To let you know there is a serious whooping cough outbreak in the UK?

[Overnightoats1]

Just returned from the GP with my 12 year old DS.. I wasn't aware but there is a really bad whooping cough outbreak so thought sharing the symptoms may help other parents. Apparently the vaccine stops working effectively at about 10 years old so they are seeing a huge rise during this outbreak in 10-15 year olds. Its also really important to start antibiotics ASAP within the first week or so to prevent the spread in your home as it's caused by bacteria.
For us it seemed like a typical cold - low grade fever, congestion, runny nose that improved within 3 days but then the awful cough started. He is generally okay between coughs but the cough's are so violent they have made him get sick a few times and he battles to breathe during them gasping for air with the gasping whoop sound -he also coughs up this horrible clear stringy mucous. Luckily we have antibiotics now but it's definitely something that should be on every parent's radar right now as it's so contagious and very dangerous for pregnant unvaccinated women and unvaccinated smaller children - plus really awful for the kids with it. I didn't even think of whooping cough as assumed my DC would be okay as all vaccinated. Hope this helps someone!

He did have the vaccine after he was born, and the booster for the pre-school ones.

Plus I was vaccinated during pregnancy to so theoretically he should be covered till he’s 13/14

@Soubriquet sadly the vaccine does not work for everyone. But if nearly everyone has the vaccine, then it protects those who are not helped by the vaccine as well.

My daughter 9 has whooping cough at the moment she has had the antibiotics and its not too bad luckily
The cough itself is horrible her trying to catch her breath inbetween is horrible to watch but for her it mostly affects her at night she hardly coughs during the day
When i took her to the doctor i said it can't be whooping cough as she is vaccinated but i didn't realise that the vaccine can wear off she had to have 5 days off school due to the schools rule
since found out there are lots of cases of it in school but no letters or emails from the school about it being in the school.

DS was swabbed and given antibiotics. No idea if he definitely has WC or not.

I think it would be prudent to see the doctor.

No. I'm a nurse, I am aware of how the disease works. Yeh? Once your airways are damaged the antibiotics will not have an effect on the duration of the cough.

To my mind if there's a large outbreak of such a contagious illness then they should know.

I think the whole 'whoop' thing confuses things. Most people do not make a 'whoop' sound. But then people think they don't have it if they don't 'whoop'.

We could be having the same conversation about covid, flu, common cold, RSV and a host of other diseases which are preceded by what seems like "just a cold" as runny nose, fatigue and mild cough are the start of a lot of more serious illnesses. At the end of the day staying home when ill, wearing a mask if needing to go out and seeing the doctor if it's not improving or worsening are still basic actions to take.

I wish I didn't have the whoop, for me it's the worst bit of it, struggling to get your breath in.

Lots of people don't make a 'whoop' sound when they are gasping for breath.

The trouble is if you leave it to see the doctor until it's not improving nothing can be done. You will also have spread it around - wearing a mask will not help this.

Knowing the symptoms of whooping cough so you know to get to the GP quickly will help the spread.

It isn't pleasant though, gasping for breath, with or without the 'whoop'. For me the worst part was constantly passing out. It really is an awful cough, isn't it? I hope you feel better soon.

Oh gosh I had this when I was 12 or 13 and I remember the dreadful whooping coughs that you can’t stop. Sadly I was in boarding school at the time and told to get on with it, so no antibiotics. Went home for the summer and my mum went ballistic!!

anyway, the cough is very very distinctive and unlike anything else I have heard before so if someone in your family has it, it can’t be mistaken for anything else!

i hope everyone who has it feels better soon

It’s really worrying that there are so many cases at the moment .
When I was 7 I was in an isolation hospital with meningitis , it was the seventies so parents didn’t stay like they do now ..there was a window behind the bed into the next room and the 4 year old boy in there had whooping cough
We used to wave at each other through the window , one day in the midst of a coughing fit, In front of my eyes he had a cardiac arrest.and died 😩
people don’t realise how deadly some of these childhood illnesses can be .. it’s 46 years ago but I still can’t unsee it

It really is. I don't think anyone who has had it will ever forget it.

I'm so sorry your school did not help you. You must have passed it on to so many others. Dreadful.

Oh, how traumatic! Poor little boy and poor you.

I thought I was going to die when I had it. I ended up having a stroke. The cough is just so intense.

@Riversideandrelax That’s awful … 😢 have you recovered from your stroke , it’s a vile illness .
I never got over seeing that little boy die ,I did decide there at age 7 I wanted to go into nursing .. and I did . It still haunts me , no one ever spoke to me about it until my mum brought it up years later

I read just yesterday, that in the 1940s they used steam and made 'vapour tents' for whooping cough, out of bedsheets and bowls of boiling hot water (sounds dangerous I know but at least we have alternatives for steam these days). Anyway, it apparently helped treat whooping cough tremendously.
Humidifiers and steam inhaler machines people!!

Oh, bless you. I'm not surprised it affected you so deeply. But how wonderful it lead you to nursing.

I'm much better, thank you, getting there!

My teenage sons had it this time last year. I posted about it at the time as doctors were v dismissive. It's a horrible illness.

What a thing to read as I listen to my 9 year old cough away in bed with suspected WC

That must have been so traumatic for you. So sorry you went through that and that poor little boy.

Oh, god that must be scary! My NB baby, toddler and I all had RSV in January and that was pretty awful. Toddler needed rescue steroid as developed croup and the following week baby was admitted to hosp and on oxygen 4 days. Children are so vulnerable.

Meant to @ShrinkingEveryDay

Mullein tea will help with the sticky mucus. I had it myself.