Self Directed Health: To Cough Mixture or Not to Cough Mixture – That is the question!

This wasn’t my ‘planned’ 2nd post for Steemit but as I’m sitting here hunched over my second jug of coffee (after sleepless night No. 3); coughing up green mucus (sorry after a quick wiki search its phlegm!); nursing a headache that hasn’t dropped to more than a dull roar for 2 days (no matter how many painkillers I take) and with aching stomach muscles in places I didn’t know I had stomach muscles, I thought I would ask my fellow Steemians for your self directed health solutions for a cough!

As a Global Nomad health insurance is something we sometimes have and sometimes don’t. To be honest it usually depends on the location and our bank balance but having done the sums it has been more costs effective for us to go without – so far! So visits to the doctor for coughs & colds etc are usually a no no for hubby and I as doctors usually prescribe antibiotics, painkillers & cough mixture.

Unfortunately cough mixture doesn’t have more than a placebo affect on me, so I usually I grab a bottle of whiskey, a jar of honey and a bag of lemons then I just ‘ride’ the cough to the end (in a hot toddy haze). However as I’ve got a hectic weekend of playdates, birthday parties and our first Gozitan Carnival I’m turning to Dr. Steemit for some speedy (and hopefully cheap) solutions!

My ‘Learned something new’ for today: Mucus and Phlegm
According to my wiki search, mucus and phlegm are not always the same. Apparently, Mucus is an adhesive viscoelastic gel which is made in the airway and its mainly water. Whereas phlegm is more related to disease and can be ‘troublesome’ for the individual to excrete from the body (no shit Sherlock!!!). Phlegm usually contains mucus with virus, bacteria, other debris, and inflammatory cells. Once phlegm has been expectorated (coughed up to you & me) it becomes sputum.