The Cough heard around the world....

Have you heard it? You must have.

It starts off like a common cold, except this one simply doesn't let go. Personally, I've had it for about 8 weeks. I'm aware of other ATS Staff members who have experienced it for longer, and personally know people who have had it for 10-12 weeks or more. Its not just confined to England/Britain either - this thing is world wide.

This thing bounces round, off you chest, to the back of your throat and then back down onto your chest again. When you think you have it beat, it simply seems to reinvent itself. Its debilitating after a while because it rattles your brain and deprives you of sleep.

Cough medicine hasn't shifted it. Daily Vitamin C and healthy eating hasn't either.

So, what is it? Weaker SARS, some form of Swine Flu or just simply a little bug doing the rounds?

Call me paranoid, call me crazy...call me a taxi if you want, I'm interested in hearing your experience of this and/or ways to beat it! (would be nice to clear it out of my system before ATS Live this coming Saturday!!!)

reply to post by neformore


Last night felt kind of weak and coughed. Woke up early in the morning and couldn't go back to sleep and now my nose is stuffy. Seems to of happened when a certain chill came through the air. Thats all I have to say on the matter but I am recovering now.

reply to post by neformore


Call you the host hacking their way through radio shows and not muting their mic...

Erm. Yes. Have you been to the doctors? I think I asked this already but I don't recall the answer.

If it's back on your chest, chesty cough medicine. If it isn't: glycerin and honey/tickly cough medicine.

If it doesn't go away in a week GO TO THE DOCTORS.

(That's what I'd tell you if you came into work, and it's been longer than a week.)

On a personal note, mate, seriously, stop panicking. You've probably picked up a cold, and a cough, then got another one when trying to get rid of the first, your immune system is trying to fight too many things at once, it hangs around.

But it could be a chest infection and you could need antibiotics/steroids to shift it so go to the doctors.

I cannot repeat that enough.

Doctors now, run.

Get better soon

ETA: It shouldn't be SARS. SARS shouldn't be in anyone at the moment. It is lurking though. Waiting for the moment. TO JUMP. And turn us all into zombies. Maybe you're the first zombie case.

Vitamin C is good, but alone will only help slightly speed up the recovery process. Try a regimen of Vitamin C, Echinacea, and Zinc. These 3 in combination have helped me kick even the nastiest colds and flu's. Also don't forget to drink plenty of liquids while taking vitamins.

reply to post by Ayana


Heres the deal. People I know who have been to their doctor with this have been given antibiotics and - guess what? It doesn't go away. It simply seems to reinvent itself.

And... I'm not panicking about it. I'm simply curious as to other peoples experiences and reccomendations. I'm kinda nosey that way.

reply to post by neformore


If it's an infection the antibiotics will work. How does your chest sound? I've never had a chest infection before, but my mam has and it's never nice (I just typed mice instead of nice, I'm really not well...)

If it's a bug, then giving antibiotics is pointless and could make things worse. Doctor's don't do their job properly, see. (Which has contradicted everything I just said. Damn.)

I know, I know. I just want you to feel better (and stop whinging ). You ask for advice, I'll give you it.

Erm, what else. Tea? That's a very British solution.

Nah, if it's a bug you'll have to sit it out, I'm afraid.

reply to post by neformore
Ive had the same thing, i had the swine flu the week building up to news years and for a week afterwards, ive still got a loose chesty cough and this really really annoying tickly throat. The worst part of the flu for me was that i lost my voice completely, i just squeaked for two weeks, this has never happend to me before, hope your feeling better soon.

I had this over xmas (it does go away).

I know what you mean though. Its neither a normal cold or a flu and the symptoms do vary quite quickly. I've never had symptoms bounce around like that. Sore throat, sweats, running nose, sore throat again, productive cough and then eventually settling into a wheezing unproductive cough that can make it hard to breathe, the last stage persists.

I went to the doctor eventually and he said 'its a virus' , 'go away and come back in a week'. I was furious about not getting anything prescribed but i went away. It did clear up of its own accord.

I know 2 other people with the same thing (one still has it). The persistence of the wheezing stage seems to vary by individual.

A bloody nuisance.

There was a thread started a few weeks ago about horrible sinus problems, many members posted there about what they are experiencing. What the HECK is in the AIR???

As for the cough, I know this sounds horrible, but you might try a table spoon of apple cider vinegar a few times a day. When I get an allergy cough it's the only think that will take care of it.

For when it settles in the chest, I make a drink my family calls "brew". Herbal tea, with honey and essential peppermint oil. Stir well!!! And make sure to use a mug. I once fixed some in a Styrofoam cup for my sister while camping and it ate thru the bottom. My husband likes to compare "brew" to his Navy training exposure to tear gas. Yet every time he gets sick, he asks for a cup.

Good luck and I hope you are doing better soon.

Neff , your gonna probably laugh at this but I'm guessing its caused by chem trails. Just humor me a bit tho. Are you noticing a bad smell that seems to be in your nose? That would indicate a sinus infection and needs to be treated asap.

Make sure you keep blowing your nose and do not sniff the gunk back down, there maybe times it keeps running until you are exhausted from blowing that bogger out, but keep it up and drink plenty of water. The sooner you get the crap out, the sooner you can get on with your life.

Nef,

I, too, have been battling a cough for quite a number of weeks. Nothing major or chronic... but persistent nonetheless...

My remedy has simply been to run a humidifier when I feel the *tickle* in my throat starting up. It's worked. So my theory is honestly that this weird weather pattern we are in is just altering the normal humidity levels.

Oh... when I wake I am pretty congested but a hot shower and some forced coughing clears it up.

~Heff

reply to post by neformore


It's real - lasts a couple of months, can turn into pneumonia, bronchitis, sinusitis, other opportunistic infections.

...Maybe a flu-cold hybrid? Dunno.

RECOMMEND: all the old-fashioned remedies. Head covered by towel over steam, pref medicated with tea tree oil, eucalyptus - use in diffuser too. Humidifier while sleeping. Snort salt water. "Singer's Saving Grace" throat spray, professional quality.

reply to post by neformore


I had it too for over 4 months before and after Christmas.

It kind of hovered around the "early" stages, never going away or developing into what felt/sounded like a full-blown chest infection (been there, done that too many times)... if that makes sense.

It took a visit to the Docs and a course of antibiotics to send it on its way.

Don't be like me and put off going to your GP until it feels your lungs have finally abandoned your body and remain attached only by a safety pin to your top

Good luck - hope it clears up soon

reply to post by neformore

Oh man, 8 weeks is nothing. Mine started at the beginning of winter 2009. I only cough when I wake up for about half hour and when I go to sleep for about half hour. Its sort of like a whopping cough. I've tried all sorts antibiotics and they don't seem to work. What I noticed is that when i cough really bad, that weird throat mucus tends to come up and have to spit. After I spit that out i'm fine. So mine at least I think has something to do with that. When taking medicine that breaks down that mucus I feel better, but it never leaves. I kinda gave up on trying to find out what it is. I used to know a person who had this for 15 years..He got it when he was 16 and still has it in his thirties.

I have had this since the beginning of November, and have gone to see a doctor a couple of times. It started off as a mild cold. Within three or four days all the symptoms disappeared, except for a mild cough. The trouble is that that cough will not give up and leave me alone. Even now, almost three months later, I still have a mild plegmy cough.

One of the doctors I saw told me he has seen many patients with it. He calls it the "100-day cough", because that's about how long it seems to last!

Ever since the winter of 2004-2005, when I got this infection back for 23 times, our doctor will only say "it's viruses, drink lots of liquids." When I asked him how it was possible that a cold or flu virus returned so many times- it was unheard of in my youth, he just shrugged.

Since that time, I had the same experience for years - worse last year and the year before. I concluded it was from two sources mainly: people inocluated against the flu, and schoolchildren.
In my day, if a child had a runny nose, she was placed in the sickroom and the parents were called. Such a child would not be allowed to touch a doorknob without disinfecting afterwards.

When I had my first kid in the US, I found out that hygiene is abysmal, because parents are deadly afraid of missing work. Truly sick kids were left all day in kindergarten - so each September we got these six-week long infections.

When I returned to my natal Hungary, I found that the system shifted there too. Hygiene disappeared with the fall of Communism, and the same phenomenon occurred as above. Now I have a 9-year old, and we get 8-10 infections on the average each schoolyear.

The other thing is that - while in my youth, only old people wanted flu shots, now a lot of people do.
The two effects mixed together amount to a sort of biological warfare. No matter what they claim, frequently I got the flu when I met people who had the flu shots.

Time to time I was given antibiotics for secondary bacterial infections but only at the end.
Last year I skipped that as I started intensive Rife treatments on top of all the above listed stuff (echinacea, homeopathy, extra vitamin C etc.). I found them efficient against the virus but not the bacteria. It did not wipe them out totally though, they returned...

If you are interested I will gove you the frequencies but you can find them on the Net if you search for Rife and H1N1.

My two cents.

I have to sympathise with you Nef. This winter seems to be producing some weird and wonderful things. Despite taking Echinacea (sp?) - which I was assured boosted my immune system I seem to keep having re currant bouts of cold/flu like symptoms, a sinus infection and that cough.

Whilst its not completely debilitating (not missed any work yet) its truly annoying - but you know what they say - medical science moves in leaps and bounds - and it just jumped over the common cold!

Still we at least have the comfort of claiming its "man flu" LOL

My Grandma seems to have suffered from this very recently. She is 80 and it has gone away, although she has passed it onto another family member.

I don't think it's too bad. She's 80 and can get over it.

***POLITICALLY INCORRECT STATEMENT***PROGRESSIVES, COVER YOUR EYES****

My 7 year old son had the same. Aggressive antibiotics helped with tea and honey.

The warning is about what my folks used to do. (I blame me dad, he's from Glascow) Honey lemon tea and a good dose of scotch. It kept us kids sound asleep for days.

Good luck and god bless.