Tuesday, April 24, 2007

Who Needs a Doctor?

So I have this cough. This I can't take a deep breath without feeling the need to cough-cough. Some say it's allergies (including my dog's vet...which is a whole other funny story)--which I have never had before. But, it's a dry cough. I don't have a cold. I'm not stuffed up...I'm not achy...just a dry, itchy cough.

I'm not really one for the doctor. In fact, I don't actually have a doctor down here...and maybe I should. But, I decided to do a little self-diagnosis on WebMD (at the prompting of a colleague no doubt annoyed by my constant cough). WebMD is the coolest website...you can actually list your symptoms and it tells you what you might have. From my symptoms (I actually only have one symptom--dry cough), I may have latent tuberculosis, chronic sinusitis, asbestosis (though I've never been in contact with asbsestos to my knowledge), viral pneumonia, hay fever, the common cold, or allergies. Um, that seems a little broad...but still a fun website if you're ever sick, and bored (and participating in a meeting via video feed on your computer).

So, yea, it'd be cool if this cough went away, say over night. In the meantime, at least my abs are getting a good workout...so I've got that goin' for me...

3 comments:

jmjana said...

liz. claritin d. just suck it up. you can't win. we live in the valley of sickness. welcome to cincy.

sheplaysamartin said...

i had a co-worker at a previous job who had a dry, nearly chronic cough. his doctor suggested anti-inflammatory meds to stop the coughing. the theory was that after a time of him being pretty sick, his throat was so raw and irritated from all the previous coughing that it still felt like he needed to cough, which caused more irritation. stopping the feeling of needing to cough gave his throat the time it needed to heal the irritation. i've tried using ibuprofen and/or after long colds to save my vocal chords, and it seems to help. may not apply to you at all. but it's a thought... feel better soon! :)

Liz said...

Thanks for the tip! I am willing to try just about anything at this point, considering I can't take a deep breath without going into a fit...