Just what mother/the doctor ordered

I’ve been feeling poorly. 

Coughing, spluttering, chills, hot spells, headaches, muscle aches, sinus pain, burning throat. Think that’s about it. 
Started with lethargy and headache and sore throat. Had a day off last week and thought I was fine. Actually felt a bit of a fraud. So went to work the next day. 

Then came the coughing. And lost voice.  I had a play on Saturday and didn’t want to be kicked out or ruin the experience. Not that the voice was necessary for the day. I bought some cough mixture and cough lozenges. I got through the play but then things went downhill. Coughing fits. Deep hacking coughing. On the crowded train home. The Japanese lady next to me was visibly distressed and turned away. I can imagine what everyone on the carriage was thinking: get that disease-ridden woman off the train. 

Bedridden on Sunday. No way I could go to work on Monday. Mr S doesn’t believe in days off. When I said, on the Sunday night, I thought I couldn’t go into work tomorrow, he said I should wait until the morning, I was might be better. 

That night I slept through our fire alarm that went off with no apparent reason. I had had a few deep coughing fits and my body was exhausted. 

So what to do?

Western medicine. Chinese medicine. Mother’s medicine. Medicine for the soul.

My mother said to stay at home and rest. She rang on my home phone Monday morning to check I hadn’t gone to work.   

I really craved chicken soup.  I needed its healing properties. Jewish penicillin. But like my grandmother used to make. Warm and soothing on the throat.

Doctor said I needed some antibiotics to kill the infection and some cortisone to strengthen the lungs and stop them being so reactive. And to use the ventolin puffer. And that I should have got a flu shot. And don’t waste my money on cough syrup – no better than a placebo. 

Friends variously recommended rest with video catch up and time to read. I borrowed a very easy read. But I have no inclination to read. That’s how sick I am. 

One friend suggested something new: astragalus root infusion. Chinese herbal medicine. Apparently boostes immune system. Move over Echinacea. Interesting reading if you google it. 

What have I got to lose? I’m using everything. 

What do you do to fight a cold or upper respiratory infection that won’t go?