viral chest infection - advice desperately needed

Phone your surgery and insist on home visit. Please don't continue to suffer like this-you may have developed a secondary infection but you need to see someone before the weekend. Or call 111-difficulty breathing is a valid reason for emergency treatment.

I second Katek's post. You need help. Phone your GP at once and get it.

My husband got this virus and very kindly gave it to me. It has been a few weeks since it started and we are slowly starting to feel better. We have just about made it to the supermarket but have both been exhausted by it. I have had to do my Christmas shopping online as I would not be well enough to go to town.

The GP gave me anti-biotic (I have asthma and had pneumonia a few years ago) but I don't think it did any good.

We have been trying to eat healthily but apart from that, I don't think there is much you can do. You could try to avoid leaning forward as this seems to 'take the air away'.

It must be frightening when you are on your own. At least the two of us have been the same which is a bit more reassuring.

Thank you for your support and suggestions

I decided to call my doctor out (a rarity for me) after having another coughing/breathing fit. Apparently I have now got asthma and have been given a spacer and inhaler - this in the space of 5 days since the hospital check up.

Doc says it's a fairly common occurrence after a viral chest infection. So hopefully I'll get a bit of sleep tonight

boheminian you must call your doctor. Please tell us you have. I think I may have had something similar. It's been over 6 weeks now of a rather nasty cold and GP finally sent me in for a chest x-ray too. But I don't have the coughing at night or being awake in the dark feeling awful. We're all thinking of you and wishing you a recovery soon. You are ill - you are doing all the right things. But I think you need to be very open to your GP about everything, incl feeling scared at night time. You might not want to but you must ask for help.

Well done for calling the GP out, boheminan, hope the inhaler will give you some relief from that awful coughing and the night-time fears

So very glad you got your doc out....hopefully you will get some relief from the coughing now. Have a bite of lunch, see if you can find something non taxing on the telly and have a snooze if possible. Do let us know how you get on now you have new meds.

Must have crossed posts. So glad to hear that b. Good luck with the inhaler and good for you for calling them out. Let us know how you're getting on - we'll worry otherwise!

Liz46 mentioned ' not leaning forward. I had a coughing fit a while ago. Fortunately I was with a friend (retired nurse ) She stood behind me and pulled my shoulders back. She explained that this helps to open the airways.

Thanks for the advice petra/*Liz46*. I'm new to all this chest infection malarky, so all tips gratefully received (i was leaning forward when fighting for air, so I will consciously stop doing that).

I do hope anyone who may be suffering from an inexplicable, hard to knock on the head chest infection may consider asthma as a contributor, I've not had it before, so it certainly came as a surprise to me.

I had this recently for 2 months. Had to go to the doctor's twice despite complaining. Did get 2 consecutive lots of antibiotics . It even venture eased. Good luck........Go to the doctor's over and over !!!

Did wonder if flu jab to blame....perhaps not.

I've had very similar for several weeks. Like you, it's a virus so no need for antibiotics. I find it gets a bit better then comes back. Of course this might be because DGD and DD have it too and we are passing it back and forwards between us.

The fighting for breath is terrifying but your asthma medication should help. Once I realised I wasn't actually going to die (I really thought I would the first time it happened) that helped a lot! I make some very odd noises as I breathe, especially at night, but evidently that doesn't indicate anything wrong on my chest.

Steam helps a lot but obviously it's not always convenient. In the middle of the night I run the hot tap, wet a flannel and hold it over my mouth and nose. It works for me ....

Absolutely agree that leaning forward starts off the cough. So does laughing but I'd rather not avoid that.

Good luck!

I'm a lifelong asthma sufferer, usually controlled by daily inhalers but if I get a bad chest infection (fortunately fairly rarely) and the asthma kicks in big time, I have to have steroids. They do work quickly and take away that awful feeling of drowning.

I hope you were shown how to use the inhaler bohemian as there is a technique to it. Good luck for a better sleep tonight and I hope you soon feel much better.

Thinking of you and hoping that the inhaler will give you a better night's sleep. If it happens again and you are worried, do not hesitate to ring 111. We had cause to ring them a few weeks ago about OH and they were very thorough and helpful.

Just in case, there is info on You Tube showing how to use an inhaler with a spacer. There is a knack to it, have used one for several years. Hope you feel much better very soon.

Yes, Grannynise, laughing is not a good idea when you have this virus. My husband said something daft last night and we both laughed....big mistake!

I am sure the inhaler with help boheminan and I hope you start to feel better soon.

One of my worst coughing fits was when I leaned forward and down to empty the tumble dryer so try to avoid that sort of movement.

Thank you all again. I've used the inhaler twice now (forgot to shake the Ventalin between the two puffs, so hope that doesn't decrease the effect). The guidance on YouTube was good (thank you Alima). Mmm, yes, it hurts when I laugh - but I, like you Grannynise, won't let that stop me laughing. Will have to practice using the Ventolin without the spacer, as I can see the spacer will be a bit big to cart around everywhere with me.

I already feel more relaxed just knowing what the problem is I'm facing, rather than just imagining some dreadful, incurable, illness.

The spacer is a really important part of your medication regime. You actually get twice as much of the drug into your lungs with the spacer than by using the inhaler alone. My consultant recommends that all 'L' shaped inhalers are used with a spacer. You need someone to treat you to a larger handbag for the moment! You already sound much more relaxed and in control.

It sounds like what GS2 had when he was 18 months old. DD rushed to A&E with him when he started having trouble breathing and he was put on a nebuliser for about a week. He hated it but it worked wonders.

I'm just catching up with your thread boheminan and I'm so relieved to see you did get your GP out. My husband had the awful viral cough and chest for 3 weeks, saw the GP, was sent home with the same instruction as you and went on to develop pleurisy. I don't want to be a drama queen and I appreciate how busy the doctor surgeries are currently but don't hesitate to call the doctor out again if you aren't feeling a lot better in a couple of days, or if you begin to feel worse.
Secondary infections often occur after these bad viral infections.
Keep warm drink lots of lemon and honey and i do hope you can sleep

How are you today Boheminan? We had a bad night disturbing each other so it's off to the spare room for one of us tonight (again).

Liz6 How are you and DH today? I used my inhaler at 12.30am and slept through the night until 7.00am (that's a 'first' for a long time) however, when I tried to go from sitting propped up to standing, a coughing\choking fit started. This seems to be the thing that sparks the coughing (moving from down to up) do other asthma sufferers find that? Still, had a good sleep so a'int complaining.

Interestingly, a lot of friends/friends of friends seem to have gone down with a similar infection - it's doing the rounds. The end to an annus orribilas (or whatever it was the queen suffered from a few years ago!)

When I had a chest cold, I always used to end up with a paralysing cough until a GP noticed the wheezing and prescribed inhalers. Bingo!

Dgs ended up with an inhaler and spacer for a viral cough that dragged on for weeks and he's much better. He'd never been asthmatic but this virus seems to certainly trigger asthma-like symptoms.

I do hope you'll all be feeling much better soon, and ((hugs)) x