Dr. Hive--wheezing (do I have to go into the dr?)

[Laurie4b]

I have an extremely miserable cold that is going around. It's a cold, not flu: started slowly with irritated throat for a number of days, then nasal congestion, then chest congestion.

 

The chest congestion set in within the last 24-48 hours and last night, I had several episodes of wheezing--either an all-out whistling or rattling. It is not all that unusual for me to have an episode of wheezing here and there while having a cold, it's just that there were more of them. (probably 6-10 starting around dinner and continuing overnight. I've had none this morning.) 

 

When I am wheezing, my breathing feels totally normal ie. there is no sense that I can breathe less well than I normally do. And I can stop the wheezing at any given time by coughing which gets some of the gunk out.

 

I don't think I need to go in, and I don't want to go in on Christmas Eve, but I was wondering if I should go in for some reason. (I usually do not go to the doctor.)

 

I don't have asthma, but a couple decades ago, I had wheezing and a doctor diagnosed it as "reactive airway" and gave me an inhaler. I used it a couple times just because he said so, but then I tossed it and it was a long while before I had any wheezing after that. Now, as I said, I might get a couple incidents per cold, but not as many as last night.

 

If you are a medical professional, could you include that in your answer.

[Ottakee]

DO you have any access to an oximeter to measure the O2 in your blood?  You can seem "fine" but have lower O2.

 

Are you wheezing---as in down low in your lower lungs or is it higher up in your airway?  Might have to see if dh can take a listen to your back.  Do you wheeze if you take a deep breath?  Does breathing deeply send you into a coughing fit?

 

Often people with breathing issues "stop" wheezing but just taking shallower breaths but that doesn't mean the problem is gone.

 

With breathing, I would error on the side of going in, esp. if you at any time feel short of breath, have a lot of coughing spells, etc.  

 

Keep us posted.

[Laurie4b]

DO you have any access to an oximeter to measure the O2 in your blood?  You can seem "fine" but have lower O2.

No. I hadn't thought that my O2 could be down and still feel fine.

Are you wheezing---as in down low in your lower lungs or is it higher up in your airway?  I haven't wheezed today so far, but it was in the lungs--didn't seem that deep, but I don't know if I would know that. Might have to see if dh can take a listen to your back.  Do you wheeze if you take a deep breath?  Not right now breathing deeply send you into a coughing fit? Not now

 

Often people with breathing issues "stop" wheezing but just taking shallower breaths but that doesn't mean the problem is gone.

 

With breathing, I would error on the side of going in, esp. if you at any time feel short of breath, have a lot of coughing spells, etc.  

 

Keep us posted.

 

I seem to be okay so far today. I'm focused on keeping hydrated so the mucous stays thin.

[Terabith]

I'm not a doctor, but my daughter has asthma and we've been through a number of bronchitis/ pneumonia things. 

 

This might not be the right answer, but with the symptoms you've described, I probably wouldn't go in.  I'd hydrate and take some robitussin and if I started to wheeze, just cough and clear out the congestion.  Now, if I felt short of breath or were lethargic, or if you were "retracting" or using your chest/ abdominal muscles to breathe, then that would change things.  But I'd probably watch and wait and try to keep mucous thin.

[Murmer]

I would only see a Dr to get an inhaler...then the next time just use the inhaler and if it doesn't work then worry.  I tend to get reactive when I am sick and will wheeze at night and have found that the inhaler totally helps with that...so basically I saw my Dr the 1 time to get the inhaler and now I just use it whenever I am sick...then I only have to worry when it doesn't work which so far hasn't happened...this is also our philosophy with my DD asthma...she will start breathing really really fast when sick but as long as the neb works we don't do the Dr. (I think some people would disagree with this approach but we have been dealing with this for years and I know the neb works so as long as it continues to do its job we just wait at home rather than the ER).