co-worker sick 6 days with flu

[Freed Roger]

6 days seems a bit extreme, for a "day-by-day" sickness. Yes, you can have the flu for that long - but by now they should have been to a doctor and been able to give your work a general time frame. I've been fortunate to work at small offices where employees get treated like adults given the latitude to do what they've got to do, and thus employees respect that.

...oh, wait... its 9 am I forgot to have my mommy call in sick for me. gotta go

[cardinalkarp]

My wife has been sicker than hell going on about 2 weeks now. She's got bronchitis and can't kick it. She's been taking antibiotics and they are doing nothing.

JC, I know where you're coming from though. I'm the same as you, I rarely get sick and when I do it'll last about 2-3 day at the most. But trust me when I say we're lucky when it comes to this.

My wife has been trying to do some work in between when she starts to feel better but I think that's what drawing out the whole sickness.

[TimeForGuinness]

When I was 20, I got sick and spent a week in the ICU and a month in the hospital.

One day I woke up with a sore throat, I thought it was strep (because I've had it before)...3 days later, I was in the ER.

Whatever happened to me, it started shutting down my systems.
106-107 degree fevers (I was packed in ice)
Legions all over my lungs, pneumonia in both lungs...had to sit directly up, otherwise couldn't breathe
Started going blind in one eye (had surgery later on)
Had an incredible pain in my hip (had 3 surgeries until it got better)
Had blood work all over the country...and they still don't know what happened to me.

Took me two months to re-learn how to walk.

[cardinalkarp]

When I was 20, I got sick and spent a week in the ICU and a month in the hospital.

One day I woke up with a sore throat, I thought it was strep (because I've had it before)...3 days later, I was in the ER.

Whatever happened to me, it started shutting down my systems.
106-107 degree fevers (I was packed in ice)
Legions all over my lungs, pneumonia in both lungs...had to sit directly up, otherwise couldn't breathe
Started going blind in one eye (had surgery later on)
Had an incredible pain in my hip (had 3 surgeries until it got better)
Had blood work all over the country...and they still don't know what happened to me.

Took me two months to re-learn how to walk.

You were faking it man, we all know sicknesses don't last longer than 3-4 days.

[TimeForGuinness]

When I was 20, I got sick and spent a week in the ICU and a month in the hospital.

One day I woke up with a sore throat, I thought it was strep (because I've had it before)...3 days later, I was in the ER.

Whatever happened to me, it started shutting down my systems.
106-107 degree fevers (I was packed in ice)
Legions all over my lungs, pneumonia in both lungs...had to sit directly up, otherwise couldn't breathe
Started going blind in one eye (had surgery later on)
Had an incredible pain in my hip (had 3 surgeries until it got better)
Had blood work all over the country...and they still don't know what happened to me.

Took me two months to re-learn how to walk.

You were faking it man, we all know sicknesses don't last longer than 3-4 days.

I'm sure that's what the insurance company was saying

[Popeye_Card]

When I was 20, I got sick and spent a week in the ICU and a month in the hospital.

One day I woke up with a sore throat, I thought it was strep (because I've had it before)...3 days later, I was in the ER.

Whatever happened to me, it started shutting down my systems.
106-107 degree fevers (I was packed in ice)
Legions all over my lungs, pneumonia in both lungs...had to sit directly up, otherwise couldn't breathe
Started going blind in one eye (had surgery later on)
Had an incredible pain in my hip (had 3 surgeries until it got better)
Had blood work all over the country...and they still don't know what happened to me.

Took me two months to re-learn how to walk.

Yeah, that didn't happen to my ex co-worker. He was at home except for a couple doctor visits. Came back to work completely fine. I think he just wanted a month off.

[JCShutout]

This is why I felt bad when you responded TFG. Obviously, stuff which is more serious will knock people out longer, and I'm not questioning something like what you described, or even something that's just more serious than the flu. If it turns out being something worse, then I retract the rant, but, as ck said, it can be difficult to understand for something like the flu. You're talking about life and death, I'm talking about chicken soup, orange juice and sleep.

When I get sick enough to cancel appointments/work, I usually get very violently sick for a day to a day and a half, and then spend the next half day to a day and a half recovering, and I'm usually well enough to get back at it by day 3 or at worse, 4. I guess we (ck and I, and my family) are lucky, although that first day to day and a half is pretty terrible.

[Popeye_Card]

I have a minor rant against people who use up their sick days as extra vacation days.

I've always been of the mindset that I better be sick as hell if I'm going to miss work. Other people wake up a bit tired, and call in sick. I have co-workers who have used up their sick days (I think we get 15 days) by July, while never contracting more than a sniffle. Kinda pisses me off.

[Yanksfan1523]

I was sick and missed 5 days of work 1 time in my life. I seriously felt like I was going to die. I would think "I will feel better tomorrow" but never did. Hopefully never again.

[AWvsCBsteeeerike3]

I have a minor rant against people who use up their sick days as extra vacation days.

I've always been of the mindset that I better be sick as hell if I'm going to miss work. Other people wake up a bit tired, and call in sick. I have co-workers who have used up their sick days (I think we get 15 days) by July, while never contracting more than a sniffle. Kinda pisses me off.

That's just smart. If work is going to give you time off, you should use it. Not necessarily abuse it (15 days seems like a lot), but a lot of companies will give you 2 weeks vacation and 1 week sick time. They obviously have budgeted you missing 3 weeks of work. If they aren't going to pay you more for coming in for that week, I would say you're right in missing 5 work days throughout the year.....