Cough literally making me sick

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Hi,

So I spoke to a Dr today and was told the reason for my cough is it’s ‘post viral’ , which I guess explains why it’s come on worse since finishing the anti biotics for tonsillitis etc . I was told because I’m pregnant I’m limited to what I can take , and was told to suck on Menthol cough sweets like Jakemans , drink plenty of water and if it carries on for more than 3 bloody weeks! go back to the dr .
It’s making me physically sick I’m coughing so much. I’m so depressed , I’m not sleeping, it’s giving me awful stomach cramps , I have hardly any voice , my tonsils are hurting from coughing , I don’t know what to do to ease it ? I can’t cope with this much longer it’s making me miserable . I’ve counted today I’ve coughed 182 times , excluding coughing fits where I’ve coughed excessively.
Please has anyone got any advise on how to sleep when you have a cough? I can eventually drift off and then I’m awoken suddenly by a tickle and then it starts all over .
There’s no phlegm, it’s just very dry and tickly . I’m not unwell With it, DH checked my temp again today and it’s normal , 36.7 , no headache or anything .
Please , any drs out there with a bit more sympathy ??

Google whooping cough. Absolute bastard of a cough that can cause vomiting through so much coughing. Surprisingly common now & no treatment needed if it's not picked up in the early stages.

@TinnedPearsForPudding thank you, it’s definitely not whooping cough as it just sounds like a dry barky cough rather than a whoop, and there’s no phlegm . It’s utterly miserable though I’m getting no peace and it’s so sore on my tummy now . It comes so suddenly , if I’ve been coughing a lot it’s just making me gag I can’t catch a break . If I’ve gone a few minutes without , and I cough, it feels ok it’s like a relief but again after a while it’s just awful and I panic. Luckily I’m off work tomorrow and Tuesday but I’m very concerned about the lack of sleep and the pain it’s causing

Er, I don’t think it’s likely to be whooping cough.

OP, I have a horrendous cough right now, one of the worst I’ve ever had. I’m quite prone to violent coughing fits as it is (you know when it feels like your throat is closing up? Ugh) and this weekend I’ve coughed to the point of puking twice. Not to mention all the other coughing fits where I managed not to puke.

It’s miserable as hell. I never go to the GP but if this carries on for much longer I might have to.

@haworthia , totally sympathise . I’ve never had anything like it . The worst I’ve had is a tickly cough for maybe two days , but it was a week ago today I got discharged from hospital so it’s been long enough already! I assumed it would go when the tonsillitis cleared up but no. Apparently I have to suffer another three weeks before going back to the drs . I literally want to die it’s so bad . No sleep, this whole pregnancy so far has either been miserable from morning sickness (all day), migraines or a bloody infection ! I’ve not enjoyed any of it yet !

Pholcodine linctus might help.
If its a dry cough then youre itching your own lungs, which makes the itch worse. Its so hard to not do the cough though but it makes it worse.

Make sure you are drinking loads of fluids to keep your lungs moist. Gargle with brandy, eat garlic. Use vicks. Night nurse.

Natural mild cough suppressants are tea made with thyme. Fresh pineapple. Dark chocolate.

@branleuse thank you, I’ve ordered some Vicks it’ll come tomorrow , I’m not allowed Pholcodine linctus I think it’s something to do with my epilepsy meds they interact . My husband keeps telling me to try not to cough, is that due to irritation then ? I thought he was saying it because I’m keeping him up lol

I'm also pregnant with a horrible persistent cough. I don't think drs can generally do much for coughs even when not pregnant :(

Sending sympathy. I'm sleeping with more pillows than normal and drinking lots of water. Eat lots of fruit and veg to get your vitamins in. Hope it goes soon for us both.

@pink it’s awful isn’t it ? I’ll try and prop myself up more , but even sitting on the sofa this afternoon I coughed and vomited everywhere .
You’re right , there’s nothing a Dr can do really , and it just makes it worse when you’re pregnant .
I hope you feel better soon , i wouldn’t wish this on anyone . Also congrats on your pregnancy x

Old school cure of a teaspoon of good quality honey will soothe and not have any issues with medication interactions

@idontknowmyname thank you I’ll go to the shops tomorrow and get some honey , I really don’t like honey but if it’ll work then I need to man up a bit!

I've got a cough I've had since Christmas, tried everything, think it just has to sort itself out.

You can presumably take paracetamol for the achy ribs though?
Can you take a decongestant tablet (check re pregnancy and other meds)? I take one am and I think it does help. I don't take them in the afternoon as they stop me sleeping.
Covonia cough sweets are nice.
Honey, lemon and fresh ginger is good too.

Try agave syrup or maple syrup if you don't like honey.

sympathies to you - I had this two or three years running several years ago and it was grim.

Things which helped:
Humidifying the room - a damp towel on the radiator is one way, and avoid air conditioning which tends to dry the air.

Sleeping propped up - loads of pillows.

Honey in warm water.

And sucking almost constantly to lubricate the throat - I found simple pastilles pretty good, or (slightly surprisingly) a square of good plain chocolate. I got some cough sweet lollies (something like this www.amazon.com/Halls-Kids-Cherry-Cough-Throat/dp/B071HRHHBL) to suck on if I was getting sleepy so as to not accidentally swallow a cough sweet if I fell asleep. A bit weird but needs must.

Xpost with some of the other advice!

Your husband said try not to cough? Like you’re choosing to cough so hard you vomit? Idiot

I get this all the time, and I am so sorry to find a fellow sufferer.
What works for me is anti histamine tablets, or nasal spray like Beconase and Simple Linctus cough syrup.
Also when very bad, sitting in a very steamy bathroom helps.

Whooping cough is exactly what I was going to mention. I had it a couple winters back.

There’s been a resurgence even among those of us who were immunised. They’re not exactly sure why, possibly the immunisation has worn off or the virus has mutated so that the immunisation isn’t working.

It’s a barking, dry cough that seriously interferes with breathing and can cause vomiting.

However, as you also mention tonsillitis I wonder if you do a job/occupation that requires a lot of talking? If so it could possibly be pharyngitis which also can make coughing = vomiting because the part that’s irritated/inflamed is perfectly placed to trigger the gag reflex!

Cause can be viral or bacterial but really the key is good anti-inflammatories and lubrication.

A 3rd possibility though given you’re pregnant is the most concerning. How far along are you? How’s your bp? Have you had any leg, resting chest/back pain? Are you coughing up any blood? These are symptoms of a pulmonary embolism which there is an increased risk of during pregnancy.

You also mention epilepsy? That could result in a pe seizure being dismissed as epilepsy. Also I’m no expert on epilepsy do any of your meds make you higher risk for PE?

I’m assuming dr knows all this? But if you’re early stages of pregnancy they may not be aware if they didn’t check your notes thoroughly.

I’m afraid I’m quite sceptical/critical of gps because of my own history where they’ve repeatedly ignored important symptoms.

Please speak to your gp surgery tomorrow, perhaps contact your midwife if you’re still getting stonewalled.

I don’t think it’s acceptable you’re allowed to continue suffering like this.

Tips for annoying dry tickly coughs: Chewing gum - better than cough sweets.
Also sipping warm drinks eg herbal teas ++
Avoid talking especially on the phone.

@Graphista morning , you seem very knowledgeable. Yes I had tonsillitis, and I work in a hospital and do lots of talking unfortunately!
I’m 11 weeks pregnant , had no issues with pain, any symptoms of PE. My epilepsy meds are very safe and cannot cause PE and my seizures are very much epileptic seizures . Dr and midwife know my history and I’m being consultant led . My husband is a bit funny about drs too after being dismissed once . So I get you. But it’s most definitely a post viral cough 😷

Morning OP!

I've had my bastard cough since November and yes, it's "post-viral". I too have epilepsy so I'm a little limited on meds I can take but at least I'm not pregnant.

Best thing I do, as advised by a pharmacist (who genuinely believes that most cough meds are useless), is drinking warm water. Warmer than lukewarm, but not exactly hot. It's helping me bring stuff up (🤢 sorry) and I stopped being sick with coughing.

Also a bowl of hot water with some Vicks in it!

Hope you feel better soon.

are you cutting out milk?
that causes mucus

@YesItsMeIDontCare thanks so much, so you understand what it’s like with a medical condition thrown in too! It’s a nightmare . But since November ?!? Oh my goodness 😖 I can’t cope with it for 3 months !!
I’ll try the warm water and the hot water with vicks today , as the vicks should be arriving today. How do you sleep ? I’ve had yet another sleepless night and I’m close to a breakdown now !! Stomach cramps have gone though!
@enidblyton the only milk I’ve been having is a small amount in Weatabix and one cuppa a day , probably too much ?

I had whooping cough last year and it took weeks and weeks for them to work out what it was (I had a blood test at the hospital as a ‘oh well we may as well take some blood). I was just coughing until I thought I would vomit and/or pee myself! So not what you would think was a ‘whoop’ - yes, a dry bark. It got worse over the weeks until I would fought until I felt I couldn’t catch a breath.

I would have been immunised against it as a child but that’s not always a guarantee. The hospital said that they couldn’t do very much anyway.

Yes it’s horrible and sore - honey and warm water helps.

Sounds like something I went thought while pregnant with DS2. Both me and DS1 had a horrendous cough and I coughed until I vomited several times a day and so did DS1. I drank hot water with lemon and honey to try and soothe my throat. Another thing to to maybe try is vicks on your feet and then put socks on, people swear by it 🤷‍♀️ I feel for you OP, I really do.

Lemon verbena tea is a natural remedy for persistent coughs as meant to relax the muscles in the chest. I cannot remember if you can drink it in pregnancy though... ask your midwife? Poor you, sounds awful