Chestiness lingering for weeks

R

Rose65

Well-known Member
Location
United Kingdom
Whenever I get a cold, I am left with an intermittent chestiness, worse in the morning. It's been weeks now and I shall see the GP soon.
I feel like I cannot clear my throat, so I cough. I find Benylin Chesty Cough very helpful, inhaling steam and salt gargles soothe my throat. I use two pillows to sleep but sometimes if it's bad at night, I sit up part of the night. I drink lots of water.

I can only guess it is maybe bronchitis or even a mild chest infection. I feel my resistance to everything is lowered these days. I didn't want to bother the doctor but now I have a face to face appointment as I've had to wait.
I've never smoked by the way.

Does anyone have this and any advice?
 

Well, I've finally found out I have got a chest infection. The GPs wouldn't give me any appointments, saying fully booked until two weeks ahead, no matter that I am sick now and cannot wait - coughing and chesty. So, I had to go to A and E, wait 6 hours. I was at least properly examined and now taking very necessary antibiotics.
 
Rose65 said:
Whenever I get a cold, I am left with an intermittent chestiness, worse in the morning. It's been weeks now and I shall see the GP soon.
I feel like I cannot clear my throat, so I cough. I find Benylin Chesty Cough very helpful, inhaling steam and salt gargles soothe my throat. I use two pillows to sleep but sometimes if it's bad at night, I sit up part of the night. I drink lots of water.

I can only guess it is maybe bronchitis or even a mild chest infection. I feel my resistance to everything is lowered these days. I didn't want to bother the doctor but now I have a face to face appointment as I've had to wait.
I've never smoked by the way.

Does anyone have this and any advice?
Click to expand...
I’m just getting over a chesty cold and I find using a humidifier really helpful especially if you can add essential oils to help break up the congestion. Eucalyptus, tea tree, peppermint, & lavender are some suggestions.

Then put some Vicks Vapor Rub on your chest. You can even add that to your bowl of water for steaming your face. That should relieve your sinuses.

If you have some reactin for allergies helps you breathe easier. The antihistamine really helps a lot.

Good old fashioned lemon and honey too to sooth the throat and give you a good dose of vitamin C to help your immune system
 

Rose65 said:
Well, I've finally found out I have got a chest infection. The GPs wouldn't give me any appointments, saying fully booked until two weeks ahead, no matter that I am sick now and cannot wait - coughing and chesty. So, I had to go to A and E, wait 6 hours. I was at least properly examined and now taking very necessary antibiotics.
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GPs seem to be too busy for sick people. They just want to take your temperature and refer you here and there. For the past 10 years, I only see my doctor, because he wants to see me before he refills a prescription You almost have to go to the emergency room to get help with something that could be fixed in 20 minutes and a prescription. Although that is paid for by my insurance, it seems like a god awful waste of money for something like a chronic chest cold. I've been to the emergency room 3 times in the past 10 years and 2 out of those 3 times, I ran into some highly qualified people, one of whom saved my life. One who just fixed me, and one who didn't help at all, didn't even tell me what was wrong. But I'm thinking the ER is where doctors know their stuff. They have to because they deal with everything. Maybe they have fields of special interest, but they seem to know an awful lot about everything, and they have to do it now, not "come back in two weeks."
 
Rose65 said:
Well, I've finally found out I have got a chest infection. The GPs wouldn't give me any appointments, saying fully booked until two weeks ahead, no matter that I am sick now and cannot wait - coughing and chesty. So, I had to go to A and E, wait 6 hours. I was at least properly examined and now taking very necessary antibiotics.
Click to expand...
Not sure how I missed this but I did.
Save my last post for your next cold 🤭
 
Finally saw my GP in person, got my lungs properly examined. There really is no replacement for a doctor and patient in person. All that phone nonsense should cease! The doctor can see so many signs visually that a phone call cannot ever communicate.

Turns out to be sinusitis, which explains the headaches. The back of throat is being irritated, so resulting in chestiness and coughing. I now have decongestants.

By the way, does Sudofed affect anyone here - I find my hands tingle and I felt weird all night. I shall not take it at night again.
 
Rose65 said:
Whenever I get a cold, I am left with an intermittent chestiness, worse in the morning. It's been weeks now and I shall see the GP soon.
I feel like I cannot clear my throat, so I cough. I find Benylin Chesty Cough very helpful, inhaling steam and salt gargles soothe my throat. I use two pillows to sleep but sometimes if it's bad at night, I sit up part of the night. I drink lots of water.

I can only guess it is maybe bronchitis or even a mild chest infection. I feel my resistance to everything is lowered these days. I didn't want to bother the doctor but now I have a face to face appointment as I've had to wait.
I've never smoked by the way.

Does anyone have this and any advice?
Click to expand...
I am still unwell. Four months of this chestiness is too long. Worse in the morning or when eating. But the doctor says no infection. It must be an allergy and I am taking a Piriton every day.
I still find Benolyn works well and inhaling steam.

I've never smoked, I eat healthy and sleep plenty. Just each cold I get leaves me below par for a long time. I am convinced my immune system has changed since covid and lockdowns. It leaves me depressed and thinking I will never be really well again.
 
I am still not right. In fact I am getting frightened as I may need further investigation which means tubes down my throat I bet.

One question they ought to ask is did we ever live with a smoker? They never ask that. I did for many years, though I've never smoked and I barely even drink, because I value my health. Yet and I hope I don't pay the same price anyway.
 
Four months is a long time to feel off. Maybe they’ll start with x-rays rather than tubes.
 
I head straight to the walk-in clinic when I get "bad in the chest". It tends to turn into bronchitis, which has a few times turned into pneumonia, so I don't wait. The wait is a lot shorter than an ER and they're really good about giving antibiotics.

Forget seeing my primary physician. I'd be dead by the time I could get an appointment.
 
@Rose65, the time of being patient has passed. You need to have a catscan to see what is going on. Yes, you should be concerned even if you were not a smoker but were exposed on a daily basis. There are other lung diseases that have nothing to do with smoking or second hand smoke. Maybe you could have your GP refer you to a pulmonligist to get to what is causing the problem. That is what I would do.

Not to scare you but my husband had skin cancer. No problems with his breathing but the first sign was fluid, lymphedema, draining from his arm. They found a small lump in his armpit and he was sent to a surgeon for a biopsy. It was outpatient

They came out after the surgery was done and told me it did not look normal and that his pre-surgery xray showed his lungs had a lot of tumors.
This was the skin cancer that had metastized to his lungs. He had no problems with breathing or even a cough.

The point is, what ever is causing the problem needs to be identified. There is no reason that the doctor should not be more thourough in his exam. If he can't figure it out after four months, you need to see a specialist. I never knew that something in one part of your body could cause a big effect in other areas.

I am telling you this not to scare you but it is time you demand answers, that you want to see a specialist. There are so many that have not advocated for their health care that has turned into a nightmare because of delayed treatment. Best Wishes and Prayers that you get the care and answers you deserve.
 
I dont wish to alarm you but I think you should ask for a Chest Xray .. my deceased Hubby had a cough for months , not a bad cough but one that would keep giving a little cough , he was treated for Asthma and prescribed Inhailers.. eventualy he was sent for Xrays that showed he had Lung Cancer .
You need to put your mind at rest and rule out the worse scenario.
 
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Lady said:
my deseased Hubby had a cough for months , not a bad cough but one that would keep giving a little cough , he was treated for Asthma and prescribed Inhailers.. eventualy he was sent for Xrays that showed he had Lung Cancer .
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My mother had a similar experience. Not sure that an earlier diagnosis would have saved her, but getting the right treatment earlier would have been good.
Lady said:
You need to put your mind at rest and rule out the worse scenario.
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Yep
 
This winter has been seriously bad for allergies, especially the past month or two.
The cloudiness, lower than usual temperatures for here, and excessive constant rain have caused
the grasses to quickly proliferate, quickly grow seed heats, and spread their pollen with the breeze.

I didn't realize the cause at first and thought it was from a slight change in my diet which caused a
full tummy one night, perhaps a contribution to the buildup of mucus in my lungs and sinuses. However,
the grasses turned out to be the primary culprits, as they were everywhere all around my house and property.

The past week I've been mowing and weeding as much as possible, up to nearly two hours each morning,
and the noxious grasses are nearly gone. I was going to wear a mask, but decided my treatments were better.
 
I've been draining and coughing for several weeks, constantly trying to clear my throat.
Finally I realized the pollen was the issue and two natural remedies have been clearing it rapidly.

#1) To clear the irritation in my nostrils, soaking the end of a Qtip in castor oil, then rubbing it round
and round gradually higher, as high as it would go in each nostril, using a different Qtip in each of them.
The tenderness was noticeable and at first made me sneeze, but now the tenderness and sneezing are gone.
Doing this with Qtips and water (no castor oil) works well too.

#2) The natural edible plant Mallow <-- which grows in my yard has been clearing my throat and lungs and throat.
I've been putting a bunch of the leaves in a bowl each morning, slicing and blending them with water, straining the juice
through a wire strainer, then sipping and drinking the juice through the days and evenings.

The mallow is having a great effect at getting rid of the mucus which is almost gone, and the coughing has vanished.
There is still more removal of the grass to be done, but most if it's gone and I'm getting back to normal again.
From now on I will pay more attention to keeping the grass as minimized as possible and always mow before rains.

@Pogonia - The drops are expensive, but 1000 mullein seeds are $3.69 <-- on Ebay and grow easily.
 
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Rose65 I cannot tell from your icon or information on this system if you live in the USA or elsewhere. In the USA, I never go to a GP! I have an Internist (Specialized in internal medicine). I can get in to see him or one of his associates within a day of two. I go to him anytime I have a condition or symptoms that need to be checked. I will be 73 this year and I have diabetes, so I am very careful about any health issues that I have. In my case, I would have been to my doctor's office fairly quickly, as soon as I realized that the symptoms were hanging on and not going away.

Best of luck to you...
 
Just for future reference with allergy and asthma type symptoms, I discovered mullein drops that you can order online or from a health food store really helps clear the lungs. I take one dose up to 3x a day when my allergies hit. I don't take it every day though. Anyhow, when home remedies fail to work, you definitely need medical help,
 
Any chesty coughs should be given a spoonful
of honey, the runny stuff, honey has anti-biotic
properties, I have been told.

It works faster with a longer lasting effect for me
than any cough medicine, no matter which brand.

Mike.
 
Timewise 60+ said:
Rose65 I cannot tell from your icon or information on this system if you live in the USA or elsewhere. In the USA, I never go to a GP! I have an Internist (Specialized in internal medicine). I can get in to see him or one of his associates within a day of two. I go to him anytime I have a condition or symptoms that need to be checked. I will be 73 this year and I have diabetes, so I am very careful about any health issues that I have. In my case, I would have been to my doctor's office fairly quickly, as soon as I realized that the symptoms were hanging on and not going away.

Best of luck to you...
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Rose lives in the UK.. hence the difficulty in getting an appointment to see a GP...😣
 
I am going to tell a good friend about this. She keeps insisting it is a common cold and has had this for over a month. I have been with her almost daily in enclosed spaces and have not caught it so I will assume it is something more than a common cold.
 

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