Really worried now

[Angel2Fire]

I have just read somewhere on the net that virus's and flu and stuff can cause miscarriage in the first trimester.

I'm really worried cus I have a really really bad cold (I've lost my voice and can't stop coughing and sneezing.)

Is it true and what can I do to get rid of the cold quickly?

Thanks

 

[Holly21]

The common cold should be OK unless you have a really high temperature. Flu seems a bit more worrying - fortunately, most people who think they have the flu don't and it's just a bad cold. Flu is often associated with aches and pains as well as things like nausea, sometimes bowel symptoms and a high temperature. There have been concerns that flu exposure in the 2nd and 3rd trimesters can cause an increased incidence of congenital abnormalities and there has also been some concern raised that flu exposure in the 1st trimester can increase the risk of schizophrenia. This link has some good info https://www.bbc.co.uk/health/ask_the_doctor/pregnancyflu.shtml

Unfortunately, you can't speed up your body getting rid of a virus - you just need to wait for your immune system to fight it off. The virus is usually cleared within a few days but a lot of people keep on coughing afterwards because of inflammation in their airways caused by the virus. Some people swear by echinacea or vitamin C to boost their immune systems - there is a small study https://www.otispregnancy.org/pdf/echinacea.pdf which doesn't seem to show any adverse effects associated with echinacea, but it is a small study. Vitamin C is safe in pregnancy within the recommended doses.

Your GP can do a blood test to see if you have/have had the flu if you're worried - it sounds more like an upper respiratory tract virus (likely to be the common cold) from what you describe but these things are usually better evaluated face to face and it sounds like a GP visit would not go amiss, if nothing else, to put your mind at rest.