Rheumatoid Arthritis Support Group
Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic, inflammatory, multisystem, autoimmune disorder. It is a disabling and painful condition which can lead to substantial loss of mobility due to pain and joint destruction. The disease is also systemic in that it often also affects many extra-articular tissues throughout the body including the skin, blood vessels, heart, lungs, and...
So I have been sick all week. Started last Sunday with a sudden sore throat and entire body aches and a slight cough. It was the flu. So i got tamiflu, felt markedly better by Wednesday minus the cough which had started to get worse. Tried to get in to see my PCP but he didnt have open appointments they recommended going to a minute clinic. Well i went to the minute clinic yesterday. Which was complete bust, except she had some not so nice words to say about my regular physician and his treatment plans in regards to when I'm sick.
Part of the treatment plan includes doing a nebulizer treatment every 4 hours because my coughs tend to get narly and turn into bronchitis or pneumonia rather quickly without it. So it is a preventative measure that we have found works rather well.
The NP went on a 30 minute lecture on how that much albuterol is bad and should never be used at most 3 times a day would be more than sufficient. And any doctor who recommended any more than that was wrong.
Meh whatever. Still had no idea why the cough was so chesty but it wasnt worth fighting over.
I have managed to get the cough to stop being so spasmy, its now just chesty.
Fast forward to today. My throat is on fire it feels like someone is shoving two white hot pokers into my tonsils and wiggling them about, removing them and then shoving them into my throat again.
And my voice is all gargly and such.
I just cant seem to catch a break. I hurt i feel like crap. i'm tired of being sick and i'm ruining the holidays because of it. I cant spend time with my sister and niece because my sister is having surgery at the end of the week and she doesnt need to be sick. My niece is only 8 months old and really doesnt need to be sick. My mom and stepdad are keeping a distance from me because my mom will be taking care of my sister post op and cant pass anything on to her and my stepdad just doesnt want to be sick.
I'm irritated and tired of being sick.
-end rant-
Part of the treatment plan includes doing a nebulizer treatment every 4 hours because my coughs tend to get narly and turn into bronchitis or pneumonia rather quickly without it. So it is a preventative measure that we have found works rather well.
The NP went on a 30 minute lecture on how that much albuterol is bad and should never be used at most 3 times a day would be more than sufficient. And any doctor who recommended any more than that was wrong.
Meh whatever. Still had no idea why the cough was so chesty but it wasnt worth fighting over.
I have managed to get the cough to stop being so spasmy, its now just chesty.
Fast forward to today. My throat is on fire it feels like someone is shoving two white hot pokers into my tonsils and wiggling them about, removing them and then shoving them into my throat again.
And my voice is all gargly and such.
I just cant seem to catch a break. I hurt i feel like crap. i'm tired of being sick and i'm ruining the holidays because of it. I cant spend time with my sister and niece because my sister is having surgery at the end of the week and she doesnt need to be sick. My niece is only 8 months old and really doesnt need to be sick. My mom and stepdad are keeping a distance from me because my mom will be taking care of my sister post op and cant pass anything on to her and my stepdad just doesnt want to be sick.
I'm irritated and tired of being sick.
-end rant-
I look outside and see people having a life, same with FB. I don't hear from any friends anymore. It's pathetic. This isn't how I envisioned my life was going to be.
Well, I hope you feel better from the flu very soon. It's pretty difficult having something like that on top of an autoimmune disease. It's especially hard at Christmas when everything revolves around doing things and having fun.
I'm sorry I couldn't offer any encouragement, but I'm right there with you. I hope you find comfort in that.
Please take care.
I've had this flu/cold now for almost a month. I felt about 90% on Friday so I decided to go to the gym & pick back up on my workouts that I stopped about 3 weeks ago. Then I visited a friend at his job, we hung out, outside where it was a bit cold but I didn't pay it any mind. Well, long story short.............sort throat again, lump in my throat as well, coughing again & glossy red eyes!!!
DAAAAHHHHHH!!!! How did it hit me again?? Or did it never go away!! Usually on a colds decline it just goes away it doesn't come back around again does it???
All I know is as much as MTX helps the RA (at least for me) I've never had this many colds/flu's in my life! I typically only get sick maybe once every other year. Now I'm routinely getting 2 colds A YEAR!!
now if i completely ignore my respiratory system, i feel good - not overly achey or sore or sleepy or anything like that. not really sick. but my throat hurts from coughing and the coughing... oh, the coughing. it's that really painful, deep cough, like i'm pulling up whatever is at the absolute bottom of my lungs.
and of course, we don't have insurance this month due to a paperwork error at my husband's job. at least most of my joints feel pretty good due to the prednisone burst. but i'll be paying for that this weekend.