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Sat 21 Feb, 2015 04:38 pm
My husband gave me the flu this week. He came home from work Friday a week ago feeling poorly by Sunday he was puny and Monday sick as a dog...Tuesday I started running fever. I have had the flu. Got tested Friday because husband wouldn't go to the dr unless I went to the dr and I thought he was drowning at night - He got an antibiotic and shots and is feeling much better today.
I got shots and great cough medicine. Of course no antbiotic since it was diagnosed flu and would do no good and no Tamilflu because I waited so long. No big deal...I didn't want to go to the doc in the first place.
SO TODAY! The first day I woke up feeling somewhat back in the land of the living and this afternoon I have a horrible sore throat and horrible sinus congestion. WHAT THE HECK? Could this be a secondary infection? Is it more of the flu? I had horrible chest congestion - aches pains - but no sore throat or runny nose.
I don't understand.
My question. Do I just treat the symptoms in hopes they will go away? This surely is not the flu still...I NEED TO GO BACK TO WORK WITH MY KIDS ON MONDAY - I MISSED A WHOLE WEEK OF SCHOOL.
Any suggestions?
It could indeed be whatever was in you at the start...whatever your husband decided he'd share. There are times when the first moment of seeming to be better is a horrible ruse perpetrated by mean-spirited illnesses. It lulls you into believing you're healthier and then...ZAP! it returns, sometimes more vicious than the first go.
Best to sleep and rest for the weekend, hoping for the best by Monday a.m.
@Sturgis,
So sweet of my husband wasn't it? And why does the flu have to pick on me?
I am sad to hear about the Zap it returns sometimes more vicious than the first go though.
But I shall take your advice and retire to my couch, with my pillow and blanky.
Thanks Sturgis.
@mismi,
http://www.flu.gov/about_the_flu/seasonal/index.html
Quote:What are common complications from the seasonal flu?
Complications from the flu include:
Bacterial pneumonia
Ear or sinus infections
Dehydration
Worsening of chronic health conditions
Each year approximately 5-20% of U.S. residents get the flu and more than 200,000 people are hospitalized for flu-related complications.
How long does the illness last and how long am I contagious?
Most people who get the flu feel much better within one or two weeks. Most healthy adults can infect others one day before symptoms develop and five to seven days after symptoms appear. Some people, especially young children and people with weakened immune systems, might be contagious for a longer period.
a true flu - which you have - can last a couple of weeks and then you look at recovery time from the exhaution
@mismi,
mismi wrote:I NEED TO GO BACK TO WORK WITH MY KIDS ON MONDAY - I MISSED A WHOLE WEEK OF SCHOOL.
some of your kids are health-compromised
you are still well within the period where you can infect others
don't mess with going back early. it will be good for no one
influenza is serious business
@ehBeth,
You are so right.
But I am so sad. I miss my friends at work. And my sweet kids.
But you are right about them being medically fragile.
crapit. I am so mad at the prof right now.
@mismi,
Rest. Take care of yourself.
The boys can help take care of you and the Prof for a few days. They're well old enough.
Stay away from babies and seniors and make sure the kids and the Prof do as well.
Influenza is a real bad news bear.
A friend and I got colds on approximately the same day, almost two weeks ago. Both of us have had flu and pneumonia shots. Symptoms more like colds.
We'd only been to one place together before the onset.. so maybe that was the infection site. Our symptoms are a bit different, but similar. Not the flu, by med site descriptions. She got better (but still not over it) first, and I'm better day by day. All very annoying as neither of us have had a cold for several years.
I read up on a lot of websites, and I can imagine that mine may actually be allergy (furnace gunk in the air). I've had asthma in the past, but not the serioso asthma a lot of people get, where you have trouble breathing, and not now either; on the other hand, as a long time allergy person, it feels like a cold.
In our cases, no fever, different kinds of coughs, no color sputum, nor color in nasal discharge.
The one thing I read about that I might try, is steam. Naturally, don't put your head in boiling water - they tell you how on med websites.
I've found hot liquid ingested will be followed by bubbly coughing, but then, after an episode of that, things get better. Hmmm. Some website said that was a way to get the viral mucous out of there.
We've had fun trading snot stories.
Mismi, about school, I think I'd be careful going in if you're still snotting about.
If I remember the virus/viri is most contagious in early stages, but don't trust me on that. Even if you aren't now contageous, it may seem so to others.
I actually had a semester of a virology class, years ago, but I haven't kept up.
I'm on the adamant side about not using antibiotics unnecessarily, as in for a cold, but I suppose I'd try them if my snot or phlegm was green.
@mismi,
Take it easy Miss Sunshine, flu can be a killer. The following is probably true for the US as well.
Quote:This year's seasonal flu vaccine is barely able to protect people from the main strain of flu being spread in the UK, health officials say.
Doctors are being urged to use antiviral drugs quickly to protect vulnerable patients.
Evidence shows the vaccine is stopping only three out of every 100 vaccinated people from developing symptoms.
But Public Health England says people should still get vaccinated to protect against other strains of flu.
Flu is a constantly shifting target and that makes it difficult to develop a vaccine. It is why a new jab is needed each year.
Twelve months ago, the World Health Organization settled on the three most likely strains of flu that would be circulating this winter.
But one of them has since mutated so significantly that the vaccine seems to offer little protection.
It works in just three out of every 100 people. A flu vaccine normally works in 50 out of every 100.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-31145604
@mismi,
I will mention that one winter of three or four light cases of cold or flu cost me 80% of the hearing in my right ear. I would take this seriously.
@roger,
I am back in the land of the living. Thanks for your well wishes and information! I am still recovering from the exhaustion but we get a snow day today so that is helpful.
Alabama has declared a state of emergency...which is hilariously funny but I must say I am thankful for it since we will not have to make up for the school day we are missing today.
Hugs to you all...
@mismi,
Quite glad to read that you are feeling better and that the snow gods saw fit to even give you and extra day off! Stay healthy!
@mismi,
mismi wrote: I am still recovering from the exhaustion
this is a sign that you've had a true flu
getting over the fatigue is vital
don't try to push past it - you will have to get lots of rest so you don't get the rebound flu effect
________
take good care of yourself MissGirl
@Sturgis,
Thank you! It didn't snow where I am
just a very cold
Rain - but I did get to rest. It was nice.
@ehBeth,
Thank you sweet Beth. (((Beth)))
There is a rebound flu?
@mismi,
if you go sideways from the link I posted earlier, you find
http://www.flu.gov/symptoms-treatment/symptoms/index.html
and there you find
Quote:When should I seek emergency medical attention?
Seek medical attention immediately if you experience any of the following:
Difficulty breathing or shortness of breath
Purple or blue discoloration of the lips
Pain or pressure in the chest or abdomen
Sudden dizziness
Confusion
Severe or persistent vomiting
Seizures
Flu-like symptoms that improve but then return with fever and worse cough
this is why you want to take it easy and make sure you have a full recovery
this stuff can literally kill you
Quote:Millions of people are infected, hundreds of thousands are hospitalized and thousands die from flu each year.
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