Positive pneumonia recovery stories please

[Aldilogue]

I’m looking for good outcome stories because I have been in bed for two weeks straight now and I’m starting to lose my mind. I initially thought I had the flu which I had a swab for which came back negative and went back to GP yesterday who confirmed pneumonia. I have 2 x antibiotics and I can say I think they may be starting to work however it’s not enough to be able to do anything.
Two of my three kids have it as well but to a much lesser extend where they can still function but have AB’s too.
So basically can anyone cheer me up and tell me good recovery stories.

Oh dear! Sorry to hear this. DH got pleurisy which is advanced pneumonia. It's a bad story but with a positive ending. I'll try to keep it as brief as I can. DH was doing a physically exhausting job when he got it and we thought he'd done his shoulder in. We went to the docs and he was eventually rushed to A&E on morphine for the pain. The GP had no idea what it was. The scan at hosp showed pleurisy. I was shitting myself at this point! He was given strong anti biotics and morphine to take home and was off work for 6 months. Eventually he got made medically redundant. Our only chance of having a 2nd child was fucked there and then. Anyway.. now he's made a full recovery and is training to be an IT teacher so a total change of career as we reckon his job caused it. So a good thing to come out of a bad situation
I wish you a full recovery. It is awful at the time but does get better. Get well soon x

I spent 12 days on life support with double pneumonia. About 2 weeks later I had a bilateral pleural effusion. That was 12 years ago. I still suffer with pain in my upper back and I have an arrhythmia and asthma, but I have decorated my whole house twice since then, had 3 more children and gained university qualifications. Things can and do get better. Just take each day as it comes, don't look too far ahead in terms of recovery.

@PulyaSochsup.. I'm not the OP but just wanted to say wow, that was quite some experience you went thru and then to go on to have 3 DC and do a degree.. way to go! Just read your msg out to DH to give him a confidence boost!

Thanks Boosey, it was quite a time of it. My DSis was being horrible at the time, telling me I was basically a malingerer and so I was bullied into it. I've suffered from chronic pain all my life and depression and I kept being told I just needed to get on with things and quit playing the victim. It was nasty but it did me a favour. No matter what the odds, the human spirit is capable of great things

Sounds awful. But yes it proves that with determination you can achieve alot.

Where did the OP go anyway?!

Here I am. I have finished my AB’s and definitely feel better however one day I feel ok and can do chores etc but then I crash.
I’ve woken up today feeling exhausted with bad headache and can’t get out of bed again.
I think I just need to accept this is a very slow recovery. I haven’t worked for over 3 weeks now. Can’t even fathom going back at the moment and even if I could, I’m an aged care nurse so can’t be near elderly anyway.
Geez some of you have had a really bad time with illness, good to hear you’ve recovered. Thanks for your replies, it means a lot.

Strange this has come up today - been up late last night and early this morning worrying about my mum who has been readmitted to hospital with bilateral pneumonia - she left last week against medical advice and has been slowly going back downhill. Thankfully Ddad managed to get her up to out of hours and she’s back on a ward. Good to read positive stories.

I've had it 3 times now and each time I've refused to go into hospital with it.

The last 2 times I had it I had become disabled by then(nothing to do with the pneumonia)and I've recovered well from it each time.

I just made sure that I took the AB's,tried to rest as much as I could and had plenty of fluids.

I had septic pneumonia with pleurisy 4 years ago.
One week in critical care with IV antibiotics (gentamicin and levofluoxacin) etc then two more weeks on oral levo. Was able to start doing my desk job again after a month and joined a choir after 4 months. Could barely sing due to crappy breathing at the time but I am sure it has helped the recovery.
Had chest pain for about 8 months daily and needed to use inhalers but then it started to drastically improve.
I'm now 18 months inhaler free.

The one thing that has remained is a level of paranoia when I get ill that it will be that bad again, as I had no idea how ill I was even up to a couple of days post my hospital admission.

So I don’t think that I’ve had it as bad as some others and am on the mend however I have to say being so sick really freaked me out.

Allout I kinda get what you’re saying about being paranoid.

Bunty if your mum is in hospital she’s in the best care, her drugs will kick in soon hopefully.

@Aldilogue. Hi op! Good to hear you're on the mend. The exhaustion and chronic chest and shoulder pain stayed with DH for months afterwards which is why he ended up taking medical redundancy as there was no way he could have carried on doing the same job.

@AllOutOfNaiceHam.. that's some illness you had! I think that def beats DH's! Yes it's crazy how long it lasts isn't it and yes the paranoia still gets us now. Every time he has a cough I think 'oh no, please not again'.

I had it about 4 years ago now, it was awful. I went back to work too soon, which prolonged recovery so don’t do that! It’s left a weakness with my chest- the slightest cold goes straight to my chest now and I usually have a lung infection at least once a year.

Just a little update in case anyone’s interested.
I went back to dr today for a follow up and got given another course of AB’s because the infection is still in the left lung.
I feel like I can breathe okay and when I cough it’s starting to move however I’m so exhausted, I fell asleep this afternoon on the sofa!
Also recommended chest physio to move the gunk, got an appt this week.
How’s everyone else going?

@Aldilogue.. yes I'm still interested!. Sorry to hear the infection is still in your right lung ..It can be a bugger to shift! How are your DC now? DH had chest physio too. He had about 5 sessions and it helped him esp.as his shoulder was awful from his job. He's well out of it! Good luck with your recovery

Right lung? I meant left of course!

BuntyCollocks how is your mum going?

BooseysMom thanks for asking, the kids are all of the mend just a bit of residual cold symptoms but definitely better.

I’m doing better but I’m still exhausted and now I have a mild pain in my left side of my chest which I’m trying to not think about. I’m not coughing until I go outside and then have a bit coughing fit but I can’t quite bring it up, sorry for the visual, but it’s hard to get out.
Time will heal.

Sorry to hear your feeling so rough. You will feel ‘normal’ again though!! I was so exhausted for months and thought I would never have energy again, but you just have to give it time. If your tired or worn out then rest. My recovery took longer then it should have because I was stubborn and insisted on doing everything I usually would and then ended up being unwell for longer. It won’t last forever, look after yourself and give yourself rest.

Thanks Glittergirl30. Yesterday I had chest physio which was a lot of heat and cupping on my sides. The amount of phlegm brought up was amazing yet I felt so exhausted at the end.
Woken today with a foul tasting cough, can’t wait for this to be over.

I had it a few years ago, a mild dose as I just thought it was a bad cough - it took two months to get rid of it, I felt like I'd been hit by a 10 ton truck.

@Aldilogue.. glad the kids are ok now. Yes time will heal. I just never appreciated how bad pneumonia and pleurisy were until DH got it. I'm lucky that I escaped it. Wishing you well