Pneumonia Fear

[shotta287]

Hello again all,

I had the flu last week and was down and out with chills, fever, usual flu symptoms. Off the back of it, I developed a chesty cough with yellowy brown mucus. My GP said it is probably something viral but she did prescribe antibiotics in case I didn't get any better.

At the moment, all I have is the cough which is starting to calm down and some yellow tinged mucus. I have an ache on left side of my chest below ribcage. Seems like my ribs are bruised. I didn't take the antibiotics as I didn't think it was necessary. I now have developed the fear of pneumonia especially as I didn't take the antibiotics. Do I have the symptoms of pneumonia?

[AnxietyDoll]

Hi.
This is a really long response but when I panic my primary comfort is lots of information.

I was treated for Pneumonia at Christmas 2016. I was hospitalised on Christmas Day (I could not even eat Christmas dinner, more on that in a sec). Sent in for a Cat Scan as they wanted to rule out pulmonary embolism.

I *did* suffer from the flu before getting pneumonia. I am a smoker and therefore my risk for getting the disease was much higher than a non smoker.

First, regardless of whether one as sleeping or awake, my breathing was *incredibly* rapid and shallow. I'm talking one inhale and one exhale per second.
This was because it felt like my lungs were too swollen to take in air and breathing has become absolute agony.

By Christmas day when I decided to go to hospital, I was occasionally coughing up what looked like fleshy lumps. Then eventually, it became tinged with blood. I'd considered going to the hospital before then simply due to the fact I did not have the capacity to breathe that I could not eat at all and was almost in tears all of Christmas day. However, the blood was ultimately the point where enough was enough. Before the fleshy lumps and blood, my phlegm was a very bright green. Fluorescent almost.

Pneumonia makes you feel like your chest has completely caved in on itself and shrank. Each cough sends an intense cold-burning throughout your entire chest. I cannot emphasise enough how little energy you have to try and breathe. I had to spend a remarkable amount of energy for each breath. Additionally, your throat burns and you have very, very little physical energy (and the loss of energy persists for a while during and even after treatment).

It was so bad me and my partner had to nap in shifts so he could keep an eye on me whilst I slept as I was terrified my body would give up, that it didn't have the energy or strength or breathe autonomously.

Other notable symptoms are high temp and low sat levels.

If you are able to function without focusing every thought on trying to breathe, you likely do not have pneumonia.

You say your cough is improving which is good. The cough becomes progressively worse with pneumonia.

That all being said, just monitor your ability to breathe, any severe sensation on your lungs and the symptoms/production of the cough. If it does transpire into pneumonia, you will be prescribed antibiotics and you absolutely must complete the entire course as pneumonia is life-threatening but the antibiotics helped me to breathe very quickly which almost entirely subdued my panic.

Do not take the antibiotics you currently have without first speaking with your doctor as it might not be enough to completely get rid of your illness and you run the risk of resistance. Which is a huge problem when it comes to antibiotics these days, because people are not finishing their course or simply not taking them. Antibiotics are often used to stop infections before the become obvious and resistant, which is why it's in everyone's best interest to take them.

You don't describe any symptoms of obvious pneumonia. The pain in your chest is likely to be from exerting your muscles and lungs and the cough improving is a very good sign and doesn't share characteristics of the cough that I personally experienced.

If you can breathe well, I might suggest waiting for a small time to see if your rib pain improves along with your other symptoms. If you begin to experience any of the symptoms I did or your own symptoms worsen, if you struggle to breathe or if you begin to cough blood you absolutely must see your doctor or get to an urgent care centre for treatment. If you still fear you have pneumonia, remember that many people contract the infection and it is swiftly treated with a course of effective antibiotics. I took mine for a few weeks and the course *had* to be completed to avoid resistance and to be sure the infection was entirely killed.

In the meantime, apply some cooling balm (like Vicks), some painkillers and stay very hydrated.

I hope this helps and I hope your health improves x

[AndrewCanada]

Great post AnxietyDoll.

Just to add, yellow-tinged phlegm can also be caused by something called post-nasal-drip, where snot drains from the back of your nose, down your throat. This can also cause a sore throat.

You or someone else close to you would know if you had pneumonia. As AnxietyDoll says, it feels terrible and your breathing would be difficult.

That said, if you need a second opinion from another doctor, seek it out, but after that, please stop worrying about it. It's always better to seek reassurance from yourself rather than an external source (like an anxiety forum or a doctor). If you don't do it already, look up mindfulness. It'll be difficult at first, but easier once you practice it more.