My lungs feel like they are on fire - part 3

[Casino218]

@longshot started a new thread as the other filled up and I thought you were poorly and people would be wanting to find out how you were doing.

@DandyPenguin I'm going through that same life changing process and yes a move to somewhere hot would be top of my list.

@SchrodingersKitty it must be very strange to find so many others in the same situation you have endured for so long.

Day 16 burning and weight on chest has changed to a dull ache at the bottom of my chest when I breathe in that makes me anxious. Anyone on day 14+ similar?
I know the constant symptom checking is really not healthy behaviour but it's so hard not to be hyper vigilant.

Ive taken over the lounge and the rest of my family are all upstairs. My DD1 (11) who has had a cough for 8 days now sounds really plegmy now. Up until now its been a completely dry cough but i can hear stuff being produced.

Still havent slept and would feel better if DH was awake to watch over me a bit. Im trying to keep the kids out of my way, a) because i dont want dh and DD2 to get it but b) Im worried they’ll see how scared I am.

I ordered myself some Kalms tablets and a finger oxygen meter thingy. Ive spent no money whilst on lockdown so thought sod it, maybe my anxiety will calm if I can see that mine and Dd’s lungs are functioning despite the pain/gasping.

I know they say the virus can settle on animal coats etc but bless my little dog. Shes a year old and she hasnt budged from under my armpit all night.

@mymoonmyman2020 I wake up at night with a sudden intake of air and also have suffocation dreams in which I am holding my breath as I dive into a pool etc then wake up with a gasp and unpleasant chest feelings.

My illness is if anything starting to clear. I have had a temp everyday but yesterday it was just up for a couple of hours in the afternoon. But I do feel it has done something odd to my lungs / breathing.

However I have discussed all this with a GP on a video conference and they are positive I don't look or sound like someone with pneumonia.

I just think it's a very odd and unpleasant illness.

@Cary2012 Very reassuring post, thank you. It’s hard to see the wood for trees when you’re ill and can’t look at the news without being confronted with constant horror stories.

When I have the energy and don’t feel too awful I’m doing everything I can to distract myself. And enjoying re-reading Persuasion!

@Cary2012 thank you so much for taking the time to post.

Could I ask are you left with any issues still now?

@GidgetGirl
You are welcome, if I had it now, with all the news coverage and worry my MH would have taken a dip, so I understand how you must be feeling.

Enjoy Persuasion, Austen is perfect, slow and calming, just what you need.

Meant to add to my long post (sorry) above that I'm a teacher, and was in close contact with over a hundred of the now identified "super spreaders' when I got ill. Coughed ovef, lent pens to, passed things to, used the same computers etc. You get the picture.

Take care all, and I'll try and help you if I can.

@longshot. No my cough went last week. Returned day before yesterday but gone again now.

Sorry about typos, on phone.
@stayathomegardener, no issues at all, thankfully. Bounced back much quicker than I did from Swine Flu, that took about two months.
I can't wait to have the antibody test, but I'm convinced I've had it. Obviously avoiding contact and social distancing though, pretending I haven't but feel I have, if you know what I mean.

@porcupineinwaiting

thanks - when I talk the oxygen level slightly drops but if i am silent it stays ok in resting, and hence was wondering which oximeter reading to take.

Have had an attack of breathlessness this morning when I got up. Oximeter reading was normal but I just felt the need to keep taking more breaths, after a bit of distraction I felt better ie can say 2 sentences without taking a breath but then feel the need to take a deep breath. I have seen Andy Hardwicks video where he had to take a breath after every word and so thinking I am not in that state as yet and just need to relax.

Anyone else felt the same?

@longshot I’ve had a dry intermittent cough for a while.
Slightly chesty/productive today. So I’ve started taking guaifenesin cough medicine and I’m looking forward to another day at home...
DD has had a chesty cough for a couple of weeks now, she’s also got a slight temperature for the first time today, so now I get to worry about her too. She’s cuddling me while munching an apple at the moment.

@Cary2012 Thank you for your post, very reassuring and also describes how mine progressed. You are right - everything in the media makes it lots worse!

HELP!! I posted this in a seperate thread but
I keep reading such awful stuff around the timeline for this and it’s making me so anxious. I am feeling ok on day 7 (and was pretty ok yesterday too) - but people keep telling me it’s going to get hairy and bad again- is that the case for everyone?

It’s freaking me out!! I have had breathing issues but no real temp or cough plus flu symptoms etc - sleeping and eating well now and almost feel normal again but feel like there might be more to come & it’s causing me to feel worse!

I've deleted The Daily Mail and stopped reading the news. I'm so fed up of the scary stories and I feel that's what's making my anxiety and breathless feeling even worse. I definitely am breathless there's no doubt about that but I just can't cope with the horrific stories anymore. I keep waking up in the night. Ever since this pandemic and my symptoms, I've not had a full nights sleep. I am so fed up and tired of it. I have already started planning telling myself I am going to die

@kevintheorangecarrot @littleblackdress04 panic and anxiety will make it harder to breathe. Even if it does progress it will probably only give a bit of discomfort. Most people are not in ICU. Most are just pottering around with it and going ooh my chest hurts like me after 19 days. I'm 53. Kids are not even noticing they have had it.

Think about proper flu and how bloody awful you feel and how long it takes to recover. Yet we don't panic in the same way. Media is not helping us here.

It's all about positive mental attitude.
I'm the world's biggest hypochondriac and something like this should be freaking me right out but I've decided to switch off all news and I've told my friends not to share doom and gloom articles with me.
At about day 9 I woke up feeling like I was unable to breathe. Was getting so panicky and thought was going to end up in an ambulance. Heart rate was 137. But I don't think it was a real emergency - a lot of it was anxiety related. I kept telling myself "you can do this", and with slow breathing exercises I got through that episode.
It's all about the mind. Of course - if I knew anxiety wasn't playing any part I wouldn't have hesitated to call for help, and you shouldn't hesitate either.

@littleblackdress04 try not to worry, it doesnt happen to everyone. If you have several good days in a row that's very positive. Make sure you dont overdo it yet though, take things very, very easy.

Equally, if your symptoms do resurgence, dont panic.

Hi. I’ve been lurking for sometime and like you don’t know if I’ve had ‘it’. I think if so my symptoms have been milder perhaps.

Started with an itchy eye. 2 weeks after going to London, didn’t think anything of it and got some optrex.
Then started feeling prickly like I had a cold coming, but no cold, chilly and achy.
I felt ‘fluey’ and started an intermittent dry cough, no temp. Normally I would have just carried on with work etc. but decided for us all to stay at home. DH similar, both Just a bit rough. This is what I used as Day 1 . (But in hindsight Day 3) Teen DD fine. We home isolate, I WFH, DH has big problem as needs to be in the office.

Day 2/3 We are both so tired and occasionally dizzy, we also notice that what takes 1 hour working, takes two, a type of brain fog. I am coughing occasionally, definitely not continuous, he’s not. We are in separate rooms at night. No temp.
Day 4 I have pressure on my chest, but this comes and goes, very dizzy intermittently coughing, dry. No temp. eating fine. DH woke in the night covered in sweat.
Day 5/6. Felt awful in night, ache, chest hurts, exhausted and coughing fits. I’m scared. During the day, moving around, walking dogs (we have our own land) it improves.
Generally next few days DH is better than me, we are sleeping for hours. I go to bed at 8 don’t wake, apart to cough until 9,30, for someone who sleeps 6 hrs a night, this is weird!
Day 7/8. Lots of coughing, none for DH. Mostly if I talk! Still no temp, but feeling chilly and feverish, dizzy spells, brain fog, sleeping for hours.
Day 8/9 Definite continuous cough, chest tight, not painful. If I stay still, don’t talk I can control cough. No temp. Sleeping loads.
Day 10 first day feeling slightly better, cough seems productive, just sticky white stuff, very small amounts, but feels if I need to ‘clear’ my chest, not the usual tickle, not quite so tired either, no dizzy spells.

Today is Day 11 (or could be 13/14) I woke up normal time for me. Cough is definitely changed to productive chest clearing. I feel almost normal, the brain fog has cleared, It’s a weird felling, almost lighter!

Through it. I took paracetamol, Also at night a hot Beechams black currant before bed. I tried to keep moving as much as possible, drank lots of tea, green tea etc. and made myself eat, which I didn’t fancy, but did make me feel better. I tried to keep to routine. Poor DD is fine, but has been neglected, but I wanted her to stay in her room as much as possible, she has t got it yet. DH much milder.

I think I’m in the mend now, you don’t know how well you are, until you are ill, but was it CV?

I’ve never had a cough follow any pattern like this before.

@Calmonthesurfacebut yep that sounds like CV. Had a long chat with GP yesterday. My symptoms match yours and he thought we had had CV. Just my chest pains and fatigue etc now extended to 19 days.

Good morning Day 13 for me Still tired and had a slight temperature during the night bit feeling a bit better. Like all of you seem to start the day well and then go down. Had some tightening of the chest in the evening but it did seem better Sending love to you all as you have kept me going

@littleblackdress04
Stop worrying. Rest and don't think ahead. Stop reading awful stuff about the timeline, and try to distract yourself with something soothing.

The thing is, this is a virus. Viruses ebb and flow, so in mild cases, which it sounds you have, as I did, they have to run their course, so accept this and listen to your body, not the news. Symptoms vary person to person, but they don't always get worse, just different. So don't expect to feel worse, just realise your body is fighting this, so the virus has another go back, but if you rest and look after yourself you'll have every chance. It's impossible not to worry, so accept that and try to think about other things.

Imagine if none of this was on the news, if it didn't exist. You would have 'a funny virus thingy' that was doing the rounds. Your chances of getting better are very, very high, and you can feel better as long as you rest up, drink lots of fluids and look after yourself. Take that approach.

Good morning all - Day 11 here. despite my panic and anxiety attack I feel a lot more energised this morning. Not sure if it has anything to do with the antibiotic: clarithromycin that I started taking yesterday. It is giving my stomach cramps and tight feeling in my stomach which isn't great. It feels worse when I am talking and so I am wondering if it's related to my anxieties.

Chest pains are still there and again I feel a pressure in my chest when I talk or do physical activity.

Hope that this isn't the calm before the storm and that things are starting to improve.

@littleblackdress04 sounds very positive. I wouldn’t be surprised if you continue to get better!

For those that continue longer with illness, Does anyone know if we’re likely “in the clear” after day 10/11 in terms of going south?

Hi - I'm totally new on here but joined after reading these threads and I found this thread helpful. I don't know if I have cv but think I might have - not sure what day I'm on as symptoms come and go but have had main symptoms since about March 20th. The main thing that comes and goes is the burning lungs/hot chest feeling that many people mention here. I also have the tight bra strap feeling. I have an occasional cough but that is not problematic it is just a cough every now and then. I have very little appetite and an upset stomach. Low grade fever sometimes but not all the time. Sometimes foggy brain/confusion. I had headaches but can't separate them from my usual perimenopause migraines. My legs feel wobbly when I go downstairs. I've had 2 nights with a very scary episode of high heart rate and not breathless but my breathing feels like it's not doing what it should be - what could be a panic attack but I just don't know - this is followed by extreme chills and upset tummy. I had this again last night, spent 30 mins on phone to 111 and feel like a right state this morning. In normal times I struggle with anxiety and at the moment my anxiety levels are really high so I also wonder if everything I'm experiencing is extreme anxiety symptoms - but so many people on here have the same so who knows. I am trying to manage that as much as possible for brave face for family at home and to my parents on FaceTime but I'm struggling - I don't feel so ill that I have to stay in bed but I find the burning lungs/slight breathless quite scary so trying to rest as much as possible. I am needing to drink absolutely loads of fluids which I find strange but I'm keeping going with that as it must help. I find this thread very helpful so thank you all and especially any posts from those who have made it through. It is comforting to find that other people are experiencing some of the same things as I'm finding it all very strange.

@EMichel102 good question as I am curious to know too. From the news stories I have read so far it seems most people get worse soon after the first week so basically after 7 days.

I have seen a research paper on some Chinese patients which suggested a range of 5-13 days before patients developed breathing problems. However i guess it all depends on what day you start recording the illness. I have therefore been conservative to start counting from when i first curled up in bed rather than when I developed a cough to be on the safe side.

I am hoping that after this weekend the probability of getting worse will be lower. Fingers crossed for all of us.

Do you still have fever?

Cary thank you, that's pretty much what I've had for the past couple of weeks. Also carried on going to work despite a slight niggle that I wasn't right because absolutely nothing matched the nhs symptoms list.

Took my temperature every morning and did the breath test - no cough but a constant feeling that I want to.

Must be about day 10 ish now and I've got up to go to the loo, nearly fainted and gone back to bed. I feel sick and ache from my ribs through to lower back. Have also had the raging thirst for the last week.

Not needed paracetamol yet - nothing has been bad enough but today's probably the day.

I'm so confused about it all and what constitutes 'mild symptoms' of it. Is it it, is it not, is it another bug going about?

Started for me on Monday evening with just feeling a bit out of breath during my home exercise routine. By the evening, my dull sore throat turned into properly painful. By Tuesday, I had a sudden pain in upper back, feeling that my lungs were being squeezed and on fire, had to take my normally very comfy bra off. A feeling of needing to cough, but not fully coughing. Feeling absolutely fine though otherwise.

Wednesday about the same, Thursday feeling much better in the morning, but coming back in the evening. This has been the odd thing about it, the more throat and pressure on lungs almost totally disappear for a few hours thinking it was nothing and then it hits me again. Still feeling breathless during all this time, but mildly.

Yesterday felt overall worse with the same symptoms, but woke up in the night with this feeling of skin prickliness and crawling you normally get during a fever but didn't feel hot. Throat burning again. Feeling a bit out of space now, bit of the pain in back again, just taken my temp for the first time and it's 37.5, so the start of a low grade temp. Drinking my normal cup of tea with plenty of milk is like burning water going down by oesophagus.

So now don't know what to think. Is this what a mild case of it presents like? It seems to follow that trend of feeling better some days, then worse, and the clear shortness of breath, chest pressure mentioned.