I'm Sick...

[Ben]

I rarely get sick, maybe once a year, if that. But, I've been fighting a sore throat, congestion in my throat and a cough for a week. Being that I don't get sick often I've been using a mental medicine to will this away, but, I can't take it anymore. I bought some Maximum Strength Mucinex cough syrup and Ricola cough drops. Is acceptance the first step to recovery? I must say, the soreness in swallowing disappeared instantly after drinking the cough syrup.

What is everyone's remedy? Medicinal or natural? I've heard gargling salty hot water does wonders for a sore throat.

[Old1964]

Nyquil for evenings.

Sudafed for daytime.

I've heard whiskey and honey helps too. At least the whiskey part...

[Ben]

hmmmm, whiskey. Good idea!

[Mr. Desmond]

Originally Posted by Ben

I rarely get sick, maybe once a year, if that. But, I've been fighting a sore throat, congestion in my throat and a cough for a week. Being that I don't get sick often I've been using a mental medicine to will this away, but, I can't take it anymore. I bought some Maximum Strength Mucinex cough syrup and Ricola cough drops. Is acceptance the first step to recovery? I must say, the soreness in swallowing disappeared instantly after drinking the cough syrup.

What is everyone's remedy? Medicinal or natural? I've heard gargling salty hot water does wonders for a sore throat.

Doctor - steroid and antibiotic shot in hip, and then a z-pack.

Why suffer more than you need?

[RPMPIRE]

I don't use cough drops anymore. It does give you some sort of instant relief, but after not taking them, your throat feels a lot worse. I use Theraflu syrup and Nyquil at night.

Some friends of mine actually run a mile when they're sick and they do feel better the next day. Never tried it, but thought it was interesting.

[x129]

Running (or other light workout) works great for a head cold. For a lung infection is just hurts....

Originally Posted by RPMPIRE

I don't use cough drops anymore. It does give you some sort of instant relief, but after not taking them, your throat feels a lot worse. I use Theraflu syrup and Nyquil at night.

Some friends of mine actually run a mile when they're sick and they do feel better the next day. Never tried it, but thought it was interesting.

[newtogolf]

I usually take a shower as hot as I can stand to get my body temperture up.  The increased body temp seems to do well fighting off most viruses, but bacterial infections typically require anti-biotics.

[jamo]

DayQuil and NyQuil for me. My colds aren't usually that bad, and they tend to have a pretty common progression. The sore throat usually goes away an hour or so after I wake up, and the rest is just a stuffy nose and a feeling of general lousiness. I tend to just forget about it during the day.

[TheGeekGolfer]

+1 on the hot shower. Nyquil doesn't work as well as they used, since they took out codeine (i think). Remember, used to be 'nighttime sniffling....stuffy head, fever, so you can rest'. They took out 'stuffy head' (at least in OR). Tylenol night time and daytime work well. Although I used to love those crazy Nyquil dteams.

[jamo]

+1 on the hot shower. Nyquil doesn't work as well as they used, since they took out codeine (i think). Remember, used to be 'nighttime sniffling....stuffy head, fever, so you can rest'. They took out 'stuffy head' (at least in OR). Tylenol night time and daytime work well. Although I used to love those crazy Nyquil dteams.

I don't think it was codeine. According to wikipedia it used to have pseudoephedrine, but they took that out a few years ago.

[TheGeekGolfer]

Originally Posted by jamo

I don't think it was codeine. According to wikipedia it used to have pseudoephedrine, but they took that out a few years ago.

Yeah, maybe that was it.

[Beachcomber]

Ben, I used to get a lot of head colds and sore throats... And often times would result in me getting bronchitis once or twice a year.  It sucked, and my doctor would always prescribe a z-pack to help me.  The z-pack worked great... But it sucked letting my body get to the point where I even needed it.

Here was my problem... I wasn't addressing the initial issue of what ultimately lead to these terrible virus/colds.  So in an effort to try and eliminate these recurring colds/viruses... I went and traced back my steps of how I felt days/weeks/months before I got sick.  And a common theme was I typically get a runny nose or congestion - especially when outside playing golf in colder/windy weather.  It was basically my allergies triggering these issues of getting sick. As I would start with a common runny nose, congestion or even sneezing here or there... So about a year ago, I started to take a daily (24hr) allergy pill every morning... Just the generic Kroger brand which is in a small little bottle (30 to 60 pills) for a month or two month supply that you can pick up at CVS or your local grocery (Ralphs).  I haven't been sick for a year+ since I started this routine.

I believe the reason is that it has kept me from getting that congestion and ultimately the post nasal drip which leads to an irritated throat.  The other thing that I do is drink hot coffee in the morning (seems to help my throat) and drink water before I go to bed.  And if I wake up in the middle of the night to take a bathroom break... Drink some water before I jump back in bed.  This routine helps keep my throat moist through the night as I tend to breath through my mouth when I sleep.

Good luck getting better!  It is never fun being sick.

[imtomtomim]

I approach illness just like you do Ben.  I kind of just tough it out and let it be a workout for my immune system.

Back in college, I got strep 3 separate times my first year (went a little crazy on the courting game).  Anyways, I discovered my remedy was ibuprofen for the fever and candy bars.  I'd scarf 2 milky ways from the vending machine and I'd feel like new.

Sometimes I'd just slurp down a spoon full of honey, the thickness does offer a little relief as it helps coat my throat so my breathing doesn't irritate it as much, but that doesn't last too long.  I mainly go for the ibu as it will bring the swelling down and help relieve some pain.

A little humidity may also help.  Hot steam from the shower or a cup of tea does help ease the pains of breathing.

[Ben]

Thanks everyone for the insight. The wacky thing about what I've got is that it seems to be under control while I'm out hitting balls or playing or in the golf shop, the moment I start winding down at home, boom, here come the symptoms again. My roommate is Taiwanese and she made me this gnarly ginger soup, downed that real quick. I think I'll go make another cup of tea...

[clubchamp]

Originally Posted by RPMPIRE

I don't use cough drops anymore. It does give you some sort of instant relief, but after not taking them, your throat feels a lot worse. I use Theraflu syrup and Nyquil at night.

Some friends of mine actually run a mile when they're sick and they do feel better the next day. Never tried it, but thought it was interesting.

It could be just a mental thing but some people say it the whole sweat it out theory actually works. I've had days where I felt terrible and went for a run in the evening then felt a lot better the next day.

[jamo]

Thanks everyone for the insight. The wacky thing about what I've got is that it seems to be under control while I'm out hitting balls or playing or in the golf shop, the moment I start winding down at home, boom, here come the symptoms again. My roommate is Taiwanese and she made me this gnarly ginger soup, downed that real quick. I think I'll go make another cup of tea...

That part could be a mental thing, you simply don't think about being sick when you're golfing, but when you have a down moment you realize you don't feel so great.

[Kieran123]

I'm sick as a dog too.

Was sick Monday/Tuesday last week, then woke up sick yesterday too.

Still at work ( last 2 days at current job before starting my new one )

Coughing up bouncy balls in the morning....

[RPMPIRE]

I think the sweat out thing works. I put on layers of clothes when I'm sick and also do the really hot showers. It helps a lot. I just haven't done the jogging-while-sick remedy.

Originally Posted by clubchamp

It could be just a mental thing but some people say it the whole sweat it out theory actually works. I've had days where I felt terrible and went for a run in the evening then felt a lot better the next day.