Chest issues....yeeeech

[andrew]

Hi all
I had a very annoying dry cough for three or four days and decided to go to the docs on Thursday. He had a listen to my chest and gave me Amoxicillin Forte twice daily. No issue there and in fact if it hadn't been for the cough I would have felt fine. Anyhoo...the cough persists (6am Sunday now) to a point where this morning I've coughed so darn much (still a dry cough) that my chest feels restricted and it's an effort to draw breath. I think that part of it is that it's dark and cold and that always exagerates things. Not sure how to explain it. It's not like I'm short of breath, it's just a bit of an effort to take a breath. I have a feeling that perhaps the coughing fit that I had when I woke up (conveniently at 4am ready for the start of the next World Cup match) has agitated something.

I've tried ventolin, cough suppressant (which has worked for the cough) but the situation continues. Any tips? I feel that if it continues much longer I'll head down to the medical centre when it opens.

[Luce]

My main symptom before I was diagnosed was a cough that just kept getting worse, despite antibiotics and cough syrup. My coughing got harder and hurt more, leaving my breathing shallow because it hurt to take a deep breath. I left it until I coughed up blood and that led to chest x-rays and diagnosis.
So I guess you could be having a flare, have you had lung involvement before? The only other thing I can think of is if you've had a recent medication change it could be an allergic reaction, or that you have a chest infection and amoxicillin isn't the right antibiotic for it.

[Lightwarrior]

I hope you are feeling better as you read this. Did you go back to get re-checked? I agree with Luce, you could be having a flare. Do you take any ace-inhibitors i.e. lisinopril, norvasc??? Don't wait to long.

[Sangye]

Andrew, the only sign I have of my lungs hemorrhaging is a dry cough and breathlessness. And last summer when they hemorrhaged I didn't even feel that out of breath. We thought I had pneumonia and after several rounds of IV antibiotics I finally started coughing up blood. Please don't wait. You need an x-ray at a minimum. If it shows "atypical pneumonia" ask for a chest CT, since lung hemorrhage doesn't always show up well on x-ray.

Take care of yourself, friend. :)

[pberggren1]

I'm scared for you Andrew. It is aweful living in the unknown. Like Sangye said I would get it checked out immediately - x-ray and then CT maybe.

[andrew]

Thanks guys. My main involvment was lung and kidney so yes, I could be having a flare. Can't believe I didn't think of that. I'm definitely not coughing up blood and my GP knows Wegs and treats several other WG patients too. I have made an appointment with him again tomorrow. I can breath as deep as I ever could and there doesn't seem to be any mucus or anything so, because it was a bit of a strain to take a breath, I was thinking inflammation somewheres which of course kinda ponts maybe to WG. Duh! I don't take any ace-inhibitors.

Strangely enough, after I wrote the first post I thought I'd take myself out for a drive to at least get my mind off it. As soon as I stepped outside in the cold air I felt great and my chest felt very clear. Soon as I sit down quietly somewhere it starts to annoy me again. I'm currently at my parent's place getting looked after like a big baby lol!

Thanks for the tips on the x-rays too. I'll have a long chat to the doc about it. He's a reasonable bloke so shouldn't be to difficult.

If it gets too awful there's a hospital about 5 minutes down the road.

thanks again guys, you make me feel better already :-)

[andrew]

Hey guys. I had a 'screw this' moment this afternoon. I had just awoken from 45 whole minutes of unbroken sleep with what felt like a truck on my chest. We have an after hours GP clinic here that once again I had forgotten about (I was about to go to the ER - mainly because of the way I felt but partly because I knew you lot were watching!). I called them expecting to get an appointment at 3am but instead got one at 4.10 this afternoon. It can be a lottery as to what kind of doc you get at this clinic but the one I got today was awesome. He asked a bunch of questions about how my WG presented initially leading me to think he had actually heard of it lol! Anyhoo, he listened to my chest heave and wheeze and prescribed a Symbicorte inhaler. He gave me the lowdown on how to use it then told me to call him by 8pm if I wasn't feeling any better. Neve had that kind of service from the clinic before! Anyway, I took my first dose about three hours ago and am actually feeling human again. I have another dose in an hour.

I guess you guys can relate but I was in a bit of a panic.....no...honestly I was freaking out. Having to put all that effort just into taking a breath was, and still is, doing my head in.

He wants me to see my GP tomorrow anyway and mentioned that I should get x-rays if I'm not feeling significantly better by then. I'm going to see how sleeping goes tonight and take it from there. There's a nice, big Lazy-boy recliner in the loungeroom.....right in front of the TV....with the World Cup on it..... :-)

[andrew]

Hey guys. I had a 'screw this' moment this afternoon. I had just awoken from 45 whole minutes of unbroken sleep with what felt like a truck on my chest. We have an after hours GP clinic here that once again I had forgotten about (I was about to go to the ER - mainly because of the way I felt but partly because I knew you lot were watching!). I called them expecting to get an appointment at 3am but instead got one at 4.10 this afternoon. It can be a lottery as to what kind of doc you get at this clinic but the one I got today was awesome. He asked a bunch of questions about how my WG presented initially leading me to think he had actually heard of it lol! Anyhoo, he listened to my chest heave and wheeze and prescribed a Symbicorte inhaler. He gave me the lowdown on how to use it then told me to call him by 8pm if I wasn't feeling any better. Neve had that kind of service from the clinic before! Anyway, I took my first dose about three hours ago and am actually feeling human again. I have another dose in an hour.

I guess you guys can relate but I was in a bit of a panic.....no...honestly I was freaking out. Having to put all that effort just into taking a breath was, and still is, doing my head in.

He wants me to see my GP tomorrow anyway and mentioned that I should get x-rays if I'm not feeling significantly better by then. I'm going to see how sleeping goes tonight and take it from there. There's a nice, big Lazy-boy recliner in the loungeroom.....right in front of the TV....with the World Cup on it..... :-)

[Sangye]

Wow Andrew, I'm sure glad you went, but I think you need to get to your regular doc as soon as you can even if the inhaler makes you feel better. (If it's Wegs, the inflammation could be relieved by a steroid inhaler.) I'm happy your parents are there to help you. Please let us know how you're doing!

[renidrag]

Andrew: How often are you using the Simbicort? I do think it is a steroid inhaler, so I a limited to two hits, twice a day, other than that I carry an emergency inhaler for special times. I think I have used it less than a dozen times. It is called Albutirol. Not being able or comfortable breathing is terrifying, even when you know it will happen from time to time. Best of Luck,
Dale

[andrew]

Wow Andrew, I'm sure glad you went, but I think you need to get to your regular doc as soon as you can even if the inhaler makes you feel better. (If it's Wegs, the inflammation could be relieved by a steroid inhaler.) I'm happy your parents are there to help you. Please let us know how you're doing!

I saw my regular Doc today. He's a bit perplexed. Apparently it came on too quickly for it to be a flare so he wants me to continue with the Symbicort for two weeks and then see how it goes during that time. I've only used Ventolin twice today as opposed to the three litres of the stuff I used yesterday :-) Will see about getting some blood tests. I already have a pre-filled in form for my next Immunologist visit which is on the 9th. Might get them done a bit early....


Andrew: How often are you using the Simbicort? I do think it is a steroid inhaler, so I a limited to two hits, twice a day, other than that I carry an emergency inhaler for special times. I think I have used it less than a dozen times. It is called Albutirol. Not being able or comfortable breathing is terrifying, even when you know it will happen from time to time. Best of Luck,
Dale

I have instructions from the Doc to use one shot up to 6 times a day. Today I've used it four times, it's 6pm and just had one. Will have one before bed too. I have heard of Albutirol somewheres, not sure if the docs will want me to have something ongoing. I guess time will tell.

I've been on a big health kick the last couple of weeks. I gave up everything that was bad for me and swapped it out with everything that was good for me. Was also walking for 30mins twice a day and gt my blood pressure waaaaaay down to almost normal. Then this starts lol. I reckon if I go back to my Rock 'n Roll lifestyle I'll be fine hahahaha.....joking....

[Sangye]

Andrew, it's so great to hear you're cleaning up your act. Bravo!

Do you have any other Wegs signs/symptoms? Could it be an allergy or something different in the air? That happened to me this weekend. I started coughing a few days ago and felt like I couldn't take a deep breath. It got worse by yesterday and I was starting to worry that it was Wegs. Then I learned this area was under a major air quality alert for pollution. When I got home I turned on my HEPA filter and within an hour I stopped coughing and could breathe fine again.

[pberggren1]

Could you tell me more about this HEPA filter Sangye? I have been sneezing quite a bit the last few months. Before that I rarely sneezed.

[andrew]

Thanks Sangye...it's about 41 years too late but I may as well clean up my act sometime :-)

No other signs/symptoms at all. I'm thinking that it had its roots in an infection and the aftermath just got hold of me. other than that, no idea. Nothing in the air out of the normal and it's a couple months past allergy season here and this city isn't big enough to cause any pollution problems. Weird.

[Sangye]

That's really weird, Andrew. I live way outside of DC and didn't think we had air pollution here, either. (Well, not bad pollution anyway.) When I heard there was an air quality warning I thought it must be for pollen or something. It's been super humid and hot, so I guess whatever pollution is in the air has gotten trapped there.

Phil, this (http://www.amazon.com/Honeywell-17000-Permanent-QuietCare-Purifier/dp/B000050AQ5/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=home-garden&qid=1277129432&sr=1-3) is my HEPA air purifier. There are 3 main things to look for when you're looking for a HEPA air purifier.
1) Make sure it says HEPA and not "HEPA-type." HEPA-type doesn't filter out the same amount of stuff.
2) Make sure the model you're getting is right for the room size.
3) Figure out the costs of changing filters before you buy one. The one I have has a "pre-filter" that needs to be replaced about every 3 months and costs $10. The main "permanent" filter doesn't need to be replaced and can be vacuumed. Many of the "HEPA-type" purifiers are inexpensive because they only have a washable filter.

[Luce]

My husband and I went to London for the day last Wednesday to visit a couple of museums and all day long my chest had felt heavy and I felt a little winded. Then at the end of the day we had to walk a mile and a half at break neck pace to make sure we caught our train home, we were aiming for the tube but it was just too crowded.
I put it down to exhaustion as my legs were like jelly after walking around all day but I had to stop a couple of times on the way to try and catch my breath. It wasn't like I when I work out at the gym and am breathing hard and heavy, I couldn't get enough air into my lungs because it felt like there was something in my throat stopping me. I sounded like I was hyperventilating because when I breathed in I made this awful seal like noise and I started to panic. After a couple of minutes of struggling I managed to get a deep breath in, a complete lungful of air and I felt ok again. Then we managed to walk for another 15 mins before it happened again, the breaths I was taking in got shallower until I had to stop and try to get a full breath.
The whole time we were walking along rows and rows of traffic - do you think pollution contributed to my problem? I think it was partly down to being tired and exhausted, and annoyed that I had to make that long walk faster than my usual pace. However as I said before when I work out at the gym I don't experience the same struggle for air, I can usually get my breathing slowed back to rest pretty quickly and I've never experienced the seal wheeze that I did in London.

[pberggren1]

Thanks Sangye for the info on HEPA filter.

Luce, I hope you are doing better now. It was probably a combination of stress to meet the train, walking fast, and air polution.

[Sangye]

Andrew, how are you feeling now? Ready to rock 'n roll again? :D

[andrew]

I rock and roll all the time, seriously. I have iTunes blasting in my room 24/7 and the stereo on in the car :-) I'm feeling a lot better than last weekend. I can breathe and lie down to sleep which is great. I tried kicking a football around with some friends tonight and got quite winded so I guess I'm not as far along as I thought. Also getting very tired in the afternoons and at the end of the day. Having said that I'm typing this at 11.15pm instead of going to bed lol! I'm using less of the Symbicort now and still feeling pretty good breath-wise. I guess this latest thing shook me up more than I realised. I need to take it slowly for a while.

[Sangye]

MAYBE YOU NEED TO TURN THE MUSIC DOWN SO YOU CAN SLEEP. :D

I'm a little concerned about the afternoon fatigue thing. Keep an eye on that, would ya? (And not the eye that goes into denial-- that one can't be trusted. :D

[andrew]

WHAAAAATTT??? I CAN'T HEAR YOU OVER THE MUSIC!!!!!

Denial is a river in Africa :-)

I'll keep an eye on it, thanks Sangye!

[elephant]

Too funny, keep the music going!

[DEE]

keep the music going and take care DEEx