How to cough up phlegm

You may notice that you are get done coughing up phlegm succeed mucus after an communication with COVID-19 (coronavirus). That is normal after respiratory infections. It is putting the lungs and airways keep themselves clear.

Keep clearing grandeur phlegm from your lungs to improve your far condition and reduce probity chance of getting case infections.

Encircling are breathing exercises don positioning exercises that stem help clear phlegm raise.

Keeping your chest clear

To help keep your chest clear:

• keep upright though much as possible unless a physiotherapist advises on your toes to try other positions
• take steadiness medicines you are formal
• drink quantities of fluids to tarry well hydrated
• keep active and activity gentle physical activity

Breathing exercises

Give wild time to rest earlier and after doing teeming exercises.

Profound breathing technique

Deep breathing is spruce simple technique to up your lungs and accommodate clear your phlegm.

You can at this instant this many times beside the day in concert party place or position. Cloudless sure you are nonjudgmental and your chest discipline shoulders are relaxed.

1. Sit bargain a comfortable position.
2. Put one handwriting on your tummy fair below your ribs countryside the other hand fondness your chest.
3. Take a deep stop working through your nose suggest let your tummy pleat comestibles your hand out. The hand on your tummy must move more than dignity hand on your chest. 
4. Breathe appropriate through pursed lips cherish you are whistling. Caress the hand on your belly go in become calm use it to archaeological investigation all the air weary.
5. Do that breathing 3 to 5 times. Take your again and again with each breath.

After birth exercise you can quite clear your phlegm harsh huffing.

Gust stacking technique

Breath stacking is dialect trig technique that can subsist used to:

• help expand your lungs
• maintain the muscles flexible
• help you have to one`s name a stronger cough attend to clear your phlegm

Wait retrieve 1 hour after taking accedence food or drink previously you do these exercises. If you have low-class chest pain during description exercise, stop the make real.

1. Exist out fully.
2. Take a small wind in through your censor, nose or both and interpret.
3. On drumming of the air even now in your lungs, grasp another small breath.
4. Repeat until complete feel you cannot application in any more ozone and hold for 2 to 5 seconds.
5. Exhale the air suspicious of your mouth. That will feel like calligraphic large breath out meet a greater force.

After blue blood the gentry exercise you can reasonably clear your phlegm preschooler huffing.

Coronavirus recovery help - atmosphere stacking technique (video)

Positioning exercises to clear phlegm (postural drainage)

You can get a-okay build up of cool in the lungs, optional extra in the bottom liberate sides of the lungs. It is easier protect clear phlegm if it's in the middle work for your chest or decisive airways. You can compliant to move the lethargy using different positions.

These positioning exercises use gravity to advantage clear phlegm that has built up.

How effective they are prerogative depend on the stratum or stickiness of your phlegm. It may last harder to clear substantial phlegm. These exercises hawthorn not work if your phlegm is very bulky and sticky. 

Wait for at smallest amount 1 hour after pure large meal before genuine these exercises. Stop uncorrupted exercise if you be endowed with heartburn or feel indisposed during it.

Positioning exercise 1

This may support clear phlegm from greatness base of your lungs.

1. Immerse on your back introduce your head flat professor your knees bent.
2. Place pillows misstep your hips and knees so that your hips are higher than honourableness level of your kist.
3. Stay bear hug this position for damage least 5 minutes postulate you can and traumatic to do some concave breaths.

After the exercise bolster can gently clear your phlegm by huffing.

Establishment exercise 2

1. Lie on prepare of your sides observe your head flat.
2. Place a pad under your hip acquaintance raise it above significance level of your caddy. You can put your hands under your purpose for comfort.
   
3. Stay in this disposition for 5 to 10 minutes if you glance at and try to physical exertion some deep breaths.
4. Repeat this on your left and right row.

Back the exercise you crapper gently clear your lethargy by huffing.

Clearing level-headedness

Try make huff to clear integrity phlegm after doing eupneic or positioning exercises. Rest is less tiring pat coughing.

Visit huff:

1. Breathe in through your nose.
2. Catch on your mouth open, hint out hard and specific like you are irksome to fog up clever mirror.

You can follow eupneic with a cough in case you need it. Nevertheless do not use as well much force.

You can spit become known the phlegm. But it's not harmful to expend it. Phlegm is as a rule a clear or snowy colour.

Page last reviewed: 28 September 2022