Costly Mistake

[Heteromorph]

On Saturday, in my manic zeal to extract the mosasaur specimen from the dry, chalky strata, I made a mistake that is what is keeping me up late again: dust inhalation. All I can say is that the sore throat, phlegm, coughing, and slight difficulty breathing could have been avoided if I had the foresight to bring with me better dust masks or better yet a respirator. When, towards the beginning of the dig, I realized there was a lot of dust being kicked up just by my small hand pick, I had my father drive to the store and get some masks. The problem is that they were cheap, and didn’t really help anything. So here I am, trying to sleep and breath, because I didn’t think ahead.

 

My only question to those who may have gone through this in the past is, when do the symptoms subside? It is certainly no fun.

[Kane]

Sorry to hear that.  Recovery may be contingent on a host of factors (amount of foreign debris, state of lung function, etc.), but the major symptoms should subside within 48 hours, with up to a week or more for the lungs to clear everything out. Some many years ago, I had something similar when assisting in taking a wrecking bar to an old house to knock down several walls; the respirator's poor seal meant I breathed in a bit too much plaster/drywall dust, and it took about 24 hours for the worst to pass, and up to five days to be completely back to normal. 

 

Of course, take any medical advice stated here with a grain of salt! If the symptoms persist or worsen, do seek medical attention. 

[FossilNerd]

I used to do a lot of wood carving as a hobby. One of my favorite things to do was to power carve bowls with an angle grinder and special wood carving discs. I would take old logs, broken fence posts, fire wood, etc, basically anything most people would throw away and turn them into bowls.

Anyway... it generates a huge amount of dust. I would wear a respirator, have dust collection equipment, and still be snotty and coughing for 3 days or so. Sometimes up to a week. The main reason I rarely power carve anymore. 

 

I would second Kane’s suggestion of seeking medical attention if symptoms persist/worsen as there is no telling what else you might have breathed in that was mixed with the dirt dust. Pneumonia and sinus infections are no fun. Believe me!

[Ludwigia]

I’ll be the third one here to recommend proper medical attention just to be sure. Just pay your most trusted doctor a visit.

[Manticocerasman]

I would also check out a doctor, but still strange that simple dustmask didn't help ( or mabey it was already to late)

I also use relatively cheap masks, but I haven't had any throuble with those .

 

 

[Ptychodus04]

+1 for going to the doctor. I've never overdosed on rock dust but I once gave myself a healthy dose of mold whilst tearing out a leaky shower in a house. My symptoms were similar and I neglected to go to the doc and wound up in the hospital with a severe case of double pneumonia.

[Uncle Siphuncle]

I like multifunctional gear.  Since I hate the greasy feeling of suntan lotion, I wear one of those stretchy neck sleeves to keep from burning my neck, face and ears.  Nice in summer to pour cold water on my head when wearing it.  It also keeps the head warm enough from biting winter winds.  Lastly, it gives me some measure of dust filtering when needed.

[Heteromorph]

Thanks everyone. I am doing a bit better this afternoon and was able to get a few hours of sleep last night. The sore throat and coughing remains, but the phlegm and general breathing is much improved. If the symptoms persist then a doctor would certainly be next. 

 

Dan, that sounds like a good gear set up. Wearing a dust mask all the time just for incidental dust exposure would probably be more of a hassle than what you do. Multifunctional is always best.

 

But next time I do a dig like this, my respirator will be handy.

[Uncle Siphuncle]

Now you are too far invested to donate!

[Mark Kmiecik]

You want to keep coughing and bringing that phlegm up. Cough syrup with expectorant is in order. I've had pneumonia several times. You must clear the lungs. 

[Heteromorph]

It is odd how the symptoms evolve. Now it is feeling more like a cold, with chills and a mild headache. My throat is much less sore, however, which was my main annoyance. Phlegm and coughing are still a part of it.

[Uncle Siphuncle]

Don’t gitcha a case of Valley Fever or similar, as the Shark Tooth Hill boys suffer from at times.  Comes from pathogens in the soil that go airborne.  My worst infirmity of similar nature came from weed whacking with no mask and kicking up dust.  Knocked me silly for a month. Not sure what I ingested.