Dymphna and I have come down with the flu. It may or may not be swine flu, and it may even be a cold. But both of us have a fever and a cough and feel terrible.The future Baron is getting better, but I am the least sick of the three of us, so I get to play “last man standing” and do all the things that have to be done, waiting on the other two and taking care of such chores as I can manage. I’ve dosed myself up with painkillers, but even so I spent most of the day in bed.
So, needless to say, there will be a bit of a hiatus here while we recuperate.
I won’t be completely out of commission — I can function a little bit — but a lot of my time will be taken up with caring for two invalids, and possibly going to the emergency room if Dymphna gets a lot worse.
I’ll try to keep up with the news feed every day, and check in from time to time with a medical status report.
Y’all play nice in the comments.
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16 comments:
Get well soon my friends.
Do get well soon!
Ya'll get well soon. And remember chicken soup really does have medicinal properties and ginger ale clams the tummy.
As your house surgeon I hereby order you all to get better immediately! - Rx: Snaps.
Get well, and a little tip: stay off the booze, it doesn't help.
Eat lots and lots of garlic, cooked and raw, and inhale the steam from v.hot water poured over a couple of crushed garlic cloves.
Oh yes, and keep others at arm's length.
Too much booze won't help, but a nightcap won't do any harm.
Tamiflu should do the trick. A lot's been said about the UK health service recently, but we've been doling out Tamiflu like Smarties. The H1N1 vaccine is also available now in the UK ... all free of course.
NIck--
Tamiflu works if you take it within the first 72 hours.It's available at all the Emergency Rooms and doctors' offices but you have to realize in time that what you have isn't just a cold but actually the flu.
The Emergency Room said he missed the time periood by about 24 hours. They gave him Toradol(spelling?) instead. That improved his sense of well-being and he called to say he'd be okay. This was on Nov 10th.
By the 14th, it was obvious when talking to him on the phone that he was very ill. So the Baron drove the 3 hours to bring him home.
We are now on the 28th and he is still with us. Thank God. There were a few nights when I wondered if he was just going to deteriorate and quit breathing entirely. Those were brief times; in ordinary circumstances he probably would've been in the hospital but we're trying to avoid it for his sake and for others.
This is a serious illness for those with asthma, which he has mildiy. They put him on prednisone, which I thought was a good idea. He began to noticeably improve.
But then he developed oral thrush (not unusual) and had to begin using nystatin. That started tp heal the mouth sores and we thought he was through the worst of it.
After that his temperature began to climb so he was xrayed for pneumonia (negative),but put on on a short term anti-biotic because the doc felt that it was developing due to his lung sounds.
The worst part of it is the spasms in his lungs. The medication for that contains a narcotic and they aren't permitted by law to give him enough for his particular condition. If anything ends him up in the hospital it will be that stupid, bureaucratic rule.
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thll--
the garlic sounds like a good idea but he has no appetite due to his mouth and raw garlic would burn the lesions. However, I have been making chicken soup and oxtail broth.
I gave him a small hot toddy with lemon, whiskey and honey but he thinks it made the lung spasms worse.
So mainly I focus on having him take the herbs and vitamins for asthma I've researched over the years.
I have one to recommend to anyone who's interested. From Canada: it's American ginseng (standardized) and is called Cold Fx. That helps. Whatever Canadian bureaqucracy is responsible for such things has approved it as beneficial for colds, both prevention and healing.
Can't use the ginger ale bec. of the sores in his mouth (sugar not good) but I've been making herb teas that he likes. He would love to have some gingerale though, just for the carbonation.
Coffee is good for his lungs too. He says it calms the spasms.
As for the Baron and me, we're not as badly off, though my asthma is a complication. Almost went to the doctor today but it would have required getting up at 7:00 am and going out in the cold. So it's either the ER this weekend or the doctor's office on Monday or we'll all be better enough that we won't have to do anything but rest at home.
Whew...typing is tiring...
If Private Eye is the be believed the only reason they've been doling out so much tamiflu is because it was old stock, about to go out of date and consequently quite useless if they'd kept hold of it. And of course they've been handing it out to everyone who has a slight cough, or anyone who says they have any symptoms like it, including foreign nationals who are in the country just for a few weeks, all at the taxpayer's expense.
Wow. You guys are truly a triple threat! Could this be Mohammads revenge? ; ) Here is to a speedy recovery. Nothing sucks more then being sick. I will put you all in my prayers tonight.
The ONLY type A influenza circulating at the moment in the U.S. is swine flu, so you probably all have it.
Do make sure that if any of you suddenly feels worse that you seek medical attention IMMEDIATELY because one's condition can deteriorate very rapidly with swine flu, leading to a not-very-nice outcome.
Do take care!
You both have my prayers for a speedy recovery.
Dymphna FYI,
I find the use of Torodal curious but not suspect. It is usually used to treat severe pain in post-op or is prescribed for a short busrt use. I know as I have been using it for years on a carefully, prescibed regiemn by my PCP for my severe, chronic pain as I am off the narcotics and this is an option that does work. Torodal has been known to trigger ashthma as one of it's side effects.
Most common side effects are with
gastric irritation and bleeding.
Hope you both recover quickly and can avoid the docs and ERs. If your condition goes down hill fast, then do not hesitate to get to the ER.
I've been feeling crap for a week too. Bet I caught it from reading this blog! Get well soon.
There was some reluctance to have the H1N1 vacccine (we all get the yearly flu vaccine at work) because it was untried, and no one was sure about it. But there were a couple of guys from ARI came through the other day and put the wind up everyone with tales of really, really sick people back in hospital. That changed everyone's mind. And after reading what poor Dymphna and family are going through, I really must go right ahead and submit my app. form for the vaccine.
Thanks, y'all...
EileenOCnnr -- Yes, I am aware of that sudden worsening, esp with asthma. So I've been keeping a careful check.
I sure am going to do everything I can to stay out of a hospital after reading that story!
It doesn't say that's the cause, but the pathogen level in hospitals is very high.
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Patriot USA--
I thought it curious too. I asked the fB why they gave him Toradol and he said they told him it could act as an anti-inflammatory. Interesting that he didn't go downhill until a few days later.
If he hadn't contracted an asthmatic cold earlier in the season, he probably would've escaped this.
Torodal is in the non steroidal anti-inflammatory category. So
that would have been all right
BUT a something like Prednisone which I believe the FB received
should have been a better choice.
I am no doctor but am speaking from
experience with asthma, allergies
my entire life. Our entire family
had the flu last month and my cough
is JUST NOW, finally gone.
Please be careful and watch yourselves. Especially you,
Dymphna with your chronic
ailments. I pray for all of you
sveral times daily! This too
shall pass.
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