Buttermilk Biscuits

Yesterday was a rather trying day.  I've had a persistent cough for the past few months, and this week it's been much worse than usual.  It's primarily when I'm exercising or when I have dairy products (probably from the casein in milk).  After we learned about asthma in my pharmaceutical care class, I was alerted to the fact that it's possible that I have a mild case of asthma - cough is the most common symptom.  Not wanting to leave that to get worse, I tried making a doctor's appointment to get it checked out.  Because my primary care physician is back in Pittsburgh, I learned from a not-so-friendly receptionist that I could only go to an immediate care facility or the ER.

Because I really didn't want to waste my time at the ER (and wasting health care dollars), I went to an immediate care place right by our apartment.  They didn't have the equipment to do pulmonary function tests, so all the doctor could do was take a chest x-ray and listen to me breathe.  Both told him nothing - I seem healthy.  Because it's mostly been a chest tightness and a cough, I knew he wouldn't be hearing anything.. I never wheeze.  So I'm now equipped with an albuterol inhaler for when I exercise, a prescription cough medication, and a 5-day corticosteroid for inflammation, all to just hold me over and see if they work until I can get to my doctor and schedule some pulmonary tests.  Today was the first day I tried it, and surprisingly, I'm already seeing a difference in my cough.  Not too excited about the fact that I probably have asthma, though..
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