Busy Working Mom with a Cough That Just Won't Go Away

BP meds cause this often. My husband had it for awhile... 6mos after starting his lisonopril... it eventually went away.

Did any of the doctors consider purtussis? It's making a comeback in many areas. I developed a horrible cough in early June and it just would not go away. I had no other symptoms, except that the cough seemed to make my throat close up and I could not breath for a moment - very frightening! Because I felt fine except for those coughing spells, I put off seeing my doctor. I finally did make an appointment in mid August, but by then the cough had lessened. I opted not to take any antibiotics, since I could handle the now 1-4 times a day it happened. But even now, in mid September it's not 100% gone. Good luck.

Sounds like you've covered your bases in getting it checked out. Glad they didn't find anything, but still there's something going on.

Years ago I suddenly developed tracheitis. I coughed and coughed at seemingly no provocation and could end up feeling like I was gagging. Once I got into a coughing spell, it was difficult to stop it. For 3 or 4 days, I coughed non-stop 20 hours a day, literally, feel asleep exhausted and woke because I was coughing. (cracked a couple ribs too) I took antibiotics during the worst of it, but the cough persisted even though I was better.

I noticed that it felt like my trachea had developed a certain 'rawness' that when it became irritated, set me off. Another thing that was a trigger was post-nasal drip and I effectively take care of that using a netti pot. If you haven't tried one, you might give it a go. My netti pot and I have become good friends! lol

It is rare now that I have that cough, but every once in awhile I have it slightly and it reminds me how bad it used to be. - I would love to think you'll find a simple solution to this which come to think of it....... what I did to really break the cycle (as there was nothing running under the radar of something as the cause) was to do everything I could to NOT cough. I'd always keep cough drops with me and when I felt the slightest urge to cough, I'd pop one in my mouth. I always had tissues to blow my nose if it got runny and used my netti pot - in an effort to stop continually irritating my throat and trigger the rawness and coughing. It seemed to work. But I'll have to say, it took a good bit of time. I was definitely able to manage it, but the rawness took a long time to really heal.

Good luck and please let me know how it goes. If anything I posted resonates with you, don't hesitate to call me if you have questions about my experience.

btw - I just read your post again and you mentioned Bronchaid helps somewhat. That might be another indication that it is related more to your airway than your throat - which was more my experience. - Maybe check into your BP meds as the other post suggested.

Hi L., My husband sounds just like you. Unfortunatly his cough has been with him for years. He did everything you did. At one time they thought he had celiac disease so we changed his diet, nothing changed. I thought of COPD. One thing that I notice is that stress causes the cough. Sounds like you have alot on your plate. Try yoga to relax or ask your doctor for a low dose antidepressant. Stress causes so many issues we dont realize. If it helps , thats your answer. If you find a doctor that helps you...please forward the information. Our next step would be Mayo clinic. Good luck!

I have a friend who says she coughs when nervous/stressed. Sounds like you have more than your share of stress! Try adding something new to your routine -gentle exercise that doesnt aggravate cough like yoga, quiet walks, and time alone, more reading or hobbies to quiet your mind.. Its SO hard to find the time but think of it as a medicine you NEED to take to keep healthy and keep taking care of everyone else. Even if stress isnt causing this cough (I'm not a Dr and shouldnt diagnose!) stress could lead you to an early heart attack, stroke or other medical problems so it wouldn hurt to take care of yourself. Hope you get better!

Last year my 2 yo had Whooping Cough and my mom caught it too. It was very hard to diagnosis after the first 10 days. It lasts about 100 days and it is coughing "spells" and gagging. My mom went to many doctors too, they thought it was an onset of asthma and finally when our pediatrician figured out that our daughter had Pertissus (sp?) it all made sense. Whooping Cough is making a comeback and doctors are not on the lookout for it. Go to Whoopingcough.net and see it sounds like you! Good luck!

I had a cough once that lasted a whole year. No one could figure out why, they chalked it up to allergies.

Try a supplement called Lung Care by Redd Remedies. You can get it online. It worked!

If you haven't had one yet, I suggest a chest x-ray. Some infections hide way down in the lungs. Good luck!

Could be asthma that is triggered by allergies. See an allergy/asthma specialist who can test you for all possible indoor and outdoor allergies -- tree, grass, and weed pollens; pet dander; molds, dust mites.

I coughed like that for years, with doctors misdiagnosing it as bronchitis and throwing antibiotics at it to no avail. Once I got allergy tested, I found out that I was allergic to many things. After a few years of allergy shots, almost nothing bothers me and my asthma is so well controlled I don't even need and inhaler.

I am not kidding but were you in a Target yesterday coughing? I asked someone if they were alright. They said fine then sounded as if they were going to drop their head off their body.If it was you, wow that is ashame!
I'm sure your chest would hurt a lot, you have been coughing a lot! I wish I knew an answer for you, but I wonder if you inhaled something so minute, or have such a minute tear or something that it doesn't show up on these tests. It sounds like the whooping cough my son went through when he was born. Well, if that was you yesterday (and I suppose an awfully strange coincedence) I wish you the most of luck and prayers.

pls let us know what happens after you see the pulmonologist...you are in our prayers...good luck!!! when they thought i had MS one time and could get no one to give me a final diagnosis...i went to Mayo in Minnesota...great experience and they don't mess around...they will get to the bottom of it!!! hope you soon feel back to yourself!!!

My son caught a cold going around last winter, and for over two months afterwards he had a horrible cough. We kept going back and forth to the pediatrician- had bloodwork, CT scan of his chest, and even a TB test run. Each dr.s visit they gave him a different medication but it never had much effect.

I took him to the allergist and they dx'd him with asthma and put him on three diffferent asthma meds to get on top of the cough. Once his cough got better we were able to back off on the meds. The pediatrician just wasn't treating the cough aggressively enough.

Some people wheeze as a sign of asthma but for my kid a cough is the main symptom.

Maybe try a good allergist? (Though a pulmonologist should be able to id asthma)