Uncontrollable cough 14 months in

[Cally62]

Turning to MN as I'm now at a total loss as to what to do.

Started coughing in March of last year...only on a night time. Contacted gp in April who prescribed me a ventolin inhaler. No change. Cough just got progresively worse.

Have been given various inhalers , steroids, antibiotics, ppi's. Still no better.

Have had gastro, lung health appointments, exray's, endoscopy's and a ct.
No diagnosis and all tests satisfactory.

Since Christmas I've been coughing so much that I get very little sleep, waking ever 20 minutes or so. Along with wetting myself regularly due to coughing.

For the last 12 nights and now days I'm coughing that much and vomiting and retching night and day. I'm now just brining up bile.

I'm exhausted to spoke to gp yesterday and she doubled my conditions to 40 mg as I said I couldn't take anymore.

Seriously haven't got a clue. This is impacting my whole life.

Surely the answer must be out there somewhere.

Since the weekend I've tried strepsils, throat spray, nasal spray without any relief.

Please lovely people of MN help me find a diagnosis and Get my life back.

Oops...auto correct. Spoke to gp yesterday and she doubled my fluoxitine.

I wrote a big post but lost it. This sounds awful. Poor you! Are you still only seeing a go or have you managed to get a specialist ENT referral? I'd be pushing for that.
Have you tried anti allergy meds? Could something in your house be triggering it? Dust mites, mould etc?

Thank you for your reply @LazyYogi I've tried anti histamines. This is happening outside of my home too. Managed to go to Madeira in January and it was no better.

Yeah...I'll push for an ENT referral.

You aren't taking medication for high blood pressure are you? (e.g Ramipril)

@RainbowZebraWarrior No. I'm 59. Taking hrt, lansoparole, fluoxitine.

Not had covid. Still doing lft's all negative.

Thank you for your reply

It sounds like an utterly awful situation for you. I asked about meds as certain ones can cause a persistent cough as a side effect. I don't know if you started any of the meds you are currently on in March last year? That's what I would track back to. Something has kick started this. I hope the increased dose in fluoxetine helps, but I'd keep a record of your sleep pattern and diary of any symptoms / changes as it can cause things like a dry mouth and sleep issues. Usually settle once your body gets used to the new dose.

Thanks @RainbowZebraWarrior nothing in my life changed back when this started...no new medication or anything I can pin point it to.

My gp is phoning again this afternoon.

Will ask to see if they will at least take a look at my throat and ask for a ENT
Referal.

Can't hate another day of this and certainly not another night.

@RainbowZebraWarrior

Sorry for the little stalking. Tried to send you a test PM after the changes. It isn’t letting me. Just wanted you to know. 🦒 📦 🪟 x

Sorry for interrupting your thread OP.

I hope you manage to get to the bottom of things. It sounds horribly exhausting ☹️

Sounds like you are really suffering with this and have been for some time. How long did you try the nasal spray for and the PPI? Have you tried things like gaviscon also incase this is reflux related?
Have you tried a steroid inhaler before? If so for how long?
Have you ever smoked? Are you otherwise fit and well? Any other symptoms like breathing difficulty? When was your chest last examined? Sorry lots of questions.
Glad your investigations have been normal, that is reassuring. But I do think you need another opinion as your symptoms are progressive so agree with the above that an ENT opinion would be a good way forward as a next step.

Neti pot? If it is post nasal drip? So sorry, sounds awful, fingers crossed you get the referral quickly.

Hmm interesting you mention fluoxetine…

l was on sertraline for a long time. I had an awful cough. No one knew what it was. Then l came off Sertraline…..

It was in the side effects but l never read them.

Thank you so much for your messages...

@RainbowZebraWarrior stalk away.

@girlfromtheloch never ever smoked. Have gone through 3 bottles of gaviscon advance, grosest thing ever..
PPI,s about a year. Double dose atm.
Various inhalers on and off for the last year.
Lung health appointment 2 weeks ago.

Just waiting on another all for some allergen lung tests.

Spoke to GP yesterday...Am now on antibiotics and predisolone again just to see if I can get some relief unit next gastro consult.I

Dp said last night it's his job to look after me but he's not sleeping with me cos I smell constantly of vomit and wee.
He's done an extraordinary job of mopping up, stripping me down and running a bath. Also washed me with a flannel in bed as I was exhausted by all of this.

Dd came around yesterday afternoon, brought something lovely for lunch for us to share. Ate lunch then fell asleep on the sofa for an hour and a half...she even asked for a blanky.

She's a 31 and is an actual nurse.

She said sorry mum I should be looking after you.😇

Yip...awake again. Watching white tv.

This is fucking horrible, op. I can't imagine how awful this is for you. Has your home been tested for mould? Have you been tested for allergies? You need to demand to see a specialist.

May I ask which antihistamines you have tried? I had something similar (though not as bad) for nearly 12 months a few years ago and it took a while to work out that it was an allergy, most likely caused by dust in the school at the livery yard where my DD's horse lived. It took a further while to work out which antihistamine would actually work, answer was benadryl (worked best - the one you take 3 times a day) or desloratadine which is a POM. The effect of one antihistamine over another seems to be a very individual thing.
I hope you get some answers soon OP, I have some idea of the misery you are suffering though yours sounds much worse.

@Aquamarine1029

No mould anywhere in home.

You're right it's fucking relentless.

Just waiting on lung health test and I have a gastro consult next month.

Sorry you're awake to at stupido'clock.

@Andouillette

Sounds like you been though a tough time of it too.

So happy to know that you're through the other side of it.

I've been taking old school anti histamines just for there sedative effect Prometheus 10mg.although I sometimes double up.

Thank you for your message...just to know that others have been through similar is helping.

I just want my life back.

Have a concert to go to tomorrow night .... Don't want to miss it but also don't want to spoil others enjoyment.

Not like it's going to be banging music all night to drown out my coughing.

Hi OP. Sorry to hear you've been awake again.

When I was takking about meds side effects yesterday you said none linked with when the cough started last March. But your post at 1.30 states you started SSRIs about a year ago...

It fits in timescale and is a nasty side effect. And I've seen it before. As I said yesterday, please keep notes now that the fluoxetine has been doubled.

*talking

My mum has had this problem too for a couple of years but over the last 6 months it's really settled down a lot. It was diagnosed as nasal drip and she was prescribed anti histamines but they don't always help but the benidryl nose ones were the best. She said she thinks hers is a case of getting older and general allergens/climates/humidity etc setting it off and her body not being able to reset that reflex after the initial cough. She said avoiding milk has helped. I can't say I can give you a cure but if yours is the same as hers (having random people ask if shes ok in John Lewis as shes crippled over coughing and wretching type thing) it might give you reassurance that at least it can get to the stage of only happening a few times a week rather than all day every day!!!

@AWOL66

Sounds exactly like me....done the John Lewis thing everywhere even in a cathedral last Sunday at 5am in front of the Bishop. I could only apologise and say it's really not covid.

Think we have some benidryl in the bathroom.

Thank you so much for taking the time to post 😇

Hopefully the prednisolone will help you.
Reflux, post nasal drip and cough variant asthma are the most common causes of chronic cough.
It doesn’t sound like the PPI and gaviscon have helped much so reflux sounds less likely to be the cause.
If you haven’t already given it a good try worth using a steroid nasal spray like beconse or flixonase for a good six week trial as they can take this long to work.(you can buy over the counter) Read the info leaflet as you need to get your head almost upside down when using so the spray gets up to your sinuses….
If you haven’t already done so worth trying a steroid inhaler at a good dose, twice a day, using a spacer device also, again for an 8 week trial. It’s always possible you have more than one cause of cough though….
Some people have had covid without realising and have a prolonged cough after this…. It’s possible to have had covid and have had negative test results. Other viruses can cause the same thing though.
Your symptoms have progressed though from the sounds of things though so I do think it sounds like you need a further specialist opinion. Wishing you all the best with this!

My mum just text to say it wasnt Benidryl her favourite is Beconaise sorry! Poor thing having a coughing fit in the Cathedral. It's a nightmare to go through and we all said it's a really unfortunate time to have a cough issue with Covid!!! I'll show my mum this thread as she'll be comforted someone out there understands! I hope it calms down for you.

PS She got hers pre covid so we don't think hers is related to that.

Pps though she also caught covid in Dec which she didn't know about due to the existing cough and an initial negative test result! The stress! haha

This all sounds like really good advice based on what I've heard! 😁