OK, you'd think I'd know the answer to this question, being such a know-it-all otherwise, but I don't.
I am getting a URI. Charles has had it for going on 10 days now, and late last night I felt myself starting to succumb to it. It is not a cold. It is not the flu (I had my flu shot - quadravalent vaccine, which was supposed to be effective this year). It is something else, and I assume viral.
I know how viral works, more or less - the main thing you do is endure them until you get well, while taking care of yourself well enough to (1) not infect others; and (2) not get a more serious bacterial infection on top of it.
But WHAT ELSE can I do to get better faster, and as least-miserably as possible?
My symptoms:
I don't get fevers much, so I don't want to take an NSAID unnecessarily, and I especially don't want to take acetaminophen. But I am sure I'm going to need something for cough and sore throat, and probably a decongestant for my ears.
At night, I'm happy to add Benadryl too - it is a very effective sleeping pill for me.
In the past, a bad URI has led to reactive asthma - I'm ready for that - I know where my inhaler is, and I will not resist using it (Charles has one too, from his last URI - he gets them a lot, and I rarely catch them at the same time - but he refused to use it, despite having paroxysmal bouts of coughing, because he wasn't wheezing - in his opinion - on the inhale).
So - what do you all recommend works best?
I am getting a URI. Charles has had it for going on 10 days now, and late last night I felt myself starting to succumb to it. It is not a cold. It is not the flu (I had my flu shot - quadravalent vaccine, which was supposed to be effective this year). It is something else, and I assume viral.
I know how viral works, more or less - the main thing you do is endure them until you get well, while taking care of yourself well enough to (1) not infect others; and (2) not get a more serious bacterial infection on top of it.
But WHAT ELSE can I do to get better faster, and as least-miserably as possible?
My symptoms:
- Last night, I started feeling a roughness in my trachea - like I'd spent the night smoking and drinking and maybe screaming a little.
- This morning, I started feeling a little pressure in my ears, and I feel a little lightheaded and warm.
- This afternoon, I'm starting to get a sore throat, and a slight occasional cough.
- What should I take every few hours to keep the symptoms down, especially if I start coughing? (I can and will go get some codeine cough syrup if necessary, but until and unless I need it, what works best?)
- Sore throat - what do you use? What works best?
- Decongestant - what OTC stuff is the most effective?
I don't get fevers much, so I don't want to take an NSAID unnecessarily, and I especially don't want to take acetaminophen. But I am sure I'm going to need something for cough and sore throat, and probably a decongestant for my ears.
At night, I'm happy to add Benadryl too - it is a very effective sleeping pill for me.
In the past, a bad URI has led to reactive asthma - I'm ready for that - I know where my inhaler is, and I will not resist using it (Charles has one too, from his last URI - he gets them a lot, and I rarely catch them at the same time - but he refused to use it, despite having paroxysmal bouts of coughing, because he wasn't wheezing - in his opinion - on the inhale).
So - what do you all recommend works best?