I'm still sick - what the heck is this?

[Kestrel]

Hey, can anyone give ideas on what this might be? I'm so tired of being sick!!!

12/15 Woke up with snotty nose, some drainage and a moderate sore throat. Fever 100.5
12/16 Fever gone. Sore throat worse; really bad. One eye gooped and red like pink eye. Goes away without treatment in a couple days. Sore throat continues without getting any better. Negitive home Covid test.

12/20 Still have really bad sore throat. Now, rash on back of one hand and down the outside of both thighs. Rash may or may not be related; I just do that sometimes when the weather gets bitter cold, which it was. Rash gets steadily better and gone in a few days. Sore throat continues without change. Negitive home Covid test.

1/3 Still horrible sore throat. Call Dr make appt. My Dr on maternity leave, set up to see another Dr in practice 1/9.

1/9 Still sore throat, but seems to be improving now... but by no means gone, maybe moderate. Go to Dr. Where I have:
Negitive Covid, Negitive Strep. Says testing for flu is pointless, they said after this much time it probably wouldn't show and wouldn't change teatment in any case. Or rather, lack of treatment. Listens to chest, says no bronchitis, no RSV, no pneumonia. They have no real idea; just sent me home to hydrate and rest.

1/10 If I did the math right this is day 26. Sore throat is worse; now back to where it's been for weeks. It was somewhat better for 2-3 days, but never went away. Still no fever since the first day. Have had a little snot and slight cough throughout, but nothing major.

I am so tired of feeling like crap, living on advil, sudafed, soup and oatmeal. Dr was pissed I'm going to work. Well, me too... However since I work in a place with no sick leave and I enjoy both eating and living indoors, I'm going to work. I did call out the first couple days and then I had the pink eye stuff on my days off, but yes, I'm working with a sore throat. Especially if you can't tell me WTF this is.

Any ideas? I'm willing to entertain about any ideas at this point....


Update....
Rash is back. Sore throat gone, but canker sores in mouth. Massive sinus pressure, ear pressure so bad my ballence is all messed up. Called nurse's line: she's thinking HFM! Went to Dr today (2/21), tomarrow it will be ten WEEKS I've been sick. Dr says massive sinus infection, double ear infection, plus pneumonia. (She made me cry when she tapped on my under-eye sinus!) Thinks the rash and cankers are just because my body is so run-down. Finally got the antibiotics and steriods they wouldn't give me before. They still have no idea what started all this; four negitive Covid home tests plus one the Dr sent in someplace. Dr wanted to know why I "waited so long" when this is the third time I've seen her since Christmas. I came off the table and almost smacked her. A nurse came in because I was screaming at her. (My bad.) But man. I was pissed. So glad my regular doc gets back from maternity leave in just a few days.
Three Dr visits @ $150 each, $400 in various tests (all negitive) to get the drugs I needed that cost $2.91 at the pharmacy today.

[AnnieW625]

It is what is going around. Dd2 has had similar symptoms three times since early November. She was out for a week when a few other kids had the same symptoms (cold, cough, aches and pains but no close contacts Covid or RSV). Had a phone call with the doctor who told her to rest. She was better by the following Sunday. The Saturday before Thanksgiving we went to an evening concert at a baseball stadium and didn’t wear super heavy coats and by the following Wednesday (day before Thanksgiving) dd2 has developed laryngitis. She rested for the weekend and was fine to go back to school on Monday. She then got another bout of something similar again on Christmas and wasn’t truly better until New Years. Advil Cold and Sinus kind of helped her but she just said it made her sleepy.

Now for me I got what I thought was a basic cold from the concert and was better by Thanksgiving. A week or so later I ended up with what I thought was a sinus infection and mild cough and took two days off work. I had no fever or aches and pains was just tired and congested. I got better but was still a little congested and just continued to take sambuccol and do nasal rinses. About 10 days pass and I wake up on Tuesday 12/20 and think I have an ear infection because my ear feels clogged. I take my temperature and it is 102.5. I take a Covid test which is negative and then go to back to bed after taking generic NyQuil Sever Cold/Cough. By 12 pm my fever has completely broken and by my doctor’s appointment at 3 pm I am close to normal fever wise. Doctor said no ear infection (but cleaned my clogged left ear). I ended up with a mild cough for a few more days but it took until early last week for me to finally feel better. I figure I truly didn’t feel like myself for a good month so unfortunately your 26 days may not be that far off of feeling like cr@p due to whatever this is. The Advil cold and sinus also helped with the coughing. At some point I thought the cough was never going to go away (even if I wasn’t coughing much). Now I did read something in the last week to 10 days that the at home Covid tests were taking up to six days to show a positive result but I never tested after 12/20. No one else in my family/extended family that we saw over the holidays reported a positive Covid test either or had similar symptoms so I never retested. I honestly just think it is what is going around.

Get well and I hope you start to feel normal soon. I am sold on nasal rinses, sambuccol syrup, and Advil Cold and Sinus. Even the NyQuil/generic helped white not coughing when I needed to sleep.


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[Gracemom]

I'm so sorry! Is there any chance this is an environmental allergy? Do you have mold?

[DualvansMommy]

This is tough. This is hard on so many people too; you’re not the only person I’ve heard that this is happening.

DS1 had combo of all you’ve had on and off since last week of November and we’ve ruled everything out. Bottom line, we just think it’s combo of his seasonal allergies developing that post drip which isn’t helping the sore throat/lingering cough. Also putting it down to weakeaned immune system as he was in a school that wore masks last year last winter and being relatively indoors at home than usual. This winter is really our first winter being fully blown back to normal to our lives/society without masks, any other precautions.

Check it out whether it’s your seasonal allergies acting up too. But your 26 days isn’t that far off cuz I suffered something similar beginning of Dec and everything is all gone except for that lingering occasional cough.


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[o_mom]

You said "negative strep" - was that just a rapid test? If so, I would ask for a culture.

[bisous]

Oh man. Sounds miserable! I hope you find relief! I will say that I think I had a minor sinus infection for years. I know that sounds dramatic but I just had a stuffed nose and sore throat for months and months. Then I finally caught a serious cold, that devolved into a case of walking pneumonia. After that diagnosis I was given a z-pac and not only did my acute cough and lung issues resolve BUT SO DID THE STUFFINESS AND SORE THROAT! It was...stunning. I couldn't believe how much better I felt. I could breathe, and sing, and even sleep better! Have you had your doctor check for sinus infection? I know that isn't exactly what you describe but nasal congestion leads to post nasal drip that leads to sore throats! I always say that compared some really acute infections (like pneumonia or bladder infections!) sinus infections can be "mild" and pervasive. I don't know if any of that helped but I do hope you feel better!

[wendibird22]

My coworker had a similar illness in November and into Xmas week. Sick and out of work a few days, better and back to work, sick again, then really worse. Finally went to the doctor and tested positive for flu A. It took her another week and focused rest (no work) to feel better (no meds because like you said, duration of illness was too long for an antiviral).

My other thought with the chronic sore throat would be mono.

[ahisma]

I'd really wonder about a sinus infection too. Usually after a month or so of symptoms like yours I call in for antibiotics, and they do the trick. I try to avoid them in general, but one can only be sick for so long before it's apparent that fighting it off solo isn't going to happen. This last time I did get a sinus infection post-COVID and after 6 weeks of feeling awful, I got on antibiotics + a very short steroid burst and was quickly back to 90%ish percent.

[Kestrel]

Update in first post.

[jgenie]

I’m so sorry you had to jump through so many expensive hoops to get the help you needed. Hoping the antibiotics and steroids give you relief quickly.