That nasty bug, mistakenly referred to as “stomach flu,” causes your stomach and intestines to become inflamed. Norovirus is extremely contagious and is the leading cause of disease outbreaks from contaminated food in the United States. To avoid spreading the virus, please, please, please wash your hands with soap and water after using the toilet and ALWAYS before eating, preparing or handling food. And if you're sick, don't prepare food or take care of others, and please stay home.

Here are a few of the most memorable stories from readers.

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Our disabled, adult daughter came down with it the day after New Year's Day. She did not come into contact with anyone who was sick or had been sick. But she did go to a movie and restaurant on New Year's Eve. After nursing her through it, I caught the virus early Wednesday morning — constantly vomiting from 1 a.m. until noon, along with diarrhea but no fever. It's probably the first time in 10 years I have been this sick. It's my third day off from work, and I'm finally able to eat normally, but I still tire easily, and my stomach is sore from all the vomiting. I keep expecting my husband to start having symptoms even though I have taken precautions for him. It's a very nasty virus!

— Denise Bolian, Michigan

I don't normally get sick but this year, after a family Christmas party, it was pure misery. At it's most intense, I spent more time in my bathroom than in my bedroom. I lost 12 lbs. in two days.

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— Howard Minnick, Utah

My 15-year-old son got it from the gym. I'd warned him multiple times — wipe down the handles of the cardio machines BEFORE and AFTER workouts. But, he knows more than mom! He got violently ill about 12 hours after his workout. It's the only place he had visited during winter break, so I know that was the source. He vomited about every 30 minutes for 10 hours or so. It was brutal. Poor kid. Scoreboard: School of hard knocks — 1. Max — 0.

— Kasey Frederick, Texas

It all began about 2 a.m. Christmas morning with a house full of relatives from out of town. First, the 16-month-old started vomiting and then diarrhea! One by one, every 12 hours at first, people in the house got it. It culminated on Dec. 26 with three of us catching the virus at the same time. The washer ran for 24 hours straight! We ran out of buckets. We went through 15 rolls of toilet paper. It got to the point that we were very open about our experience and [were] laughing.



— Sharon Repp, New York

I'm a teacher. The cafeteria lady at our primary school had vomiting and bouts of diarrhea in the morning but came to school anyway to prepare breakfasts, fruit sections and lunch salads. She didn't stay home because there was no one to sub for her, and she was concerned that the kids wouldn't have their meals. You can imagine the illnesses that resulted!



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— B. Carter, Virginia

I'm not sure how I caught it since no one around me had it. At first, I was just really, really tired and my skin hurt. Then, I had diarrhea for three days. I washed my hands and disinfected the house like a maniac, so luckily, no one else in my house caught it.

— Karrie Comatas, North Carolina

I'm not sure how I got norovirus, but the symptoms started while I was staying at a campground with portable toilets and no running water. I made it through the night and somehow managed to get me and my camping equipment home unscathed. I don't think I've ever been that sick before, or since. By the time I got home, the vomiting and diarrhea had abated a bit, and I spent the next few days recovering. Fortunately, my employer (a hospital) takes these things seriously and told me to take paid sick leave. In fact, they wouldn't let me return until three days after the symptoms went away.



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— Fred King, Maryland

I stopped at a dear friend's house to deliver a birthday present to their 5-year-old. All of the sick family members stayed away from me, and I was careful to wash my hands. But in the 10 minutes I was at their house, I must have contracted the virus. Two days later, I made it through our Christmas Eve church services, but I, the church organist, had to call in sick on Christmas Day because it took me down overnight. I spent my Christmas Day in the ER on IV fluids and anti-nausea meds!

— Libby Wiebel, Virginia

My sister and I both work in health care, and I'm not sure who got it first. It started with my 3-year-old Christmas Day. The next day, it was my daughter. The day after that, I got it. Then my son caught it, and then finally my boyfriend. One of us dropped every day. The younger children got over it faster than the adults. I vomited on and off for about 18 hours — a total of probably 10 times. My sons vomited, and after a few hours, they didn't vomit again. My uneducated guess is that their smaller bodies have less to evacuate and the virus quickly works its way through a smaller digestive system. If you get it, just go to bed and stay there.

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— Annette Lujan, Minnesota

My grandniece had severe diarrhea. She fainted due to low blood pressure and dehydration and hit her head on the bathroom tile floor. She had a slight concussion. No fun at all.

— Corinne Ballard, Alabama

Under the Rialto Bridge in Venice, I had one slice of a pizza. By that night, I was having diarrhea and terrible acidity. The next morning, I struggled to get to the train station, which had a pharmacy. I asked for medical assistance, and the Venetian paramedics eventually took me to the emergency room by water ambulance! I was treated with intravenous fluids to begin recovery.

— Abhishek Vootukuru, California

My eldest son and his girlfriend's family became ill within a few hours of one another. We chalked it up to food poisoning, but had we known it was contagious, we would have quarantined him longer. My husband and I fell ill three days later within an hour of each other. We were so sick that just lifting your head off the pillow hurt, much less vomiting. Our kids opened presents on Christmas and we watched via FaceTime. So far, the other three kids have not gotten it. I didn't cook for three days after I felt better and I bought hospital-grade Clorox wipes.

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— Kristin Barton, Tennessee

I've been to hell and back and let me tell you, even hell was calmer than the night the “virus” struck our house. Three boys (ages 10, 9 and 7) projectile vomited all over our house — on the carpets, in the bathrooms, over the bed rails. Do you remember the scene from “Stand By Me?” CHILD'S PLAY!

And then, after six straight days of pure evil, when finally all was calm and all was bright, it struck my wife . . . on New Year's Eve.

— John Burke, Virginia