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Recovering from Pneumonia
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Anyone gotten Pneumonia before? How long did it take you to get back to exercising? How did you know you were ready?

I'm 30ish and thought I was really healthy. Rarely ever sick. One day out of the blue I got a cold and 2 days later I had bad fever and chest hurt. Diagnosed with Pneumonia.

It's been 4 weeks and every time I get my heart rate up (maybe just chasing kids around house) I get mild tightness like the pnemonia felt like. Dr said 4 weeks is normal to feel mediocre - said it could be awhile longer.

Anyone experienced similar?
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Re: Recovering from Pneumonia [mvenneta] [ In reply to ]
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I had it last summer, and know how it feels :(
I'd had a lot of strange things going on in the weeks beforehand (achey legs, fatigue, performance dropping off once i hit a certain intensity etc) and i'd been to the doc, who thought it was stress related, and once told that i was half convinced it could be, until i went back with a stabbing sensation through my chest and out the back of my shoulder blade.

First 2 weeks after diagnosis, i wasnt in any fit state to do anything. Absolutely wiped out, no exercise, off work and sat about doing nothing, but suspect thats where the major recovery was.

Weeks 2-4 went back to work but thats all i did, along with a little walking.
Weeks 4-7 started riding the bike, but HR would rocket for no apparent reason as you were riding steadily. Not helped by the fact its not exactly flat where i live. Lungs felt like they were all crinkly, like made from a crisp packet.

After this, all started to return to normal, and endurance came back very quickly. High intensity i tried to avoid for a while, and just played it by ear.

Its now 11 months and i get the odd feeling that may be related to it, but mostly okay.
What i do find is now, there is a big difference in performance between when i'm tired and when i'm not. There's no middle ground.
If nothing else, all the rest will give you chance to clear out all your residual tiredness.

Its not uncommon for it to take 12-18 months for it to completely clear the system apparently.
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Re: Recovering from Pneumonia [philg] [ In reply to ]
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Thanks for comments. Can I ask how old you are?
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Re: Recovering from Pneumonia [mvenneta] [ In reply to ]
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I've had pneumonia twice in my life... first time was in my mid-30's and it took me almost 3 months to get back to normal. It's exactly as you describe it, tightness, feeling like you can't do anything before the HR goes way up, etc. It sucks, but just give it time and slowly build back to normal again.

"Suddenly the thought struck me. My floor is someone elses ceiling"-Nils Ferlin
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Re: Recovering from Pneumonia [mvenneta] [ In reply to ]
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mvenneta wrote:
Thanks for comments. Can I ask how old you are?

Mid 40's
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Re: Recovering from Pneumonia [audiojan] [ In reply to ]
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Did anything help you recover besides rest? How did you know you were ready to come back?
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Re: Recovering from Pneumonia [mvenneta] [ In reply to ]
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Pneumonia could range from general malaise for a few weeks right up to life threatening. Only you can work out where yours fits on that scale. Take your antibiotics eat well and recover on your own time. Flogging yourself early training will only be counterproductive.
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Re: Recovering from Pneumonia [hutchy_belfast] [ In reply to ]
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hutchy_belfast wrote:
Pneumonia could range from general malaise for a few weeks right up to life threatening. Only you can work out where yours fits on that scale. Take your antibiotics eat well and recover on your own time. Flogging yourself early training will only be counterproductive.

I've been off antibodies for 3 weeks now and getting as much sleep as possible

I'm not really interested in flogging myself yet - just would be happy to go for a walk without needing a rest
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Re: Recovering from Pneumonia [mvenneta] [ In reply to ]
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Sounds like you had a serious dose of it. Presuming you are clear of the infection and systemically well (sounds like it) all you can do is recover optimally and listen to your body.
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Re: Recovering from Pneumonia [hutchy_belfast] [ In reply to ]
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]Pneumonia could range from general malaise for a few weeks right up to life threatening. Only you can work out where yours fits on that scale. Take your antibiotics eat well and recover on your own time. Flogging yourself early training will only be counterproductive.[/quote]---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
this would describe my experience, too. also, another poster mentioned the occasional "oh, gee, is it back again?" feeling, mine in the lungs. it never was pneumonia again, but it was a quirky feeling, like maybe my lungs were clogged a bit + discomfort in a deep inhalation.
looking back i'd say my recovery was somewhat similar to that from a very, very bad siege of the flu: weak at first, uneven in rate and type of recovery, but otherwise went well with no residual effects. i hope your recovery is the same.
peggy
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Re: Recovering from Pneumonia [mvenneta] [ In reply to ]
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Not first-hand, but a family member had pneumonia. Recovery was months, not weeks. Expect 6 to 9 months before you are back. If sooner, then that is a gift.
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Re: Recovering from Pneumonia [mvenneta] [ In reply to ]
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I had pneumonia in January. I was out of commission and still symptomatic for 3.5 weeks in January.

Once symptoms were gone it took 2 weeks before I could go for a walk without needing a rest. Another week before I could sit on my bike and spin. Another 2 weeks before I could jog without stopping to cough and have to walk home. Then over 2 weeks I was able to creep up the effort levels slowly. All told it was 9-11 weeks before I felt I was able to start training properly again. I'm only now feeling back where I was before getting sick.

Mine also came from a toddler running around the house.

Rest up!
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