Flu/cold

[hughinoo]

Hi guys.

I seem to be suffering a long but intermittent bout of flu which is my first since diagnosis in Dec 17.

Do u guys find it hard to shake off flu symptoms or is it just me? I have worried it might be something else but I've had my bloods taken for sugar check & nothing seemed to show.

 

[Prem51]

Are you sure it's really flu and not just a heavy cold?
The saying is that if you were standing at your window and saw a £50 note on the street outside and went out to pick it up, you have a cold. If you can't, you have flu.
I've only had real flu once, and thought I might really die I felt so bad. I wouldn't like to get it again now I'm older.

 

[NicoleC1971]

Whether its a cold or flu, you can soon get your flu jab to prevent the virus du jour hitting you in the coming season. ON a longer term note you could think about how well your immune system is handling frequent infections. Have you been under stress (emotional or physical from illness or hitting the gym too hard?), are you taking antibiotics more than 6 x per year (can impact gut health and ability to fight infections) or has your diet been patchy lately (less veg, more alcohol or sugar?). If none of these things apply I'd go back to your GP to question why you are feeling so run down.

 

[hughinoo]

Are you sure it's really flu and not just a heavy cold?
The saying is that if you were standing at your window and saw a £50 note on the street outside and went out to pick it up, you have a cold. If you can't, you have flu.
I've only had real flu once, and thought I might really die I felt so bad. I wouldn't like to get it again now I'm older.

True. It could be cold I just worried by it not going away easily & the way it seems to go away but then symptoms reappear meaning it's lingering. I consider it may be flu as symptoms include stomach upset

I am going through treatment for something else & worried it may affect success.

 

[kitedoc]

Hi @hughinoo, From my experience as a type 1 diabetic, not as professional opinion or advice.
By 'flu do you mean runny nose, blocked sinuses, cough or are you referring to the 'real 'flu with high fevers, cough, sweats and sometimes tummy upset?
If it is the former, I have noticed that sometimes these symptoms can be very similar to allergy symptoms and, since the top two allergy seasons are autumn (fall) and spring, you that could be the answer, whichever hemisphere you live in.
If I contract a cold, upper respiratory tract infection or URTI as the docs call it, my BSLs and hence insulin requirements tend to go up whereas with hay fever they do not unless I am stressed by lack of sleep due to the allergy.
If is it the latter, then my BSLS will most definitely go up. Even with the annual 'flu vaccination my BSL go up and I require >30% increase in my insulin for 4 to 5 days. Public health authorities say the real 'flu usually lasts 10 days or less, unless complications like pneumonia occur. If I had had a bad cold or flu and high temperatures settled and came back with a vengeance I would be off to the doctors pronto.
If I was suffering intermittent sweats and measurable temperatures > 38 to 39 degrees C I would be off to the doctors also, particularly (as mentioned in public health information) I had been travelling overseas in the past 12 months or so.

 

[hughinoo]

Whether its a cold or flu, you can soon get your flu jab to prevent the virus du jour hitting you in the coming season. ON a longer term note you could think about how well your immune system is handling frequent infections. Have you been under stress (emotional or physical from illness or hitting the gym too hard?), are you taking antibiotics more than 6 x per year (can impact gut health and ability to fight infections) or has your diet been patchy lately (less veg, more alcohol or sugar?). If none of these things apply I'd go back to your GP to question why you are feeling so run down.

Thanks for feedback. yes I had flu jab in January so should still be covered. I'm going through IVF so definitely stressed & paranoid may affect success.

 

[Mr_Pot]

Are you sure it's really flu and not just a heavy cold?
The saying is that if you were standing at your window and saw a £50 note on the street outside and went out to pick it up, you have a cold. If you can't, you have flu.
I've only had real flu once, and thought I might really die I felt so bad. I wouldn't like to get it again now I'm older.

I agree, I think the casual use of "flu" for what is actually a cold is the reason people don't take it seriously.

This year marks the 100th anniversary of the 1918 influenza (flu) pandemic that swept the globe in what is still one of the deadliest disease outbreaks in recorded history. It is estimated that about 500 million people or one-third of the world’s population became infected with this virus, and the number of deaths was estimated to be at least 50 million worldwide with about 675,000 occurring in the United States. The pandemic was so severe that from 1917 to 1918, life expectancy in the United States fell by about 12 years, to 36.6 years for men and 42.2 years for women.

 

[kitedoc]

Hi Again @hughinoo, I wonder whether your phasic symptoms might correspond with your IVF treatment is some way ??

 

[hughinoo]

Hi Again @hughinoo, I wonder whether your phasic symptoms might correspond with your IVF treatment is some way ??

I am wondering but I just wanted to rule out other possibilities. Thanks