Caught COVID-19? - Now what?

[PatriciaBateman]

There's some amazing threads going regarding general prepping, plans, updates (Prepping for a pandemic threads in particular), my sincere thanks to those keeping us updated!

As part of a family with several "high-risk" categories , I really wanted to start condensing information together in one place about what to do if/when you actually catch it - ie. preventative measures have failed, and providing you are well enough to be managed at home.

The Basics
Vitamin C & Vitamin D (immune support)
Paracetamol/ibuprofen - some finer details to consider about whether it might be better to allow fever to take its course.
Throat lozenges/difflam spray
Oral rehydration fluid/syringe
Olbas oil and/or Vicks vapour rub
Hot water bottle to keep on chest (aids vapourisation and increases blood flow to lungs).

Other things I'm currently looking into that may or may not be helpful
Oil diffusers & tea tree/eucalyptus (basically like olbas oil for symptom relief but possibly some anti-viral action also?)
Elderberry syrup products (ie. Sambucol) - strong antiviral action against influenzae viruses at least
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11399518

I'd love to hear about anyone else's ideas or studies they've found - even if it's just "may be helpful" stuff.
I think I've maxed out on what I can do to minimise our chances of getting ill. Now I really want to prepare a plan about what to do/try if we catch it anyway.

Wrt to the oil diffusing....I have lots of tea tree oil in (put it in our leave in hair spray to keep head lice away!!) but I don’t have a diffuser, can I just put the oil and a bit of water in a wax melt burner?

Also would tea tree oil used this way be safe for dogs in the home?

This is the zinc I have bought. It's 20 mg per tablet. You need at least 10-15 mg daily to be fully effective. Check the bottle of your mutivits you currently take but I imagine the strength is below this.

(My mum is a nutritional therapist so I speak with some knowledge)

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B000NRXO58/ref=ppxyoodtbbasintitleeo02s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Baby food pouches of veg and fruit might be useful if you’re ill/can’t cook for you and family. Can still get some nutrients in and don’t need heating/jus handed out and can leave in a quarantined room/can be ate lying on your side etc

@Aurea should we take the zinc every day like a multi vitamin or just when we get ill?

Zinc gave me awful tummy issues. Be careful!

I take Lysine for cold sores, I keep taking it now on the assumption that's it's antiviral.

Also, Vit C and D.

Also bought a Vicks.

I take lysine for cold sores too but have always got a cold lol

I'll just pretend I haven't seen that, Skyejuly.

I live in hope.

I would take it everyday at the moment. It's relatively cheap and takes a while to build up. Most people are deficient in zinc, especially as food does not content such a high level of nutrients nowadays due to intensive farming methods, etc. Better safe than sorry.

Well I have not had flu before so let's hold onto that lol

Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus@DrTedros (WHO director-general)

To reduce your risk from the new #coronavirus infection:

-if you are sick, stay at home;
eat & sleep separately from your family;
use different utensils & cutlery to eat

-if you develop shortness of breath, call your doctor & seek care immediately

I reckon people need to relax. Unless you're elderly, have a compromised immune system, or have an underlying health condition that effects your lungs, contracting COVID-19 probably isn't that much of a big deal.

Well several of us on this thread have or know someone who has one of the above so whats your point?
Unfortunately I cant 'boost my immune system' either as its trying to kill me!

Is this why Tesco was full of empty shelves when we went this afternoon?
What has that got to do with anything on this thread? FFS there is always one on every thread!

We've moved this to our new coronavirus section!

What iodine do people use with nebuliser?

I don’t know if I should get one. I live and work in London, can’t avoid the Tube, and have asthma.

I'd say vitamin C/Sambucol, teabags and paracetomol. And a comfortable bed.

I’ve been wondering if echinacea would be a good idea. After all, it’s proven to be effective against the common cold, which is a type of Coronavirus.

Vick's 'first defence' anti-viral nasal spray, claims it can "stop a cold in it's tracks". Haven't seen the evidence myself, and of course there won't be any for this novel virus - but worth considering?

Might be worth having around to use at first signs!

www.amazon.co.uk/Vicks-First-Defence-Micro-Gel-Nasal/dp/B000LNEBO2?tag=mumsnetforu03-21

Nose sprays make me.get nose bleed...

I've just looked up to see what it's called- I used a Tisserand stream vaporiser when family had a bad lingering cough. Its a fan with an absorbent pad to take the essential oils. I put olbas oil on it, and may have put a drop too much on the pad. When I checked back later that night the air in the room was saturated with the essences -but next morning there was massive improvement in their deep cough. Points to note, they were asleep most of the night so their eyes were closed. I've used chest rubs and essence drops before but this was much more full on. (Possibly dangerously so, so for information or investigation only)

Using the Thai herb Fah Ta Lai Jone as a butress to my immune system if we get the virus would up the dose from one capsule a day to 8 to help fight off fever.
mb.mahidol.ac.th/en/new-look-at-an-old-remedy/

Using zinc every day as others have mentioned.

Have bought oxygen cans off eBay - if hospital care is unavailable or you don't meet the triaging tests then this would no doubt help to give your body extra energy when you most need it.

Anaesthetic eye drops - some sufferers have mentioned burning eyes as a symptom when the fever grips.

Have immodium (anti nausea ) and lomotil (anti diarrhoea) as it may be necessary to block both ends in order to get electrolytes to stay down in your body.

Monster energy drinks -sugar/caffeine for when you can't stomach food.

More about Fah Ta Lai Jone

www.nationthailand.com/life/30242248

www.webmd.com/vitamins/ai/ingredientmono-973/andrographis

Handy thread OP, thanks.

Very basic, but make sure you have your usual prescriptions in especially inhalers.

I have stocked up on Sambucol, as I use it every Winter. However, looking at that report, it increases inflammatory cytokines, which sounds very bad re Coronavirus, as people are dying from an over production of cytokines , known as a “cytokine storm” . So reading that has made me very stressed, as I think Sambucol normally helps me fight off colds and flu, but might be completely wrong for Coronavirus.
I was banking on it helping, as there is nothing else, and I am in my fifties with an auto-immune disease and youngish children.

Many women have auto-immune conditions of some sort, and then immune system boosters could, I assume, be more likely to trigger the Cytokine storm ?