I know I posted about contracting the "Whooping Cough", "pertussis", a while back. Well, my doc put me on a med that was not "for" pertussis. It helped and knocked the cough back during my trip to the Philippines, but during the last couple days and into my settling back in, the cough returned to pummel me nightly. As of yesterday, I have slept on the couch for a long time, since my frequent awakening and nightly coughing bouts awake Judy.
But last night, on our trip to Portland, ME for training in the State Department Grants programs that we work with, I slept all night. All night. A full night's sleep. What a blessing!
Thanks God for a full night's sleep. I feel terriffic! and I also recognize that there are so many people today suffering from chronic illness who don't get to sleep or rest because of pain. Thanks God for all the people who pray for me and put up with me in the real-time of life.
All of you at Northside and across the country who love me and pray for me and my family: thanks to God for you.
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He IS altogether most excellent. Praise the Lord!
ReplyDeleteDear Lew,
ReplyDeleteI am glad that you are recovering. You and your readers might like to know that there's a campaign going to "Silence the Sound of Pertussis" -- increasing teen and adult anti-pertussis vaccination.
PKids has launched a campaign to increase teen and adult pertussis vaccination, "Silence the Sound of Pertussis".
Three things to know:
The immunity given by vaccination in infancy wanes after about 10 years. The CDC recommends that teens receive a booster, in the form of Tetanus-diphtheria-acellular pertussis vaccine (Tdap).
A person with pertussis is contagious long before the cough develops.
Most infants acquire pertussis from adults, who either weren't immunized or whose immunization has worn off.
From Pertussis.com.
Young infants are at highest risk for pertussis-related complications, including seizures, encephalopathy (swelling of the brain), otitis media (severe ear infection), anorexia (severe restriction of food intake) and dehydration.
Pneumonia is the most common complication and cause of infant pertussis-related deaths.
Whooping cough can be life-threatening for infants who are not fully vaccinated. In fact, over the last decade, 80 percent of whooping cough deaths occurred in infants under 6 months of age.
In adolescents and adults, whooping cough can cause severe coughing that can make it hard to breathe, eat, or sleep, and can result in cracked ribs, pneumonia, or hospitalization.
Here are my two posts on the Silence the Sound of Pertussis campaign:
Why Vaccinate? and PKids' Campaign: Silence the Sound of Pertussis. I'm keeping a list of bloggers contributing to the campaign there; let me know if you'd like your blog added to the list.
Here's an adult's description of her recent bout with pertussis
On my second doctor's visit and after a second opinion indicating pertussis... and after numerous phone conversations with the Doctor's assistants... my doctor listened to the story up to that point and said, "Have you guessed what you've got?" and I said, "yeah. Whooping cough. Pertussis."
ReplyDeleteand he said, "yep".
prescribed me otc allergy meds just in case it was allergies. i didn't do that. I just kept getting better...
cough meds helped a little, but I was on the mend already. I'm so glad it's over for me.
What about so many others?
Thanks to Liz for the links in the comment. That was helpful. I hope more people become aware and seek help more quickly...
vaccination would be better...