HNY!

I know there's a lot of lurgies doing the rounds at the moment and I seem to have picked up an awful chesty cough, so much so, I'm so sore from coughing and coughing so hard, I'm bringing up (Sorry!) whatever I've just eaten or drunk.   Its really wearing me out, I can't seem to go any longer than 10 minutes without coughing, sleep is erratic as I seem to wake every 2-3 hours coughing.   

I'm on my second bottle of cough medicine since New Year and now have some antiseptic lozenges too - I wonder if my next port of call would be to see my doctor, but I feel I don't want to waste her time when she may say, get XYZ brand of cough medicine over the counter?

Does anyone have any suggestions for easing the cough & the soreness I'm getting with it?  Thanks.

PS) I don't smoke either.

I am just on the final stages of this awful virus (hopefully), the only cough medicine that worked for me was recommended by a friend who is a doctors receptionist. You have to ask the pharmacist for it, it is called Pholcodine. Very cheap but excellent stuff. Good Luck.

If you are coughing so hard that you are being sick and are sore from coughing then it might be wise to make sure it isn't a chest infection ;)  they can come on really sneakily and be the devil to shift without help ;)

Maybe a call to the Dr's surgery and a chat with your GP would be a good idea, he/she can then decide if he needs to see you ;) or you need AB's ;)

In the meantime, try some Elderflower cordial - hot, or elderflower tea - they are great for shifting chesty coughs and the gunk that goes with them ;)  also plenty of Vicks Rub (or Morrison's version is good) at bedtime will also help ;)

Awww Hen!

Sorry Ive only just spotted this (cant have you hacking over my wee yuns! ;) )
What 'cough medecine' have you been taking?
Is your cough productive? (are you bringing up phlegm or is it a dry cough)

Time to se you'r doctor if:
You are bringing up phlegm that is green,rusty coloured,yellow, has blood in it or has a bad smell.
You have chest pain
You'r wheezing or short of breath
You have a recurrent night time cough (check!)
You have a temp feel feverish/sweats
You'r voice has become hoarse.

If it was an expectorant you were taking then ditch it (no drug can facilitate expectoration)

You have my absolute sympathies!! Im still struggling with my lung infection (which would have cleared up much quicker had I got myself to a doc and rested!!) Back into casualty on Boxing day night (stopped breathing in the ambulance)
    So dont be all stuff and nonsense and soldier on like me... get checked out.

I'll phone you on monday to make sure you've gone!!

Yes indeed...sorry but it's orf to the quacks and you dinnae wanna oopset aww Huskyness!!!

The only thing with Pholcodine is as it's a cough supressant you can end up with a chest infection
if you do have stuff on your chest ;)
But it does work in supressing the cough

When I bought some it was only £1.80 for 200ml from a local pharmacy (own label).

> Sorry Ive only just spotted this (cant have you hacking over my wee yuns! ;-) )
> What 'cough medecine' have you been taking?
> Is your cough productive? (are you bringing up phlegm or is it a dry cough)
>
> Time to se you'r doctor if:
> You are bringing up phlegm that is green,rusty coloured,yellow, has blood in it or has a bad smell.
> You have chest pain
> You'r wheezing or short of breath
> You have a recurrent night time cough (check!)
> You have a temp feel feverish/sweats
> You'r voice has become hoarse.
>
>

First bottle was Covonia for Chesty coughs but I then noticed it has licquorice in it and that didn't help the tum!    2nd bottle was meltus for chesty coughs.   It was all that was left in Tesco's, Tesco's look liked it had been ram raided for cough medicine on 2nd January.

Yes bringing up phlegm, apologies to anyone eating at this moment, at the beginning of the week I bought up a large firm ball of it yellow & blood in colour, this has since turned into gooier stuff - not sure of the colour as I tend to swallow (Double apologies here).     My sides ache from coughing, head sore, I feel so weak and the half tonne of Xmas chocolate can't even entice me, so things must be bad.

You're twa wee bairns are lookin' braw - the best 2 out of the litter.

You NEED to get down that Dr's!!

Please, please get yourself down the Dr's it defo sounds like you have an infection.

This sounds like an emergency doc visit to me :(  If you feel that weak too don't wait.

Makes me mad, all over Christmas we were subjected to TV and magazine ads telling us not to bother the Drs with coughs and colds.  All that will result is that those who would normally wait, will wait even longer (thinking of you here Christine ;) ) and those who go for the merest sneeze will still be there in a flash :(  

Hope you get the right treatment and feel better soon

{{{{{BIG HUGS}}}}

Yep that is the one that got rid of mine on several occasions when I have had a cough that wouldn't go.  It contains chloroform so stops the cough reflex.

Just an update:

I went to see a pharmacist in a Lloyds chemist today and seemingly these cough viruses are doing the rounds and are taking longer to shift than normal but she said if it persists after 2 weeks to go to my Doctor.   So now I have a bottle of Benyllin!

My daughter left her cough for a week and ended up with pneumonia so I really wouldn't take the chance. We rarely go to the doctor's but am glad that I did insist oh her going this time.

Knew I should have phoned you!
Are you feeling slightly better?
Which Benylin is it? (does it contain Dextromethorphan?)

Did the Pharmacist ask or know that you'd brought up phlegm that was discoloured?

I gave her the full works about what I was coughing up & bringing up etc.  Will go check the Benyllin bottle as it's downstairs.

Edited to add:  Contains Diphenhydramine & also Levomenthol

Is it the 'cough & congestion' one?
(The ingredients(the one I mentioned and the one you have listed is a sedating antihistamine) are cough suppressants... for dry,tickly un-productive (i.e. no phlegm) coughs )
I really think you should go the Doctors.

Well, as my car's tensioner has gone & it's up at the mechanics, my cough will have to wait until I've got wheels, I'm afraid.  What with Mia being lame & me coughing we look a fine pair!

> the half tonne of Xmas chocolate can't even entice me

Well the bad news.... Get that chocolate down your neck Hen! (halfway down the article)

Are you drinking lots of fluid.

(((( Hug )))) awww your awfee peely wally ;)

Ok............

Off to get that huge box of Thorntons variety of all types of chocolatey things out, would rater eat chocolate even though I don't feel like it than duck liver (Yeuch!).

I can drink lots of liquid as long as it has a teabag, milk & 2 saccs in it!

But DONT whatever you do eat the Alpini (look like little icing sugar dusted logs)ones! they are very bad for coughs!! (Better pass those ones to me! :-D :P)

There is SO much chocolate in this Thorntons box - it's one of those where you pick the box and fill it up with what you want (Courtesy of Kirsten 'KMS' - thank you!!!)  I really don't know where to start.........but I managed to eat the small bag of Belgian chocs even though one was disgusting coffee!

> I managed to eat the small bag of Belgian chocs even though one was disgusting coffee!

Good... you'r not dying then :)

Just asked my OH and he says " why dont you get down to your GP at your first opportunity - loads of people dial 999 for less"

I'd take his opinion over that of your pharmacist and lay-people.

> I'd take his opinion over that of your pharmacist and lay-people.

ROFL!!!
The lay people have advised repeatedly to go to the doctors.

Present company excluded......

Sorry didn't read - just skimmed and saw brand named medicines and chocolate...... :-)

There are definately some nasty bugs around this year. 

I was just getting over laryngitus when 2 days ago I woke up with all the virus symptoms again and instead of losing my voice I am sporting a rather unattractive rash all over my body and have pulled a muscle in my side from coughing so much.  I took an emergency appointment last time but was told there was nothing they could give me as it was viral :(

I work in a call centre and speak to a lot of elderly people who have been really ill, I feel really sorry for them :(

> Just asked my OH and he says " why dont you get down to your GP at your first opportunity - loads of people dial 999 for less"
>
>

Yes and normally these people are the subject of Jeremy Vine discussions or 9pm ITV programmes on the numpties that call out 999!

My sister has had a chest infection probably made worse cos she smokes (Sorry!) she was given a week's antibiotics but is still coughing (Noty so bad though) but has been told it's viral and will have to run it's course.   I'm sure I'll survive, at the moment being car-less, I couldn't really walk the 10 miles ot the surgery could I?