Coronavirus Common Sense from a Retired Respiratory Therapist

Health care providers are calling on respiratory therapists to help fight the Coronavirus, but as a retired RT, I am too old to work in a hospital setting. Here is some common sense wisdom for those patients who have the Coronavirus (or the flu) and have been sent home to recuperate. If my common sense suggestions are followed as set out below, you will improve your chances of not ending up in the hospital on a ventilator. These procedures apply to the otherwise generally healthy population, not at risk individuals with underlying, pre-existing conditions or compromised immunities, so use discretion, follow your doctor’s advice and call 911 if you or a loved one go into respiratory distress.

1. Only high temperatures kill a virus, so let your fever run high. Use common sense and do not let your fever go over 103 or 104. Acetaminophen (Tylenol) will bring your fever down but the trade-off is that the temperature drop will allow the virus to live longer. Do not use Ibuprofen (Motrin, Advil, etc.) because early reports are suggesting that it will actually exacerbate the Coronavirus. If your temperature gets higher than 103 or 104, take your Acetaminophen as directed by your doctor or the directions on the bottle, NOT Ibuprofen to regulate your temperature and lower your fever. If you cannot get your temperature lowered to safer range with Acetaminophen, then call your doctor or 911. It helps to keep your house warm and cover up with blankets so your body does not have to work so hard to generate the heat. It usually takes about 3 days of this misery to break the fever.

2. The body is going to dehydrate with the elevated temperature so you must rehydrate yourself regularly, whether you like it or not. Gatorade with real sugar, or Pedialyte with real sugar for kids, works well. Why the sugar? Sugar will give your body back the energy it is using up to create the fever. The electrolytes and fluids you are losing will also be replenished by the Gatorade/Pedialyte. If you do not hydrate sufficiently, you may well end up in the hospital where they will start an IV and give you D5W (sugar water) and normal saline to replenish electrolytes. Gatorade is much cheaper, pain free, and comes in an assortment of flavors.

3. You must keep your lungs moist. Providing moisture to your lungs is best done by taking long steamy showers on a regular basis. If you are wheezing or congested, use your favorite minty toothpaste and brush your teeth while taking the steamy shower and deep breathe through your mouth. This procedure will provide some bronchial dilation and help loosen the phlegm. Force yourself to cough into a wet wash cloth pressed firmly over your mouth and nose, which will cause greater pressure in your lungs forcing them to expand more and break loose more of the congestion.

4. Eat healthy and regularly to keep your strength up.

5. Once the fever breaks, start moving around to get the body back in shape and your blood circulating.

6. Deep breathe on a regular basis, even when it hurts. If you do not deep breathe, it becomes easy to develop pneumonia. Pursed lip breathing really helps. This breathing technique is inhaling a breath deeply and slowly, then exhaling the breath through tight lips as if blowing out a candle. Blow until you have completely emptied your lungs, then begin inhaling deeply and slowly again. You will be able to breathe in an even deeper breath. This technique helps keep lungs expanded as well as increase your oxygen level.

7. Remember that every medication you take is merely relieving the symptoms, not making you well.

8. If your condition worsens or you go into respiratory distress, call 911 or go to your nearest emergency room.