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-   -   Quick!!! Help me stop this cold in its tracks!!! (https://www.fodors.com/community/europe/quick-help-me-stop-this-cold-in-its-tracks-474860/)

canuckuphereathome Sep 17th, 2004 11:18 AM

Quick!!! Help me stop this cold in its tracks!!!
 
Leaving next Thurs. for Spain. Am starting to feel the effects of a cold coming on..I've started taking extra vitamin C and some echinacea...any more remedies to rid myself of this beast before next Thursday?!?!

Mischka Sep 17th, 2004 11:21 AM

Absinthe maybe :-)

Fodorite018 Sep 17th, 2004 11:22 AM

I first read about taking Zicam here on these boards. I fluffed it off at first...but then tried it and it actually does work. My dh laughed at me too, but now he is also convinced. Geez, I sound like a bad infomercial! lol!

lindilindi Sep 17th, 2004 11:23 AM

Lots of green tea with honey and lemon. Drink it hot.

strass Sep 17th, 2004 11:27 AM

Tea, vitamin C, echinacea, wash your hands a lot, drink buckets of water, and try to rest and sleep (if possible!).

Mucky Sep 17th, 2004 11:31 AM

There is only one treatment,paracetomol and gallons of water.Then try to sweat it out.
I know.. I am doing it now.
Tomorrow it should be gone.
oops.... sorry gotta run for a wee again.

Muck

FainaAgain Sep 17th, 2004 11:31 AM

And nobody mentioned Jewish Penicillin?
Chicken with carrots and celery, and drink as much broth as you can. If it won't help it won't hurt :)

cmt Sep 17th, 2004 11:36 AM

Drink a lot of water. If the cold is in your throat, don't drink cold drinks. Hot soup, hot tea, plain hot water, hot lemonade, hot broth, hot herb tea are all good. You might also drink some Marsala wine (Sicilian penicillin).

Eloise Sep 17th, 2004 11:51 AM

Try Tylenol for Colds. In Canada, it comes in a day and a night version or in a mixed day/night pack.

In addition to paracetamol, it contains something like "pseudo-epinephrine" (sp?). The real thing is considered dangerous (although over-the-counter cold remedies in Italy contain it), but the pseudo version works just as well: it dries up your mucous membranes and lets you breathe. The night version contains something like codeine, which knocks you out and lets you sleep quite nicely.

canuckuphereathome Sep 17th, 2004 11:51 AM

thanks..haven't heard of paracetomol or zicam - are they over the counter or prescription drugs??

Eloise Sep 17th, 2004 11:53 AM

Paracetamol is the European name for the active ingredient in Tylenol.

Fodorite018 Sep 17th, 2004 11:59 AM

Zicam is over the counter. I think it is actually called a homeopathic. Anyway, it is usually right in the cold remedy section of the pharmacies.

TuckH Sep 17th, 2004 12:01 PM

I haven't had a cold in years, yet I felt the sniffles on the plane to Frankfurt last month. Fortunately I had grabbed the box of Zicam just before leaving home and shoved it into my carry-on. (I'd learned of it on this board and bought for my wife and/or son and not for myself.)

Once we were in the rental car and on the autobahn, I reached back and into my bag while driving and got one of those nose swabs and inhaled. It was 2pm and I took another dose at 6 and at 10. I had a comfortable night and in the morning, presto! No cold!

Amazing.

canuckuphereathome Sep 17th, 2004 12:10 PM

Zicam sounds perfect! Just phoned our pharmacy and they've never heard of it! Guess it hasn't hit Canada yet. Wish I was closer to the border!

suze Sep 17th, 2004 12:11 PM

Another vote for Zicam!!! It's over-the-counter & costs about $10USD for a small bottle (it is considered a homeopathic but sold in mainstream drug stores; it is a zinc nasal spray). It is the one & only thing I have found that actually lessens symptoms and shortens time of a cold/flu, if not preventing it entirely from coming on. It's fairly new on the market in the past few years.

suze Sep 17th, 2004 12:12 PM

If not Zicam (name brand) you might try anything that is a 'zinc' product, spray, swabs, even tablets.

CarrieK Sep 17th, 2004 12:19 PM

Try Emer'gen-C ....I know they have it at whole foods and walmart...not sure where else. It's a little packet you mix with water..has lots of vitamins.

zootsi Sep 17th, 2004 12:29 PM

I use a 4 pronged attack - Zicam, Cold-Eze tablets, Echinacea, and vitamin C. This knocks out about 70% of all my colds.
Warning, there is some controversy on Zicam damaging your olifactory nerves, but I believe this is very rare and due to misuse. I've used it when needed for a few years with nothing but success.

k_marie Sep 17th, 2004 12:48 PM

Get adequate rest.
Drink plenty of liquids--tea, water, especialy.
Change the pillowcase.
Start using a fresh toothbrush.

Well, maybe those last two aren't remedies but it won't hurt to get rid of the old ones. (Can germs lurk in 'em?)

Feel better!

martytravels Sep 17th, 2004 12:57 PM

You sure it's a cold? If you live in the Great Lakes region like I do it could be allergies - ragweed is killer right now and it's killing me! The best remedy in that case is a change of climates, and Spain might be just what you need.


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