Mild pneumonia can usually be treated at home with rest, antibiotics (if it's likely be caused by a bacterial infection) and by drinking plenty of fluids. More severe cases may need hospital treatment.
Unless a healthcare professional tells you otherwise, you should always finish taking a prescribed course of antibiotics, even if you feel better.
If you stop taking an antibiotic part way through a course, the bacteria can become resistant to the antibiotic.
After starting treatment, your symptoms should steadily improve.
However, how quickly they improve will depend on how severe your pneumonia is.
As a general guide, after:
Contact your GP or 111 online if your symptoms do not improve within 3 days of starting antibiotics.
Symptoms may not improve if:
Painkillers, such as paracetamol or ibuprofen, may help relieve pain and reduce fever.
However, you should not take ibuprofen if you:
Cough medicines are not recommended as there is little evidence they are effective.
A warm honey and lemon drink can help relieve discomfort caused by coughing.
Your cough may persist for 2 to 3 weeks after you finish your course of antibiotics, and you may feel tired for even longer as your body continues to recover.
Drink plenty of fluids to avoid dehydration, and get plenty of rest to help your body recover.
If you smoke, it's more important than ever to stop, as smoking damages your lungs.
Read more about stop smoking treatments and how to stop smoking.
Contact a GP or 111 online if, after following these self-help measures, you're feeling worse or you're not feeling any better.
The doctor will probably arrange a follow-up appointment for you about 6 weeks after you start your course of antibiotics.
In some cases, they may arrange follow-up tests, such as a chest X-ray, if:
Some people may be advised to have a flu vaccination or pneumococcal vaccination after recovering from pneumonia.
You may need treatment in hospital if your symptoms are severe.
You should be given antibiotics as soon as possible if your pneumonia is likely to be caused by a bacterial infection.
You will probably not be given antibiotics if the cause is likely to be a virus, such as coronavirus. This is because antibiotics do not work for viral infections.
You may also be given fluids intravenously through a drip, and you may need oxygen to help breathing.
In serious cases of pneumonia, breathing assistance through a ventilator in an intensive care unit (ICU) may be required.
If you've breathed in an object that's causing pneumonia, it may need to be removed.
To do this, an instrument called a bronchoscope may be used to look into your airways and lungs so that the object can be located and removed.
This procedure is known as a bronchoscopy.
Page last reviewed: 30 June 2019
Next review due: 30 June 2022
TIPS TO LIVE BY June 7, 2021 - Katie McCallum
If you have pneumonia, the first priority is clearing the infection causing it.
This means following your doctor's treatment plan very closely. Yes, getting plenty of rest. And, yes, taking every single pill in the bottle of antibiotics your doctor prescribed you if your pneumonia is bacterial in nature.
But, even after your primary symptoms fade away, you may be left feeling lousy, with low energy and/or dealing with a cough that just won't quit. In some cases, you may feel weak for months.
How long does it take to recover from pneumonia?"Pneumonia is a serious illness that can take quite a toll on a person's lungs and body.
It can take anywhere from a week to several months to fully recover from it," says Dr. Rayman Lee, pulmonologist at Houston Methodist.
The length of time it takes for you to recover from pneumonia is influenced by:
If you're generally healthy and have only a mild case of pneumonia, your symptoms should begin to improve one to two days after starting treatment.
"Most people with mild pneumonia are able to return to their everyday activities in a week, although fatigue and cough can linger for an entire month," says Dr. Lee.
Recovery timelines become more murky for people who have severe pneumonia.
"For more serious cases that require hospitalization, we're not only focused on clearing the infection, we're also focused on preventing or treating complications that can develop — including difficulty breathing, fluid buildup in the lungs, sepsis, acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and lung abscesses," warns Dr.
Lee.
Pneumonia and its complications can wreak havoc on a person's lungs and body. And, it can take anywhere from one to six months for a person to recover and regain strength after being hospitalized for pneumonia.
Why does it take so long to recover from pneumonia?You can't see the damage pneumonia causes, but you certainly feel it.
The air sacs in your lungs become inflamed during pneumonia, leading to soreness and pain. If the infection and inflammation progress, your lungs may fill with fluid and dead lung tissue, leading to the green, yellow or even bloody mucus you cough up. This fluid may also affect how well oxygen is able to transfer into your bloodstream, leading to difficulty breathing.
"Once the infection is cleared with treatment, your body still has to deal with removing all of the fluid, damage and debris left behind in your lungs. This can take a few weeks, resulting in a lingering cough and reduced lung capacity," explains Dr.
Lee. "During this time, you may find physical exertion more tiring than usual."
A more severe case of pneumonia can cause even more damage to your lungs, which can be significant and even permanent in some cases.
"After severe pneumonia, lung capacity is reduced and muscles may be weak from being so ill. Significant weight loss can further contribute to weakness and other health conditions may be aggravated due to the stress placed on the body during illness. These are all things your body will need time to recover from," says Dr. Lee.
In fact, it may take another several months for you to fully heal and regain strength.
"A person with pneumonia isn't discharged from the hospital until his or her infection is under control and vitals are stable, of course, but there's still a lot of work his or her body needs to do while recovering at home," says Dr. Lee.
How to regain your strength after pneumoniaWhile recovering from mild pneumonia, be sure to:
"Physical activity can help your lungs regain strength — but go slow.
Start with light exercise and stop if your cough worsens or you have trouble breathing. If a light workout feels okay, you can put a little more effort into your next workout," says Dr. Lee.
However, Dr. Lee's advice for someone recovering from severe pneumonia looks quite different.
"The first thing to realize is that your body may be extremely weak after being discharged from the hospital, so you'll need to take extra care — leaning on your support network, if possible," says Dr. Lee.
Aim to slowly work back into your usual routine (with guidance from your doctor) and be sure to take note of any signs that the infection may be coming back.
"Pneumonia can be incredibly taxing and there's no one-size-fits-all to recovery. Some people feel better in about six weeks, but it can take several months for others to feel better after severe pneumonia," adds Dr. Lee. "Most importantly, be patient with your body."
If your recovery is prolonged, a specialized program focused on pulmonary rehabilitation may help get you back on track.
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who had pneumonia in moderate and severe forms;
who feel that some symptoms remain after discharge:
Clinic patient history
A person who has had a disease feels increased fatigue, weakness, and sometimes a periodic increase in body temperature.
He suffers from headaches, coughing and shortness of breath, despite the fact that he is already "healthy" and must return to his usual rhythm of life.
The recovery process after pneumonia in adults can take up to 3-6 months, depending on the severity of the disease and the intensity of therapy.
The sooner the full functioning of the lungs and the supply of oxygen to the body are restored, the less the disease will affect the general state of health, the less the risk of additional complications.
Pneumonia is an insidious and dangerous disease that causes rapid and massive damage to the lungs and serious impairment of respiratory function. After infection, in addition to the usual symptoms of ARVI, a dry cough and shortness of breath appear, which for a long time bother an already recovered person.
In severe cases, an acute and extensive inflammatory process develops in the lung tissue.
The most severe consequences can happen to those who had to endure viral community-acquired pneumonia on their legs, because. Due to the increased load on the body, serious complications can begin.
This and much more worsens the state of health and reduces the quality of life, can lead to irreversible brain damage.
The main task is to help the body recover.
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Pulmonologist consultation and lung function tests
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Diagnostics on certified medical equipment
Appointment of an individual treatment program without surgery.
Teaching breathing exercises.
2 follow-up examinations by a pulmologist 2 and 4 weeks after the start of treatment
with Pulse Oxygen Saturation Percentage: Rest/Exercise
Consultation with a cardiologist and ECG - additionally, according to indications.
The duration of the treatment program is from 21 days.
Cost of the program - according to indications
In addition, a consultation with a cardiologist may be required.
Add. examinations (according to indications)
Breathe easy!
Much has already been said about what complaints and symptoms are characteristic of COVID-19, but almost nothing about what to do after having been ill.
If you have been ill, but feel that the disease does not let go, you are not alone.
Covid does not pass without a trace for everyone. Many people have symptoms for 1-6 months.
It's called post-covid syndrome. And he can be defeated.
Such disorders are explained by damage to the cerebral vessels - microthrombovasculitis and autoimmune (immunity against the host) processes.
Postcovid syndrome is characterized by an undulating course of 1-6 months.
The main task is to help the body recover!
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" Life months after covid According to the head of the Department of Hospital Therapy, Russian National Research Medical University. Pirogov Alexander Chuchalin, almost half of the people who have had covid, to one degree or another, their health worsens. Moreover, this does not depend on how severely the person has been ill. The consequences can range from serious (such as inflammation of the blood vessels and bleeding disorders) to simply unpleasant ones, such as strange smells and tastes.
Read also
All about the coronavirus: a selection of relevant materials
According to Vladislav Zhemchugov, MD, immunologist, coronavirus affects the most vulnerable places in the human body, including the brain. As a result, damage to vision and hearing can become a complication. And according to the chief freelance specialist in medical rehabilitation of the Ministry of Health, Professor Galina Ivanova, almost 99% of those who have been ill have depression, headaches, and "cognitive impairments of varying severity.
"
But even seemingly innocent "there seems to be a smell of chemicals everywhere, soda made me sick" or "I'm sitting at home, the windows are closed, and suddenly it starts to smell like someone is smoking right in my nose" can greatly reduce the quality of life. Five people told us how their illness affected them.
Elena L., 43 years old
She had a mild illness in April 2020 — cough, temperature 37.3, loss of smell. She was treated at home on her own, did not take PCR, coronavirus was confirmed by antibodies
© Aleksey Durasov/TASS
The first months after the illness were like this: I was going to work, dressed, had breakfast, and was tired. Apathy, the state of "how I got tired of everything, leave me alone." During self-isolation, I "sat out" the sofa! She sat on it so much that something broke there, and it pushed through. I don't remember last summer - I was an amoebic creature. And most importantly, then I didn’t know that this was a consequence of covid, I just didn’t understand what was happening to me.
In the fall, problems with gynecology began: bleeding continued for two or three weeks. This has never happened to me. The gynecologist did not see any reason - just out of the blue. Probably, because of this, weakness intensified, and I began to eat a lot of meat - the body required iron. Usually I am indifferent to meat, but here I could buy a steak in the evening and eat it. Then, in the fall, I went to the sanatorium and made a check. Nothing serious was found in me - only platelets are above the upper limit. In February, I donated blood again - they are still the same.
See also
"Go clean the floors in the red zone!" I washed. One shift of a volunteer in a covid intensive care unit
Your hair broke: you comb it - and it’s like a hedgehog trotted in your sink. And I began to see very badly at dusk. I didn't have my eyes checked, but this has never happened to me before.
Some of the smells I don't feel at all, and some of them are distorted.
Sometimes I get out of the shower - and it seems to me that I smell like ... an unwashed man! Well, in general, very unpleasant. Recently, I sprinkled myself with the perfume of my favorite brand - I have a whole battery of them - but it doesn’t taste good to me. I sprinkled others - again tasteless! I think: they have deteriorated, I have not used them for a year. I went to their boutique - they told me there that perfumes can go bad in five to ten years. Three of my favorite scents were sprayed on me and I was disgusted. As a result, I bought several strong fragrances and also essential oils - I train my nose.
A few months ago I went to a psychotherapist, and now my psychological state is better. Since autumn I go to the gym, I swim. Very neat. And I drink handfuls of vitamins. It also helped - I became more cheerful. But I still get tired and short of breath if I go up to the third floor. Of course, I think: age, overweight ... But I have been overweight for seven or eight years, and before covid I could walk 20 kilometers on foot, and I was high.
More than a year has passed, but I still cough several times a day. I don't smoke and never have. I can cough all evening, as if I'm sick. I got up in the morning, it was fine. After covid, I never got sick with anything, but the state of "you're about to get sick" is with me all the time. I have a feeling that the disease never left me.
Anton, 40 years old
Was ill in September-October 2020, treated at home, PCR test was positive. The main symptoms are severe weakness, lack of appetite, temperature
I used to go up to the fifth floor calmly. And now I get tired as if I had walked 10-12 floors. This is not shortness of breath, but fatigue. I used to carry a backpack weighing 20 kilograms for 10 kilometers, but now I can’t even carry five. I get up at 8:00 in the morning, and at 16:00 I feel like sleeping. I set an alarm and sleep for 40 minutes. This has never happened to me before.
I am very stupid.
At work, I write texts, and now it’s more difficult for me to choose words. For example, I need to find a synonym for the word "genius". "Smart" perhaps? And… everything. And before, I could remember five words on the go. Now I have to go into almost every example for ... what is it called, I forgot the word. Dictionary! You see - I know the word, I used it, and once - I forgot it from scratch. I also find it difficult to make complex sentences and write long texts. I became more distracted. You look at one point, then you catch yourself sitting, doing nothing for several minutes and not understanding why this happened.
© Aleksey Durasov/TASS
I became more irritable because my brain is constantly looking for answers to some questions. And this causes confusion and fear. Moreover, I began to notice all this when three or four months had already passed after the illness.
I have myopia, minus seven, and I began to see worse, although the diopters remained the same - I went to the optometrist.
Perhaps your eyes get tired faster? Sometimes I eat and I can't stop - I have to force myself.
See also
"You can't sleep, and when you do, you have nightmares." Two seasons of work with covid
Twice I got poisoned by stale food because I did not smell that it had gone bad. Now we have to ask relatives to sniff the meat - whether it smells or not. But even fresh and good pork stinks of rotten meat for me. Eat it and it tastes disgusting. At first I was sick of her, now - when as. Recently I went to a friend's dacha to fix his septic tank - in my youth I worked as a plumber. I poke around - a friend cannot come close, he becomes ill. And I don't feel anything at all.
At the same time, oddly enough, there is a feeling that in general the body began to feel much better. For example, in sex it has become better than a year ago - more desires and opportunities. I think this is because I began to eat better, do exercises, drank a course of vitamins. I didn’t do a checkup, I didn’t take tests, I chose vitamins and dietary supplements myself.
To "repair" the brain, I read more and try to do what I have not done before. Now I'm seriously thinking about retraining to the other hand. For the brain, this is training.
In my life I have been sick much worse than covid. I had pneumonia, they pulled me out of the other world. And then he lay at home for two weeks - and the consequences are so terrifying. That's why I'm planning to get vaccinated. I don't want to get sick again.
Dmitry, 52 years old
Was ill in November-December 2020. Was treated in the hospital, was under oxygen with 75% lung damage
0 centimeters. After discharge, the weight was 132 kilos. During this time, I managed to lose 10 kilograms. I got better because of hormone treatment. The tests also showed that my testosterone had collapsed and my sugar had risen. And if I do not change my lifestyle, then diabetes is possible. Although there is nothing "criminal" in my lifestyle.
About two years ago, I was preparing for an operation and had a bunch of tests - then everything was normal.
See also
"Fresh cucumbers smell like gasoline." Those who recovered from COVID - about their well-being
I go deaf from time to time. I’m lying, reading, my wife or child comes up to me, they say something - but I don’t hear. And not because I'm infatuated. I did not notice how long such a "failure" could last. It "rolls" in a wave, suddenly, and it doesn't matter if I'm sitting, lying or standing. As if the volume was turned down, and then it is added a little bit. Still lost sight. I have not yet reached the ophthalmologist, but I am a hairdresser and I notice that now there are moments that are hardly noticeable to me. I used to see the smallest details clearly, but now I sometimes make mistakes. And sometimes the hand sharply reduces. And my legs - usually at night, it hurts a lot, I wake up and try to move away for a long time.
© Aleksey Durasov/TASS
I was more or less an athletic boy.
And now it happens, I walk with the dog - and there is nothing to breathe. Shortness of breath and no energy at all.
It became more difficult for me to concentrate on work. I have panic attacks. I wake up at night because my whole body is numb, feeling that someone is sitting on me. I can not breathe, and a very strong heartbeat. There was also unwarranted aggression. I can start a conflict in the subway because of a gaze - but before that I would just turn away. Or recently, the child poured liquid soap from the bottle, and instead poured water. Before, I didn't care - this soap was like dirt! And then I screwed up a little. But it quickly lets go.
I am currently on a no-sweet diet due to the risk of diabetes. I do breathing exercises, I do intensive walking. I did not go to the doctors with these problems. I think it's all temporary.
Elena B., 34 years old
She was sick at home in October 2020, covid was confirmed by PCR test.
The temperature rose to 38 maximum. The main symptom was a complete lack of strength
When I went to work, I wanted to immediately go on sick leave again. Because the PCR was negative, and the condition is the same.
Since April 2020, I have been taking online Spanish courses and decided to improve. I have a long-standing relationship with him: I listened to audio books, I could write a text on a simple topic, in Spain I easily uttered some everyday phrases. Wake me up at night - could remember words like "home" or "road". But in November it took me three to five seconds to remember the word. It was painful. I felt like a person who can't put words together into a sentence at all. Or it was like this: we go through the topic, the next day I open the notes to do my homework - and I don’t remember anything from there. It's like I'm seeing them for the first time, although the teacher explained it yesterday.
© Aleksey Durasov/TASS
The Russian language was also bad for the first month after the illness.
I'm talking to a colleague - and I understand that I can't put the words together so that it was a beautiful speech, and not "table car tree let's go." I recently noticed that I smell sweat if I walk fast. Although I use my favorite deodorant, and with him I never had this. Whether the smell has become stronger, or I feel it differently. It's very disgusting.
See also
Enjoy the air. The story of a nurse working in a coronavirus hospital
I still have memory problems . I used to be able to keep ten things in my head that I needed to do. Now, if I don’t write it down, I’ll most likely forget it. I get tired faster. Previously, after a day of work, I could go for a walk for 2.5 hours, do some kind of physical activity ... And now - just turn off the computer and do nothing. During the New Year holidays, I went to my parents in Samara, and my friend had a wedding in Moscow. I have known him since I was 11 years old, I was invited a long time ago, I bought tickets .
.. And I did not find the strength to come. Because it was necessary to get on the train, drive, communicate, dance ... This is very similar to a state of depression.
I have always been very active, in parallel with work I could study, go to exhibitions, to the theater. Now I stop myself and say to myself: today I only have enough for this.
March, 39 years old
Fell ill in February - March 2020 - most likely, "brought" from Italy. She was treated by calling private doctors at home - she categorically did not want to go to the hospital. There was 85% damage to the lungs, the temperature reached 41. Antibodies have survived to this day
I fell ill during self-isolation, I had bilateral pneumonia. She completely ended only in August, although I was no longer in bed, and PCR was negative. It was hard in the spring, I was practically writing a will . My lungs were hurting, I was spitting blood.
© Alexey Durasov/TASS
I was treated with hormones. I lost more than half of my hair and gained 40 kilograms - now I weigh 92 kilograms with a height of 171 centimeters. More or less normal, I began to breathe habitually only this spring. The last time the doctors told me that I had fibrosis in one lung, it was completely excluded from the respiratory process. And that people with such a lung file for disability and transplantation. But I have hope that it will resolve - I feel that over time it improves.
I now walk very slowly. Of course, I can't run. Recently I was at the sea - I practically can’t swim, although I used to swim very well. I am a rock singer and vocal teacher. In the technique in which I sing and teach, the lungs are not important, we have a completely different approach to breathing. Even before covid, I had completely untrained lungs - I could never inflate the balloon even halfway! So even with one lung I can sing and teach normally. I recorded 50 video lessons during pneumonia, and this did not affect my vocals.
Now, if I were an opera singer, it would be very difficult.
I have come to terms with the way I breathe now. One easy - and normal. I don't go to doctors, I don't trust them. I believe that the body can handle itself. And I didn’t do a check, I don’t consider it necessary.
I haven't had any odors or problems with vision or hearing. I think that covid only hit my lungs. This is probably why I got out - because other organs remained in a normal state. And also because I didn't panic. During pneumonia, I had a depressive state. But now everything is fine. I'm glad I didn't die in the end - and there's no room for depression.
It is impossible to foresee what consequences "will get" in case of illness to you. But according to director of the Center. N.F. Gamaleya Alexander Gintsburg, if a person gets vaccinated, but still gets sick, then the consequences for him will be minimal. Therefore, vaccination is a chance to protect yourself, if not from the disease itself, then at least from what our heroes told.
