Monday, January 8, 2018
Crud report
If you haven't yet suffered from this year's flu bug, allow me to assure you: it's a nasty one. I was laid low on Tuesday last week. I ran a fever until Thursday evening, along with blocked sinuses, post-nasal drip, aching joints and all the usual miseries. Things began to ease up after that, but by yesterday the crud had settled into my bronchial passages, with a rasping, painful cough and lumps of yuckiness coming up.
I went to the doctor this morning, and got two shots in rapid succession; an antibiotic, and a steroid. I'm on a Z-pack, starting tomorrow, plus double-strength Mucinex to dissolve the crud as fast as possible. My rear end now hurts on both sides, making sitting at my desk a lot of fun (NOT!). Moan, moan, whinge, butthurt (literally as well as figuratively), and so on.
Do please be careful, people. This year's flu bug is causing doctors a lot of trouble, from everything I'm hearing and seeing locally. It's not to be trifled with. Miss D. and I had the flu shot back in December, but it doesn't appear to work very well against the current strain, so be warned.
Peter
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17 comments:
I thought the science was settled!?!?!??! Get the flu shot they said, you won't have to worry about the flu they said.....yeah right.
Steve
Glad the doc is getting you two sorted out! And PITA is better than the option...
Yeah, I got that Flu shot, and supposedly the upgraded one at that. Meh.
I instruct a class of 24 snot riddled germ bags (X2 last week when I doubled all week). At home, Herself and her virus laden plague ridden children were all sick all week long.
Me? Too busy, and already hurting far too much to take on one more ill. I'll wait to have the flu till I can really enjoy it.
Georgia has been extremely hard hit. The television stations and news casts are urging people to take every precaution. You can get a shot for last years flu, and wash your hands frequently, but probably not a whole lot else to be done unless you can avoid other people completely. sorry you got it.
Thank you for the description of the symptoms. I'm now reasonably certain I was merely suffering from a nasty cold all year, rather than the flu. Today's the first day I haven't felt totally rotten all year.
I hope the doctor reminded you drink A LOT of extra water with the Mucinex/guaifenesin or the junk in your lungs won't get soft enough to cough up.
A little colts foot and Mullen leaf tea helps soothe the chest symptoms too.
Good to read you two are getting better.
The Z-pack antibiotics are semi-miraculous. Throat coat herbal tea helps a lot with sore throat also.
I've had more flu patients than overdoses lately; that's a change. We were also informed that the efficacy of flu shots we were coerced into getting was about zero. Again.
And, I hope you get to feeling better soon.
Flu shots almost never work. It takes a minimum of three years to create, certify, and mass produce a vaccine. The flu mutates in less than half that time. Simple math. If you pay attention, every year for the past five years (all I've been tracking) the vaccine has been 'less effective than anticipated'.
It's quite amazing to see how what is initially a viral infection open the door to sympathetic bacterial infections. It's also amazing to see the damage control that suddenly appeared when it became impossible to hide how ineffective the flu vaccine was this year.
I think that the cultivation of a healthy bacterial biome, especially a nasal bacterial biome, would do wonders for reduction of viral complications, much as a FMT will do for weight loss and reduction of inflammation of the gut.
the shot was only ten percent effective this year, I'm told. It's a gamble, they can only pick 6 strains to include, and if they choose poorly, we get sick. Both my husband and I had it the week before Christmas, the first time we've been that sick in years. Bleah. Still not feeling back to 100% here. Take it easy!
Hope you get better soon. I had it in November and it was NOT FUN. I had several nights without sleep and it gradually cleared over a week or so.
Funny, every time I visit, the V.A. Clinic and Hospital try to guilt me into taking a flu shot. Every time, I remind them that the shot they are offering is for last year's flu. When they ask politely, I tell them (mostly youngsters who don't have a clue) about the still classified shots (4, my shot record says) that I received in the months leading up to and during the 90's Gulf War, that gave me antibodies for diseases I never had. At least, that's what my Med Records say, "No History of". Antibodies, mind you, that the medical professionals say do NOT make me immune. So, if there's no benefit from a specific vaccination, why take it? Just so I can be - yet again - an experimental lab animal?
Glad you're doing better. Keep the liquids flowing and be happy you don't have hemorrhoids acting up! :-)
This years' flu shot has four strains; most years it's only three.
Since October, the CDC has identified nearly 650 strains in circulation in the U.S.
This year's shot is only about 19% effective.
And speaking anecdotally and personally, the after-effects of the respiratory component are a two-month long tail of symptoms, after the 1-2 week virulently contagious stage.
Cover your cough, wash your hands, and stay home when you're sick.
If you or yours are out spreading it when you're suffering, I hope you die of a painful form of crotch cancer. Just saying.
Z-pak, steroids, and antibiotic injections don't do any good against flu, just expose you to risk.
-Steve
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