Darn! I've felt lousy the last couple of days.
About two weeks ago, I caught a head cold. It seemed like the normal cold symptoms. After about a week it seemed to be easing up. Last weekend, I took my wife and two grandkids to see the Harlem Globetrotters in Dallas and even went out to a BBQ dinner afterwards. My nose was still a bit runny, but I didn't feel bad. On Monday of this week I thought I was out of the woods, but overnight my chest became congested and I realized the cold had moved down to my chest. I was coughing and wheezing while not being able to sleep. I fought it for a couple of days, but finally called my doctor on Wednesday and made an appointment for Thurs morning.
So yesterday at 8:30 AM, I was sitting in my doctor's office. She listened to my chest and did a blood oxygen test to find that my oxygen level was low. She sent me to get a chest x-ray and gave me a breathing treatment. The x-ray showed I had congestion in the mid-lobes of both lungs approaching pneumonia.
I got a big shot of steroids in one 'cheek' and a shot of antibiotics in the other. I got prescriptions for a Portable Nebulizer, Prednisone series, and antibiotics for a 10 day course. She also suggested Coricidon HBP and mucus medicine OTC that I already had.
The nebulizer works pretty well. I start out coughing when I use it, but by the time the treatment is over, my lungs have opened up and I can breathe deeply without coughing. Of course, taking a handful of pills in the morning and following them with coffee is a sure way to make your stomach revolt. My DW fixed me a couple of dry Eggo Waffles and that calmed my stomach right down. This is not going to be an overnight cure, but I can already tell improvements. My breathing is deeper with no wheezing and my coughing has been drastically reduced. If I follow the instructions of my doctor, I'll be back on my feet soon. My doctor also gave me a lecture on not waiting to come to see her. I deserved both her's and my wife's rebukes for putting things off too long. I'm just not as young as I used to be. I have a great doctor and medical coverage that I should use a lot earlier than I did. My bad!
So, if any of you come down with a bad head cold, just consider that you might have a similar strain of cold virus that will fool you into thinking you are okay and then smack you down hard. I encourage you to see your doctor when it's still a head cold. That's not being a wimp, it's being wise.:thumbsup:
