AIBU to Wait Until Monday to Get Medical Help?

[SnowyPolarBear9]

Started with a bad cough approx 6 weeks ago. Also had loss of taste and smell and seriously exhausted. Saw GP after 2 weeks who prescribed antibiotics and said I had an upper chest infection. Didn’t take them as I kept feeling I was getting better one day but then worse the next (I know probably stupid! I just didn’t want to take them if I didn’t need them because of the whole antibiotic immunity).

Cough started to improve (still had other symptoms) then my son came down with a very short lasting bug last week (temp, blocked nose, sneezing, feeling unwell). He was fine to go back to school after 1 day off and only had a temperature for less than 12 hours.

2-3 days later I had the same symptoms as him but worse. Blocked nose, no taste or smell still, cough worsened slightly again; could go hours without coughing then have huge coughing fits for prolonged periods. My temp was about 37.5°C and has been fluctuating for 7 or more days now which I know some sources say isn’t a temperature until 38° and some say above 37.5° but my healthy temperature is in the 36.5° region and only goes to 37° and above if I’m unwell. Temp doesn’t reduce with paracetamol (can’t take ibuprofen as allergic). I’ve now had this illness for over a week. Finally decided to take the antibiotics (started Thursday evening - 1 x 500mg Amoxicillin, 3 times a day) and I’ve taken 6 tablets out of 15 so far. Cough and blocked nose has definitely improved but tonight I feel worse than I’ve felt throughout this whole thing, my temperature is also the highest it’s been (38.6°) and I just don’t have the energy to go and be seen out of hours because I’m so tired and under the weather. I’d have to go alone and I have no one that could look after my young dog.

Should I be okay to wait until Monday to see my GP? I’ve had health anxiety in the past which creeps in a bit when I’m ill so just hoping for some reassurance

my son is with my ex so he is safe. No other adult with me and no one really that I can call 🫤

I would say wait until Monday - or at least until tomorrow.

you probably weren’t fully recovered then caught second illness so body is just tired of constantly fighting germs.

No lecture but next time follow medical advice and take the antibiotics if given.

If it was me I’d sleep, drink lots and keep going with the meds. Fever isn’t that high. if still feeling unwell see GP Monday. A&E would be unlikely to do much as you already have meds. It will make you feel worse waiting there all night

I do feel for you i struggle with health anxiety and being ill really does trigger it. I think the best thing you can do is try to distract yourself. Make a cup of tea and get a film on and keep monitoring yourself and hopefully you will feel better in the morning. What reassures me is knowing a&e is always open so if things do get worse you can always go anytime. You don't need to decide right now just keep monitoring and take it hour by hour xx

OP you probably had a bacterial infection initially which maybe cleared on its own and then you separately came down with something viral from your kid. Or you still have a chest infection (such a stupid diagnosis, it’s pneumonia, chest infection just sounds fake). You may have walking pneumonia (did you dr do a chest X-ray when they diagnosed you with a chest infection), which there isn’t much you can do about but rest.

None of your symptoms seem in any way serious so I don’t really see why you’d bother going back to the dr at this point. I live somewhere that doesn’t ration healthcare like the NHS and even my dr wouldn’t really be fussed about any of your symptoms.

Re the cough, sounds a lot like post nasal drip, no coughing then a bunch. Again, not a ton the NHS is going to do about it. You can try Flonase and saline nasal spray.

38.6 isn’t that bad a temperature - keep taking ABs, regular paracetamol, lots of fluids and try to sleep it off.

I agree with keeping on the antibiotics and waiting. Antibiotic resistance is being fueled by the use in farming, not people. It's a myth. In other countries you can buy them over the counter and they pop them like sweeties, just as we did in the 70/80s. Ask the 50+ year olds around you, how many are immune to antibiotics. We got them, no questions asked. It annoys me how scared people have become of taking them. People are being hospitalised because they aren't given soon enough. You needed them, a doctor decided you did, so you should have taken them. Now you've become more ill than you needed to be. If an infection takes hold you'll end up with double the dose of antibiotic, plus blood thinners etc so it isn't a sensible choice to not take them.

Thankyou so much everyone for your reassurance and advice! I know it was silly not to take the antibiotics 😩 guess I’m paying the price now! I had some dinner around 8pm and took my
normal pain meds (I have problems with my back and I’m on regular strong pain relief) and I’m actually feeling a lot better than I did earlier. Temperature is now 37.6 so its come down a whole degree (probably why I feel brighter now!).

I think whoever said post nasal drip was prbablt
partially correct. I think it was a chest infection as my left lung was vibrating with deep breaths, but I did notice after using a nasal decongestant spray that the cough was much better so maybe a bit of post nasal drip too. Unfortunately I ran out and can’t afford anymore at the moment though.

I’m going to continue resting (thank goodness no school runs for two weeks!) and will speak to my GP on Monday if no better or any worse.

Thank you again ❤️

Pleased you are feeling better.

Are you elevating your head to reduce the post nasal drip?

plenty of fluids, rest and paracetamol, now you are on antibiotics
keep washing your hands

If you have been prescribed antibiotics, you need to take them as prescribed and always finish the course. Rest up, fluids, phone 111 if you are worried. Hope you feel better soon

Its probably the same infection but you left it untreated for an extended period which would have worsened the situation considerably. Symptoms can fluctuate. Doctors dont give out antibiotics quickly these days so you would have needed them. Tbh it was ridiculous not to take them.

See out the antibiotics before contacting anyone and go from there.

You can't tell how unwell you are by temperature alone. For example, in sepsis temperature can be high or low, and a sudden drop in temperature can be sinister.

What I would do is this:

• keep taking the antibiotics
• drink fluids and if you're struggling with that, set yourself alarms and try to have half a glass of water every hour, at least.
• Now that your temperature is 37.6°c, so almost normal, feel the pulse in your wrist (not with your index finger because that has its own pulse) and count your pulse for one minute. Write it down. If it's between 60-100, don't worry (unless you know that you normally have a very low heart rate)

As long as you feel about the same as you do now, and you can breathe, and you can think fairly clearly, you should be fine to wait until Monday.

If you start to feel more ill, your heart rate goes up significantly, your temperature won't come down or you are feeling confused, call 111 and ask for advice.

DH was very ill at Christmas time. The nurse practitioner at the GP surgery wanted to send him home with antibiotics and an inhaler, but I said that his heart rate, at 100 was double his normal heart rate and I thought he was quite unwell. She sent us to A&E. His fingers were yellow and the triage nurse couldn't get his sats properly. She muttered 'some sort of infective process...' but it didn't occur to her that he was very ill. He sat on chairs waiting, then had an x-ray. All of a sudden a doctor called him through and said that he had a severe pneumonia and would need to be admitted. Then a nurse swooped in and said they were going to find him somewhere more comfortable. It turned out that his lactate was high and his CRP was 619. They had been fooled by his generally quiet and calm demeanour and he was really ill. He had told them that he felt a bit 'discombobulated' and 'slightly confused' but they hadn't realised how ill he was.