Chest Infection

[xJust_Sarahx]

Hi
For over the past week i had a really high temperature and racing heart and like a dry cough type thing, and anyway rang 111 for advice and was advised to go to a&e. So i did and i got an ecg, temp took which was 38.8, my bloods took and a chest x ray and it came back showing i have a chest infection on the right side, all the doctor did was gave me 7 days worth of amoxicillin to take one 3 times daily which i have been and i have another two days to take after todays. Thing is i had been to the doctors again this morning because of breathing problems but he said my oxygen levels were 99% and great even though i really am struggling to breathe and it was the same at th hospital, is this possible? Also iv never had a chest infection before but i dont have a really bad chesty cough or wheezy chest, just have a bit of dry cough now and then, like if i walk the stairs or bend down or lie down etc. Is that normal? to have a chest infection without the cough. Seems my temperature was down to 36 today and my chest sounded clear to him is that a good sign? Im just realllly struggling to breathe and really finding it hard to swallow, he said the swallowing will be more of a anxiety issue but its really not! My eyes are all swollen and puffy and blurred vision and yet all this is all down to a chest infection? i have never felt so week and ill. I have 5 kids to look after, youngest been only 7 weeks old. Please can someone give advice, reassurance or experiences of there chest infection. Also am i meant to just rest or continue my day to day stuff? Just i cant exactly sit down i never get a chance.

im so sorry for it been long and rambling. Thanks

[bernie1977]

Chest infections can make you feel really ill. A lot of people just think its a phlegmy cough but they can be bad.

The doctor will have listened to your chest for signs of crackling so if this was clear that's a sign the infection has gone. I contacted Pnuemonia several years ago, which is a bad chest infection. Like you I had no phlegmy cough, I sought help because I was getting stabbing pains in my back, this was pain from an abscess on my lung which the Pnuemonia had caused. So I thinks it's right that you can get a chest infection and not necessarily have a cough.

Your temperature is down which is also a good sign. After our bodies have tried to fight an infection it can leave us feeling run down and tired for a while after. You really do need to rest. I hope someone can help you with the kids.

I'm not sure what to say about the breathing, if you're convinced it's not down to anxiety I'd ring your surgery and ask for a peak flow test and then you'll know if it is your air ways that are causing the breathlessness. I'm sure your surgery will have a nurse that could do this.

[Ali-1983]

I've had a few chest infections before, ones with a dry cough and ones coughing up stuff. Can be pretty nasty but nothing to worry about. You are on the right meds to clear it up. Just take it easy. It isn't going to clear up overnight and you might not feel 100% for a few weeks but it will get better. I had a dry cough that turned into me coughing stuff up after I took the meds...then it went away. Sounds like they strapped you up to a monitor? They don't lie...99% oxygen is obviously very good. I had pneumonia when I was a kid. Can remember it like yesterday. High temp to a point where I was hallucinating. Pains in my chest when I took a breath. This is a walk in the park compared to that.

Hope you're feeling better soon. I'm sure you will.

[xJust_Sarahx]

Thanks for your reply, did you have breathing problems with your bad chest infection? i Know maybe yours was worse than mine with havinh an abcess on your lung but did it affect you? The doctor said my breathing was fine that my chest sounded clear and my oxygen levels were 99% but yet it shows i have a chest infection.

[bernie1977]

When I breathed in I was getting sharp stabbing pains in my back, which was my lung area.
When I've had a bad cold with a chest infection in the past I've felt wheezy