Coughing like a madman right now. Any surefire natural remedies?

[Tactically Fat]

I like the codeine cough syrup for the taste. And the itty bitty extra bit of "sleep aid" it provides.

In the past, when wracked with bronchitis, I've doped up with a tsp of codeine syrup, a Benzonatate 200mg pearl, some generic Delsym -- and just watched the world burn.

One time I even added some Nyquil to the mix. It made the house start spinning. I don't recommend spinning houses.

 

[Big Dave]

NYQUIL!!.....gotta love anything that can knock you out that quick! One minute your jacked up and the next your

 

[buckstopshere]

This is part of a post I made a while back in the SHTF forum. I realize you probably don't have elderberries readily available but it's something you could make for next time. I prefer the tincture route since it keeps forever. Tincture recipe is simple

1 cup elderberries (fresh or dehydrated. I have seen no discernible difference)
100 proof vodka (buy the cheapest you can find. Think dark eyes)

put out elderberries and vodka I to a quart mason jar. Shake it every day for two to three weeks. Strain out the plant material, boom you have a potent cough, cold, flu fighter.

Here's the recipe for the Elderberry cough syrup I made. It's really simple and will keep for 2-3 months if refrigerated in an air tight container.


1/2 cup of dried elderberries (1 cup if fresh)
1 cinnamon stick organic preferred
3 cups of water
1/4 cup of ginger root (remove bark and cut into smaller pieces to release more of the liquids)
1/4 cup of licorice root (remove bark and cut into smaller pieces to release more of the liquids)
3/4 cup of honey (local raw honey is best by far)


Add all the ingredients into a pan except for the honey. DO NOT PUT HONEY INTO THE PAN. You'll add the honey last. If you heat the honey too much, you'll lose the enzymes that work so well to combat allergens in your body.


Bring ingredients (minus honey, have I mentioned that?) to a boil then reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes until it becomes more syrupy or the liquids have reduced by half.


Smash the berries with a wooden spoon (or the like) to release all the juice. Strain the mixture into a something like a Mason jar. I use a quart sized mason jar and have lots of room but I think I would over fill a pint jar. When straining, use the wooden spoon to push as much as that liquid into the container.


Let it cool to lukewarm and add in your 3/4 cup of honey. Stir until the honey is completely dissolved.


That's it, it's that easy. As an adult, take 2-3 teaspoons 2-3x a day. Will be most effective at the onset of a cold or flu but has demonstrated an ability to work even after the bug has fully caught up with you.

 

[Cameramonkey]

Some of the old timers would melt a stick of horehound candy in some whiskey.

Candy is optional.

It works very well for me as well. Taking it as we speak.

Drink a BIG glass of water with it. I'm sure Hoosierdoc and others in the biz will confirm. I didnt think Mucinex worked for me. Turns out if you dont drink LOTS of water with it (which I wasnt), it wont work to its potential. Once I started washing it down with a 12oz glass of water it worked wonders. I cant take the extra strength stuff though. It makes me feel drunk, but not in a good way.

 

[Tactically Fat]

As an aside: One of the things that never failed to really help me feel better when I've dealt with some TERRIBLE URI's and Bronchitis several times over the last few years: Alka-seltzer fizzy tabs (And generic) and Theraflu.

 

[Sheepdog Gear]

Thanks for the advice guys.

 

[actaeon277]

Tie a knot in your neck. Guarantee you no more coughing after that.

That does seem to solve most problems.

no, your advice sucks. why do you always push drugs, and expensive ones at that? codeine sucks. no better than placebo.

Codeine and cough: an ineffective gold standard
Medical Myth: Myth


albuterol. if you exhale forcefully do you get into a spasm of coughing until you gag? bronchospasm. albuterol

did you have a URI last week? post-infectious bronchospasm lasts up to a month. bronchospasm cough is worse at night

albuterol give me TREMORS.
Bad tremors.
Like, almost knock myself off the couch and can't drink anything from a cup tremors.

 

[chezuki]

albuterol give me TREMORS.
Bad tremors.
Like, almost knock myself off the couch and can't drink anything from a cup tremors.

Stay alert!

 

[actaeon277]

Tie a knot in your neck. Guarantee you no more coughing after that.

Stay alert!

Well, Burt is my father.


But, kinda like what this guy has.
[video=youtube;atVl7kUyqOk]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=atVl7kUyqOk[/video]

 

[eric001]

Mucinex DM usually helps knock the cough down for me, but Cold-eeze cough drops work wonders. Because of the zinc, they taste like sucking on an old penny, but they are awesome at calming the cough and making my throat feel better.