Pneumonia - recovery time?

[WutheringFrights]

I am so unbelievably bloody fed up with it now!
I was admitted to hospital five weeks ago, I've had three weeks off work and then two weeks of managing a few hours and then 'taking to my bed'.
I feel fine and then all of a sudden feel totally wiped out.
Please can you all tell me I will be better soon, I am being a rubbish mum, rubbish wife, rubbish employee and a rubbish friend I just feel like I'm letting everyone down.
Added to which I keep thinking I'm going to die because my gp thought originally it was a blood clot and scared the living whatsit out if me - I think it's still at the back of my mind.
Sorry I appear to be wallowing...I'm just so bloody frustrated!

[LostAtTheFair]

It will get better soon with rest and a bit more patience. I had it a few years back and found the recuperation after the actual illness much harder than the illness itself, in terms of the fatigue and the anxiety about how long I had been poorly. But it gradually improved and I was back to myself and playing sports within a few months

[LostAtTheFair]

...and if it helps, I was functioning normally (except for sports) within 7/8 weeks, so if you are similar, you're nearly there

[WutheringFrights]

Thank you, yes, fatigue and anxiety - those are the exact words I'm looking for.
I've never felt anything like it, not even when DS was born and slept for no more than an hour at a time for 7 months...I could actually function then. Now I just lie in bed feeling utterly pathetic!
Okay, I'll quit whinging for another week or two I won't

[Maybeoneday123]

Im glad i found this page ive been googling looking for answers i got admited to hospital on 12th feb with pneumonia was in hospital for a week i also had asthma they said as i was finding it hard to breath on oxygen too while in hospital any way i keep reading i should be better after couple weeks bug i feel so exausted and out of breath when i do simple tasks my legs are weak and heavy all i want to do is sleep but I'm not im trying to push myself last night i went to b&q thought i was going to drop down dead. Felt so weak and breathless i just want to be better how i was before im also anxious feels like I'll never be myself again keep crying just comes should i be resting should i be pushing myself to do more i do t know im confused i thought id be back to normal by now

[annandale]

Please, please try not to rush it. IMO people get into real trouble trying to ignore the recuperation time for pneumonia - not going to introduce scary stories here but just to say please take your time. Hope you start to feel a bit better soon.

[Frazzled2207]

My dad had it last winter, he's late 60s and the first month or so were very bad.
After three months however he felt back to normal.
Hope you feel better soon.

[dirtyfabulous]

I had pneumonia last May and was in hospital for around 5 days, IV antibiotics from a nurse at home 3x day for a further week & then two more weeks of oral antibiotics.
I thought I was never ever going to feel like myself again. The exhaustion was like nothing I have experienced.
Firstly, the anxiety associated with it was huge. Meningitis was mentioned, TB& therefore quarantine for weeks. It was so scary.
Being brutally honest, for me from around 6 weeks after finishing antibiotics I noticed improvements. It is a slow process though.The worst thing to do is push yourself because you're frustrated & think ' I should be able to do X'
I felt huge guilt that the DC were not getting the attention I desperately wanted to give them.
It will get better. You will feel normal again. Try to accept that for now, you are recovering. The recovery time is hugely underestimated IMO.
Wishing you well.

[Maybeoneday123]

Now im scared!! Know one told me what and how long to rest for my outer family keep saying i need to do more what should i be doing im doing simple things like housework and doing dinner etc thats earring me out my dads in hospital just had a bypass and my sisters keep saying i should go see him but im just too weak to leave the house then i feel guilty

[annandale]

Oh that's really frustrating that your family are pushing you.

Could you ring your dad? Does he have a mobile in hospital, could you FaceTime, or is there a cordless phone on the ward they can take to him? Ring his nurse and find out. Send him pictures of the kids etc?

This is where 'listening to your body' becomes really important and it's really hard to do. This is also why in the past doctors would recommend that rich patients should go to a convalescent home - precisely so that they wouldn't be harried into doing too much too soon.

I would prioritise doing a tiny bit of time in the fresh air each day, rather than housework. Use your energy for whatever makes you feel better. E.g. walking literally two metres down the road and then back, then rest for the morning. That way you will physically see your recovery because it won't be long before you can go to the third metre, the fourth metre etc.

Making dinner sounds quite a good idea. TBH it would be nice if your sisters were suggesting they come and help with the housework, rather than hassle you to do more. I don't suppose you could run to a cleaner for a few weeks so that you can prioritise recovery?

[Maybeoneday123]

Did u stay at home indoors for six weeks or go out did u do housework etc or just rest were u breathless and weak still after treatment when u done anything ive just getting over agoraphobia and this happens im scared if i dont go out that will come back

[WutheringFrights]

Hi Maybe it's rough isn't it, please don't be pressured into doing anything to soon.
I am very lucky as I'm surrounded by people telling me not to do too much but I am pushing myself and obviously hindering the recovery process.
I went back to work after 4 weeks which was a stupid thing to do, but because I'd been doing nothing I thought I was better. I basically went from 4 weeks of nothing to an 8 hour shift in a busy farm shop.
I also did a little trip out to b&q and the range at about three weeks, my mum knew I was poorly when I said I didnt want to go for coffee and cake!

[WutheringFrights]

I have asthma too but strangely it hasn't been affected at all by the pneumonia.
I can breathe normally but I'm still having shooting pains in my chest which I'm convinced are the first signs of a blood clot or a heart attack.
I spoke to my GP on Friday he said take painkillers, and now I'm panicking that by taking the painkillers I'm masking the symptoms.

[3luckystars]

My daughter had it a few times as a baby, the last time she had it was very serious and she stopped growing for about a year after it was gone. She has caught up again now but it was scary how sick she was. It took her months to get right after it, she couldn't even stand up for long for a good few weeks.

It's very serious. Go easy on yourself, you will get better, it just takes time. I suppose we are used to getting sick and bouncing back, but pneumonia can kill you, you really need time and rest for the next few months. Best wishes and I hope you are back to yourself by the summer.

[Maybeoneday123]

Well this morning i got up and cried for 2 hours just came from know where im fine if im sitting down but ascso as i do anything my legs are weak my back aches then i start to panic thinking my legs wont ever work again also ive had my daughters visit with there children which cheated me up but ones got a sky high temperature so now had to go emergency doctors hope she hasn't caught it and visa versa

[Maybeoneday123]

Hello withering frights i didnt have any pain mine was more like temperature and breathing was hard wheezy etc low oxygen i have sinuses problems too so cant breathe properly through nose niether i think a lot of my breathing is mix between the asthma and the anxiety im just worried a out the leg weakness most i didnt have that last week

[Clarella]

Gosh yes I felt like I had a delayed reaction in my body - as if it had hit other systems which take longer to recover. You must pace and take it easy. A mild bout of pneumonia triggered adult onset asthma in me it seems but it wasn't until several weeks after the initial infection had gone my actual body felt like it couldn't function. I went back to work far too soon after starting inhalers. It's only after a month on those I've started to feel anything like how I did before. Three months post infection. I wasn't in hospital but was pretty ill at home with what I now know was asthmatic reactions on top.

[Maybeoneday123]

How long did it take to go them weird legs its a horrible feeling i keep thinking maybe its cos im sitting around to much but if i try to do anything my legs dont let me all things are going through my head scared something else is going on they haven't caught like ms or something horrible when u say rest what do you mean ie sitting around sleep or what when did you go back to work? I dont work but look after my 2 year old grandaughter 3 days a week the childminder had her while i was ill but i will be having her again this week

[WutheringFrights]

Maybe, seriously be careful about taking on too much, I have 2 children aged 2 and 4 and I am absolutely exhausted after a few hours with them.
And yes, to the leg thing, mine don't feel like they belong to me.

[Maybeoneday123]

Withering frights how are you coping with work and kids if colapse of i was working

[WutheringFrights]

Maybe that's kind of the problem, I don't cope with work, I went back far too soon, worked too hard and am suffering the consequences.
I left work at midday on Tuesday and have been unable to function since then. I am taking next week off and hoping I can manage half days the following week.
If you are at all worried about whether you can cope with a two year old please consider using the childminder for another week or two.

[Maybeoneday123]

My grown up sons here next week and he said he will look after her as the childminder hasnt got the space . I cant believe how much this has took out of me plus sitting around i start to think the worse and like you i think I'll get a blood clot . Plus my mum and sisters i feel think im not pushing myself enough to get betteer my parents have seperAtes and they want me to look after dad when he comes out of hospital i dont drive so will need to get the bus as they work days so they cant do it i feel so guilty i just feel like they all thinking ur better !

[Maybeoneday123]

Are you just tired or are you weak and out of breath when you do stuff

[Hulababy]

Don't rush it. Give yourself time to recover.

I had pneumonia in Jan 2010. I was ill at the weekend, couldn't return to school (work) at start of term and ended up in hospital the following weekend.

I didn't go back to work until after the following half term - so 7 weeks off work. My Gp wouldn't sign a fitness to work certificate.

he did suggest gradually building up my energy levels - so having the odd lunch out, he let me pop in to work to say hello to the staff/children, I had a weekend away, etc. Its all part of the recuperation. Don't go too fast or you will end up in bed again - luckily I had a DH, DD, family, friends and colleagues (inc my HT) keeping me from doing too much - and my GP was fabulous.

Also make sure that you are continuing to be checked. It took 4 lots of varying antibiotics to clear everything, and I needed an inhaler for a year or two afterwards as well. My lungs were clear - have those continuing x rays to make sure -but I needed some support from the inhaler at times.

It will take you a few months to feel fully fit and healthy and you will be more susceptible to other bugs and viruses, as your body is still recovering.

Take care of yourself and listen to your body carefully.

[Maybeoneday123]

Thankyou i still feel breathless when i do anything is that normal or is it coming backl or not gone im still coughing got like a thickly cough now not deep i do have anxiety problems and this has bought all the anxiety to the surface im not one for sitting around as then i ovver think am i expecting too much after 2 weeks out of hospital

[Maybeoneday123]

Im not sure if its gone or coming back cos i didnt cough last week and didnt feel so weak our doctors here are useless. Cant get an appointment for over a week