Giving Coughin' Henry some competition.....

[poltr1]

The good news is that most of the flu symptoms are gone. The bad news is that I still have a sore throat and a sore chest. My throat is sore from all the coughing, the spitting (into the toilet or a tissue), and postnasal drip. My chest is sore from all the coughing and retching too. Sometimes the coughing fits are so violent I think I'm going to hurl.

I should probably gargle with salt water to soothe the throat, but I'm trying to watch my sodium intake.

Does anyone else have any suggestions for sore throats? I've heard of remedies like lavendar water, slippery elm bark, TIger Balm, Vicks Vapo-Rub, water with honey and lemon. Anything else?

Comments

[poltr1]

I've been taking hot showers to warm up, and for the steam. They help, especially if use the Dr. Bronner's eucalyptus or peppermint soaps. (I gotta be careful about using the peppermint soap around my naughty bits, though. ;-) )

My parents used to put a teakettle on the stove, took it off before it reached boiling, and used a newspaper "tent" to inhale the steam from the teakettle. Certainly not glamorous.

A friend of mine uses a Water Pik and warm salt water to irrigate his sinuses. If I tried it, I'd probably get water all over the place.

[yourmommma.livejournal.com]

Ummmmmm....Doctor Bronner's soaps. Lovely. I imagine the eucalyptus is wonderful when you have a cold. Now I have some MORE soaps to run and get. I am a soap and lotion ho to the max.

One thing I didn't mention before was that for coughs that last a long time but are obviously viral, some doctors (including mine) have been prescribing short-term use of an albuterol inhaler 2x per day. It really does help. I have mild "exercise induced" asthma and am using my inhaler now because of a "wind event." but it's helping with my lingering cough, too.

What I hate the most about the coughing stage of the flu or a cold is how you never feel like you get any rest, you know?