Experts Needed On This Issue

TreasureVibe

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Hey there. I have been strolling the forums for a while now and I am very grateful for the help the community has given so far. I have finally come to the conclusion I need help with the following issue.. I have been a smoker for 4 years. I quit cold turkey because I developed chest pain while breathing and episodes of extreme itchiness in the lung causing coughing that I couldn't stop. After having stopped, everytime I inhaled offhand cigarette smoke, I would get this inflammatory pain in the lungs, along with itchiness, causing coughing which could last for hours.

Now one day I was sitting at my desk at home and I had used a nattokinase & serrapeptase combination supplement, which I had supplemented until that point. It helped alot in clearing up stuffiness in the lungs, making me able to breathe clearly again after years. But that day as I was sitting at my desk, my brother had smoked in the hallway a door next to the room I was in, and he opened it, leaving it open. A huge smelly trail of cigarette stink and cigarette smoke came into the room and I inhaled it, and as I did, I felt this sharp pain in my lower right lung which also caused alot of coughing. Ever since that day, I have felt this sharp and burning pain in my right lung, and it also develops an annoying dry cough alot of times, especially during stress. I have taken alot of supplements but only Pau D'Arco made it better for a while, and actually made me feel as If I could breathe through that lung again. Some phlegm also got loose when I took the Pau D'Arco. After a while, this sharp and burning pain comes back though. Also this pain keeps pulsating in my right chest when laying down, and lowers when I lay on my left side. When filled up with lots of general vitamin supplements, the pain comes and goes, literally. I suspect the nattokinase & serrapeptase combination created this condition in combination with the deep cigarette smoke. I have had this for about a year now I think. I also feel pain on the back at the right shoulderblade and beneath it, coming and going. Ever since taking Pau D'Arco phlegm now also comes up the throat from the right lung.

What can this be? And how do I get rid of it?

Many thanks ;)
 
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Waynish

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I would do some deep & slow breathing exercises - and also in a sauna (infrared) if you can.
 

Blossom

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In addition to @Waynish's response I will add a few things.
How long has it been since you quit smoking? The lungs generally take 6 months to clear out after a person quits so it's not unusual to have an increased cough with phlegm during that time. It's a good thing and part of the healing process. I would still try to avoid second hand smoke as much as possible.

Considering the lung symptoms you are having it might help to try small daily doses of vitamin E (if it's not contraindicated for you) to help with inflammation. Search the forum and you will find information about vitamin E helping with inflammation in pneumonia and asthma. Not that you necessarily have either one but the tickling cough sounds like there could be inflammation causing reactive airways. Nevertheless I think it's worth researching further to see if it might help.

The pain is mostly likely coming from the pleural space since the actual air exchange areas of the lungs do not have nerves. A respiratory therapist friend once recommended breathing in deeply and stretching the upper body/torso while holding the breath then exhaling completely as you return to your normal posture. It's hard to explain in text without demonstrating but the idea is to massage the pleural space and equalize the pressure with the combo of stretching and breathing.

2-3 minutes of bag breathing (or until it starts to become slightly uncomfortable) is something that might help relax your airways during a coughing episode.

I personally like the expectorant properties of pau d'arco too. Forum member @moss seems to be more knowledgeable about herbs than I am and might have something to add on pau d'arco.

Another consideration for thinning mucus to help get it out is inhaling a salt water steam. You need to be extra cautious and not burn yourself though!

Lastly forum member @Wilfrid has mentioned the connection between high serotonin and breathing issues such as asthma so investigating that angle could be informative.
 
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Blossom

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Believe it or not laughter helps with retained phlegm in the lungs too. You'd be surprised how helpful a really good laughing session can be for shaking up the lungs and helping move stagnant mucus out.
ETA: @ecstatichamster might know some buteyko methods for helping.
 
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Peatful

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The first thing I thought of was your gallbladder.
 
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TreasureVibe

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I would do some deep & slow breathing exercises - and also in a sauna (infrared) if you can.

Thank you I will try these!

Believe it or not laughter helps with retained phlegm in the lungs too. You'd be surprised how helpful a really good laughing session can be for shaking up the lungs and helping move stagnant mucus out.
ETA: @ecstatichamster might know some buteyko methods for helping.
Thank you for your suggestions! It has been 2 years now since I have quit smoking. This particular pain and cough in my right chest area did not come around right after stopping smoking, but about a year later when I was using a nattokinase & serrapeptase supplement and inhaled a strong scent of cigarette smoke. Funnily enough, it comes from my right chest area only. The pain also radiates to my right flank, beneath my right arm. Whenever I have to cough, my feeling says it is irritation that comes from the right lung. The cough seems to come from the right lung, and not the left one. I mention the nattokinase & serrapeptase, because there was atleast 1 described case of a person catching eosinophil induced pneumonia after using nattokinase & serrapeptase. It can ''eat'' away scars, including in the lungs.. Now I think that since I used it, and was exposed to cigarette smoke at the same time, more deeper in the lung wall or near it got damaged, inflamed or infected. I cite from this article from www.serrapeptase.org
Although rare, it was theorized that removing scar tissue from the lungs (as Serrapeptase does) can increase the chance of infection due to airborne pathogens (52), this is mostly in elderly individuals with compromised lung function. For this reason serrapeptase is not recommended for those people with advanced lung cancers or those that smoke.

It really feels as if something is stuck in my right lung, and Pau D'Arco was the only substance that ''removed'' this stuck feeling, allowing me to breathe again fully through that lung since years! I hope this info can help you more to perhaps finding something :happy: I will try out your suggestions ;) Oh btw, dissapointly enough, the Pau D'Arco seemed to help less and less everytime I have used it after having used it the first time.. Basically phlegm coming lose (and in my mouth) is good right? Should I spit it out, or swallow it? Since before using the Pau D'Arco it always has been a dry cough, and now all of a sudden phlegm starts to get loose and I am able to breathe better again..

The first thing I thought of was your gallbladder.

Thanks, what can I do to improve my gallbladder health in my case?
 
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Blossom

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Is your phlegm colorful? Colored mucus/phlegm is usually from infection. Infection can lead to increased mucus production.
Should I spit it out, or swallow it?
I prefer to spit it out when possible. Occasional swallowing of phlegm when it can't be avoided shouldn't be harmful though due to stomach acids and digestive enzymes.
 

tara

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I think Blossom has some knowledge in this area, so her suggestions are probably worth considering. (I'm no expert.)

I think normal function, when there is nothing wrong, is for phlegm to be continuously transported up out of lungs and airways without coughing and be swallowed. If there's a lot of extra much from infection or something, then maybe spitting some of the bulk out would be good, but AFAIK swallowing some is pretty normal. Low CO2 levels, or other impediment to lung function, can hinder the normal flow. If CO2 is chronically low/there is habitual hyperventilation, raising CO2 with bag breathing or calmed/reduced breathing by other means can help getting the flegm moving again. And I agree about laughing - nothing like it.

If the pain gets worse, or doesn't improve soon, I'd be considering getting a medical opinion too, in case there is something else serious going on that would be useful to know about.

Just as a possible other consideration, I once had pain around the lung area that made breathing painful, and it turned out to be ribs out of alignment, and was resolved permanently within an hour or two of a single treatment by an osteopath who knew what he was doing getting them unstuck. Most likely Blossom is right, and yours is in the pleural space, but just chucking this in as an outside chance.
 

moss

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I personally like the expectorant properties of pau d'arco too. Forum member @moss seems to be more knowledgeable about herbs than I am and might have something to add on pau d'arco.


Hi Richard

There are a variety of herbs that have the action of expectorants (stimulating and relaxing) and are indicated for specific presentations. Because there are many types of coughs such as nervous, tickly, irritable, intractable, dry, congestive or wet and productive and non productive and phlegm will differ in colour and viscocity (and always best to spit it out) it would be unwise for me to suggest a particular herb without a proper diagnosis and because getting the dosage right can be tricky with some herbs.

I would suggest you get a diagnosis first. Because you have been having pain for some time in your right lung and you also have pain around your shoulder blade, (yes that can be referred pain for gallbladder) it also can be referred pain for pneumonia and you may have some kind of a pleural effusion?
Diagnosing yourself is not helpful, one thing allopathic medicine can be helpful for is in getting a diagnosis. Get checked out, then you can decide how you wish to be treated otherwise it’s guesswork. Good luck and I hope you get some relief soon.

Edit: Pau d'arco is a wonderful herb and has so many applications and too many to list here.
 
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Blossom

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I personally like the expectorant properties of pau d'arco too. Forum member @moss seems to be more knowledgeable about herbs than I am and might have something to add on pau d'arco.


Hi Richard

There are a variety of herbs that have the action of expectorants (stimulating and relaxing) and are indicated for specific presentations. Because there are many types of coughs such as nervous, tickly, irritable, intractable, dry, congestive or wet and productive and non productive and phlegm will differ in colour and viscocity (and always best to spit it out) it would be unwise for me to suggest a particular herb without a proper diagnosis and because getting the dosage right can be tricky with some herbs.

I would suggest you get a diagnosis first. Because you have been having pain for some time in your right lung and you also have pain around your shoulder blade, (yes that can be referred pain for gallbladder) it also can be referred pain for pneumonia and you may have some kind of a pleural effusion?
Diagnosing yourself is not helpful, one thing allopathic medicine can be helpful for is in getting a diagnosis. Get checked out, then you can decide how you wish to be treated otherwise it’s guesswork. Good luck and I hope you get some relief soon.

Edit: Pau d'arco is a wonderful herb and has so many applications and too many to list here.
Very helpful @moss, thank you.
 

LUH 3417

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Believe it or not laughter helps with retained phlegm in the lungs too. You'd be surprised how helpful a really good laughing session can be for shaking up the lungs and helping move stagnant mucus out.
ETA: @ecstatichamster might know some buteyko methods for helping.
In Chinese a medicine lungs are associated with grief so it makes sense that laughter is the best medicine.
 
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TreasureVibe

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Sorry for the late post, I had some urgent things that took my attention the last few days! Thank you Blossom, Moss, Tara Waynish, Peatful and seraphim :): Right side chest and flank pain has diminished alot with the stretch, breathe in, relax, breathe out technique you described Blossom, even though I just imagined how it should be done, it worked quite well! I will continue doing it, and see if it gives full removal of the pain. So since it works, was the pain I felt pressure in the pleural space? It seems like it.. The cough still persists but is lighter, and I feel I have way more control over it now, for some reason. I will continue to follow all of your guys and girls advice and will report back in this topic! Once again thanks alot :happy:
 

Blossom

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So since it works, was the pain I felt pressure in the pleural space?
It sounds likely. I'm glad you are doing better. I would definitely get things checked out if you do not continue to improve or get worse.
 
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TreasureVibe

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It sounds likely. I'm glad you are doing better. I would definitely get things checked out if you do not continue to improve or get worse.
Thank you! :): I forgot to mention, when I eat a bunch of small MilkyWay chocolate bars (I get these cravings sometimes) it actually makes the pain somewhat worse in the same area, shortly after having eaten them. Could this be inflammatory pain? Or is this a placebo effect?
 

Peatful

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Thank you! :): I forgot to mention, when I eat a bunch of small MilkyWay chocolate bars (I get these cravings sometimes) it actually makes the pain somewhat worse in the same area, shortly after having eaten them. Could this be inflammatory pain? Or is this a placebo effect?
I would again say gallbladder.
Google gallbladder attack or gallbladder pain after eating chocolate...
 

Blossom

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Thank you! :): I forgot to mention, when I eat a bunch of small MilkyWay chocolate bars (I get these cravings sometimes) it actually makes the pain somewhat worse in the same area, shortly after having eaten them. Could this be inflammatory pain? Or is this a placebo effect?
That sounds digestive rather than lung related to me. @Peatful's suggestion seems worth looking into. It's always possible you have more than one issue simultaneously.
 

Blossom

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Do you have a trusted healthcare provider that you could have evaluate this recurring pain?
 
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TreasureVibe

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I wouldsay it were two issues simultaneously at the same time! What are the odds having both around the same location! The equaling of the pressure of the lungs through that method really got rid of this pressure that was felt in my right chest, which also caused pain, no doubt. I can also breathe better. What persists now is this pain that comes and goes every two seconds, and it's generally not that painful, just annoying at its peak. Changing positions like laying when seated gives comfort to the pain. What can be done to get rid of the gallbladder pain? Would herbs work?

Do you have a trusted healthcare provider that you could have evaluate this recurring pain?
Only my GP... I am a fan of solving health problems myself, as I have solved many for myself and others already! I can always visit my GP for a referral or prescription.
 

Blossom

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Only my GP... I am a fan of solving health problems myself, as I have solved many for myself and others already! I can always visit my GP for a referral or prescription.
I feel the same way! I'm glad you've had some relief and I hope you have a full recovery soon.
 
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TreasureVibe

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Hey everyone, small update here... The pain in my right lung is persistent throughout the day. It was induced by a combination of an enzyme supplement (nattokinase & serrapeptase) and inhaling thick cigarette smoke. The pain somehow can be felt in my back on the right side and in my inner chest on the right.

Eggshell calcium actually manages to lower the pain somewhat and reduce the automatic inclination and itch to cough..

The pain is burning.

What can this mean? I hope someone has the answers.

I still have to visit my GP!! I haven't had the time for it yet but I will do it. I actually visited the GP once before for this issue and he requested a x-ray because he suspected fibrosis. I never had the time to go to the hospital though...
 
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