Remedies

I had that dry cough for a while - just got rid of it. I used an OTC mucus reliever. It actually made my cough productive.

Hi K.,

Elderberry will build your immune system so your body will fight off the symptoms. I keep it in house for so many things. There are other things you can do but this is the simplest, a cheap route and safe, with no side effects. It's simply food! Make sure its a pharmacuetical grade (Vitamin Shoppe, not Vitamin World or GNC).

Know this will help. Over the counter meds simply break down your immune system and make you more susceptible to the next "yuck" that comes along!

Regards,
M.

Steam, warm tea with honey& lemon.

Perhaps you have seasonal asthma. I had this for many years and when I couldn't breath and an ER trip confirmed it.

The cold air would trigger the coughing and it would not stop for several hours and I was miserable. The wheezing is a key component to asthma. Call your doctor and get a prescription so you an stop coughing and get better.

the other S.

PS It will be a lot less expensive than 3 days in hospital.

I would try a teaspoon of local honey. It coats your throat.

Take Care,
T. Y
SAHM of 5 (13, 11, 6, 4 & 2)

Have you tried a cough suppressant?

Vicks on the bottom of your feet with socks over them. Older folks swear by this and it worked for me

If you have a vaporizer get it going the humid air will help a lot. You probably need an OTC expectorant. It will help to thin the mucus and then your body to get rid of it.

Lot's of steam - use a humidifier at night and take lot's of steamy showers.
When I have a cough I like to sleep with a heating pad on low on my chest.
People use to use a mustard plaster and you can still do that but be careful of burning your skin.

Are you sure it's not asthma? That sounds like my asthma cough I get when the weather or allergy season changes. If so, prescription meds can help relieve/control it but OTC cold meds won't do a thing.

ETA: You need to know your triggers if it turns out to be asthma as some of the ideas listed in this thread can actually make it much worse. For example if it is asthma you do NOT want to take any kind of a hot steamy shower, that can trigger a much more severe episode.

Well, I just decided today to get myself an appointment with the doctor for that same exact thing, so if I get any good insight I'll edit my answer to let you know.

Take several hot steamy showers per day. Don't have to use soap or shampoo, just the hot water is fine.

Have a humidifier going all the time in the main rooms you hang out in.

Take the full dose of plain normal Tussin every 4 hours. All those meds are the same exact med. Musinex, Tussin, Robotussin, all of them.

Tussin is guafenisin. It's an expectorant. Nothing more, nothing less. It draws moisture into the lungs and makes the goo easier to come up when you cough. It's 4 teaspoons every 4 hours. If it has other stuff in it then it's not what you need. Do NOT take the DM, it has less med in it to get the goo loose. It's purpose is to slow down or stop the cough. You only need Tussin, plain Tussin.

Then call the doc and ask them if you can get a breathing treatment. If you use a real nebulizer it has a hose, air, and you put a vial of medication in it and it makes a vapor like steam. An inhaler that has a med in it isn't what I mean.

A nebulizer uses a med that is liquid. It is premixed with sterile water and a dilator to make the airways in the lungs expand. Sometimes I think the sterile water does just as much good as the medication.

These are things you can do at home.

I heard that grapefruit extract would help. A health food store would carry it. good luck!

humidity is your first and best friend when this is going on. run a humidifier in your room at night, and take nice steamy showers when you can. i also like hot eucalyptus bubbly baths.
i'd also drink a cup of sage tea every day, liberally dolloped with local honey.
feel better soon!
khairete
S.