Thick Mucus

[Joe S.]

I would read the posts on this by Navydad / Lostone relating the challenges he had with this. It seemed to be his main complaint.

This summer my allergies have been bothering me and have started to produce thick mucus making it difficult to breathe and swallow. I wear my polar fleece mumps scarf each night to reduce the infections I normally get in my ears and glands as a follow up my allergies. Irish had suggested carbonation to reduce the thick mucus and that does help when swallowing. The mucus seems to be mixed with clotted blood.

Breathing still remains a challenge. I have not been able to use my tones since my heart surgery. I have a couple of months left before I can have dental work. It is my hope that I can start using the tones then to try to clear some of this up. (The ones for killing bacteria and viruses that can not be heard).

On another note, I did pass my Ham Radio General operators license and have a call sign - KD0WBP. Now I have to study to remember what I have forgotten from over 40 years ago when I got my First Class Radio Telephone license so I could find work at radio and TV stations.

[Carolina]

Dear Joe,  I know how awful the mucus can be.

I take a medication (of course):  The generic form of Mucinex, guaifenesin.

I take one tablet every night, and also first clear my nasal passages with Simply Saline (a spray) and then use Nasonex in each nostril.

That is enough to keep most of the mucus at a tolerable level so I can breathe through my nose.

With the Sjogren's dryness, if I breathe through my mouth at night, it is horror show.

I always try to visualize you in your mumps scarf!

Happy "Hamming it Up".

Hugs

Elaine

[Alwaysblue]

This is my main complaint too. The constant throat clearing drives me crazy.
Things that help me
1. Neti pot once in morning once before bed
2. Plenty of water
3. Steam inhalation
4. I take mucinex but I'm not sure it does anything

I am constantly getting chest infections because of this.

[quietdynamics]

Joe...I hope you will make an appt and get this checked..

Congrats on the Ham License and Hows' Puppy?

What do you mean by "carbonation"?

[Velcro]

Congrats in the license. In my line of work, I get to work with Ham operators quite often. They are a caring group of individuals.

I hope you find some answers and relief soon.

[irish]

Joe, Congrats on the ham license. That is something to be proud of and something to do that sounds like fun.

I hope that you can get something to loosen that mucus. I know that my mucus is more thick than ever and giving me fits this year. I irrigate my nasal passages and have a script from my ENT for Bactroban and Acetylcysteine. They are so darn expensive though that I will soon have to give up on them. THe acetylcystein does help to loosen the mucus in my nasal passages.

Also, the guaifesin, same as mucinex only much cheaper, comes in 400 mgm caps  to my knowledge. My ENT told me to take 4 of them a day. I don't take them much though as I don't notice much difference with it. Wishing you luck. I would wonder if you are using a humidifier as with bloody mucus the first thing I think of is mucus membranes that are dried out and oozing some blood. Good luck. Irish

[Styx]

Every time I see a thread with this title, I shudder :| I know how challenging it can be. Joe, I hope that this is just temporary. I know most people that start threads like this find that their symptoms are self-limited so hopefully, this will just pass.

I like the suggestions that irish gave you. I use an irrigation of gentamicin with the eponym "Wilson's solution": http://www.midwestsinus.com/treatment/nasal_washes_rinses/types_of_nasal_rinses.

It sounds like you are complaining more about congestion though, right? Or is it the thick mucous draining into your throat? Can you sleep? With the blood, it might be good to see an ENT if you haven't.

Styx

[Joe S.]

Thanks for the information. It will be a few days before I can get to see a doctor. After a baseball bat to my face as a kid I no longer tolerate anything near my face. Doctors have endless problems unless they put me out.

By carbonation I mean a soda. One more month and I should be able to use frequency to kill infections. I do take Vitamin C every day. I have been doing that for many years. If an infection gets out of hand I up my C intake.

Bailey has started to bark at strangers when they come to the house. She complains when the back yard is not mowed in a timely manor. When we go on trips we leave her at the Pet Smart Hotel. I think that they have been teaching her to heal and play fetch. She gets excited to stay there and excited to come home. She likes to interact with other dogs. So we include group play dates for her when she stays there.

[slccom]

I'm hoping that baseball bat to the face was an accident! Bailey sounds like a great dog -- perhaps a mite spoiled?

Feel better, Joe!
Sharon

[susanep]

I will drink water for my kidneys, but have to have a carbonated drink to cut the mucus.

susanep

[4Kids]

When I was sick with that terrible flare in May of 11 I had this terrible cold and mucous so thick if I breathed funny once in a while it was like I was choking to death. It was all gooey and would stick to the whatever that takes air from my nose to my lungs and then I'd open up my mouth because it made a weird loud noise and cough and try and move it.  At times the mucous was so dry it was like a sea shell that came from my nose after I started flushing with neti pot.

The neti pot is what broke it out for me along with the antibiotics (Suprax I think it was called, it was liquid and cost a lot) and some prednisone.

It was awful.

I hope you feel better soon. I remember Navydad talking about his and I hope he is feeling ok, I think about him now and then. I just wish we all didn't have to suffer so much. I don't suffer as much as others do, just want to say that because I feel guilty that I am pretty ok when I read what everyone else is going through daily.

Hugs

Jackie

[Dee]

I also use store brand mucinex and buy the liquid form with nothing else no D or DM variations.  I find this real helps with this issue.

[warmwaters]

For those who use carbonated beverages to help with mucus, or who, like me feel that it quenches the dry mouth better, a couple of tips.

I use one of those do it yourself SodaStream gadgets to make seltzer (carbonated water) from tap water. Saves money, saves carrying bottles from the store, saves recycling the bottles. A win on all fronts for me. For variation, I add lemon or lime juice to "spice it up". And 0 calories.

However, I was told by my dentists that the reason it feels so good is that carbonation makes water slightly acid (which helps stimulate saliva flow). So if you drink a lot of carbonated beverages, rinse your mouth out after to avoid too much acid on your teeth.

[laura88]

Drink lots and lots of water to thin the secretions.  That's what we tell patients with these issues when they're in the hospital- it's crucial.

[Styx]

Hey Joe, are you feeling better? I hope the mucous has improved.

Styx