Anyone feel tense throughout their body after the morning BE session?

Very well said Sue!!! I have often experienced harder to expel mucus after my nebbing and ACT sessions that lasted about an hour each combined. I’ve also wondered if it may depend on the location (upper or lower lobes) of the mucus. Logically it seems as though mucus in the lower lobes would be harder and take longer to expel. BUT I do believe in your theory that excess nebbing can cause a negative effect with excess mucus, I also wish we could get an answer to that question. I’ve come to believe we must try different methods, techniques etc to see which works best for us, and then do the very best we can at each session. We all know how difficult this disease is to deal with on a daily basis, BUT we have it and a good effective session of ACT gives me a real good sense of accomplishment. It doesn’t happen every time, but when it doesn’t it pushes me to try harder/better the next session. Don’t ever give up!!! God Bless us all.

This is so true "BUT we have it and a good effective session of ACT gives me a real good sense of accomplishment. It doesn’t happen every time, but when it doesn’t it pushes me to try harder/better the next session."

As long as "trying harder/better" doesn't mean "trying too much." I haven't had a lot of sputum coming up the past couple weeks, but yesterday I had a great "garden workout" - I mowed at a pretty good pace (about 1/3 acre), took a break, then went weeding - bending, reaching, standing up, down again, etc. Last evening I probably coughed up as much mucus as I did in the past week, including some thick globs that had been around for a while. The good news - all of it was clear or white. The bad - my ribs are a little sore today.

I just wrote a piece about PT in a shoulder surgery discussion how it is not always done in the gym. I believe airway clearance is the same.

Here's a challenge for anyone who is bored with their routine - find a task in your home or yard that involves bending, reaching and stretching. Neb, take a brisk walk (or push your mower for a few minutes), then do the task at as quick a pace as you can. It doesn't need to be hard. When I was quite ill with MAC, I used to put the basket of unfolded laundry on the floor, fold it on the table or bed, deliberately placing piles "just out of reach" so I had to stretch, then walking back and forth to dressers, cupboards and closets to put it all away. My huff coughing afterward was always productive, and I got a hated task done.

Wow....mowed the lawn...1/3 of an acre. You go "girl". More than likely you did that while your homemade yogurt was fermenting.🤣😉
Yes, I purposely make extra trips in the house rather than one when needing to place things in one area to another to fit in more walking, movement. Also bend and stretch on purpose when rolling the water hose back onto the hose holder. All those little things help keep us going in many ways.
Sue I did really well these last two days. I decided to do less time nebulizing each nebulizing session. I use up all the saline in the vile by the end of the day. So each session is a very short period of nebulizing, ACB, Postural Drainage and Huff Cough. I do my mile walking after the first session, morning session. I do a third short neb session a couple of hours before bed and then a very short ACT and Huff cough. The late session appears to have helped me with getting a good nights sleep/rest. After the day of doing my tasks and short sessions I have been very successful in clearing much from the lungs....mucus and much mucus plugs. I remember the doctor saying you may not see mucus plugs coming up in the first session however later in the day is when they might, probably will, come up and out. So glad that what I remove has been slightly yellow to white and for quite a while. My MAI is staying at 1+ since being diagnosed with BE/MAI in Oct. 2023. I am giving more thought to starting the antibiotics since I feel I am more educated in what we need to do for ourselves and I haven't, so far, piled on another type of bacteria or a fungal infection for all the time I have had the need to clear my throat....and that means for a period of 7 years....meaning before the BE diagnosis and after diagnosis. Never had an exacerbation either. Lucky, lucky me.
Yes a hated task for us but yet we are so grateful for the growth in knowledge and headways made in the last decade for patients with BE.
Thanks again for all your help.
Barbara

Barbara - If you are maintaining at 1+ why are you thinking about antibiotics? Unless I had M Abscessus or cavities, I'm not sure I would ever do the antibiotics again, unless maybe they discover a new miracle drug. I think my Mom maintained with MAI for 4 or more years in her 80's just nebbing, coughing and taking antibiotics for exacerbations - and she died of an unrelated illness.

Barbara - If you are maintaining at 1+ why are you thinking about antibiotics? Unless I had M Abscessus or cavities, I'm not sure I would ever do the antibiotics again, unless maybe they discover a new miracle drug. I think my Mom maintained with MAI for 4 or more years in her 80's just nebbing, coughing and taking antibiotics for exacerbations - and she died of an unrelated illness.

I get intracranial pressure from the coughing exertion, which hurts and then gradually subsides after all is done. But then, when I periodically cough or laugh hard during the day, I can again experience the pressure. It's like shooting pains in the top and sides of the head. It can be quite painful. Does anyone else experience that or have advice for how to deal with it? This started about a year ago, during a heavy coughing jag, and my GP suspects a spasm occurred in the neck which triggers the cranial pressure pain. It has subsided greatly with a lot of self care and PT, but hasn't fully resolved.

Hello apf'
As soon as I read your post with regard to intracranial pressure I immediately thought of residual shingle pain. I had shingles twice on my forehead and once on my back. I sometimes, not often, have a mild residual pain at the back of my head however so far not with all we do with and for Bronchiectasis.

I was curious after reading your post. I did google: can residual shingle pain in the head come and go with coughing up mucus and AI stated this:
Yes, postherpetic neuralgia (PHN), the lingering pain after shingles, can sometimes be triggered or exacerbated by coughing up mucus, especially if the shingles rash was on the head or face. PHN can be a constant pain, but it can also come and go, with various factors, including physical activity like coughing, potentially triggering or intensifying it."
Have you ever had a shingles bout at the head area??? You might want to do a deeper dive than I did and look further than what I did if you think this might be related to residual pain from shingles.
Barbara

This is so true "BUT we have it and a good effective session of ACT gives me a real good sense of accomplishment. It doesn’t happen every time, but when it doesn’t it pushes me to try harder/better the next session."

As long as "trying harder/better" doesn't mean "trying too much." I haven't had a lot of sputum coming up the past couple weeks, but yesterday I had a great "garden workout" - I mowed at a pretty good pace (about 1/3 acre), took a break, then went weeding - bending, reaching, standing up, down again, etc. Last evening I probably coughed up as much mucus as I did in the past week, including some thick globs that had been around for a while. The good news - all of it was clear or white. The bad - my ribs are a little sore today.

I just wrote a piece about PT in a shoulder surgery discussion how it is not always done in the gym. I believe airway clearance is the same.

Here's a challenge for anyone who is bored with their routine - find a task in your home or yard that involves bending, reaching and stretching. Neb, take a brisk walk (or push your mower for a few minutes), then do the task at as quick a pace as you can. It doesn't need to be hard. When I was quite ill with MAC, I used to put the basket of unfolded laundry on the floor, fold it on the table or bed, deliberately placing piles "just out of reach" so I had to stretch, then walking back and forth to dressers, cupboards and closets to put it all away. My huff coughing afterward was always productive, and I got a hated task done.