what can help the "flu-like" feeling? and lung ache?

[bigmama2]

ive had this on and off for years. right now it has been worse for the last 6 weeks. also having lung ache. saw dr-did lung xray- looked normal- and got antibiotics for suspected bronchitis or mild pnemonia. its been about 2 weeks since i took the antibiotics- no improvement. and asthma meds arent helping the lungs either. saw dr again- he upped the asthma med, and ordered a pulm funtion test.

has anyone found anything to help with the long term flu-like symptoms of cfs? i am so sick of feeling like i have a fever (but dont), feeling the flulike body aches, and the tired draggy feeling of being sick.

thanks,
bigmama2

 

[SickOfSickness]

Avoiding allergens gets rid of half of my flu like symptoms. Being gluten free, avoiding processed foods. If I could avoid more allergens I could get rid of more, but that would need me to spend much energy. I can't avoid some errands which takes me to places with smoke, gas fumes, and other allergens. I also don't want to move to another climate. It's hard to find any 100% mold-free living spaces. I also get symptoms if I pushed myself too hard the previous few days or slept less. My quality of sleep is not so good normally and if I get worse sleep, I feel it. IMO some nutrient imbalances and deficiencies mean I get the flu feeling easier, from pushing less. I can't avoid pushing sometimes. I am sure I and some PWME have flu like symptoms for other reasons. That is my experience.

 

[bigmama2]

thanks SOS for your input. it seems like almost all of us have allergies. when my allergies get very bad it can feel flulike. other times with no allergy symptoms i still get the flulike symptoms. i agree about the pushing too hard can cause it too.

i had pulmonary funtcion test today. it went fine.very nice and capable technician. results-
1. minimal obstructive lung defect. as confirmed by decrease in flow rate.
2.lung volume is normal.
3. after bronchiodialtor (asthma inhaler- albuterol type) flow rate improved 23%. this is a mild increase.
4.mild decrease in diffusing capacity.

i will see what my dr and the pulmo say. the test result is kinda what i expected. no big result of - here is why your lungs hurt and here is how to fix it. the result #4 is kinda odd. it has to do with how well one exchanges gases (oxygen, carbon dioxide) between lungs and capillaires. (?) with 100% being average/normal, my result was 72%. and i dont think its from the asthma. i have to learn more about this.

bigmama2

 

[JAH]

ive had this on and off for years. right now it has been worse for the last 6 weeks. also having lung ache. saw dr-did lung xray- looked normal- and got antibiotics for suspected bronchitis or mild pnemonia. its been about 2 weeks since i took the antibiotics- no improvement. and asthma meds arent helping the lungs either. saw dr again- he upped the asthma med, and ordered a pulm funtion test.

has anyone found anything to help with the long term flu-like symptoms of cfs? i am so sick of feeling like i have a fever (but dont), feeling the flulike body aches, and the tired draggy feeling of being sick.

thanks,
bigmama2

long term valtrex has helped on knocking down the ebv and lessening mono-ish, flu-like symptoms for me.

still have the tired draggy feeling of being sick. could barely move today, couldn't keep my eyes open and feeling so cold. took a bath and stuck my face in the water, trying to get feeling in my nose. I hate, hate, hate, this flavor of the disease, but different from the "virusy" flavor.

J

 

[Merry]

Hi, bigmama2. Sorry to hear of your ongoing misery with flu-like symptoms.

Since starting Rich's Simplified Methylation Protocol in September, I've experienced a significant reduction in incidence of flu-like symptoms. But from reading here on PR I'm aware that many people feel worse when trying this protocol (and Fredd's), so this may not be the answer for you. Can't predict.

Before starting the protocol, my only remedy to stop the flu-like symptoms was to rest.

Take care. Good luck.

 

[justy]

Hi bigmama2, sorry you are going through all this. I have lung problems with my M.E too.
For me, resting and B12 injections have been the very best for decreasing flu like feelings. I have worked with a medical herbalist for 2 years on my lungs with good results, however they still hurt a lot. I have a shadow on x ray that shows up as lung fibrosis on ct scan.
I am currently looking into sarcoidosis - very similar to M.E. but with organ involvement - including flu like aches and PEM. Also very very difficult to diagnose. - Just a thought - i think all with lung issues AND M.E should be ruled out for this.
Hope you feel a bit better soon,
Justyx

 

[hurtingallthetimet]

hello hope you are feeling better...looks like youve gotten some great advice...if you keep getting worse you should go back to doctor and make sure its not something worse..

its hard becuase of the flu feeling it makes you so sick and weak and not alot you can do to relieve the aches pains....like most i take motrin for headache i usaully get pretty bad one at time feeling the worse...or either ill get mirganes and take my mirgrane medication...resting is very important though i know its hard when you hurt so bad but just laying down helps...if i even get a 98 temp i will feel like when i was healthy and would get 101 temp..its very strange..these illness are very strange....a bath and cold towel on head helps sometimes...my throat always sore but worse during these times and throat drops, ice, popsciles and sprays help some...

i had short of breath...ribs always hurt everything but worse at times...and they did xray or us sorry i forget..someone called said everything fine...almost a year later the doctor was lookng through chart for something and was like "oh we need to repeat your last xray or us {whichever it was} ... it showed fluid on your lungs and around your heart", and that also had a big cyst on ovary..

doctor said if i still had fluid on heart id have to see cardiologist thankfully i didnt...but again if you get worse or no better id double check with doctor...it was an office staff person who had called me with ok results that werent ok...

 

[Sparrow]

Could you describe what the ache in your lungs is like? I gained a feeling in my own lung area recently that felt kind of like if I had been jogging in very cold weather - sort of a combination tickle/burn, in the centre of my chest. It flared up worse when I breathed out, and whenever my heart got pumping too hard (e.g. walking to the bathroom).

I was able to identify what triggered it pretty quickly and make mine go away, but I haven't sunk much energy into figuring out why it happened, just staying away from the relevant supplements for the time being.

Just curious if there is any similarity to what you're experiencing.

 

[viota]

sparrow im getting similar symptoms atm im getting lung aches all the time

 

[Sparrow]

I have mine narrowed down to a few supplements that were very likely the trigger (I started them and it appeared suddenly; I stopped them and it went away). Ideally I would like to try each in isolation to see which one was the issue, but it just hasn't been worth it yet.

They were all "leaky gut" type things - glutamine (I know it's bad for causing excitotoxicity sometimes, but my digestive tract really needed the help so I thought it was worth a try), n-acetyl-glucosamine, acacia fibre, and a little FOS (didn't really want the last two, but it was a mixed product). ...It did help my digestive issues WAY faster than I'd thought it would, but also generated the lung tickle/burn and the fibre/FOS in particular produced some other unfortunate side effects. Didn't seem like a good idea to continue.