I’m sick for the 3rd time this year. Frustrating. Every time is the same. Starts in the throat, then that fades but it moves into the sinuses, and ultimaterly into the chest that results in a cough that lasts for up to 2 weeks. I never just lose a day or two, but rather a week+.
I’ve typically done little about it – just tea, vitamin C and other stuff that we all know doesn’t actually to anything to speed recovery. I’m wondering if others drug themselves up with Dayquil, Nyquil, etc., and whether that might actually prevent things like development into the dreaded cough.
Dayquil and Nyquil always left me feeling “medicated.”
I don’t get sick very often (knock on wood) but I like those Cold-Eeze losenges and if things get really bad I will use the Alka-Seltzer nightime cold medicine. You will sleep great but not wake up feeling groggy or medicated. That just my $.02. If you are really sick and aren’t sleeping well it will only make things worse, it might be worth a shot.
Definitely medicate, Dayquil and Nyquil are really good. I am also taking Mucinex, it has worked wonders. I never would have medicated, but my wife insisted;)
You’re not alone. I’m dealing with a cold right now. Scratchy throat all last week and Monday the nose faucet turned on. I absolutely hate taking medicine, but think I’m going to resort to some sudafed. UGH!!! I hate having a cold.
I don’t think there is anything that speeds cold recovery, but some medicine remove the symptoms, which will make you at least feel better. NyQuil works wonders to help me get a good night of sleep when I am sick. Another thing: drinking lots of water helps your body flush all the bad stuff.
I also have a very bad cold right now. I usually try not to cut my workout schedule if I have a cold, but on Sunday I had the bad experience of puking at mile 12 of my (failed) attempt to run 20 miles. Don’t try this at home!!!
i’m in the same situation, and I know AndrewJ is coming out of it as well.
honestly, most colds take 2 weeks, sometimes 4 weeks. i do not believe that OTC meds help that much. they will not cure you, but can provide a little relief, if you’re lucky.
the thing that has helped me sleep is a hot mist humidifier, with eucalyptus oils. it really opens up the sinuses and keeps the cough down. also very hot baths with salts–gets the blood moving, relieves the sinuses and gets the body temperature up so you can kill off some infection. last year i put a hot castor oil pack on my chest and it did relieve my cough a great deal–it was gone one or two days later.
today i feel that i can drive and will go to the steam room. this is very effective–it’s super hot, lots of humidity obviously, and clears out a junky cough and green nose. it’s good, do this if you can find one.
as for vitamins, this is the first time i haven’t done a full court press on the vitamins. in the past, i would take a lot of them to try to rush the cold out, but it never helped me. so, this time i stuck to hot baths, no workouts, very spicy foods, chicken broths, and eucalyptus hot mist humidifier. it seems all of this is better, i’m recovering quicker and may try to work out today.
OTC = relief, not faster resolution of the cold. If the cold happens repeatedly, maybe a visit to your doc might be in order to rule out a bacterial infection.
Well, I wasn’t thinking so much that OTC meds speed recovery but rather prevent worsening. For example, if you keep the sinuses from dripping, does that somehow prevent it from turning into the nasty cough/bronchitis that seems to happen to me EVERY time I get sick? It lasts for weeks with me, and can be a real hassle when swimming as I will go to take a breath and feel junk in my lungs that rattles around. Very unfun.
being sick really blows…on top of all the other suggestions…
Anyone ever try a product called Cold FX?
Its supposed to be a ginseng derivative, and though i have a hehe healthy skepticism for all cold remedies, it has helped me out of a couple of colds very quickly. i would say for me it seems to have worked 70% of the time by noticeably reducing the length of infection and/or symptoms=helps get back to training sooner
it also touts preventative properties…but i refuse to take it all the time…
definetly doesnt make me feel medicated or dopier (than usual)…and hey Don Cherry hawks its…sooo…it must be for real…heard rumours that NHL teams are partial to it as well, but that could be total nonsense…
I avoided taking Cold FX last year because I didn’t think a product pitched by Don Cherry would actually work.
Friends of mine said they used it last year and had zero colds.
In October this year I had a scratchy throat and felt like crap - so I did the Cold FX thing. No cold ever materialized and I felt amazing. Since then, any time I’ve felt a cold coming on I do the Cold FX thing.
I’m wondering if others drug themselves up with Dayquil, Nyquil, etc., and whether that might actually prevent things like development into the dreaded cough.
Start with prevention. I’m like you, typically I start getting sinus activity around the first of December, and then again in the spring. I believe they are associated with allergies. If I remember to take Claritin D, I don’t get it. Or if I start taking it as soon as I begin to notice it - it doesn’t get bad. The Claritin prevents it, so it doesn’t get worse.
Unfortunately this year… I didn’t have any Claritin on hand and it jumped all over me. I was afraid of making it worse by training - so I backed off. I took Claritin and Sudafed - five days later, I’ve pretty much recovered.
I’m wondering if others drug themselves up with Dayquil, Nyquil, etc., and whether that might actually prevent things like development into the dreaded cough.
NO!
Doh! So once it’s in you, that’s it? Nothing is more frustrating than sitting there on Saturday thinking “OK, I know I have a cold, and by Weds it’ll be in my lungs and I’ll be coughing like crazy.”
Surely at least taking cough stuff prevents some escalation of bronchitis? The act of coughing seems to be self-perpetuating.
I’ve had problems with lingering colds where I was feeling almost better and then the post-nasal drip at night would basically reinfect my throat. It was a terrible cycle. My Dr. gave me a prespription for Flonase and that worked. You spray it up your nose at night and it stops the post-nasal drip in your throat which means you can start breaking the cycle and recover. My doc said she uses it at the first stages of cold to stop that whole process of it moving from one area of your head to anothr. I’ve gotten an Rx for it a couple of times and it really helped.
Zicam cold remedy nasal gel, really does appear to work. You have to use it every 2-3 hours (not every 4–except maybe at night.) DON’T squirt it way up your nose. Follow the directions. I really recommend swabbing it. You really need to start it as soon after the start of the cold as possible.
The normal course of a cold is that it starts with a sore throat and then you feel worse and more congested over the first 72 hours, when it peaks. The mucus usually does become green or yellow after a few days and stays that way for 3-13 days. A study reported in the New England Journal of Medicine a few years ago, seemed to indicate that symptoms are improved with Chicken Soup. Overdressing (within reason) probably helps as does the fever. Fever is NOT the enemy. It helps. Don’t keep it down, unless you have dysautonomia, heart failure or severe chronic lung disease.
I always tough it out, figuring it will go away in a week or so whether I medicate or not. I just got over a 4-week cold, so this year’s winter strain of cold must have been training for IM’s rather than sprints.
I am just getting over something funky myself. I usually try to tough it out and let my body handle whatever I have. My last race was IMWI back in Sept. and I never felt totally 100% after that. I tried to tough it out for about 6 weeks and finally caved in to what I believe developed into a sinus infection and got some antibiotics from the doc. Depending on what you have, toughing it out may be a good option… I always am one for “natural healing.” However, in my case if I left the infection untreated, it probably would have gotten a lot worse and would have required more serious antibiotics, etc.
I’m dealing with a cold right now. Scratchy throat all last week and Monday the nose faucet turned on. I absolutely hate taking medicine, but think I’m going to resort to some sudafed. 