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Smoked Hookah And Started Coughing. Felt Like Chest Filled With Mucus. Chest Feels Tight And Breathing Is Weird

Posted on Sat, 17 Aug 2013

Question: I smoked some Hookah about an hour ago for about an hour by myself. I stopped because I started coughing alot & it seemed chest filled up with mucus that I was coughing up. Now my chest still feel tight & my breathing is weird (shallow & at times when I'm not almost like suffocating and then I start to cough)....should I go to the emergency room?

Answered by Dr. Shanthi E (9 minutes later)

Hi XXXXX,

Yes, you must rush to the Emergency Room at the earliest. Please take someone along with you.

Try to breathe easy and get some fresh air on your way to the hospital.

Stay relaxed, you should be fine soon.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar

Follow up: Dr. Shanthi E (2 minutes later)

It's eased a little bit since I sent this question but feel uneasy about falling asleep. Should I wait to see if it tapers off?

Answered by Dr. Shanthi E (12 minutes later)

Hi,

In my view, you should not wait for it to taper off. If I were in your situation, I would go to the ER at the earliest. This I say because we do not know how much of the hookah has gone inside your lungs and if there is more than excess of the substance in the lungs. It may enter the circulation and cause a cardiac arrhythmia suddenly.

I am sorry but I am afraid. You must go to the ER, get yourself a complete examination, and proceed accordingly.

Get well soon.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar