A forum for people who suffer from chronic or persistent coughs to share ideas... these don't have any sort of official approval so you try any of them out at your own risk. I've consigned some of the more unusual ones I received to the Oddities bin on the left. I've also listed very simple remedies separately. If you're a sufferer, good luck, and please report back by commenting on the particular posting if you find success. Or just comment to the most recent posting and I will pick it up.

Friday, October 24, 2008

Lots of comments here.....

This came in to Radio 4 after the broadcast...
How sorry I am listening to the gentleman who can't stop coughing. I know only too well how dreadful it is and how depressing. Like him, I used to cough every few seconds and perhaps it is not a coincidence that I, too, spend my days talking to people. Like him, the cough never woke me up in the night and in the morning I used to lie quietly thinking "This is the best I am going to feel all day" - and knowing as soon as I started speaking and moving around the cough would start. I got very depressed about it and sometimes just wanted to die. Nobody could understand how debilitating it was.

None of the doctors or specialists could explain it, and I had even been diagnosed with asthma!!! (Eventually the specialist told me he had mis-diagnosed me!!)

It was while listening to an expert on "Check Up" on Radio 4 three or so years ago that I realised what the cause might be.

Within a month I had stopped coughing and touch wood it has never re-started.

Happy days!

Kind regards to all at the programme.

Avril Brown
Northern Ireland
NOTE: Avril explains what the cause of her cough was further down the page....

8 comments:

Amy said...

I'm so glad I'm not alone! Though I'm not happy someone else is suffering... 15 times as long as I have. I've had x-rays and CTs, tried albuterol, singulair, antibiotics, 80 mg prilosec (omiperazole), some sort of anti-mucus spray thing, 24 hr pH study, bronchoscopy, prednisone, 2 months vocal rest... all I know is that my larynx is horribly inflammed, and I'm still coughing.

So I'm tired of waiting around for "Western Medicine" to see if the next drug will work, and I'm going to a chiropractor, a naturopath, and an acupuncturist, I'm refraining from dairy and grains, and will get a Bowen treatment tomorrow.

The acupuncturist also referred me to Red Thyme... an essential oil that you put in hot water and waft to inhale.

At this point in time, I'd stand on my head if someone told me it would work! Good luck to you!

NickP said...

Please keep in touch and let me know how you get on Amy.
I'm still taking morphine but the cough's still there. I've had a lot of trouble with acid reflux recently so I'm back on omepremazole (?) and a beconase inhaler ...
But nothing seems to alter the cough, and at times it is very depressing.

swisspenelope said...

Hi Nick, I have been coughing for 2 years and 2 months now - and have undergone every conceivable test and treatment modern medicine has been able to imagine, from asthma to acid reflux and back again. I have seen about 8 specialists by now, including 2 different lung specialists.

Two years ago, when I was 50, I had whooping cough. When the cough-till-you-vomit part was over, the cough reflex didn't ever stop, and here we are today, still coughing.

I was thinking of putting out an RFO to medical specialists worldwide via the internet in the hope that someone, somewhere knows about a cure.

But alas, after reading about your case, it seems that we are in that 20% with "chronic cough" that continue to baffle medical science.

I live in pristine Switzerland, with clean, dry air and little pollution and do NOT have:
allergies
COPD
GORD/GERD
emphysema
wheezing/shortness of breath
any infections

and am not:
a smoker
overweight
unfit
a problem drinker
a sufferer of mental illness.

I've had a post-nasal drip all my life (it runs in the family), but have only been coughing for the last 2+ years of my life.

Most of the time I just tell myself: "It's a bummer, but at least it ain't cancer."

Yours in fellowship,
sp

TonyH said...

Get your GP to prescribe ERYTHROMYCIN; most colds/flu clear up ok, every few years I get one where the cough stays on, this antibiotic always works.

Anonymous said...

Dear Nick,

The below case, though perhaps unusual, is something that may help those suffering from persistent coughs, hiccups and similar involuntary movements - to understand that the cause can be in the spiritual realm.

This is an example of the myriad of ways ghosts can affect people.

The information is published as part of the non-profit, voluntary work of the Spiritual Science Research Foundation (SSRF).

______________

In the first week of June 2007, we were witness to an episode of severe sustained coughing in Goa, India. A young seeker in SSRF's Arts section suddenly started coughing continuously. The cough was dry and harsh. It racked his entire body and caused him to roll around on the bed. It continued for hours without stopping for even a moment. The coughing was so loud, it could be heard in adjacent rooms. There was no precipitating or contributing physical factor. His medical examination did not reveal any signs of physical illness. The cough did not respond to cough suppressants. Effort to relieve him of the distress by sedating him failed even after he was given 10 mg. of Diazepam, a sedative and tranquilizer. Seekers from the subtle department of SSRF with a highly advanced sixth sense perceived that it was caused by a ghost. The ghost had implanted 2 subtle diagrams (yantra) in his heart centre which kept pulsating black energy and generating the cough. The cough would subside after spiritual healing remedies were performed on him but would come up again after a few hours. This went on for three days. The coughing stops only after spiritual healing remedies are done. Spiritual research has uncovered that a yantra placed by a ghost can constantly pulsate black energy to bring about various repetitive involuntary movements such as shivers, hiccups, cough, etc.

Link to the case study!

Link to the YouTube video!


Best wishes,
Ana

Anonymous said...

Hi Nicholas,
I read your article on the internet.
I've similar problems - constant throat clearing (due to mucus throat), difficulty swallowing, I sometimes have coughing fits when I can't breath, retch, eyes stream etc. etc. I sometimes have to cut people off on the phone because I can't speak. I've been like this for at least 5 or 6 years, some days worse than others and on and off before that, notably after a cold. I don't have heartburn but I do burp quite a lot. I too have been on all sorts of medication and the doctor has admitted he doesn't know what is wrong with me. I'm sure he thinks I am making it up.
I have done a lot of research and happened to find an NHS guide which exactly described my symptoms - the condition is called Laryngopharyngeal reflux (LPR). Search on google.co.uk for nhs lpr.
I am convinced this is what I have, so I have tried to find out what to do about it - preferably without taking drugs. It seems that the treatment for GERD also applies to LPR but if you take PPI's you will need to take them for 6 months not the 6-8 that I was prescribed them for and also take them twice a day, not once a day. A useful article is at www.nosesurgeon.co.uk/patient_info/relux.html. I am adjusting my diet/lifestyle as recommended (no alcohol, chocolate, caffeine, fizzy drinks, fatty and spicy foods for a start). The info I have read on GERD diets seem to agree on avoiding the above food items but there are others that vary, which is confusing. I should keep a food diary to see what makes the symptoms worse. I should point out that I don't smoke, I'm not overweight. Also I've read that red delicious apples, honey, probiotics, apple cider vinegar and aloe vera juice may help. Stress also maybe a contributary factor. I would be interested to know if you have heard of LPR and if you think it may be your problem as well.

Unknown said...

I have had a cough for over 10 years and tried everything,and nothing worked until I read an American aricle which gave sufferers relief from coughing and in some cases cleared it up. It is one large spoonful of the following in equal measure, Honey, Cider Vinegar, mixed in the same amount of warm water. It hasn't cured me but it has helped, I hope this might help some of you.

Unknown said...

I have had a persistent cough for over 10 years, have tried all medication and inhalers plus hospital and GP visits to no avail.
After reading an American website I have had some relief from coughing with following recipe in equal measures, I large tablespoon of honey, I large Tablespoon of Cider Vinegar, mixed in one large Tablespoon of hot water, it has eased my cough but some suffers say it has cured theirs.

 
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