“You don’t need a weather man to know which way the wind blows”

Posted by Daisy Lear on

Bob Dylan said that, and I have to agree.  What he didn’t say was what to do after the wind blows…  

 

As a person who has written articles about health care for the past fifteen years in Kelly Martindale’s Carbon Valley Consumer Report, I feel some responsibility to share information at this time.  We have experienced nasty cold and flu since autumn, and the symptoms from those viruses look different from covid19. Symptoms can be confusing because a person may experience more than one virus at a time, illnesses can happen concurrently. 

 

In this article I’d like to share information from my comparatively small pool of clients, friends and family.  I am only writing about the people who reported symptoms that “go straight to the chest”.  My first personal encounter with people reporting matching symptoms was in December 2019.  Please understand that I am only stating exactly what people said, these are taken from notes and observations.

 

Here are the reported symptoms of those who did not seek out attention from a health care provider when they had what they thought was a cold that went “straight to the chest”.  Most did not seek help because by the second day, they did not feel well enough to leave the house, other reasons included health insurance and finances :

 

First day : All reported feeling run down or completely exhausted in combination with one or a mixture of the following symptoms – chills or fever or sweating, or very sore throat, some used the word “raw” to describe the throat soreness.

 

The very next day :  “straight to the chest” and  “feels like something is sitting on my chest” also labored breathing, (one person described it as panting) mild or moderate fever, continued exhaustion.  Some had a cough, some did not. 

 

The following days and weeks :  continued mild to moderate fever, sweating, short periods of what seemed like relief, then the exhaustion and labored breathing re-appeared on and off for 2-12 weeks.

 

All the people who had the pressure in the lungs and labored breathing finalized the illness with the same “feels like I have something caught in my throat / upper chest that I can’t get out”  … then lots of throat clearing for  weeks. 

 

Only two people happened to come in to see me on that first day, both had a very sore throat and were exhausted, both male, ages 17 and 77 (the older gentleman woke up on December 19, 2019 with a sore throat and exhaustion).  Both immediately started an herbal formula that matched their symptoms.  Both managed to skip the labored breathing and coughing.  Both continued to feel tired but were able to function after complete rest for two days.  The 77 year old male did not come back for two weeks, he reported feeling better by that time, but felt like there was something caught in his throat and was now clearing his throat all the time.  Throat clearing eventually resolved, but it took another three weeks.  

 

The seventeen year old male had follow up treatment the next day, more information found at http://daisylear.com/cold-and-flu/ .  When the sore throat was gone, changed herbal remedy to one that boosts the immune system and keeps the lungs clear of phlegm.  Resolution without feeling as if something was stuck in his throat, no throat clearing, able to work and go to school.

 

Of the clients who did not seek treatment, the most severe were a mother and daughter who live alone together and the illness began as indicated above on December 24, 2019.  She said she felt like they were “giving it back and forth to each other” because they would have periods when they felt more functional.  As of the week of March 16, the mother still feels as if something is stuck in her throat and becomes tired easily.

 

I contacted my sister this week to ask if there are more specific details known about this virus.  She and her husband work in the biotech industry in California.  The company is working on the possibility to help increase the number of samples tested at one time.  She said that covid19 is an RNA virus.  In her email she copied and pasted this information :

 

In the age of modern biology, RNA viruses are the most feared because of its ability to kill people rapidly and its ability to evolve very quickly.  The reason behind is RNA is chemically unstable in nature and lab.  It is therefore more prone to damage and mutations than DNA.

 

I copied and pasted this :

 

RNA virus

An RNA virus is a virus that has RNA as its genetic material. This nucleic acid is usually single-stranded RNA but may be double-stranded RNA. Notable human diseases caused by RNA viruses include Ebola virus disease, SARS, rabies, common cold, influenza, hepatitis C, hepatitis E, West Nile fever, polio, measles, and COVID-19.

 

What can we do ? 

 

Keep our immune and digestive systems strong, be smart about eating and keeping house :

 

*Avoid / reduce : damp and phlegm forming foods such as sugar, milk and cheese, etc. Everyone is different, but we know when we eat something if it causes phlegm.

  • Avoid damp living conditions as much as possible.
  • Change into dry clothing after any type of sweating.
  • Stay dry and keep outdoor animal areas as dry as possible. 
  • Eat cooked warm food like soups and stews.
  • Avoid / reduce cold, frozen and raw food as it is more difficult to digest – this makes less work for our entire system. 
  • Warm spices like ginger, turmeric, garlic, the entire onion family.  
  • Exercise and breathe, change clothing after sweating.  
  • Keep the neck, chest and lower back warm, especially do not let wind nip at the back of your neck and ears, wear a hat and scarf. 
  • End showers with cold water, especially the neck, armpit and groin.  More information about this at http://daisylear.com/inflammation/
  • Get plenty of sleep and clean water.
  • Mix water with salt and rinse eyes, nose and gargle.  No need for something store bought.
  • Soak toothbrushes in peroxide after each use, especially during any illness.
  • Avoid stress

Please take care and feel free to call 303.587.3557 or write daisylear@gmail.com if you have any questions.  For now, I will also be providing herbal formulas to be picked up outside my home-office  in Longmont. 

 

If you’ve been reading articles in this newspaper or from your email, you already know that I like to provide information for people to use at home.  Here are a few helpful links from my website, http://daisylear.com :

 

http://daisylear.com/supporting-the-immune-system/

http://daisylear.com/cold-and-flu/

http://daisylear.com/black-elderberry/

http://daisylear.com/inflammation/

http://daisylear.com/2020-year-of-the-metal-rat/