Never ending coughing, when will it stop?

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C

Charlie

Active member
Joined
Jun 28, 2011
Messages
41
Location
Eureka Springs , Arkansas in the Ozark Mountains
I had the breathing tube and feeding tube in my throat for 5 days. I was operated on the 20th of July. My voice is still extremely raspy and I cough constantly. Dry coughs mostly until I lie down then clear foamy mucous for a hour or so before it begins to subside.

How long will I have to endure the coughing? I currently take two Benadryl (sp?) to get me drowsy for sleep.

Taking it also results in reduced the mucous when I sleep but doesn't entirely eliminate it. I cough standing, sitting, walking and especially when trying to talk.

The surgeon (my surgeon) said it will subside eventually and will likely coincide with getting my voice back. My sternum is just excruciating (yes, I use a pillow) due to the constant coughing has anyone got a suggestion on how to get it to stop?

On the upside, I've been able to walk a couple of blocks at a time once a day. I also got driving privileges back but due the coughing fits I am afraid I will become distracted so for now I am not driving.
 
Charlie,
The only thing that comes to the top of my head, that isn't a medicine is tea with honey. Since you already do the antihistimine at night-time likely a non-drowsy antihistimine would not mix well. Aside from your cardiologist have you spoken with your primary care doctor for any suggestions?
 
Have you been able to start walking more yet? It might be a coincidence, but when Justn has one of his surgeries and was coughing alot, it started clearing up alot whe he was discharged and walking more beside the laps around the floor. Do you have any allergies?
 
Charlie - I had that cough for weeks. Mine wasn't enough to disturb sleep, but it did make conversation almost impossible. I tried Mucinex DM (expectorant/cough suppressant) with little result. I just didn't talk much for the first month I was at home. It seemed to just stop on its own, somewhere between 4 and 6 weeks out. My "heart" pillow was my constant companion for weeks, too.
 
epstns said:
Charlie - I had that cough for weeks. Mine wasn't enough to disturb sleep, but it did make conversation almost impossible. I tried Mucinex DM (expectorant/cough suppressant) with little result. I just didn't talk much for the first month I was at home. It seemed to just stop on its own, somewhere between 4 and 6 weeks out. My "heart" pillow was my constant companion for weeks, too.
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I am a month post op on the 20th. My cough is still present but as you say it seems to be subsiding a little bit. Right or wrong this is my pre-bedtime med regimen, Two Benadryls and one Mucinex D. The benadryl make me drowsy and the Mucinex mutes some of the coughing. It's the ONLY way I can get any sleep. My poor wife has had to move into the spare bedroom so she isn't a walking zombie at work. All the cardiologists says is "sometimes people cough for long periods of time" What a profound statement...argh.

Any way to also answer some of the questions for me above; yes, I walk a block to two blocks daily, and yes I have seasonal allergies but they generally only bother me in the late fall.

Thanks everyone for answering my silly questions.

Oh, and one more question! Does/did your sternum kinda click when you moved certain ways? I am starting to worry that the coughing has prevented the bone from healing.
 
Mine lasted for about four weeks, and seemed to get better as I got more active. I had a lot of fluid in the lungs before surgery so I am sure that had an affect. I would sniff that vicks sab right out of the jar for long periods of time; that seemed to help a lot. Also practiced a lot of deep breathing that knocked much of it loose.

Becasue my mitral valve was leaking before surgery, I had a caugh for about 6 years. Now, nothing,,,,,, it's nice
 
Charlie said:
I am a month post op on the 20th. My cough is still present but as you say it seems to be subsiding a little bit. Right or wrong this is my pre-bedtime med regimen, Two Benadryls and one Mucinex D. The benadryl make me drowsy and the Mucinex mutes some of the coughing. It's the ONLY way I can get any sleep. My poor wife has had to move into the spare bedroom so she isn't a walking zombie at work. All the cardiologists says is "sometimes people cough for long periods of time" What a profound statement...argh.
Click to expand...

Please reassure me that you have asked the doctor or pharmasist about using a cough suppressant with any other meds. I'm a worrywart ;p
 
Charlie said:
Hmmmm, I am on lisinopril and Ibuprofen.....now you have me thinking.
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It MIGHT be just a coincidence, but lisinopril is one of the ones that cause coughing. IF you search for lisinopril and cough there are alot of sites like this
http://www.everydayhealth.com/health-questions/lisinopril/why-or-how-does-lisinopril-cause-coughing that even mention . "The cough is usually described as a dry, persistent, itchy or tickling cough. Some reports describe the cough as worse at night, leading to sleep problems and sore throat. The cough usually starts early in therapy, as early as one day after starting the medication. However, it can show up after almost a year of treatment. It is not totally clear how the cough happens or how to get rid of it. Traditional cough medicines do not seem to help"

I'm pretty sure there are a few post here about coughing and Ace inhibitors, maybe they can have some suggestions, altho I think some people get switched with another kind of med.
its something to ask your doc about.
 
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Well y'all were right the ACE inhibitors Lisinopril was the culprit. I called my Cardiologist and made an inquiry, described the symptoms etc to his nurse. She told me that she would consult with my Doctor and get back to me. Yesterday afternoon she called back and they took me off the drug. Last evening, I still coughed but not heavily and for the VERY first time since being home I slept the night without coughing or waking my wife with the coughing.

I hadn't even considered drug allergies or reactions until I posted here. Thanks y'all!
 
So happy you seem to have found answers and gotten relief.
I just want to mention the huge benefit of walking. Hopefully, you wll be able to walk a little more now that the coughing is subsiding and many of us find walking is the best thing we can do for ourselves duirng recovery. It made a big difference for me.

Best wishes.
 
Charlie said:
Jkm7,

Yes, walking has been hard for me but I am doing it anyway. Today, I made three blocks without stopping. Doesn't sound like much but up until now I've had to stop and catch my breath.
Click to expand...

I'm glad to hear things are improving with the coughing. I was wonderring for the walking, maybe instead of tryng to go further distance the one time, you could break it up and do the 1-2 blocks 2-3 times a day, that might be easier on you. Has your doctor talked about Cardiac rehab?
 
Charlie - I still remember, when I first returned home from the hospital, that I would literally think twice about walking to the corner to mail a letter -- after all, I had to be able to walk back, too!

Those first weeks and even months can be scary and a bit worrisome, but as everyone has said, it really does get better. And. . . the better it gets, the quicker it seems to get better. Soon you will find that your walks get easier, then you will be able to go even farther. At some point you will think to yourself, "Gosh, I really do feel better!" It just seems to happen that way.

Keep up the good work. Be sure to ask your cardio about rehab. I think that signing up for the hospital-based (outpatient, of course) rehab program was one of the best decisions I made.
 
Glad I stopped in on this thread. Good info. I am almost 7 months post op and I have had a really bad cough. It is scratchy itchy throat. I don't remember having it earlier on - but for the last month or so. It started soon enough that it has really stirred up pain in my sternum and left chest. I noticed today that my cough didn't seem as bad and I was thinking that it was allergies and the pollen not as bad - but coincidentally my cardiologist cut my lisinopril in half last visit as my blood pressure was low. Maybe that is what has been getting me so bad. The pain has been so bad that I had a chest ct on Friday, no news as yet. Might have been a waste of time, but I hurt - especially in the morning and it gradually gets betters - except for sneezing and coughing.

Anyway - always need to remember the side effects meds can have. I am a side sleeper too and have been pretty much since going home from hospital. I just cannot sleep on my back it pinches some nerve or something and my thighs go to sleep. I do hug a pillow though.
 
My DH is now 4 weeks post op and is able to walk nearly a mile a day but he has a dry cough since before the surgery and it has worsened in the last couple of weeks. Now he starts to gag and get dry heaves. It makes talking and breathing deeply difficult because that sets off another coughing fit. He's not on ace inhibitors but has been on beta blockers before and since the OHS. He also has no appetite and continues to lose wt (and had none to lose to begin with). He does the spirometer religiously though it always makes him cough. Please help!
 
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