CHRISTMAS POSTPONED.. fLU

[vjm1639]

Or, not as funny as it would be if someone else were telling it.

  But we're laughing WITH you.  LOL   Poor thing...as if sick during the holidays isn't bad enough!  
 
Seriously though....we really do hope you are feeling better soon...

[wiininkwe]

sniff, thank you.
T
:confused:

[B-flat]

All of us are going to be envious when you are celebrating your Christmas in January, 2004.   We are going to be curious as to whether you got 100 DVDs to go with the player you bought for yourself.   Seems that I remember the family had been in while you were starting to feel bad and DH had to do just about everything.  About 10 years ago I had the 24 hr virus which struck on Christmas Day.  It was no fun as I spent most of the day in bed or the bathroom while the others went to Grandma's house for the big celebration.

[topcat7736]

Now, the odd thing is that when Peggy & I had it, we thought we had a virus. We took cough medicine (Robitussin (sp)) which didn't help.  Several people we know have recently gone to the ER, with our same symptoms, & been told they have pneumonia and are being treated for it. Still others are told they have the new "flu". Just what the heck do we all have....virus, flu or pneumonia?
 
Seems the symptoms are the same and the cure depends on where you go for help. (The chicken noodle soup did help a lot)! LOL

[NightOwl]

Oh, my poor Toni!  I guess this will end up being THE CHRISTMAS YOU WILL NEVER FORGET!!

There are some antibiotics which dont work well when taken with food or drink (maybe tetracycline?)  But, whenever you take a strong antibiotic, it destroys the beneficial flora which live in your gut and help with digestion and keep the lining of your gut healthy.  Destruction of these flora can result in "stripping" your entire gut of its protective cell layer and cause, among other nasty reactions, diahrea.  One way to avoid this (with most antibiotics) or at least help prevent the problem from becoming severe is to eat live culture yogurt or else take lactobacillis  granules.

PS--and it is not just your bowel which suffers this indignity, but other important  internal areas, too--the same cure applies to both.

[brainpause]

Nicely done, NightOwl!

Larry

[NightOwl]

Thanks, Larry.  I thought maybe in this Season of Antibiotics, reminding people about this  might help someone to avoid some of the unpleasant stuff Toni is going through.

[Danusmom]

So sorry to hear you're not feeling well...especially during the holidays.

Actually, this product of pro-biotics is much more efficacious than yogurt:  http://www.nutritionnow.com/PB8.htm.  It's available at most health food stores, some gorcery stores, & Whole Foods.  You can take it while on the antibiotics & for 2 weeks after your medicine runs out.  Just remember to take a break --at least a 2 week break-- from the pro-biotics after the aforementioned stretch.

Obviously, consult with your physician prior to consuming any nutraceuticals. The PDR (Physician's Desk Reference) now has 2 volumes to cover "Nutritional Supplements" & "Herbal Medicines". Hence, it will make it easy for your physician & pharmacist to review any contraindications with your prescription regime.

Also, I've used this product in my practice for 20+ years:
http://www.americarx.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=42.  It's a wonderful & versatile topical analgesic.  Although this product is primarily targeting the market of people with arthritis, I've used this ointment on athletes (pre- & post-events) as well as with those who had arthritis.  All of them had great relieve from pain.  I've also used this ointment on DH's, DS's, & my chest during respiratory infections.  Eucalyptus has been proven to improve the respiratory system in many studies in Australia.  Since this product does contain menthol, make sure the area it is applied to is not exposed to any drafts as you will have a terrible time getting warm again --standing in the bathroom with a steaming shower running is very quick & effective for warming up.

I've had trouble finding Eucalyptamint in any of the local stores for almost 10 years.  So, I've been buying it by the case through a source I found online.  Just do a Google search for "Eucalyptamint" & you'll find many sources providing this ointment at competive prices.

If you have a cool mist humidifier, you could use the same aromatherapy oils I use (I've also had DH, DS, & our church secretary use this mixture when needed) whenever I contract bronchitis, which is usually once a year.  For one quart of water, I use the following:

7 drops of peppermint oil
7 drops of eucalyptus oil
5 drops of tea tree oil
5 drops of lavender oil
1 drop of pine oil
1 drop of sandalwood oil (optional; can be $$$$)
1 drop of rosemary oil (just because.)

The peppermint oil will really get the "junk" moving out of your respiratory system; your sinuses, too.  Although there may be other manufacturers of the above oils, I find Desert Essence to be very reasonable & readily available at most health food & Whole Foods stores.

As someone else suggested, please make sure you keep drinking plenty of fluids.  And, drink the sport drink if you are losing too much fluid to keep your electrolytes in check.

There are some supplements (ex. Vitamin C, garlic, etc.) I could suggest if you are interested.  It's just rather late & I need to get to bed.  If you are interested, I'll review my reference books on nutraceuticals.  Let me know.

I hope you are feeling better soon.

[wiininkwe]

I want to thank you all for your concern, support and good advice. I think I've started to come around the corner, can see some improvement in almost every area of this horrible episode. I've followed the advice of my Dr. as well as some of the advice given here, and also some old tried and true family remedies. (had to be careful not to undo good with too much treatment, LOL) While I am still often short of breath, (due to that gunk) and spend a lot of time coughing to get it up and out of my system, I can truly take much deeper breaths now, and if I don't over do it, can get up and down the basement stairs. But, i want to repeat, take a lesson from me, this is NO FUN, and seems to sneak up silently so that you are very ill before you know it. My Dr had asked me if I felt sick for very long, and I told him "Oh no, it just hit me like lightening!" He just patiently said, "Well, by the looks of things, I don't think so." But, later, I was thinking about it, and realized that I had started having a dull ache in my back almost a month earlier, and a dry cough, and dizziness. (don't say it!) If I had been paying attention, I may have caught this way before it became full blown pneumonia, but I was "too busy" to slow down and evaluate what was happening.
 
Please, be careful with your health, and the health of your children and elderly family members. I've been relatively lucky, but don't want to come to this board and read about a tragedy happening to any of my friends here. BTW, even tho I am feeling better, I am still taking Robitusin, still eating yogurt and still drinking lots and lots of cranberry juice, along with other good liquids. I probably will for another week.
T

[NightOwl]

well,  Toni, my dear little SS, why does it not surprise me that you were too busy to notice that you were getting sick?  The main thing is, you are now getting WELL!!  Keep on taking good care of yourself--and be sure to do all the things we medical experts here at PUT tell you to do!

This is a very scarey season--a bunch of our buddies here and  at PUX have had flu and/or pneumonia, some have even been hospitalized--and around the country, "young," healthy people are dieing of various respiratory ailments.   And the SARS season hasnt even begun yet.

[B-flat]

Don't know if it helps but the authorities in NC say the flu is declining here. I bet with the warm days being followed by cold ones will cause a whole new burst of ailments before much longer. Many of us push ourselves to the limit doing so many different things. We really don't have time to slow down and notice how we really feel. Our health is very important so we much take care of it. Toni, glad you are finally getting back on your feet and able to do some things.

[SheBantam]

Toni, glad to hear you are better. Did not even know you were down. I have had the yuck too (cannot take more than one dose of ibuprophen even with food, before I get sicker). At least I was lucky enough to make it through Christmas and it started over the weekend. Was able to make it to see Return of the King. I did not even have to miss work because I was on vacation.

Antibiotics do nasty things to my bladder, so far yogurt had not really helped that and then I needed an antibiotic to clear up the over growth of flora that was not effected by the first antibiotic. But this year I was luckier. Temp never got over 101 and coughing was minimal.

I know that since I no longer have a real tree at Christmas, I do not get flu like symptoms and bronchitus before Christmas anymore. The real tree was what was making me sick. I would have to take a week off before Christmas because I was so sick. This year and last, I was not sick. And this did NOT go into bronchitus like so many "flus" before.

Keep forcing fluids! And keep resting.

Paula

[Danusmom]

For clarification, "flora", according to Taber's Cyclopedic Medical Dictionary 19th ed., in the human body is:

Microbial life occurring or adapted for living in a specific environment, such as the intestinal, vaginal, oral, urinary tract, or skin flora.

Also known as "friendly bacteria" in laymen's terms.  Hence, you do not want to rid your body of "flora" as it is a significant part of your body's defense system.  This is why taking pro-biotics during & for ~2 weeks after antibiotics helps restore your flora.

Also, pro-biotics usually don't help fight urinary tract infections.  What can be efficacious, not always, is cranberry juice.  The cranberry juice doesn't prevent bacterial infections from occurring in the bladder.  It just helps to prevent the batcteria from "sticking" to the walls of the bladder.  Thus preventing the bacteria from spreading farther up the urinary tract causing more significant problems.

The following two home rememdies help me tremendously.  For nausea, ginger tea can be a true relief.  And, for heartburn (a true pain during pregnancy) peppermint tea helps bring relief --sometimes it took 2 or 3 cups worth.  Peppermint for heartburn is one of the reasons many restaurants offer peppermint candy as you leave.

wiininkwe, glad to hear you're feeling better.  After a bout of bronchitis, it usually takes me 1-2 weeks to build my endurance back up so that I am not winded just walking across the room.  The aroma therapy recipe I listed earlier helps me speed my recovery along.

[brainpause]

For nausea, ginger tea can be a true relief.  And, for heartburn (a true pain during pregnancy) peppermint tea helps bring relief --sometimes it took 2 or 3 cups worth.  Peppermint for heartburn is one of the reasons many restaurants offer peppermint candy as you leave.

If you are on Coumadin (Warfarin), DO NOT take ginger in any form. In fact, do not take any herbals if on Warfarin/Coumadin.

Larry

[DiW]

Larry,
Why not? My dad is on Coumadin and his numbers were way off over the holidays (when I was visiting). He couldn't figure it out and now I'm wondering what he ate/drank and if this had any affect.
Diane