The season of the sniffles is officially upon us, and one expert has warned that a 'brutal' cold circling the UK could prove 'worse than any winter bug'.
According to some patients, the 'awful" infection' has left them unable to get out of bed for weeks on end, forcing pounding headaches and severe fatigue onto everyone it encounters.
With sick days seemingly being taken left, right and centre across all industries, medics are warning employers about the severity of the symptoms of this new strain of flu.
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Many poorly sufferers have taken to social media since coming down with their illness, hoping to seek support and remedies from fellow patients.
One person took to Reddit to talk about their own experience with the horrendous bug: "Just resurfaced from a 5hr midday nap.
"I feel like my face has been hit with a shovel, I’m still tired, coughing, sneezing, can only breathe out of my mouth. Fun times."
Another opened up: "Just coming off the back end of a brutal cold that's lasted about 3 weeks, during which my sinuses have been almost completely closed, relaxing only for brief periods while also producing mucus at an alarming rate."
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"I generally don't tend to get ill but this hideous cold-lurgy-flu type thing absolutely knocked me for six," added a third.
"Thought it was shifting but went for a walk earlier and now I just feel grotty again."
When it comes to recovery tips and tricks, another went on: "It's been a total b****rd, had me in bed for a couple of days and feeling s**t for a couple of weeks now. I can totally recommend Otrivine nasal spray for the blocked nose/sinus bit though."
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Another compared the illness to a 'Covid variant', admitting: "I caught it in October, I was bedridden for days and then spent another week housebound, constantly looking at my phone to see if it had been 4 hours since my last dose of paracetamol.
"I'm assuming it's a Covid variant that isn't picked up by the tests, it was worse than any winter bug I'd had before 2020."
UK citizens have recently been told to 'remain vigilant' over the latest strains of Covid-19, following the identification of a new descendant of the Pirola variant known as JN.1 in the UK, US, Iceland, Portugal and Spain, according to The Centres for Disease Control and Prevention.
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As well as the most common flu-like symptoms that have been reported by Reddit users - including fever, headaches, blocked nose, coughs and fatigue - there are several symptoms that are seemingly specific to the JN.1 strain.
These include nasal congestion and diarrhoea.
Topics: Health, UK News, Coronavirus
Rhianna Benson