The mornings are crisp and cool, the leaves are starting to change, pumpkin spice is back, and we all know what that means — it’s flu season! But … it’s still the season of COVID-19.

The pandemic isn’t over yet, no matter how much we wish it was. In fact, national COVID-19 deaths have now surpassed the amount of U.S. deaths from the 1918 Spanish flu.

According to the CDC, the 1918 flu killed around 675,000 people in the U.S. As of Tuesday evening, the official count of COVID-19 deaths across the country equals 676,191.

We may have the vaccine, but we’re still not out of the woods. 

It’s important to remember to be extra careful with more than just one illness going around. We all want to make sure we’re staying safe and healthy so we don’t have to miss out on our classes or other important activities.

Many students have already experienced the stress of wondering whether their illness is COVID-19, the flu or just a cold; since so many of the symptoms are similar, this can be hard to figure out without getting tested. 

Some of those under-the-weather are stressed to the point that they’ll get tested every few days; others just brush off their symptoms as a cold and don’t get tested at all. 

According to the CDC website, both COVID-19 and flu share the following symptoms:

Fever or chills

Cough

Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing

Fatigue

Sore throat

Runny or stuffy nose

Muscle pain or body aches

Headache

Vomiting and diarrhea

Change in loss of taste or smell (this is more frequent with COVID-19)

Even if you don’t have COVID-19 — or don’t think you have COVID-19 — if you’re feeling sick, you should still wear a mask. Germs still exist, people! Masks are still an effective way to stop their spreading.

And while they may not have this year’s flu shot available yet, it’s still a good idea to be thinking ahead about when you’ll get it.

Regardless, students should still continue to get tested — both for COVID-19 and the flu. There’s free drive-thru testing for COVID-19 from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. in the west concourse of the Dykhouse stadium, which is super convenient. Students even receive a $10 coupon for SDSU retail locations — so who wouldn’t want to get tested?

Anyone can also schedule a test at both the Avera and Sanford clinics in town, and Brothers Pharmacy now offers rapid testing. The rapid test done with a nose swab is the most common test, but it’s not quite as accurate, so you should still be cautious for a few days after getting your results. 

All we really want is for everyone to stay safe and healthy, and we’re sure that’s what you want, too. Stay happy and healthy out there. 

The Collegian Editorial Board meets weekly and agrees on the issue of the editorial. The editorial represents the opinion of The Collegian.