people’. After all, you’re basically around family all the time anyway and they’ve already been exposed, so in this situation, there’s a distinction, and exception to be made.

It’s okay and even recommended to enjoy family time on New Year’s Eve despite being sick.

It’s especially a good time to have the kids pull out the board games and play together. It won’t be too strenuous physically and again, the activity can take your mind off not feeling well.

Some of our family favorites are Monopoly, Chess, and RummiKub. As well, playing games of cards is equally fun.

Sleep and Rest If You’re Sick on New Year’s

Be sure to spend time resting and relaxing on New Year’s Eve when you’re sick. This is typically the best advice for helping your body fight the germs!

So whether you’re watching movies, playing games, or chatting on the phone, take time out to nap. You might even want to stay in bed all day! It’s not often we get a chance to do that, so there’s no better excuse than when you’re sick.

Toast Yourself

Many of us look forward to the midnight toast of champagne or sparkling cider on New Year’s so even if we’re sick at home, we can still uphold that tradition.

If you’re spending New Year’s Eve at home with family, toast together, but if you’re alone, go ahead and have that sip of bubbly, even if it’s Ginger ale in the flute!

Wrapping Up If You Are Sick On New Year’s Eve

To wrap up, being sick on New Year’s Eve happens to everyone at some point in life. Although bad luck for you , it’s certainly not a bad omen for the year, so don’t fret about that.

If you are sick on New Year’s Eve, you can still celebrate the coming year, with some adjustments.

More than likely, you should spend your celebration at home if sick, but using some of the suggestions above, you can still toast out the old and in the new year!

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