What can I do to clear mucus off my chest ?? I'm desperate !

[BabySharkAteMyHamster]

This is an ongoing issue, I had pneumonia as a baby and suffer terribly with mucus. It's been an issue ever since, I was tested for CF at one point.

And here we are again, I have a mild cough / cold and the back of my throat is full of mucus. I can feel it but can get rid of it. I kept waking up last night choking and gagging on it and now the same whenever I lie down. It's horrible and bloody scary. I'm not even that ill, there's just this massive lump of gluey stuff.

I've had dp try the exercises my mum used to do (( cupped hand pats )) honey and hot water, warm water, sudafed, steaming in the steam room at the gym and sitting in the bathroom with the shower on. Im also constantly blowing my nose and gagging to make a dent. But nothing.

What have I missed ?? Is there anything else I can do ?? Im bloody knackered and don't want a repeat of last night

Go to the GP. Get an inhaler - I use Ventolin or Salamol. A few puffs opens the tubes and you'll cough everything up. Nasty, but effective. Might be worth being investigated for adult onset asthma. I developed it in my forties and part of it was what you are describing.

Does asthma cause mucus ?? I never go.to the doctors tbh as i'm used to it but this year has been awful. Particularly when I go outside.

My mum had pneumonia ten years ago. Not long after she had repeated chest function problems as a result but was fobbed off by a consultant.

Change of personnel, more thorough investigation and she was soon was diagnosed with bronchiectasis, was prescribed montelukast and a respiratory physio gave her daily chest clearing exercises to do.

These two simple things have revolutionised her chest function. Perhaps push for further investigation?

Yes asthma can definitely cause mucus. I'm surprised with your history that you're not already on some kind of inhaler regime. Please go to the GP and get yourself some relief.

A combo of homeopathy and Bowen Therapy did it for me. You have to give it some time though, in my case it took a month. Don't try to self-prescribe the homeopathic remedies, go to a qualified practitioner.

Sorry I meant, it took a few months to work.

Does a guaifenesin based cough syrup help? It thins the mucus, making it easier to cough up.

I had pnumonia in my teens and often colds seem to go straight to lungs.
For years I had a merry-go-around of going to GP with green mucas buildups, only to be told chest was clear (listening, x-rays, the works). Eventually given amoxalyn to get rid of me. About 2 years ago, I can to realise the blockages were actually in my nose, sinuses, etc, and not lungs. So all the chest remedies did naught. A year ago I was diagnosed with asthma. The steriod preventer inhaler does a lot to generally keep my pathways drier.

Look up cf exercises.

I find doing a big breath, then medium breath, then little breath then huffs help. Blowing against pressure can help me too, be it blowing through a straw into water for as long as possible or blowing a balloon up. Gets me coughing and brings some up

Adam that was almost exactly my experience too. Years of “chest infections” that antibiotics didn’t touch. Only a diagnosis of asthma and a couple of years on a steroid inhaler have improved things. I’m off that now thankfully and just use ventolin for occasional chest tightness.

GUafenesin thins mucus, then an expoectrant to get it up and out.

Take 3 deep breaths every 5 mins, sounds weird but you have to make sure you are regularly expanding your whole lungs as movement of the lung tissue helps to keep the glop moving. Breath right to the bottom of your lungs.

Try some antihistamines, they also thin mucus and can calm any parallel allergic irritation caused by the mucus build up

Steam

Sleep on a angle, raise the head of the bed

Guaifenesin thins mucus

I am asthmatic and find guaifenesin makes me extremely wheezy, try it but take care.

Try giving up dairy

Thanks all. The more I think about it the more i'm wondering if there is something else going on. I get very wheezy, especially round things like leaf mould / wet leaves .and the dust when all the leaves were falling off the trees was awful. I might brave a doctors appointment and see what they say.

I had pneumonia as a kid too. I used to lie on my side and breathe deep and my mum would squash my side as I breathed out - made me cough, brought stuff up. Also I second the expectorant but drink lots and lots of water (probably a good idea anyway).

Hope it clears up, there are some evil coughs around this year!!

I was really poorly at the time, my mum found me in my cot not breathing. I think I was in intensive care for a while, i've also been left with a penicillin allergy as a result of being pumped with the stuff as a kid.

Ive been drinking bucketfuls of warm water, it seems if im not up coughing or choking im peeing !! Definitely going to try that stuff tomorrow.

For some reason I read the title and thought ‘well just wipe it away with a wet cloth’.

Sorry. I might be a bit tired.

Go at your doctor and ask to be referred to chest physio. They can show you some simple breathing exercises that you can do yourself. They might also give you something like a flutter device which can help.
Similar history for myself - but ended up being diagnosed with CF at age 48 so I know a bit about this. PM if you want

NackNick you were diagnosed with CF ??

I was tested at the time and it came back borderline from what my mum said. Certainly dont think I have anything as serious as CF. Didnt knkw it could be diagnosed so late tho.

If you get diagnosed late in life like me it means you have a rare variant which wouldn't be picked up by childhood screening. I was pretty astonished at the time though!
They're also able to detect more variants these days as well with extended gene testing.
The advantage for me is access to absolutely first rate consultant led care and more drugs and treatments, many of which aren't licensed for non-cf patients.
Just a thought if you did decide to go back for further testing. It's not necessarily a negative thing.

OP I have severe bronchiectasis, had pneumonia in 2016 was sent for routine X-ray and they picked up something and was diagnosed a few months after. I'd had a constant cough and mucus for years before that, since the pneumonia it's blood and mucus all the time now :(

I was in hospital with it last year and had lungs flushed, and have to clear my lungs out every half hour, one if the things I was told to do breathe as far out as possible, sharp intake and then very sharp blow out as if you've got a really bad bunged up nose and trying to clear it.

I have a few other breathing exorcises I have to do to loosen it before I cough but some days something as simple as bending over to touch toes has it running out (sorry for the tmi). I'm also on meds to loosen it as well as steroid inhaler and another bunch of stuff.

Def see a gp.

My other symptoms were chronic fatigue, out if breathe and wheezing a lot, severe unexplained weightloss (which I've gained back since being treated). I'd actually been to the doctors many times over the last six years about my weight because I'd dropped to a size four and looked like shit.

Not for my chest, but I had long term sinusitis which I was on permanent medication for. I ended up curing it (slowly!) by taking Fenugreek. It helps clear mucous gently. I managed to stop smelling of Eu de Vicks..!

Only two things have ever made any impact for me, neither very pleasant but when it gets bad enough : avoid dairy, especially milk, creme and butter less so and try (you do have to be desperate for a cure to even contemplate this) a clove of raw garlic, first thing in tbe morning. Crush between two spoons and swallow, followed by a glass of water. You can feel the sinuses drying up.

Repeat until you forget you ever had any problem with mucus, however ling that takes. Usually gone within a fortnight for me. All the best.

I too had pneumonia as a young child.
Any cold will sit on my chest for weeks. What I’ve found is that as I’ve got older it’s improved.

I tried inhalers but they didn’t make any difference.

Much water is the only thing that helps. And isn’t that first cough of the day a bastard.

Had pneumonia as a kid and like others, colds often go straight to chest, linger longer etc.

In my early twenties, I had a really bad cold and my cough lingered for ages. My housemate, of Chinese heritage, got her mum to get me a Chinese medicine cough liquid from their Chinese Medicine Doctor.

I’ve been a lot more resilient since.