For the past six weeks or so, I’ve had the most annoying cough. I think I got it from my co-worker (at least he’s a convenient scapegoat, although it’s probably true). It started out as a relentless cough that wouldn’t allow me to get any rest, since it kept me awake at night with fits of coughing about every ten minutes. All during this time, I never really felt sick — just the cough.
Somewhere around the second week, it changed. It wasn’t as frequent, and it turned into this strange, choking kind of cough. When I had a coughing fit, I felt like I couldn’t breathe and like I had asthma (which I don’t). My throat and chest felt like they were spasming, and I made this awful wheezing sound as I forced myself to breathe in and out. The first time it happened, it was more than a little scary!
Right after the spasmodic episode, the next phase kicks in. During this time, I can’t talk (instant laryngitis) and it feels like when you get strangled by accidentally getting water down your windpipe. I need to constantly clear my throat for a few minutes, and my vocal cords feel like they’re coated in a sticky mucus. That goes away in a short time, and everything is OK until the next round.
The episodes have reduced to just a handful per day, but it’s very perplexing and it’s not going away, either. I’ve searched more than one health forum, but haven’t yet seen any similar cases. My co-worker, who got sick a couple of weeks before I did, is still having the same choking-type cough, so I guess until he stops, I won’t either. I’m tired of it, and hope it will finally just wear itself out and go away for good.
Tags: health
