From Lucy’s perspective, her husband Jack didn’t have long to live because she was ready to kill him. No, she is not homicidal. But her husband had been so irritable and distant the last 4 months that at times she felt like killing him.
It started late last year after he had an allergic reaction to a medication causing a severe skin reaction and asthma. He was rushed to the emergency department where he was stabilized and sent home on prednisone and inhalers. His health although stable was far from optimal. The steroid was making him extremely irritable and difficult to be around.
But long before his unfortunate reaction to the medication Lucy had been complaining that he just was not his normal self. He just sat in his chair either reading or watching TV with no desire to interact with her or family and friends that would drop by to visit.
Because he was growing tired of Lucy’s prodding and he could see he was not getting any better, Jack came in for an evaluation. In addition to his current problems, he had been suffering from chronic sinusitis for over 30 years which caused him to continually clear his throat and left him fatigued.
When a patient complains of chronic post nasal drainage, I often find that it is often due to a chronic fungal infection. Patients with this type of infection often have a history of repeated use of antibiotics for sinusitis which temporarily helps but because they do not address the fungal component the symptoms return. Also, it is not uncommon for them to have had one or two sinus surgeries
Because of his advanced age, I treated him aggressively with vitamin IV’s acupuncture, homeopathy, bio-identical hormones, and anti-fungal nasal sprays. Each week he saw a steady improvement so after a month of treatment, he was off the prednisone and said “ This is the best I have felt in years.” His interest in life had returned, and his married life was saved.