Pnuemonia

I have had pneumonia three times, the last time just seven weeks ago. The first two times the doctor listened to my chest and sent me for a chest x-ray, and then I would have to stay away from my son for a week until the antibiotic kicked in and I was feeling better. But this last time I didnt feel like I had pneumonia and by the time I went to the doctor he sent me for an x-ray and I had to be hospitalized. Just long enough for them to get a seven series antibiotic through the IV and then I was sent home with the pill form of the medicine.
Its a pain in the butt to have so listen to the doctor and do exactly what he tells you, becuase it can be hard to fully get rid of.

I have never personally had pneumonia but my twins have had it as well as my hubby gets it at least 1x a year. Usually they do a chest x-ray and put you on antibiotics. The doc did a chest x-ray on my hubs because he gets the pneumonia so often according to her and she also did a tuberculosis (TB) test on him which turned out negative.

You should have a chest xray, sometimes, they will check your oxygen saturation levels if they are really worried about you.

My daughter has had it - twice. It wasn't severe. They did an xray. Good luck.

I've gotten pneumonia almost every winter from 1998 onward.

First time was uber bad... spiked a fever of 103.7 and it went up to 104/105 before they could get it down. My lungs were almost 90% full of fluid, so they stabbed a tube through my ribs to drain it out. It took about 3 months to fully recover, but I was back in training about 1 month later.

None of the other times have been anywhere near as bad. It typically starts off in my sinuses, moves to upper respiratory, and then sinks lower. I don't even bother to go to the doctor's unless I can feel that my lungs are at least 1/2 full of fluid. I also rarely get more than a lowgrade/midgrade fever. It's always fun to watch the xray tech's face when I go in all chipper, announce I've got pneumonia, and then have their faces change as they look at the xray. (I've got swimmers lungs... even at 1/2 full I "blow" more than most people do with clear lungs). Then I get a z pack (azithromycin), and am all better by a week later.

Honestly, I prefer the "worse" cases of pneumonia... because with a zpack I'm healed in a week or two (aka about a week to get sick, and then a week of meds)... but when it's low level pneumonia, it can drag on for months.

After having gotten it so much, I know my personal "triggers" (walking around with wet hair in the winter triggers it ALWAYS... my doc and I figure that the bacteria probably just 'hibernate' in my sinuses, and when my head cools down enough ... they kick into high gear). We've tried mega doses of a couple different kinds of antibiotics... in addition to the pneumonacoccl vaccine... but nothing has managed to wipe it out.

TYPICALLY... when being screened for pneumonia they have done 3 tests on me: the "blow" (blow into a tube that registers how much air I'm able to move - which doesn't "work" on me, because my lungs are so big, a blood test to test O2 levels in my blood -again doesn't work on me so much, because of my lung capacity-, and an xray. They'll also usually draw blood to test for other infections. But that takes 4-10 days of labwork, and the xray has always been definitive. LOL... if you've got fluid filling up your lungs that's readily apparent on the xray.

A chest xray is used to diagnose pneumonia. Make sure you go back in six weeks to make sure that it is "cured". Mine never cured and a few months later I got it in a different lobes in both lungs.

I had only two symptoms with mine--severe lung pain and difficulty breathing. I had no fever, no cough or any of the typical symptoms. The serious part of pneumonia is that if you don't take care of it, it can lead to permanent lung problems.

I had it once. The Dr listed to my chest .. Did a breathing test where you blow into this machine and then also sent me for a chest x-ray. After the x-ray came back (they called me the same day) I started the antibiotics. I didn't end up in the hospital but I did have to take an entire week off of work (the Dr wanted me to take 2)

I have had it and my Mom has had it.
Not anything to fool around with.
Good you are going to the Doctor.
There is viral or bacterial Pneumonia.
Walking Pneumonia is dangerous as well... that is what my Mom had.
She had an x-ray... and Doc listened to her chest. Same as me.
I then got antibiotics.
Some people end up in the Hospital, with Pneumonia.