I've just been diagnosed with whooping cough. I thought I had bronchitis and had completed a 10-day dose of Cipro. I've had a horrible cough (think seal barking) for more than a month and went back to the doctor. It turns out I have all the symptoms of whooping cough and have for over 30 days. I also have asthma. Incidentally, Albuterol was not effective in helping my coughing fits. Symptoms I am experiencing are: exhaustion, bronchospasms (severe), runny nose, mucous, loss of appetite, weight loss, restless sleep, frequent severe coughing fits, burning in chest/lungs and tightness in my chest. I am now on a 7-day course of Biaxin, steroid inhaler and prescriptive cough medicine. -Marie Published: October 15 ::

I have had whooping cough for nearly five weeks now. The symptoms are a little less severe, yet still quite scary. As I cough, I feel as if my body is being electrocuted, and my head is about to explode. It is frightening because you simply cannot get a breath in. Nights are terrible with more frequent and severe bouts. I asked my doctor what I can do to rebuild my immune system. He simply said that it takes time. The healing process is very slow. Published: September 10 ::

My 6 week old son is in intensive care at the moment with whooping cough. I went to the doctors in the beginning with my son having a persistent cough and mucus coming up I was told it was a cold, 2 days later my son became worse and started going blue so I took him to hospital to get some answers yet again I was fobbed off with its a cold but he does have a lot of mucus on his chest but with it was clear it is not an infection. My son’s condition worsened so I yet again went to the doctors where my son had a bad coughing fit, so I was finally referred to hospital for treatment but on the way my son totally stopped breathing and turned blue. When we got to hospital the consultant told me we had gone just in time as my sons lungs were that heavy due to all the mucus he couldn’t breath for himself, my son had 2 respiratory arrests while at hospital so was transferred to another hospital to intensive care were he is currently under going treatment for whooping cough. I was so scared I was going to loose him and I feel if the doctors had listened to me at the start I wouldn’t be sitting here now waiting for my son to recover and come off his ventilator. Published: September 10 ::

I was just given a tentative diagnosis of pertussis yesterday, along with a five-day course of azithromycin. I'd been sick with what I thought was a particularly bad cold over the weekend and had been feeling better yesterday until something suddenly triggered a coughing fit so severe I couldn't draw a normal-sized breath between coughs, and I vomited at the end of it. I'm a clinical lab science student, and I know I've never been properly vaccinated against pertussis (I'm allergic to the vaccine), so that one bad coughing fit set off alarm bells in my brain, and I hiked to the campus clinic as fast as I could. Turns out, there is some pertussis circulating around campus, in addition to seasonal flu and H1N1. Since I sought medical help as soon as possible, instead of waiting until I'd been coughing for weeks already, they hope that the antibiotics will lead to a shorter disease course. Pay attention to your coughs! If you're coughing hard enough to throw up, or so hard you have trouble breathing, waiting for it to go away on its own is NOT the way to go! Published: October 20 ::

My daughters have had whooping cough for about three weeks. We have been giving them a combination of homeopathic prescribed by our naturopath, which seem to be working very well. There has been no vomiting and the phlegm is not getting stuck but is moving up nicely. I have been giving them licorice tea which lines the digestive tract including the throat. Garlic is a great anti-microbial so I have been putting it into a lot of our meals. Also, of course, we have cut out all dairy as it is mucous-forming. The families that we know whose children have had whooping cough all tell of the strong immune system their children now possess - they do not get colds anymore. I have noticed a significant physical and mental growth in my children during this period of illness. Plenty of warmth and rest is required during this long period - the cough increases significantly with physical activity. We have spent a lot of family time doing puzzles, charades, monopoly, etc. The convalescence period is important as our friends have had their whooping cough come back on when they thought they had gotten over it. Our naturopath has been very helpful in providing us with many positive ways in which to assist our children. Whooping cough has been around for a long time so there are many remedies available to help get through it. The doctors are unfortunately not equipped to provide these. Look for real help that supports the body. Published: October 07 ::

My pertussis began like a normal cold, runny nose, slight cough and slight fever but the cough persisted for more than 4 weeks and now has vomiting with it. It is worse at night. Malaise, fatigue and dizziness, no appetite has developed as well. Published: October 07 ::