It's happened - the thing I've been dreading, the cold on the chest. I'm not sure why I've been dreading it but I suppose knowing I have a significant amount of titanium staples in my chest and that the way I cough is significantly different, it's unsurprising. You don't need to write notes of sympathy it's not that bad. I'm only writing about it for the benefit of anyone else who stumbles on this blog who has had lung tissue removed and is worried about chest colds.
I reckon it's a Berkshire virus, and a cold acquired through close contact with someone weekend before last who came from that county and had a hacking variety. It started around the back of the throat and was quite quick to pass through the sniffly dibbly stage and yesterday hit the chest. Both ears are also substandard due to congestion. However I'm not unwell as such. I had a good cough this morning (look away anyone of a delicate disposition) and albeit the mucus acquired was a tad yellowy, it gave me absolutely no cause for concern.
The method of coughing I find necessary in order to clear my chest is quite different from before where you close your throat and puff air through the closure. The new coughing is done with an open throat and you just constrict the lungs and push unwelcome material up. Sometimes I have to do it more than once to achieve the object, but it works. It was a technique suggested by the physio after the op.
The good news is that this occurrence has been nothing like I worried it might be. In fact, if it wasn't for needing to use the alternative coughing technique, it wouldn't be any different from any other cold I've had in my three-score years of existence. The only thing that has bugged me is the reason for the cold in the first place. Maybe I let my guard slip just a tad too far that weekend, with wine and sugar and just maybe this is the result.
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