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renidrag
06-01-2011, 04:16 AM
I can feel it in my lungs and my cough has gone from very phlegmmy (?) to very dry. Breathing isn't a problem yet, but the cough almost made me vomit this morning. A few new things since remission that you don't know.
I am now on disability, and the company has cancelled my health insurance. (Which of course they promised they would not) It seems the Mass Health option for me is going to have a Seven Thousand Dollar deductible. I can not afford to be sick and have to go to ER. I have already missed six appointments since April 1 and have not had any blood tests done since 3/29. Except for INR which is ok and monthly now. So can I take over the counter cough syrup? Can I resurrect from the closet my unused Bactrim? Do I have to bite the bullet and go. It is just that money is really tight right now. I am taking Warfarin, Xanex and Metformin, thats it. (Elevated blood sugar hopefully due to weight gain.) Thank you for your time.:sad:
Dale

Jack
06-01-2011, 05:35 AM
Sorry to hear about the finances going bad. Why the hell does your country put up with such a situation?

Sorry about that. Rant over. :blushing:

If it is really a cold that you have coming on, there is very little you can do about it anyway although Sangye may come up with some advice. Bactrim won't touch it and cough remedies just try to counter the symptoms and should not be mixed with some of the medications we take especially Warfarin. It could mess up your INR.

The thing to watch out for is that it is not a lung infection so if you start to cough up a lot of gunge that smells or tastes bad, you will need antibiotics. Taking Bactrim full time can protect from many of these infections, but not all.

vdub
06-01-2011, 06:56 AM
I can feel it in my lungs and my cough has gone from very phlegmmy (?) to very dry. Breathing isn't a problem yet, but the cough almost made me vomit this morning. A few new things since remission that you don't know.
Same here... It must have something to do with spring. I've been sick for about a week now with what feels kind of like asthma. I did go to the doc today and he gave me some azithromycin and an inhaler. I thought I was going to die last night from lack of O2. I haven't felt all that great in several days and haven't been getting much sleep despite taking ambien. Kind of weird. I see my specialist in 2 weeks and maybe he can get to the bottom of it.


It seems the Mass Health option for me is going to have a Seven Thousand Dollar deductible.
This is very disturbing. Isn't this supposed to be the model that ObamaCare is based on? Doesn't seem all that great if that is the case. I hope you can find something to supplement it.

renidrag
06-01-2011, 09:32 AM
I am thinking of taking a Claratin allergy pill. I just don't know. Thank you for your responses and yes this is supposed to be Obama care, and it started in Massachusetts with Mitt Romney. Who'd have thunk! I can't start Medicare until two years after the federal government says I am disabled. I am too young, 59.

vdub
06-01-2011, 09:35 AM
I am thinking of taking a Claratin allergy pill.
I have the same concerns about taking more drugs.... I think very carefully about adding anything new to my schedule. I just don't know what kind of interactions I might get.

marta
06-01-2011, 10:28 AM
Sorry to hear about the cold Dale and vdub, and even moreso about how things are unfolding with insurance. Ugggghhhh!!!

I am just at the tail end of a chest cold - full meal deal... tasty phlegm, deep guteral cough, lack of O2 due to too much coughing. I'm the same as you guys and absolutely HATE adding anything to the already magnificent drug cocktail I'm on. My doc told me it was OK to take cough medicine, but after buying some (DM + expectorant) and taking it only once I hated how it made me feel. I wanted to cough but couldn't do it with the vigour I needed to get things done. The only thing that helped me (and I'm ahead of Brian now with this cough) is the Grappa sprinkled on the wool cloth and applied to chest as much as possible. I know I sound like a quack even suggesting it, but it really did the trick for me and all drug free. I'm on antibiotics to avoid a chest infection but only started them three days ago and the benefits of the Eastern Euro Witch remedy kicked in before I started with the antibiotics. So to you both if you're not too weirded out by it, I think you should give it a go. I tried convincing Brian to give it a try last night, but he's still of the 'drink it don't wear it' school of thought - and he's still coughing.

Good luck with it all. Hope it clears itself up quickly.

vdub
06-01-2011, 11:18 AM
'drink it don't wear it' school of thought
I think I'll stick with Brian on this. :-) I was given azithromycin for my lungs.

marta
06-01-2011, 12:26 PM
I think I'll stick with Brian on this. :-) I was given azithromycin for my lungs.

Oh you boys.:wink1:

Sangye
06-01-2011, 12:37 PM
Dale, I am so sorry to hear about your insurance mess. You have my sympathies. (And Jack, I agree with your comment as well. This is nothing less than savage, in my opinion.)

Did you mean your cough was dry and is now phlegmy? If so, a simple OTC med without harsh side effects is Mucinex. Make sure you get the right one as there are several for different symptoms, and make sure you take it with a full glass of water. It might keep you from needing antibiotics.

I also give a thumbs up to Marta's home remedy if you are so inclined. Marta's version, not Brian's :flapper:

Is there any help available for disabled or unemployed in meeting that deductible? Surely low income people aren't able to pay that-- it's close to the annual income of many people! Are there county clinics that offer a sliding scale? Even if you can't get a great doc just yet, anyone can order the labs you need on a regular basis. If none of the above are a possibility, I say bite the bullet and go to the ER. You can negotiate later with the hospital's finance department. Most offer charitable write-offs. I can't stand that this is happening to you, my friend. Or to anyone else. :sad::mad1:

pberggren1
06-01-2011, 02:02 PM
I only make about 7,000 a year so I can't imagine what it is like to be going through this Dale.

I have to agree with Marta on the home remedy. I have tried many remedies like that before and all have worked.

So Brian, if you want to get better get the wool out.

vdub
06-01-2011, 07:01 PM
I was given azithromycin for my lungs.
Well, it's been about 12 hrs after the first dose (5 day regimne) of azithromycin and I can tell a difference. I'm not a 100%, but breathing is much easier, but I still have some wheezing.

renidrag
06-01-2011, 08:13 PM
I'm going with the Grappa. Let me get this right though. Grappa is an Italian wine correct? I am to dampen or sprinkle this on a wool cloth and lay it on my chest? What do I do with the eye of newt? Only kidding, I am going to try it today and maybe Debbie will like the wine that is left over.
Thank you all for your help, will let you know how it works.
Dale

renidrag
06-03-2011, 04:33 AM
Would have replied sooner, but things got a little windy and wet up here last night. The middle of the State got the brunt of the tornados, we got some high winds and the most incredible thunderstorm I have ever seen. I lasted for almost two hours straight and the lightning was blinding. I think a member here, Stikker is out in the central part of the state, I will try to check that. Any way we did not get the Grappa and I started a low grade fever after dinner. So I took two swigs of ginger brandy waited an hour took some nyquil and went to bed. Only to get woken up by the storm. Of course I am up so I have to watch the hockey game and the storm. Any way when I woke up this morning I was covered in sweat and feeling much better. The ginger always worked for me before wg so I thought I would go for it. Still feeling much better.
Thanks for all your ideas, Mother Nature got in the way.
Dale

Sangye
06-03-2011, 04:35 AM
Yay for a good sweat and feeling better!

marta
06-03-2011, 05:57 AM
I'm going with the Grappa. Let me get this right though. Grappa is an Italian wine correct? I am to dampen or sprinkle this on a wool cloth and lay it on my chest? What do I do with the eye of newt? Only kidding, I am going to try it today and maybe Debbie will like the wine that is left over.
Thank you all for your help, will let you know how it works.
Dale
Hi Dale, Grappa is an Italian spirit distilled from wine, so it's 40% alcohol. Yup, you sprinkle generously on the wool and put it on your chest with the wet side against your skin. You can reaply the grappa when it starts to feel dry. I would just pinch it under a t-shirt and I did it in the evening (when the cough would really get going) and during the night. It's quite a delicacy with the alcohol consumers in my life so it's hard to keep in the bottle as 'medicine' - ha ha. Hope you're good after last nights storms and tonight is a little more relaxing. My cold is almost completely gone now, and I'm giving credit to the Grappa (and eye of noot :wink1:), best of luck to you.

pberggren1
06-03-2011, 06:47 AM
Just bought some grappa, now to find a sheep.

Psyborg
06-03-2011, 08:41 AM
I had Grappa when I was stationed in Italy. They called it getting the new guy "Grappatized". Was pretty potent stuff, but went down easier than most stuff that is 80+ proof :) They said it was actually the more potent alchol that was removed as part of wine fermentation...not sure if that is accurate though...military guys tend to have some urban legends about their drinks :)

Sangye
06-03-2011, 09:00 AM
Just bought some grappa, now to find a sheep.
ROTFL Good luck with that! http://www.smileyhut.com/laughing/rofl.gif (http://www.smileyhut.com)

maria garcia
06-03-2011, 09:18 AM
Im actually surprised you were able to get insurance with a pre-existing condition. Its so scary. Im sorry your going through this. Claritin is not for cough.