Frugal Flu and Cold Season Stock-Up

[Iggy aka IG]

Starting this thread hoping it will help someone in the future, and so perhaps we can bounce ideas off each other.

I used to think we had a decent stock pile of cold and flu meds at home, until DH and I both came down with the flu around Christmastime.  We quickly went through the cough syrup and soup on hand.  This wasn't ideal because a) it was Christmas and it would have been difficult to find something open if b) we were in a condition to drive down our snowy hill 20+ minutes into town.

Things to have on hand (as always check w/ your doc):

Cough syrup (I prefer the DM version)-coupons available

Mucinex (again, I prefer DM)

Cough drops

Tylenol-coupons available

Ibuprofen-generic works

Zicam-My mom swears by this stuff when she starts feeling something coming on.  I've got a coupon, so I'm willing to try it.

Zinc/other "homeopathic" tablets

Eye drops?  There are coupons available on company websites

Chicken noodle soup/broth-I plan on buying chicken noodle in bulk the next time I'm at Sam's

Hot tea packets

Crackers (we don't usually keep these on hand, but thankfully had leftovers from an early Christmas gathering)

Water-extra bottled water if you don't drink from the tap

Also helpful:

Easy food.  I love to cook from scratch, but having things such as canned ravioli, chicken and bean-less chili came in hand when I finally wanted to eat.  ETA:  And frozen, single serving meals.

Regular meds:

I get my daily meds via mail order 90 days at a time, which avoids running out, and is very convenient for both myself, the pharmacist and doc, as it's less back and forth throughout the year.

How about you?  Any ideas? 

[Chocolate Lover]

Kleenex, lots and lots of it. Coupons everywhere, and back to school sales should help you stock up.

[ken a.k.a OMK]

Did you both have the flu vaccination? Sorry to hear it struck you both so bad.

[Iggy aka IG]

Jan 10, 2019 12:30:40 GMT -5 Chocolate Lover said:

Kleenex, lots and lots of it. Coupons everywhere, and back to school sales should help you stock up.

Ah, yes, Kleenex!  And TP. 

[Tennesseer]

Jan 10, 2019 12:33:09 GMT -5 Iggy aka IG said:

Jan 10, 2019 12:30:40 GMT -5 Chocolate Lover said:

Kleenex, lots and lots of it. Coupons everywhere, and back to school sales should help you stock up.

Ah, yes, Kleenex!  And TP. 

Kleenex is useless to me. I'm a trumpet nose blower. I use when I need to blow my nose.

[Iggy aka IG]

Jan 10, 2019 12:36:16 GMT -5 Tennesseer said:

Jan 10, 2019 12:33:09 GMT -5 Iggy aka IG said:

Ah, yes, Kleenex!  And TP. 

Kleenex is useless to me. I'm a trumpet nose blower. I use when I need to blow my nose.

[Chocolate Lover]

Jan 10, 2019 12:36:16 GMT -5 Tennesseer said:

Jan 10, 2019 12:33:09 GMT -5 Iggy aka IG said:

Ah, yes, Kleenex!  And TP. 

Kleenex is useless to me. I'm a trumpet nose blower. I use when I need to blow my nose.

Ouch, ouch ouch Tenn!!!! No. Just no. My delicate little nose would fall off my face if I abused it like that.

I found tissues with Vicks scent the last time oldest was sick. He loved those. 

[Iggy aka IG]

Speaking of Vicks, I'll ad Vicks VapoRub to the list!  Both for chest and bottoms of feet. 

[Tennesseer]

Jan 10, 2019 12:37:35 GMT -5 Chocolate Lover said:

Jan 10, 2019 12:36:16 GMT -5 Tennesseer said:

Kleenex is useless to me. I'm a trumpet nose blower. I use when I need to blow my nose.

Ouch, ouch ouch Tenn!!!! No. Just no. My delicate little nose would fall off my face if I abused it like that.

I found tissues with Vicks scent the last time oldest was sick. He loved those. 

Late last spring, I was standing and on my way to the kitchen to get a fresh cup of hot tea. There was a little bit of tea left in the cup. I have a bad habit of inhaling air over any hot liquid thinking I will cool the tea before I swallow it. This time, as I was standing, I inhaled while drinking the rest of the tea. The tea went down the windpipe.

I started coughing and gagging to the point I passed out. While falling unconscious to the floor one side of my face hit a hard plastic storage container. When I came the left side of my face hurt like hell. The following day I had a beaut of a black eye.

What is the point of the story you ask? With the black eye, I found when I blew my nose like a trumpet, the pressure of blowing my nose affected the sinus cavity behind the black eye and it would push my eyeball out a tiny little bit. I gentle pushed the eyeball back in.

Learned quickly to blow my nose gently until the black eye and swelling was gone. I have no problem with the eye which is a good thing. I now exhale over the hot liquid I am about to drink.

ETA: This happened once before about six years ago. Same scenario with the tea. Except that time I was sitting down. So no fall.

[Iggy aka IG]

Jan 10, 2019 12:48:51 GMT -5 Tennesseer said:

Jan 10, 2019 12:37:35 GMT -5 Chocolate Lover said:

Ouch, ouch ouch Tenn!!!! No. Just no. My delicate little nose would fall off my face if I abused it like that.

I found tissues with Vicks scent the last time oldest was sick. He loved those. 

Late last spring, I was standing and on my way to the kitchen to get a fresh cup of hot tea. There was a little bit of tea left in the cup. I have a bad habit of inhaling air over any hot liquid thinking I will cool the tea before I swallow it. This time, as I was standing, I inhaled while drinking the rest of the tea. The tea went down the windpipe.

I started coughing and gagging to the point I passed out. While falling unconscious to the floor one side of my face hit a hard plastic storage container. When I came the left side of my face hurt like hell. The following day I had a beaut of a black eye.

What is the point of the story you ask? With the black eye, I found when I blew my nose like a trumpet, the pressure of blowing my nose affected the sinus cavity behind the black eye and it would push my eyeball out a tiny little bit. I gentle pushed the eyeball back in.

Learned quickly to blow my nose gently until the black eye and swelling was gone. I have no problem with the eye which is a good thing. I now exhale over the hot liquid I am about to drink.

ETA: This happened once before about six years ago. Same scenario with the tea. Except that time I was sitting down. So no fall.

[Tennesseer]

Yup.  That was me! 

[Chocolate Lover]

  (too Iggy, not you Tenn)

[justme]

I really like ziacam and it helps cut mine in half. But one of the main ingredients is zinc - so be mindful of the max zinc per day if you also have other zinc tablets. 

[Iggy aka IG]

Another one:  Saline nasal spray

[The Walk of the Penguin Mich]

I am a huge advocate of Nyquil.  Both TD and I came back from vacation with colds, and when I went for the Nyquil, there was about a dose and a half left in the bottle.  We now have 2 fresh bottles, one with a single dose taken from it (that I took last night).

Sudafed.  The good stuff that you have to sign your life away for, that you need to promise  on the head of your first born child that you're not going to make meth.
Cough syrup.  This is the stuff with codeine that we have to pick up in Canada.  TD hit this bottle strongly for his cold, so we need to restock next time we go across the border.
Kleenex.  The soft ones.  
We always have tea, can't be a Canadian/American household without having stock in tea.
The only thing we do not keep in stock is fresh fruit juice - normally I want either orange or grapefruit.  
I have enough chicken stock in the freezer to whip up a batch of chicken soup from scratch if TD is sick.  He usually gets Chinese take out if I'm sick.
Carmex to use around the nose that's raw from blowing it.


Both of us ALWAYS get our flu vaccinations.  Doesn't stop the rhinovirus though, dammit!

[busymom]

Keep some garlic bread, or garlic toast in the freezer.  There's something about garlic that helps with the healing process.  If you know how to work with fresh garlic, even better!  

[TheOtherMe]

I agree on Sudafed.  I feel like a criminal when I need to use it.

[The Walk of the Penguin Mich]

Jan 10, 2019 18:40:29 GMT -5 TheOtherMe said:

I agree on Sudafed.  I feel like a criminal when I need to use it.

This is what stopped my head from exploding earlier this week.  I found the stash I bought after my last cold in a bathroom drawer.  I probably need to restock that too.  Needing to buy it after you have a cold is too late.

[chapeau]

Jan 10, 2019 19:16:23 GMT -5 The Walk of the Penguin Mich said:

Jan 10, 2019 18:40:29 GMT -5 TheOtherMe said:

I agree on Sudafed.  I feel like a criminal when I need to use it.

This is what stopped my head from exploding earlier this week.  I found the stash I bought after my last cold in a bathroom drawer.  I probably need to restock that too.  Needing to buy it after you have a cold is too late.

I believe from the bottom of my heart that if you look like the walking dead they should not require ID, your firstborn and your grandmother’s medical records to get Sudafed. It should be law!!! Because while I bitterly resent the %@!$%}^^*^# meth heads who make that necessary when I’m stocking up when I’m well, being forced to go through that while sick really makes me mad. If I had any energy at all when I was sick I would hunt them down and carve out their organs with blunt instruments.

No, I do not feel strongly about that at all.

[zibazinski]

I have a friend who cannot do the flu vaccine. She uses antibiotic ointment in her nose with a q tip. Her whole family got sick and she was fine. I’m doing it myself especially on hospital days.

[The Walk of the Penguin Mich]

Jan 10, 2019 20:10:01 GMT -5 chapeau said:

Jan 10, 2019 19:16:23 GMT -5 The Walk of the Penguin Mich said:

This is what stopped my head from exploding earlier this week.  I found the stash I bought after my last cold in a bathroom drawer.  I probably need to restock that too.  Needing to buy it after you have a cold is too late.

I believe from the bottom of my heart that if you look like the walking dead they should not require ID, your firstborn and your grandmother’s medical records to get Sudafed. It should be law!!! Because while I bitterly resent the %@!$%}^^*^# meth heads who make that necessary when I’m stocking up when I’m well, being forced to go through that while sick really makes me mad. If I had any energy at all when I was sick I would hunt them down and carve out their organs with blunt instruments.

No, I do not feel strongly about that at all.

I'll help you.  It seems like every time I have needed Sudafed, I've had to deal with the pharmacy.  If I tried to buy a lifetime supply to avoid this, they'd probably think I'm making meth.  The stuff available on the shelf is f&$#ing useless, save your money.

[wvugurl26]

I need to restock on Advil Cold & Sinus. It also requires signing your life away. It's a miracle drug though. The pressure shifted overnight and I woke up with my sinuses throbbing. A dose of that got me through the day.

[countrygirl2]

I had Mucinex and Theraflu, used most of it for hubs with that last go round, need to stock up.  DD had some cough syrup left, prescription, no more.  Wish we could keep some on hand. But I had a doc tell me gargling salt water is as good as anything.  I just use this stuff till I can get to a emergency clinic.  I get to sick to wait it out and besides I have a household to run, can't be down for long.

Also Alka Seltzer stuff for flu is pretty good too.  Need to get this at Sams tomorrow when I go.


I have tons of other meds, some left from hubs trips, a lot left from having stuff here before we moved, more bought, some in motorhome I bring in.  Just lots of meds, most OTC though.


We had awesome throat lozenses hubs got overseas, they are now gone can't buy stuff like that here.

[weltschmerz]

Jan 10, 2019 20:15:03 GMT -5 zibazinski said:

I have a friend who cannot do the flu vaccine. She uses antibiotic ointment in her nose with a q tip. Her whole family got sick and she was fine. I’m doing it myself especially on hospital days.

Antibiotics treat bacterial infections, not viral. The flu is viral.

[zibazinski]

I believe you but it sure can’t hurt.

[NoNamePerson]

I"m going to bookmark this thread so if I get the flu I'll figure out whose house I'm headed to for meds. I think Iggy will be my first choice. Should say partly because I've never been to Colorado so kinda kill two birds with one stone sort of thing.

[Iggy aka IG]

Yay a visit from NoNamePerson!!!!    However, please visit before or after said flu. 

Another one to add to the list, and I cannot believe I forgot it in my OP:  Oranges.  I find oranges are more effective than just the juice.

[TheOtherMe]

If I wake up with a cold or flu, I will drive to town for whatever OTC meds I am going to use.  I will not buy any of that at the local gas station/convenience store.  Besides, they don't sell sudafed.

[NoNamePerson]

Jan 11, 2019 10:43:24 GMT -5 Iggy aka IG said:

Yay a visit from NoNamePerson !!!!    However, please visit before or after said flu. 

Another one to add to the list, and I cannot believe I forgot it in my OP:  Oranges.  I find oranges are more effective than just the juice.

That defeats my purpose - you are the house of choice for all the needed meds. I don't have anything on hand. Sorry but you have been marked!!

[Iggy aka IG]

Jan 11, 2019 11:51:04 GMT -5 NoNamePerson said:

Jan 11, 2019 10:43:24 GMT -5 Iggy aka IG said:

Yay a visit from NoNamePerson !!!!    However, please visit before or after said flu. 

Another one to add to the list, and I cannot believe I forgot it in my OP:  Oranges.  I find oranges are more effective than just the juice.

That defeats my purpose - you are the house of choice for all the needed meds. I don't have anything on hand. Sorry but you have been marked!!

You shall be sequestered to the basement!  Which, isn't too bad, actually, with a separate entrance, guest room, your own bath, mini fridge, coffee maker.....  You'll have to circumvent DH on weekend mornings, though, as his man cave is down there.