Sneezy, Wheezy, and the other five dwarfs....

[Kay/NC]

...have come to our house this week.  After getting out in very coid wind yesterday, which is our first real taste of Old Man Winter's harsh brew, my sinuses feel as tight a banjo string this morning. 

How in the world do you folks STAND your Midwest cold weather?  I know I ask you this every year, but when that cold air hits me in the face, I forget everything I have already learned...

Any good remedies for the scratchy throat and stoppy nose?  I don't feel sick, like with a cold...just the membranes feel sort of fried by the dry, frigid air...and heat on everywhere, dehydrating from the inside out! 

[manureseller]

I feel your pain, believe me I do.  I caught some crap from a co-worker last week which drained me most of the weekend.  I was doing really good until I woke up with it on Thursday.  I've been taking the sinus relief like you can't believe to keep the sinus draining plus sucking down the vit. C and ZN like it's going out of style.  I'm starting to feel better now.  The cold doesn't really bother me all that much unless I end up getting wet somehow and with snow that does happen.  Other then that, warm clothes, thick socks and blankets are our friends. 

[ABCD Farmer]

It has been an unusually mild winter here.  There have only been a couple days that I have had to break ice in the water tanks. We had a couple of days of 20's this week, but back to the 40's today and tomorrow.  We have had a total of 4 inches of snow and a little ice.  Snow plow hasn't been on the truck and I haven't even swept snow off the steps.  School has not been delayed at all.  Can't hardly believe it is already January in Wisconsin.  Now that I have said this, things will probably change.  At least the days are getting longer and we have a month of winter already behind us.

[Kay/NC]

Our son called form VA this morning, and I knew he was not up to the drive and a hard day's work ripping out and reframing the floor in the old bar pantry.  He had been out dealing with his sheep yesterday, and weatherizing some pippes on a rental house there, and his head was stopped up very badly this morning.   

I told him I was actually relieved that I would have a day off from the push to finish, too.  Being gone with daughter and GS yesterday all day long, I got nothing done here on the tile cleanup and bar pantry tearout. 

Mike brought in the hired man this morning, and they tore out what can be done for now, the rest yo go when son comes on Friday.  We cna see where a tiny plumbing leak did a lot of water damage...and what fittings we need to fix that and install the new utility sink in there. 

The men have gone up to figure a fittings list for daughter's front horse barn...she broke a pipe in the well house yesterday afternoon, and that has to be fixed to get water to two pastures and barns today.  Nothing froze...just rusted out. 

Hop you feel better soon! 

[Ruby Lou]

I use a saline nose spray, humidifier, I used to use Tylenol cold and flu medicine, but can only find it in liquid form now.  That used to kick it for me.  My co-worker came in my office yesterday with a cold....I need to start in with the vitamin C, Equinacea and such I guess.  I beleive you have talked about a Neti pot.  I have teased alot and talked alot about them, but have heard that a few people have gotten sick with them...Do they not clean it properly???  Do you use warm water to flush the sinus's?  Oh, I think it was contaminated water that they were using like from New Orleans or something like that.  Like Wisconsin, we have had unusually warm weather here.  Supposed to be 52 degrees tommorrow.  Then a cold front again.  We have had only a couple skiffs of snow and and some ice.  The other night I sat in my lounge chair and had a blanket on and was chilled, my DH sat in his chair with no shirt on...I found the draft behind my chair and put plastic over the window.  Wind was 50 plus mile and hour, so blowin through.  So wish we wouldv'e could've had the new windows reset cause they aint right!

[Midwest Farm]

I have a soothing recipe that is...well...soothing:

1) brew up a tea packet of green tea (I use decaf) in very HOT water (about 1/2 of the amount of water one normally would use)

2) add 1 tablespoon honey and stir to dissolve

3) add 1/2 small can of grapefruit juice (these come in little six-packs and are great to keep around for this purpose)

(obviously the juice will cool down the tea/honey mixture, hence the "very HOT")

[linda/IL]

I keep thinking about a neti pot but guess I'm kinda chicken.  I do use Flounase, an allergy nose spray, every day unless I forget.  I've had a terrible time with my sinuses/allergy problems the whole last year since I had a bad bout with bronchitis & sinus infection then.

I resort to Afrin nasal spray to open up my head along with any kind of ONC sinus pills.  Last yr. the doctor ordered an inhaler & if it's really bad I hit that.  Sometimes I just need to use Claritan daily to keep this stuff away.  Saw an allergy/sinus specialist years ago (when we had insurance to cover) and he said I had scar tissue in my one sinus cavity & may have to have it surgercly opened up.  (sounds like fun)  He also said I shouldn't even wash clothes that have been around the livestock; we lived in town then with DH renting some buildings.  Soooo, how did I end up on a livestock farm & getting involved myself?  STUPID!

The whole family has been sick here starting w/me.  Grandkids have had strep, DIL upper respiratory infection, DS#1 sinus infection, & DH felt flu like yesterday.  Yikes!

While I hated that wind & cold I think colder temps keep the infections at bay.  Even the cows had some disentary when it was warm.  I'm going to copy this recipe - can't hurt although a little whiskey might be good in it too!  LOL

[suey1973]

#1.  With the wood heat we run a humidifier all winter.  

#2.  Alleve cold and Sinus.   Got to get the stuff from behind the pharmacy counter.  Otherwise,  it is a waste  and I am worthless. 

#3.   Got to plan the dosages just right.  So at night it is Nyquil. 

        That is probably not good  but it is the only way I can function when I have a bad cold. 

#4.  I also run vaporizer in the  in my bedroom at night.   Not the best for the wall paper or the paint job on the outside walls  but I really  need the added moisture if I'm going to sleep.

#5.  Go out to the hog buildings.   As long as I don't have a sore throat  being in the hog building does wonders for clearing the sinuses. 

Other wise,  I usually wear lots of layers:   a turtleneck,  a sweatshirt,  a hooded seatshirt,  a stocking cap and a carhart  jacket.   And don't forget the insulated underwear. 

[Kay/NC]

I had added a couple of layers yesterday and today, to cope with this cold. Daughter and.I ran for some watered repair parts, and stopped at the corenr tavern on the way for lunch. I realized, when I was pulling all of them back in place after a trip to the ladies' room, that I had forgotten to pull up my underpants...so, had to backtrack and start over. So, I amNO good at this wintertime outerwear thng! Came home and realized during supper that I was exhausted...so, tools shower and some sinus meds, and passed out for a couple of hours. Feel so much better, but just hope I can fall back asleep tonight, as we have planned to make a Sam's run tomorrow. Our cold is supposed to break and rise pretty drastically to the sixties in a day or two. MayBe I can get my drawers pulled up straight then.

[Kay/NC]

Linda, your family sounds positively pitiful.  I hope they are feeling better by today.

Mike chastised me for wearing myself to a frazzle last night...as though I had a choice!  I was rubbing my eyes and cranky, just like an overtired toddler.  I got up from the table, stepped straight into the shower and bundled up in warm PJs and blankie, then curled up for a 12-hour sleep. 

Did wake up and wander around, got a fresh drink of water, then flipped and folded a little laundry somewhere in the wee hours, but laid back down and passed right back out.  Still a bit stoppy and scratchy, but in general feel much better this morning. 

Our weather is moderating quite a bit today, is supposed to be beautiful again by the weekend, which should help a lot.   I think we stirred up some mold when the men found the water leak in the bar pantry wreckout yesterday, too.  Getting that out of the house can't be a bad thing, either.