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June 2016 Moms
ashleygray89
member
Pleurisy at 26 weeks
ashleygray89
member
Hey ladies, first off I want to say I have missed all the conversations lately, as life has been happening! We have been renovating our new home and trying to get ready to move out of our current home all while I was sick with a terrible cold that landed me bronchitis which landed me now pleurisy! Been a rough 3 to 4 weeks! So I apologize for my lack of communication to the group lately! Idk if anyone has ever had pleurisy but I literally went to the doctor bc I thought I had broken ribs from coughing so hard, I must say it's one of the most painful things I have ever dealt with and being 26 weeks pregnant I just feel like idk how much more of it I can take. It's already hard to breath as it is and taking deep breaths are almost impossible right now! Its actually starting to make me panic when i get breathless the last couple of days. Iwent to a doctor they told me there was nothing they could do for me.. I just have a hard time believing that. Maybe a 2nd opinion or hospital visit would do me better. I have read it can last for weeks it's already been 2 weeks and no improvement so you can probably understand my frustration! I just don't know. I don't wish this apon anyone pregnant or not. Just horrible! If anyone has experienced this or knows of anything please let me know
Re: Pleurisy at 26 weeks
Steroids. Steroids, steroids, steroids. I did both inhaled nebulizer treatments and oral prednisone. It was safe for the baby and I don't enjoy the side effects of steroids, but there is seriously no better feeling on earth than the first deep breath you take right after a nebulizer treatment. The way it has always been explained to me is that any risks from medication are outweighed by the risks from prolonged coughing and possibly low oxygen.
There were a couple kinds of OTC cough syrup I was allowed to use for the worst of the coughing. I could take one specific type of Robitussin and Children's Delsym since I was past first trimester. It wasn't like the good stuff they give you when you're not pregnant, but it helped.
I was able to use my rescue inhaler, which also helped with some of the coughing that was related to bronchial tubes rather than deeper in my lungs.
Vick's Vapor rub, cough drops, drinking lots of warm liquids and hot showers also sometimes helped. A heating pad on your back helps with the pain and tylenol is safe during pregnancy. I coughed so hard they thought I might have broken a rib at one point so I know it REALLY hurts.
My dr with my first pregnancy was MUCH more conservative and I ended up getting much sicker, for a longer period of time and my current dr believes it was a large contributing factor in the complications I had in the later part of my pregnancy. It's really a personal decision for you and your dr, I know some people gave me wicked side eye for taking cough syrup during pregnancy but I'm pretty sure constantly having to gasp for breath wasn't doing my baby any favors either. I would say to talk to another dr if yours won't do anything because I know approaches can vary widely from dr to dr and I'm comfortable that my dr considered all of the options and all of the risks and was able to help me and protect my baby.