What is wrong with me…?
Question:
Have been to an ENT, who prescribed benzonatate and prednisone; I have two days left of the steroids (6 pills first two days, 5 the next two, etc). The cough is still with me, though I’m blowing my nose slightly less. However… I am sleeping 8-12 hours/night and still completely exhausted. I have black rings under my eyes at almost all times (how can I get rid of those?) at varying ’strengths,’ and occasionally (such as today) around my eyes entirely. It constantly feels like I have half a nose operating; one nostril or the other is blocked (but blocked way back) and cannot be cleared by blowing. If I block the "clear" nostril (which still seems somewhat obstructed), I can forcibly inhale through the more blocked nostril, but it requires considerable effort. Have tried Nasacort (metered, propelled, 10g), nasacort aq (pump activated, 6.5g), Afrin, Sudafed Maximum Strength Sinus and Allergy, Dayquil, Claratin D, Singulair, and Astelin. None of these have helped. It’s getting to the point where I’m so constantly fatigued that I’m having difficulty driving / carrying on at work / school (I work full time and go to night school). I fear eventually my grades will suffer, if not my safety. I have a follow-up appointment with the ENT on the 25th (earliest I could get in). Looking for any opinions or options; anything I can take in to him and/or try in the meanwhile. Many, many, many thanks in advance… Chris P.S. Please reply to Usenet, as this email address is blocked (SPAM protection)
Response:
Chris.. I don’t want to post to usenet, but if you want to e-mail me direct, I would like to share some info with you. — Bruce
Response:
"Chris." wrote:
Chris, I may have missed your earlier posts. I have a lot of questions to try to clarify your situation. My apologies in advance. > Have been to an ENT, who prescribed benzonatate and prednisone;
What was his diagnosis??? If his diagnosis was sinusitis, he should have put you on antibiotics. I assume that he or another doctor has listened to your lungs thru the stethoscope; are your lungs clear? > I have two days left of the steroids (6 pills first two days, > 5 the next two, etc). The cough is still with me, though I’m > blowing my nose slightly less.
Is the cough productive? If so, what is the color of the sputum? When you blow your nose, what is the color of the secretions? When you feel like you need to cough, is that "tickle" down deep in your chest, or is it up higher near your larynx or throat? (I’m trying to tell whether the problem is upper respiratory tract or lower respiratory tract or maybe even both.) > I am sleeping 8-12 hours/night and still completely exhausted. > I have black rings under my eyes at almost all times (how can > I get rid of those?) at varying ’strengths,’ and occasionally > (such as today) around my eyes entirely.
The coughing is going to wear you out. The Benzonatate is sedating, and will make you sleepy and drowsy. And if you have an active infection, that will really knock you out. When I’ve had a bad acute sinus infection, I was unable to get out of bed in the morning. > It constantly feels like I have half a nose operating; one nostril > or the other is blocked (but blocked way back) and cannot be cleared > by blowing. If I block the "clear" nostril (which still seems > somewhat obstructed), I can forcibly inhale through the more blocked > nostril, but it requires considerable effort.
Your ENT should have done a nasal endoscopy, and he should have noticed how blocked your nostrils are. Did he in fact do that? > Have tried Nasacort (metered, propelled, 10g), nasacort aq (pump activated, > 6.5g), Afrin, Sudafed Maximum Strength Sinus and Allergy, Dayquil, Claratin > D, Singulair, and Astelin. > None of these have helped.
I may have missed your earlier posts. Have you been evaluated for sinus infection? If so, what antibiotics have they prescribed for you? The one medication you haven’t mentioned yet is antibiotics! Continuing discolored (greenish-yellow or green) mucus, either as post nasal drip or when you blow your nose, is a telltale sign of infection. That’s why I asked about the color of your secretions. Let me tell you, that even ENTs can make mistakes. I had one ENT who misdiagnosed my sinusitis as simple rhinitis. Needless to say, I don’t go to him anymore. > I have a follow-up appointment with the ENT on the 25th (earliest I > could get in).
Has the ENT scheduled you for sinus CT scan? If so, what were the results? > Looking for any opinions or options; anything I can take in to him > and/or try in the meanwhile.
Well, one key issue is whether you have an infection or not, and what the ENT said about that. If you’ve discussed this before and I missed your posts, I apologize. In the meantime, nasal wash (a.k.a. nasal irrigation) is the best way to relieve sinus/nasal symptoms. If your cough is being aggravated by post nasal drip, then irrigating the secretions out of your nose before bedtime should really relieve that cough and let you sleep. Here’s a list of recommended methods: http://www.njc.org/medfacts/nasal.html From my own experience, the coughing really stinks. If the cough is deep in your chest, then that may indicate bronchitis rather than post nasal drip. In that case, the best thing to take is plain Robitussin (guaifenisin syrup). It will help loosen all that phlegm in your airways. Disregard the "recommended" dosage on the package. For a nasty bronchitis, it’s nowhere near enough. You can safely take up to 2,400 mg per day. Get in the bathtub, close the shower curtains, turn on the hot water full blast, and inhale the steam thru your nose and mouth. That moisture will also help moisten that mucus and make it easier to drain. If you really want to be adventurous, then try THIS: Fill the tub with water as hot as you can stand it, and then lie down prone in the tub with your head down and try to raise your legs. In other words, you want your head lower than the rest of your body. At that angle, once the steam begins to work, gravity will pull the phlegm out of your lungs and you can cough it up. I have found that after about 1/2 hour of that, the phlegm has oozed out of my bronchial tubes and worked its way to my larynx, and then one cough and out it comes! — Steven D. Litvintchouk Email: sdlit…@earthlink.net
Response:
"Chris." wrote: > Have been to an ENT, who prescribed benzonatate and prednisone; > I have two days left of the steroids (6 pills first two days, > 5 the next two, etc). The cough is still with me, though I’m > blowing my nose slightly less. > However… > I am sleeping 8-12 hours/night and still completely exhausted. > I have black rings under my eyes at almost all times (how can > I get rid of those?) at varying ’strengths,’ and occasionally > (such as today) around my eyes entirely….
Besides exhaustion, two other common causes of these black circles under the eyes are: allergy; and an infection of the ethmoid sinuses. Again, your ENT should be able to tell about a sinus infection. When he does the nasal endoscopy, he may also look for signs that your nasal mucosa are hypersensitive and hypersecretory, which might indicate allergy. If so, then he may refer you to an allergist. Do you already have a history of allergies? — Steven D. Litvintchouk Email: sdlit…@earthlink.net
Response:
For anyone on the alt.support.sleep-disorder, Steven (among others) gives great and very helpful advice about nasal and sinus problems on the alt.support.sinusitis newsgroup. Doesn’t hurt (and can make a big difference for some) for everyone with apnea to get hints on keeping our nasal passages as clear as possible. Mike "Steven Litvintchouk" <sdlit…@earthlink.net> wrote in message
news:3C9186AB.966AB027@earthlink.net… – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> "Chris." wrote: > > Have been to an ENT, who prescribed benzonatate and prednisone; > > I have two days left of the steroids (6 pills first two days, > > 5 the next two, etc). The cough is still with me, though I’m > > blowing my nose slightly less. > > However… > > I am sleeping 8-12 hours/night and still completely exhausted. > > I have black rings under my eyes at almost all times (how can > > I get rid of those?) at varying ’strengths,’ and occasionally > > (such as today) around my eyes entirely…. > Besides exhaustion, two other common causes of these black circles under > the eyes are: allergy; and an infection of the ethmoid sinuses. > Again, your ENT should be able to tell about a sinus infection. When he > does the nasal endoscopy, he may also look for signs that your nasal > mucosa are hypersensitive and hypersecretory, which might indicate > allergy. If so, then he may refer you to an allergist. Do you already > have a history of allergies? > — > Steven D. Litvintchouk > Email: sdlit…@earthlink.net
Response:
Lori&Mike wrote: > For anyone on the alt.support.sleep-disorder, Steven (among others) gives > great and very helpful advice about nasal and sinus problems on the > alt.support.sinusitis newsgroup. Doesn’t hurt (and can make a big difference > for some) for everyone with apnea to get hints on keeping our nasal passages > as clear as possible. Mike
Thanx for the compliment, Mike. Is this the same Chris who has sleep problems on alt.support.sleep-disorder? Because this Chris’s symptoms don’t look like apnea; they look like some kind of acute respiratory illness–sinusitis or non-allergic rhinitis or maybe even bronchitis. — Steven D. Litvintchouk Email: sdlit…@earthlink.net
Response:
You are welcome for the compliment! Our little sleep-support group has gotten hammered with, lets say, less than helpful people over the past several days so it’s nice to see someone only trying to help. There’s several Chris’ (and seems like thousands of Mikes 
on the sleep newsgroup so I’m not sure where that particular Chris originated. Mike "Steven Litvintchouk" <sdlit…@earthlink.net> wrote in message
news:3C919AFC.E06278F3@earthlink.net… – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> Lori&Mike wrote: > > For anyone on the alt.support.sleep-disorder, Steven (among others) gives > > great and very helpful advice about nasal and sinus problems on the > > alt.support.sinusitis newsgroup. Doesn’t hurt (and can make a big difference > > for some) for everyone with apnea to get hints on keeping our nasal passages > > as clear as possible. Mike > Thanx for the compliment, Mike. > Is this the same Chris who has sleep problems on > alt.support.sleep-disorder? > Because this Chris’s symptoms don’t look like apnea; they look like some > kind of acute respiratory illness–sinusitis or non-allergic rhinitis or > maybe even bronchitis. > — > Steven D. Litvintchouk > Email: sdlit…@earthlink.net
Response:
get thee to a sleep doctor! Beware the ENT not trained in sleep disorders. If you are in a place where there is no major sleep clinic, find the nearest one and get there. You deserve to see if this is what the problem is. So many things have been treated with drugs and bandaids when a string of uninterruped restful sleep would solve the whole problem. CPAP can help you get that if you are suffering from sleep apnea. It sounds like, to me, a sufferer (who suffers less now) that you could be experiencing sleep apnea. Please take good care of yourself and see if you can find the right doc to set up an overnite sleep study for you. Then you will know. take care! – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -"Chris." wrote: > Have been to an ENT, who prescribed benzonatate and prednisone; > I have two days left of the steroids (6 pills first two days, > 5 the next two, etc). The cough is still with me, though I’m > blowing my nose slightly less. > However… > I am sleeping 8-12 hours/night and still completely exhausted. > I have black rings under my eyes at almost all times (how can > I get rid of those?) at varying ’strengths,’ and occasionally > (such as today) around my eyes entirely. > It constantly feels like I have half a nose operating; one nostril > or the other is blocked (but blocked way back) and cannot be cleared > by blowing. If I block the "clear" nostril (which still seems > somewhat obstructed), I can forcibly inhale through the more blocked > nostril, but it requires considerable effort. > Have tried Nasacort (metered, propelled, 10g), nasacort aq (pump activated, > 6.5g), Afrin, Sudafed Maximum Strength Sinus and Allergy, Dayquil, Claratin > D, Singulair, and Astelin. > None of these have helped. > It’s getting to the point where I’m so constantly fatigued that I’m > having difficulty driving / carrying on at work / school (I work > full time and go to night school). I fear eventually my grades will > suffer, if not my safety. > I have a follow-up appointment with the ENT on the 25th (earliest I > could get in). > Looking for any opinions or options; anything I can take in to him > and/or try in the meanwhile. > Many, many, many thanks in advance… > Chris > P.S. Please reply to Usenet, as this email address is blocked (SPAM protection)
