Finished Antibiotic Treatment - On to Airway Clearance

Congratulations! Really happy for you! I don’t take probiotics but I eat some yogurt or pickles at lunchtime.

Definitely take a probiotic. My primary care doctor is very favorable toward seed.com. My MAC doctor told me to take rifampin first thing in the morning an hour before anything to eat or drink, azithromycin after any meal and ethambutol an hour before dinner on an empty stomach. You may choose to wait until 2-3 hours after dinner before bed to take the ethambutol. I’m still experimenting. Best of luck to you and stay strong.

Mary Jane

I also was diagnosed over 2 1/2 years ago. I have never been able to cough up any mucus no matter how hard I’ve had tried. When I spoke with my pulmonary doctor and infectious disease doctor, they told me that that was very common, and not to force it. They said I would do more damage if I tried too hard. And not to worry about it they just said to keep the airway clearance to keep things moving around to try to avoid infection.

Yes, this community is so helpful for learning new tips and feeling less alone. I was diagnosed with bronchiectasis last March after a week of significant hemoptysis. I do airway clearance 2x/day, also producing very little mucus. After no more hemoptysis since diagnosis, I had an episode this morning and have let my pulmonologist know; no reply yet. My Acapella valve is 6 months old and I plan to replace it with the Aeribika. Has anyone purchased this or another device that has been covered by Medicare if purchased online and not through your doctor?
Thanks!

Hi!
I take meds at night b4 bed and at least 2 hours after eating. I take probiotics in the morning. This has kept most side effects at bay for me. I only nebulizer when sick or having exacerbation.
I don’t produce sputum, so I do cardio for 30-45 min daily and some postural drainage for airway clearance. I have lost 10- 15 lbs ( now at 104) and found that daily smoothie helps me maintain that and not lose additional weight. My best advice is to protect yourself from getting sick. Drink SPRING water, wear mask & gloves when gardening, stay out of hot tubs and community pools, mask up and/or vaccinate for winter(ie: Covid, flu, RSV)
Hope this helps!
Dee

CONGRATULATIONS!!!!
🎈🎉🎊🍾

Congratulations Miriam. I have been waiting 6 weeks for the results of my bronchoscopy. Dr. thinks it's MAC. Joining this site has given me a lot of information and questions to ask when I get the results. Thank you to everyone who shares what they are experiencing being on the meds etc. God Bless All of You!

For stomach upsets - S. Boullardii

Miriam, I am so happy to hear you have been through the treatment and are
Doing well. I was dx with MAC and so scared but I’m
Thinking of going head and taking the meds in hopes to rid this from my body. I hope and pray I can make it through the treatment. Any advise such as eating etc would be greatly appreciated. I am in NC.

Hi! Will try to give you my thoughts about this treatment. It was not easy but i made it for 18 months.
For me the stomach issues were the hardest to deal with because i have gerd. I tried different ways to take the pills. I always had to eat something. It turned out that rifampin gave me lupus so it was changed. I guess i was allergic to it. When i went to denver to natl jewish hospital they said rifampin can cause the lupus. I had terrible pains in my legs. After i stopped the rifampin it went away. They replaced it with clofazimine.
I started the airway clearance with the 7% saline. My pulmonologist wanted me to do it twice a day. I am going to be honest i find it very hard to do that. Once a day is hard for me. I try but i am not very good. I have ct scans now once a year and the bronchiectasis and mac are still in my lungs. Doctor says it hasn’t gotten worst. So i do get checked. Haven’t had a sputum test in awhile last year i had 2 they were negative. Probably should have one soon. Would i do the treatment again probably not. If new meds with better results were available i would think about it. I hope you do well with the treatment. It does reduce the symptoms. If you have more questions please ask me. Its nice to hear others who have the same disease and how they are doing. God Bless. Miriam