To casually mention to my neighbour about his coughing

[Coughing79]

A new neighbour has recently moved into the flat below me. He's about 35. I've noticed that he literally coughs every few mins and unfortunately I can hear it. I was hoping it would be a cold or flu thing he has and that it would eventually stop but it's been like this for a couple weeks.
I will be reading quietly in my bedroom and all of a sudden get startled by his coughing. I'm finding it really triggering and it's irritating me .
It's a really awkward one as coughing is involuntary but that doesn't make it any less annoying for me.
I can't move as I have another year left on my lease. I've bought noise cancelling ear plugs from Amazon.
Would it be really bad if next time I get talking to him ,I asked if he is ok, as I notice he has been coughing quite a lot? Hoping that this will maybe make him try and be a bit quieter or something.
Or do I just learn to live with this.

You need to move to a detached building with no neighbours. If you knocked on my door with a request to stop coughing I'd stare at you like Wednesday Addams as the door swings slowly shut in your face.

🤣🤣🤣🤣

He may have the 90 day cough, but I don’t think you can ask him to cough quietly. I may mention it in passing, hopefully it’ll dawn on him that you can hear him.

@colourfulchinadolls I think I would rather he played loud music, as the coughing sound is very off-putting and unpleasant to listen to.
Also at least if he was playing loud music, then I could complain about it

Offer to rub Vicks on his feet 🤣

A couple of years ago we all came down with what the doctor called the 100 Day Cough. It goes around periodically.

Our next door neighbour is in his 20s but smokes an absolute fuckton of weed in the yard. We hear him hacking his lungs up every single time, plus occasionally during the day through the wall. I've heard him cough until he threw up, then light up another!

(His temporary dog ate the sick).

Unless he’s coughing through a megaphone or through your letterbox, I’m unsure what you expect him to do about this? His coughing is involuntary. It’s not likely to be something he can stop.

It's tough shit though when you live in a flat. You have to be prepared for a certain amount of noise. That's part and parcel of flat life.

He,s probably got a cough they can last 2weeks,+ sometimes
Or maybe he has asthma or something ,I'm sure he's aware of it and its probably annoying him more Han you what do you expect him to do.exactly?

He probably has chronic asthma as others have said. I wouldn’t say anything because he’ll be aware it’s annoying but funnily enough probably unable to do anything about it! Be grateful you don’t have a chronic condition.

And he can do what exactly?

You would rather he played loud music because he would be actively making that choice so you could complain, he is not choosing to cough. Honestly if my neighbour chapped on my door and mentioned my coughing I would laugh. I feel for you I get it must be annoying (don't know how it is triggering though?) but it's just what happens when you live in a flat, go for a house next time

This thread is bonkers. My DP has the 100 day cough - he has seen the doctor twice but really there’s nothing to be done but wait. It’s wearing very thin now tbh, but nothing he can do about it. He’s exhausted and more fed up than I am.

I cough a lot because of an un-lovely combination of acid reflux and sinus problems.

Glad you are not our neighbour!

@Winnading it's triggering because it's not a nice sound to have to listen to constantly, I would rather he played music or had the TV on and have to listen to that instead. It's also startling because it stops and starts a few minutes later. I'm allowed to be annoyed by it.

Seriously? I have a chronic cough due to post nasal drip. Bugger all I can do about it and I pee myself every time I do cough so if I could do something, you better believe I would. I’d think you were extremely obnoxious and selfish if you complained about it to me. Don’t say anything, it’s probably miserable for him too. Im
already really self conscious about it, more so after COVID.

But you’re not allowed to expect him to stop. This is ridiculous.

@Thepissinglady I didn't have an issue with the previous tenant that lived there and they made some noise as well but it wasn't incessant coughing

Do you own or rent? I think you might need to consider moving to a flat with better soundproofing.

If you are that easily triggered you'd better save up for a detached dwelling so you dont have to be bothered by pesky neighbours. In real life, next time you get annoyed, give your head a wobble and feel sorry for your poor neighbour who is be exhausted, uncomfortable and feeling really ill to be coughing like this.

Yea ,lots of things neighbors do can be annoying but if he has a cough ,he has a cough he can't help.it ,you also might have some annoying habits that he hears

Annoying, yes, but its just life living so close to other people. Dogs barking, doors slamming, windchimes all irritating in their own way. I have a neighbour who smokes outside and I have to listen to him hacking up phlegm hourly between 6pm until midnight. I just turn up the volume on the TV.

It could be a really nasty "bug" and you'll be getting a new neighbour in a few months!

I can't stand hearing people cough. Makes me tense up as if I am coughing.

If you do speak to him then of course mention it, he could be putting off seeing a doctor or blocked it out so he doesn't hear it. But say it in that way rather than "stop being such an annoying cunt". To be fair, he's allowed to cough in his own house. You'll have to find a way round it.

Merry cough Christmas to you too!

Unfortunately I think coughing would come under normal household noise, someone should feel totally able to do something normal like cough in their own home.

Perhaps some sort of sound insulation could be looked into if it's "triggering" you this much? You're pretty guaranteed to ruin the neighbourly relationship (or any hopes of one) with this sort of complaint.

He probably didn't have a cough

I've had an awful cough for 6 weeks, was sick this morning because I was coughing so hard. If someone told me to keep it down I think I would punch them in the throat. No one wants my cough to stop more than me.

My colleague has been coughing for weeks, she said there’s a 100 day cough and she’s on day 65!