Cold, flu season hits home
Cold and flu season finally caught up to the Zoeller house. My son came home a week and a half ago with the sniffles and a mild cough. Nothing very serious, and it didn’t even keep him in bed, or make him shy away from his chores during the few days he was affected.
But, before he was quite over it, my daughter and husband both started coughing. My daughter complained of a sore throat and asked for cough drops, which I stopped after work to pick up.
My husband began coughing, became congested, and his throat hurt so badly he couldn’t swallow without pain. When it was so bad for him that he could barely eat, I made him soup and pudding. He took cold medicine as often as allowed for several days. He did what needed to be done for our animals and business, but spent time resting as well.
When several days passed and everyone was beginning to feel better, my daughter remarked about how “Mom never gets sick.” That was, apparently, the last straw for my body’s immune system.
The following day, I noticed a tickle in my throat that grew as the day progressed. That evening, I felt a little pressure in my chest. By the next morning, my throat was a little scratchy, but nothing a few ibuprofen couldn’t handle.
I made myself a care package, complete with more ibuprofen, cough drops, lip balm, and a tube of Deep Blue (a muscle rub that contains peppermint and wintergreen essential oils, both which I have found help keep nasal passages open), which I applied to my throat. I included lemon oil, honey, and tea bags. I was fully prepared to make it through a full day of work.
Surprisingly, my throat never really got worse. “A bit scratchy” is as bad as it got. The tickle caused a great deal of coughing – nearly a week later, I still have fits of that – but the expected nasal and chest congestion never developed.
The only thing that came about was a fairly severe case of laryngitis. Sometimes, I had my normal voice, but often, I had absolutely no ability to make sound. (Interestingly enough, I heard no complaints from co-workers or family members about my increased silence. Might be worth thinking about at some point.)
Truth be told, the most challenging part was actually trying to sleep. We use a ceiling fan even in the coldest dregs of winter, and the air on my dry throat was unbearable. I took to wearing a dust mask to bed to keep the air from further drying my throat. Still, I awoke several times a night having coughing spells.
Of course, it could have been far worse. A sore throat is one of my least well-tolerated ailments, so I am incredibly grateful for the limited nature of this illness.
One thing is for sure: I either needs to get really, really cold or warm up for good. Either one should banish these viruses for another year.