David Friedli

By the Dashboard Lights

January 22, 2009

Fourteen Days of Battle

I am almost over my cold.

The running, sneezing, hacking, coughing, head-pounding, don’t really have much energy so I’m just fighting to survive it and exit out the other side, head cold.

Two weeks. It could stretch to three.

Meanwhile, the cabinet in the bathroom has been rearranged, resembling a Civil War skirmish line.

On my side are decongestants, expectorants, syrups, Advil, tissues and saline solution.

The opposition is mucus, reinforced by congestion and inflamed throat.

It’s been a heck of a battle.

Early on, I believed sleep, good nutrition and over-the-counter medications would quickly knock out the intruder.

A week in, head cold had a stranglehold on my lifestyle.

Sleep was countered by coughing fits.

Speaking was cut off by raspy, scratching vocal efforts.

Taste buds were rendered senseless, meaning there was no desire for nutrition.

I almost caved in, almost calling in the heavy artillery of medical professionals.

However, I read the signs and knew that sans an infection, this virus simply needed to run its course.

Although my body was being trampled as a result, I persevered.

There is light at the end of the tunnel. Thick mucus (there are simpler expressions for running discharge from the nose and throat) has thinned considerably.

Coughing jags happen less often.

I feel I have more energy.

This past cold has almost an epic feel. Usually a cold gets me down, and then I get over it, making a slow, steady recovery.

This one had peaks and valleys, days that were great and days that were down-right miserable.

I don’t think some medical Abraham Lincoln will memorize the past battle with, “Four score and seven years ago, Dave fought off this cold…”, but I’m not quite ready to hang up the “Mission Accomplished” banner yet, either.

Now I’m in the waning stage, wondering how many more days to keep taking Mucenix and Comtrex.

I hope I have won both the battle and the war.