The Pros and Cons of Breathing

[jenepherre]

I just had one of my horrible wheezing attacks right in the middle of a bad coughing fit. I really thought I wasn't going to be able to catch my breath, and was afraid that even if I did, I'd just start with the coughing again. And even though it sounds incredibly loud to me when it's happening, Mom slept right through it, while Dad got up and went to the bathroom and went back to bed all without being aware of it at all. I'm gonna get a bell I can ring - or maybe a foghorn - in case something like this happens again. Although the truth is, there wouldn't be much they could do other than comfort me. I have an inhaler, of course, but if you have no control over your breathing it's pretty damn hard to use an inhaler.

I feel like there's a 2 ton weight sitting on my chest.

My doctor thinks I'm just not being patient enough - that I need to give the antibiotic more time to work. Maybe, but are you supposed to get worse before you get better? And it's been 4+ days now. I've had very little sleep. I'm *really* trying to get lots of fluids in me, but it's probably still not enough. I haven't really had a fever at all though. But nothing relieves the cough and it's just *so* painful. And I'm just so incredibly exhausted that I can even begin to describe it.

Gonna try and go back to sleep now, if I can.

BTW, for the non-Fall Out Boy fans, the subject line of my post is one of their song titles. I just popped into my head and seemed oddly appropriate for this post.

Comments

sorry honey!

[sdrichey.livejournal.com]

Sometimes if it's the right bug, when they die they release little toxins that ften cause an inflammatory reaction that is worse in asthmatics. Do you have a spacer on your inhaler? They help you get the medicine even if you can't inhale quite right. And you can always rent a portable nebulizer machine if worse comes to worse. And a bell, (or a foghorn!)is a good idea! Get better honey! Love, Sherrie

[rgrandixie.livejournal.com]

I feel for you. I know when I have a bad cough, my inhaler won't touch the asthma attacks when they come. I always wind up in the er or patient first someplace getting a breathing treatment. I always wind up on Prednisone (sp?). Get that bell or something. I'll be thinking of you.