Being sick in school, without your mom there to comfort you, really sucks.

Before college, whenever I was sick (and my mom believed it) she would make me my favorite soup and take care of me. Whether it was always having enough cough drops, keeping my medicine on schedule, or getting me more blankets, she was always there. Now that I'm in college, I don't have anyone to coddle me when I'm sick. Thankfully, I have a very nice roommate who always checks on me and offers to help me, but it's not the same as having Mom around.

When I get sick, the first person I call is my mom (mainly to whine about what hurts or how much snot is in my head). But then I ask for advice:

Should I go to the doctor? The ER?

Can I just get over the counter meds?

Am I gonna die?

She'll tell me what I need to do and what I should buy, but she's not there to 1) get stuff for me, I know I can do it, but I'm sick and don't want to and 2) be my sick buddy. At home, Mom would sit with me and watch movies or just talk to me because I felt lonely. My mom even washed my hair in the kitchen sink once because I had surgery and wasn't able to shower or turn my head a certain way.

Now when I'm sick, I have to get in bed in an empty room (because my roomie doesn't want to get sick) and watch movies by myself and set alarms for medicine and whatnot. It's actually very sad and lonely. Then I'll call my mom and complain and she'll tell me that she's sorry I'm sick and wishes she could be there to take care of me, but eventually she has to hang up because she's at home and still has my little brother to take care of. I'll send her six texts in a row asking questions and updating her on my condition, but it's not the same.

When I left for college, I didn't think I would miss much from home. But getting sick (even with a little cold) showed me how much I missed my mom and depended on her. If you ask me when I'm healthy and fine, I might say that I don't miss my parents or miss home, but ask me when I'm sick and you'll get a completely different answer and maybe even some shiny eyes.