Right now it seems every second person in New Zealand has a phlegmy cough and feels fatigued following a flu-like viral infection that is sweeping the land.
The infection (COVID) is producing symptoms that are almost indiscernible from that of influenza. In this case, people, vaccinated and unvaccinated, are typically being laid low for 2-3 days of bed rest followed by a gradual recovery taking two to three weeks for most people. Typically, the older a person, the more severe and lasting the symptoms.
The post-viral symptoms commonly reported are fatigue, loss of taste and smell and lungs that feel full of gunk (phlegm), causing a persistent cough.
Post-Viral Fatigue
Fatigue following a viral infection is not hard to explain since lingering fatigue is always the case following any kind of infectious assault on one's body. Every cell in your body has been stressed, many beyond repair, plus organs like your liver and kidneys must work overtime to remove the wastes from dead and dying tissue and to aid the processes of healing. This takes several weeks to complete and can not be rushed, so the best thing you can do is take your time, rest as required, eat nutritious food, take the right combination of supplements, and get moderate exercise in the sunshine and fresh air.
Loss of Taste and Smell
The loss of taste and smell is not a medical mystery, although the experts who profit from fear-mongering do not want you to know that everyone who suffers tissue damage, and especially during a viral infection, will lose their taste and smell to some extent and it may be slow to recover if tissue stores of zinc are depleted (you can't patent zinc, by the way, so it has little or no role in Allopathic Medicine). The loss of these senses is due to the diversion of precious zinc to fight viral replication and aid tissue repair. If zinc is diverted to acute needs, nerves and neurotransmitters suffer, particularly the ones responsible for taste and smell. The modern diet lacks zinc and many toxins such as mercury deplete zinc stores, so most people are already too low in this and other nutritional elements. So, it is easy to understand is why few people have a hearty appetite when in hospital, and why ice cream and jelly are so popular. If a health professional does not understand this, please suggest they go back to school.
Chicken Soup
Grandma's remedies included chicken soup with lots of healing and nutritious herbs and spices as the first meal or three when recovering from a viral infection. Grandma was right and you can find out by giving it a go. Chicken soup is easy to digest and nourishes and soothes an inflamed digestive tract (it is rich in collagen). So, get someone to cook up a pot of homemade chicken soup for you to sip on once your appetite shows signs of returning. You won't regret this choice of meal!
Phlegm in Lungs
There is no question that COVID and its variants are not good for the lungs, hence the preventive and early treatment strategies of doing the best one can to keep the virus isolated to the upper respiratory tract for as long as possible, giving your immune system time to mount an effective counter-attack. It is inevitable that the virus will find its way into the lungs. The lung tissue, like the sinuses, produce vast amounts of sticky fluid which is coughed up and sneezed out of the airways, thus reducing the viral load. You will gather why wearing a mask is not recommended, unless it is to protect other people from infection, and why good ventilation and being outdoors is beneficial when suffering a viral infection (Aren't you frustrated like me that so much of this commonsense advice appears to be the exact opposite of the advice being promoted by the Health Dept, their experts and mainstream media?).
Please read this guide and the links in the article for more about how to deal with these viral infections.
One thing to be wary about is the possibility of suffering a secondary infection: All of that phlegm that accumulates in the lungs can become the perfect Petri Dish for culturing other nasty bugs such as bacteria, yeast and fungi. A common pattern is for a person to get a dose of flu, get over it after about 10 days then suffer a second bout several more days later. The person may think the infection has come back which is unlikely; more likely is they have got a secondary infection, and these secondary infections are the ones to be very wary of - they can be the killers. Antibiotics do not kill viruses which is why antibiotics are not prescribed for colds and flu; however, antibiotics are often prescribed for the secondary infections where they occur and can be very effective and sometimes a lifesaver.
Gentle exercise of an aerobic nature, in the outdoors in the fresh air, may assist with clearing the lungs as might nebulisers, and even the use of a little menthol in a bowl of hot water with your head over it, covered by a warm, damp towel. Spending time in a steam room may be the perfect therapy for helping to clear congested lungs, but please do not gross out other people in the room by coughing and hoicking!
Supplements to Assist Recovery
NAC For combating viral infections, and here for lung health.
Serrapeptase For removing dead and dying tissue, and here for lung health.
Vitamin C with zinc and magnesium.
A good quality multivitamin.
We have all you need in-store in the form of high-quality practitioner products. If you want assistance with selecting which are the best supplements for assisting your recovery following an illness or injury, contact me, give me a brief overview of your health history and list any supplements you are taking and I will give you my recommendations. If your case is complicated we may need to make an appointment and that may involve additional costs, but that will be discussed and agreed upon before any meetings.