Coughing excessive phlegm

[tammytetris]

I too have been having coughing attacks where I cough until I vomit. I am on acid reflux meds and nasal spray to help postnasal drip. This has been going on for about 2 months. I had this before about 3 years ago. The dr. tells me there is nothing they can do about it.
It's really bad in the fact I can't go anywhere without having facial tissue and a sack or something to vomit in, cause I never know when I'll have an attack. Usually I cough up a lot of phlegm, but sometimes I actually vomit.
Is there anything I can do to solve this? It's like a nightmare. It's hard to even work w/out coughing up phlegm and everyone looks at me.



This discussion is related to Phlegm Build-Up.

[mesquiteice]

Hi enduring and tammy,

I have found that Homeopathy works best for allegies. may be you should try a good homeopath.

get well soon

[Jannaam]

I also had the problem of mucus after eating and have found that it is because
of a food-allergie.( eggs, diary and so on ).
When I avoid alletrgic foods I have no mucus problem.

When I have an attac ( musus and coughing  that could last for hours )
I take half a teaspoon of Baking Soda in a glas of water and have immediate relief.

[VikingHalla]

Hi Tammy - I have suffered from the exact symptoms that began in October 2008 and I am still having sudden coughing attacks in April 2009. The doctor took a chest X-ray and gave me Flonase. The Flonase did dry up the mucus but I still have the cough. If anyone knows what's going on, please respond to both of us.

[asentwistle]

I have had a phlegm cough for a while now as well, i went to the doctor and he gave me anobolic steroids for my sinuses and they worked very well. My cough and my phlegm build up stopped. But ive stopped taking the steroids because they dont agree with me. I think the phlegm build up is caused buy sinuses not working correctly. I've also noticed dairy produce like milk and cheese doesnt help it either. Im going to see if the doctor can prescribe something a bit better. Ill keep you informed.

[aiyume]

You are like me. I carry napkins everywhere and it's disgusting. People stare at me when I have a coughing fit and spit in every trash can, and my family screams and ******* about it everyday, and it's so annoying because I can't stop it, and I can't go to the doctor. If modern medicine does not work, I suggest you try Chinese herbal medicine, or maybe acupuncture.

[zodiacqueen]

Do both of you smoke?  If you do, then this could be chronic bronchitis.  Tammy, have you had a chest x-ray, or pulmonary function test?  These tests might give you some answers.

[Enduring]

I don't want to alarm you but I have had a cough like yours for more than 5 years, and it's gradually getting worse. I have been seeing the top respiratory specialists in London and they have run every test imaginable and have come up with nothing. They describe it as an idopathic cough - one with no apparent cause. I have tried all sorts of inhalers and medicines but none of them have any real or lasting effect. The only one which has helped at all has been codeine linctus, which makes you less responsive to irritants and thus reduces the amount of coughing, but it doesn't deal with the underlying cause. It also leads to constipation. My theory is that my cough is caused by excessive secretion of phlegm/sputum by the mucus membranes in the respiratory tracts. Phlegm is produced naturally to catch and disable germs. I think I must be producing too much of it and this is causing me to cough. But I can't find anyone who can suggest a drug to get my body to produce less phlegm. The only suggestions I have had is to cut out all dairy products and white carbs, but that is a pretty big sacrifice, and when I have gone dairy-free for a time it hasn't seemed to make any difference.

Surely there must be a drug that can reduce phlegm production?