Having bronchitis can take you out of your regular schedule for a long period of time. Acute bronchitis symptoms can be around for up to two weeks, whereas chronic bronchitis can last for months, years, and could affect victims for the rest of their life. Bronchitis sufferers have probably already gone to the doctor to get the medicines they need, but many people stricken with the illness want to speed up the recovery process. There are many great ways that you can make yourself feel better at home if you have bronchitis that won't cost a lot of money, and take up much time.
One remedy that many bronchitis sufferers use only takes about 45 seconds to complete. Gargling salt water is an easy and beneficial way to help with the cough and the mucus breakdown. Just add one teaspoon of salt to a warm glass of water and gargle. Make sure to only use a teaspoon of salt, because too much salt will burn your throat, (which is already suffering enough with the bronchitis) and too little salt will not be effective enough. Gargling salt water will cut through the mucus that has built up and is causing irritation to the throat, as well as soothe inflammation in the throat. You can gargle salt as many times as you want or need throughout the day.
While treating your bronchitis at home, you can utilize the items that you already have available to you in your medicine cabinet. Taking pain relievers, such as acetaminophen or ibuprofen can help relieve any pain you may be experiencing in the chest, or any other body aches you may be going through. Usually this bronchitis treatment is free because you already have these medicines on hand since they are generally a common household item. Taking these pills will not get rid of your bronchitis, but it will help alleviate pain. With that pain under control, coughing up mucus will not be as painful. It is important to note that you should not take these medications if you are already taking cough medicine as the two may cause conflicts if taken together.
Sleeping can be the most difficult thing to accomplish while suffering from bronchitis. For much of the duration of your illness, you will have to stay home from school and work. Going out can irritate your throat, and make the illness worse and the duration of the sickness longer than it needs to be. While at home, you need to sleep as much as possible. Your immune system will not be able to fight off this virus without sleep, so getting sleep is essential. To make sleep much easier, it’s best to invest in a humidifier. Humidifiers will loosen mucus in the air ways which makes it easier to breathe and reduce the severity of your cough, making sleep a little easier. If you do not have a humidifier or cannot acquire one, sit in the bathroom with the door closed while a hot shower for 15-30 minutes (you can also take a shower during this time as to not waste water). The steam you inhale from the hot water will work in the same way as the vapor produced from the humidifier would.