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You Have Swine Flu -- Now What?
I've probably hit you over the head enough about not worrying too much about getting swine flu. But what happens if you actually do get it?
Earlier this week, someone asked "If your child gets sick with symptoms of the flu, do you go to the pediatricians office, hospital, where? Is there a test for this flu strain? How are people being treated that suspect they may have it?"
But what about for older adults -- "Hi Doc, I am 67 years old and I could tell you when the last time I had any type of flu. Should I be worried? Also I have not heard anybody say what to do if you get it, like take aspirin, drink lots of fluids, bed rest or what?"
I bet many people wonder what it would feel like to get the swine flu. You probably wouldn't be able to tell the difference between swine flu and the normal flu that you've likely had a time or two.
Swine flu symptoms, and regular flu symptoms, are fever, cough, sore throat, runny nose, body aches, headache, chills, and fatigue. The difference is that more people with swine flu seem to have diarrhea and vomiting, which we don't usually see with the regular flu.
For most people, the only treatment that would be needed for swine flu is also the same as regular flu treatment. Make sure you get plenty of fluids so you don't become dehydrated, take over-the-counter medications to help relieve symptoms, such as congestion and coughing, and get plenty of rest.
For children, particularly young children, you need to watch them closely to make sure they're not getting dehydrated, not overly lethargic, and not having any breathing difficulty. If you're concerned about these or any other symptom, it's always best to call or see your pediatrician.
Some people might benefit from taking antiviral drugs. The good news is that the flu drugs Relenza and Tamiflu are effective against the swine flu virus. However, the trick is to take them very early -- within 48 hours of developing symptoms. They can help lessen the severity of the flu, help you recover more quickly, and may help prevent serious complications from the flu.
While anyone can take an antiviral drug if your doctor feels it's right for you, those at high risk from swine flu complications, such as the very young, the very old, pregnant women, or those with a heart or lung problem, would benefit the most.
If your doctor does suspect you may have swine flu, there is a simple swab test that can confirm the infection. It takes a few days to get the results back so you would be treated while waiting on the results.
And lastly, keep in mind that even if you get the swine flu, chances are very great that you will recover just fine in just a few days.
Keep the great questions coming!
Earlier this week, someone asked "If your child gets sick with symptoms of the flu, do you go to the pediatricians office, hospital, where? Is there a test for this flu strain? How are people being treated that suspect they may have it?"
But what about for older adults -- "Hi Doc, I am 67 years old and I could tell you when the last time I had any type of flu. Should I be worried? Also I have not heard anybody say what to do if you get it, like take aspirin, drink lots of fluids, bed rest or what?"
I bet many people wonder what it would feel like to get the swine flu. You probably wouldn't be able to tell the difference between swine flu and the normal flu that you've likely had a time or two.
Swine flu symptoms, and regular flu symptoms, are fever, cough, sore throat, runny nose, body aches, headache, chills, and fatigue. The difference is that more people with swine flu seem to have diarrhea and vomiting, which we don't usually see with the regular flu.
For most people, the only treatment that would be needed for swine flu is also the same as regular flu treatment. Make sure you get plenty of fluids so you don't become dehydrated, take over-the-counter medications to help relieve symptoms, such as congestion and coughing, and get plenty of rest.
For children, particularly young children, you need to watch them closely to make sure they're not getting dehydrated, not overly lethargic, and not having any breathing difficulty. If you're concerned about these or any other symptom, it's always best to call or see your pediatrician.
Some people might benefit from taking antiviral drugs. The good news is that the flu drugs Relenza and Tamiflu are effective against the swine flu virus. However, the trick is to take them very early -- within 48 hours of developing symptoms. They can help lessen the severity of the flu, help you recover more quickly, and may help prevent serious complications from the flu.
While anyone can take an antiviral drug if your doctor feels it's right for you, those at high risk from swine flu complications, such as the very young, the very old, pregnant women, or those with a heart or lung problem, would benefit the most.
If your doctor does suspect you may have swine flu, there is a simple swab test that can confirm the infection. It takes a few days to get the results back so you would be treated while waiting on the results.
And lastly, keep in mind that even if you get the swine flu, chances are very great that you will recover just fine in just a few days.
Keep the great questions coming!
32 Comments:
if you recover just great then why do people die from this problem?
i wonder if i had it?
i was realy sick last saturday. I had all those symptoms for about 2-3 days. now i'm just recovering from a sinus infection.
Can you still be able to tell if someone had it, even after they've recovered?
I know this whole epicdemic thing is really bad. but why isnt austrlia getting it as much as other countries. is the goverment telling us everything???
Thanks
Because Australia is behind the times in everything else, why should swine flu be any different ;-) . The fact is we are seeing cases popping up all over the country right now, it was just a matter of time. This whole "pandemic" is natural selection at its best and more to the point neither the first or last influenza outbreak we will see. harsh but true.
My (almost) four year old daughter got sick suddenly last night. I picked her up from daycare, was told she had announced she wasn't feeling well about an hour earlier. She was a bit hot, so my daycare provider gave her ibuprofen. Her face was flushed, eyes looked a little swollen and puffy, eyes also looked glazed, she acted listless. She started throwing up as she was getting out of the van. I put her in the bath, where she seemed to feel better. She looked almost normal when she got out of the bath, but then quickly started acting sick after she got dressed. She ate one or two bites of food, took a few sips of water. I checked her temp - 100.5F. About three hours later, she threw up again. Temp this time was 102.3F, so we gave her ibuprofen. My husband was saying she has the flu, but I'm not so quick to jump to conclusions. Any thoughts?
I have been sick for 7 days now with all the swine flu symptoms. I went to the doctor on Thursday who prescribed the "tamiflu" but it is now Sunday and my throat is still killing me and I have a dry cough that doesn't help. Is this normal with the swine flu? Im worried that I am not getting better and I suspect that this swine flu is more serious than what we are being lead to believe.
I really don't know what I have...
Yesterday i started getting a dry cough and feeling sick in the evening. Then last night i had a fever, high temp. and the chills. I was also very shakey and dizzy when I moved around and I had a killer headache. However although I have a slightly blocked nose it's not runny, nor did i vomit, and i don't really have a sore throat. I feel better this mornign but still a high temperature, tired and dizzy. Also a couple of days ago I had a normal cold and now i have this...Is this swine flu??
Assuming hypothetical cases……..
1)A five year old patient, with history of bronchitis (more than six times a year), comes to you with dry cough, (coughing for the past 1 1/2 days), no fever, slight redness in the throat, still physically active….. what would the treatment you recommend?
2)Same patient but at different stages of his cough, phelgmy, chesty, wheezing, no fever, vomited the night before, physically still active…… what would then the treatment you recommend?
3) Same patient but at another different stage, he has been on a course of antibiotic already (say, Augmentin), still coughing and wheezing, slight fever, physically tired, vomiting, loss of appetite….. what would be the treatment?
The reason i ask these is to find out at what stage should we consider sending that patient to the hospital.
In the event my son contracted h1N1, i would like to know at which point i should consider sending him to the hospital?
I know the hospitals are now understaffed , overworked, and i thought the best care is still the mother’s care (with pediatrician’s prescription) at the initial stage of H1N1. Having home care at initial stage, i could at least ensure he is given nutrients, vit C and D, fluids etc……
Thanks again for your feedback.
I am 24 years old and have been diagnosed with the swine flu, i was sick for about a week and got better then all of a sudden i got sick with a 103 temp and had to get to the er i am on tama flu now and i just pray to jesus that my one month old does not have it well if you have any questions go ahead and ask.
David
A few days ago i started feeling sick. I thought it was the cold but i have sore throat dry cough killer headache chills runny and stiffy nose. I've been sick for 5 days already and haven't seen a doctor. Is this the swine flu???
If you have had swine flu (in April 2009), is there a risk of getting it again, or are you now immune, and if so, for how long?
more people die from the "regular" flu than have swine flu.
well im 16 years old and i have had many swin flu symptoms for the past 3but i begin feeling better then it atacts me again, like yester day i felt realy better so i whent bike riding for a while and i was about 20 mins in and my lungs began atacking me, and i imediatly rode home, and almost didnt even make it home, when i arived in my driveway my lungs and throught just sweld up and became so dificult to breath tht i just walked inside and fell on the couch, after tht i broke out with a fever for 20 mins and then was fine, all i had after tht was a heavy heavy coughf, i took some ibeprofen, and some tea, and felt a little better, but i still have sore throught, coughf, kinda, tierd but not much, and a sore back and neck, and a little dioregha, and im not shur what to do, i dont know if its swine flu, or just a regular flu, i need some seriouse answers,please??
I've had a deep wet cough for two weeks, and now I'm achey. I have no fever. I've read 30 percent of people with swine flu don't get a fever. I sure wish I knew what I had, and how to get rid of this cough. I feel really lousy.
I went to the ER last night because my 17month old and I were not feeling well.. my baby had a viral infection and I have the flu. I asked the doctor how they could distinguish the swin flu from the regular seasonal flu and she told me I would have to get tested. She also stated it would cost me seven hundred dollars to get tested for this!! if its such a pandemic why is there such a high cost on someones life.. so what do I do now?
Actually, most the info I read here is untrue. I got diagnosed yesterday, but had symptoms the day before. They do use a nase swab test, but it only takes 10 minutes for results.
I was also prescribed Tamiflu, but you don't get better in the 5 days that you take it. It usually takes that long to get into the non-contagious stage. I can't go back to school until the 15th just to be sure. Hope that clarified things. :]
The last person to comment is exactly right. Was feeling exactly fine on Monday, i was feeling great actually. Then I went to sleep that night and I woke up a few hours later finding that I felt lightheaded majorly. I was completely out of it. Many times in the night I woke up and was miserable. Then I told my mom I couldn't go to school. (I'm fifteen) My mom screamed at me and let me stay home. I laid in bed a little more and I was coughing, sneezing, I had a sore throat, my eyes burned very painfully(Still do) and I had major headaches and would black out or feel like passing out anytime I would try to get up and walk around. The next day I looked up the symptoms for Swine Flu and it turned out I had all of them exactly how they were described. I even took an online test and it said I was very sick with it and to go to the doctor. I went and he didn't take a swab of anything from my body, he could easily tell that I had it. He would not give me tamaflu though. But to this day(Friday) I'm still getting over it, so far my fever has gone down and I don't feel as out of it. I go back to school on Monday considering I should be better by then.
ONE more thing I would like to add, you read that it makes breathing difficult and thats kind of something that some people ignore-I know I did. Anyways, it really is hard. A simple task as getting out of bed makes me out of breath and panting. jogging makes me practically hyperventlate.
i just went to the doctors yesterday and sure enough i have the swine flu, its pretty much like the common cold but now im having problems with throwing up and my asthma is acting up from all the coughing i have. my doc. gave me tamiflu and well hopefully it works because its a bummer having to be in isolating for 7 days and having to wear a facemask out in public...
what if you doc did not do the swab test how can they say you have swin flu
My daughter has the H1N1 flu virus Im worried now because I have a 2 year old aswhile as her ( she is 6 Yrs old ) what are the chances that myself and my son will get it what can I do to make sure we dont Im lost for words and worried what can I do ?
in regards to the person saying they have the swine flu and asthma and now tired of wearing a mask in public...my question is..Why are you out in public infecting all others?...STAY HOME!!
if someone has swine flu in you house u need to tell you doctor u want preventiv cre b4 you would get it thats what they are doing with us tomorrow, my son was just diagnosed with this tonight.
I just had the swine flu and its terrible it feels like you dont want to eat anything!! I dont even have an appetite
On Friday my sister was sick (13 years old) I was told by my step mom she had Swine flu. I'm never home on the weekends, I get home from school Monday all day I felt fine, I have a dry cough (nothing comes up), chills. Tuesday same thing happened only it's worse. Wednesday I'm running a fever, chills, coughing. I am allergic to Mold soo I though it was just my allergies at first because of the cough. I'm not sure if I have Swine flu, I really hope not. Also how long does it last? kinda rough to miss all this school.
Im sorry but the mexican Border needs to be closed, this originated in Mexico and Obama knew a year ago of the out break, but continues to let disease ooze over, TB is back also from illegals bringing it over. many of the children that you heard of that died,, well the media didnt tell you they came from mexico and were boot legged over to the USA hospitals, how ever this is a concern for the others in the hospitals and their health including the babies. also swine flu vaccine for kids is out of it, due to illegals bringing their kids over and there is not enough for Americans, I think the Government should be taking care of Americans first, im sorry, but they should instead of letting Mexico come over also, there isnt enough right now for them too. The State of Calif gave me this information on the sick kids dying here from mexico, very sad indeed, but where do we draw the line to protect AMericans? Also the state said they are considering closing the Borders if it gets worse,, well the Borders should have been closed when then first happened, it should have been contained
Dear friends,
I am from Malaysia and two months ago, H1N1 was at its peak here causing more than 70 deaths in a month.
The locals here tried all means and ways to boost up our children's immune system.
These include
1) taking good quality cod liver oil
2) heavy doses of beta carotene (eapecially papaya and dragon fruits coz they help bowel movement)
3) drink lots of water
4) take herbal drinks and barley water
5) got lots of vit D by being under the morning sun and sweat it out for a while
The idea is to perspire and yet not get the body overheated hence lots of cooling drinks.
But do not over do as too cooling isn't good for the body as well.
Many of us go for the pneumococcal jab as a secondary defense system against possible pneumonia complication.
HOpe these info help
KaREN
after getting the swine flu, should I still get the H1N1 shot?
I tested positive for the swine flu.I am 28 years old and haven't had the regular flu since I was 5,my symptoms and onset were that of the last few posts. I have been feeling alot better for about 4 days now but am still having trouble breathing as well as a flem like cough. I am worried because of what has been reported about people who have died from it, that they were sick,got better then all of a sudden got sick again which then resulted in their death. I am terrified,I don't know what to be looking for! I hate the media and the anxiety they cause with their history of over-dramatization on issues like this! Who do you believe? Doctors are well known for under-dramatization of issues.Guess I'll just have to wait and see if I die....I'll have someone post for me if I do.
I've been having symptoms since Friday, November 6 consisting of extreme weakness, fatique, headache. I have not had a fever, cough or vomitting. I, obviously, stayed in bed--drinking orange juice, ginger and eating (as I still have somewhat of an appetite). I saw a nurse practioner at my doctor's office yesterday--She did not test me for it--when I asked her when I could safely return to work so I wouldn't be contagious--she just said the virus could last from seven to fourteen day. She was no help. Now it's Wednesday and I'm feeling a little better but am worred about my 19 year old son who had cold symptoms that seem to morphing into flu sypmtoms.
Swine flu has basic symptoms but it effects each person differently. My entire household has contracted it (brought home by my daughter from her preschool). She did not come down with symptoms right away. It was my husband that first started to show signs. With him it was a moderate fever (100.2 at highest), fatigue, deep cough in the lungs. It has been 2 weeks since he got it and still holds on to the deep cough although it is letting up finally. My daughter got it and hers lasted just a couple days...fever(100 at highest), moderate cough, fatigue, watery eye and puffiness of the face. My one year old son and I caught it together and seem to have the same symptoms although they progressed at different rates. He got the fever first (100.8 highest...very close to ER suggested temp), fatigue, limited appetite, change in mobility (sluggish) and a deep phlegm type cough. At the present time he only has the phlegm cough which causes him hardship in eating dairy based foods. I had the cough first deep in my lungs (like bronchitis feeling) which has slowly turned phlegm like, after a few days I developed a fever (highest 103.6), burning behind the eyes, massive fatigue, inability to eat, etc. The fever lasted a full 24 hours and was replaced by a moderate headache.
It's been 15 days since the onset of my symptoms. Day one was extreme fatigue, day 2 was a mild productive cough, the cough subsided very quickly, but I still continued to have a burning sensation in my chest as if I was trying to develop bronchitis. Then my eyes started to burn/watery/red/irriated. Night sweats, feeling of hot/cold/chills. I saw the Nurse Pract. at work and she said as long as I didn't have a cough or fever I could return to work, and it looked as though I was trying to come down with something..hmmmm? I felt a burning sensation in my mouth and face that would come intermittently. My mid to low back/hip pain has kept me up at night and just when I thought I may be getting better.. I started to feel worse...I'm not able to focus/concentrate, I can't stand for a long time without feeling completely wiped out. What scared me and made me go to the doctor was the confusion and lightheadedness I was having. I ended up going to see the doctor after 11 days and he thought that I may be developing early pneumonia as evident by small fluid found at the base of my lung. It's now day 15, and I'm still wiped out...most of my symptoms have taken on a mild form, but I still feel lightheaded, mild head pressure,fullness in my ears that comes and goes,and sometimes I can barely lift my head up. FYI I NEVER HAD A FEVER and at times I felt ok, then it would hit again. I can see how this would make anyone develop anxiety...This is nothing like I've ever had....and I have had influenza in the past. The swine flu can take on many different characteristics, and sounds like after reading all these postings..there's lots of variations....I regret that I continued to push myself and continued to work thinking I was just developing a common cold...Only to find out those were symptoms of Swine.
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