Big big Stevie, you poor love! I got whooping cough at 28 wks and am just getting over it now ( 7 weeks ) . The cough is still there but not as severe. Cold air, spicy, tangy food, soft drinks, apple juice, orange juice etc seems to aggravate it.

Start taking the EES even if they say not too - most dr's have never seen whooping cough in their practice and really don't know what to do about it. It won't help your symptoms, but will protect your family. Trust me, you don't want your partner to get it too! May be a good idea for him ( and other family members) to get a Boostrix shot (pertussis vaccine).

I ended up breaking cartilages in my ribs from all the excessive coughing. They say cough suppressants don't help- that's not true. It won't take the cough away (sorry), but it does make the coughing spells fewer so you can get some rest. You just have to bear with it for a few more weeks. It will come and go. Like you, I thought I will have it forever Lost my voice (still talk like the Godfather !), but it does go. You should be getting over the worst in the next couple of weeks. hang in there hun

Try to get a script for Panadeine Forte from your doctor. It is for strong pain relief, but the codiene is a strong cough suppressant and I found that was the only thing that got me through. If you can't, get some Panadeiene 15 from the pharmacy and take 2 4 times a day. It is safe to take in pregnancy. Also, if like me, you have a lot of chest congestion (this is what makes you cough so hard), get Durotuss Expectorant (in green bottle) and take this 4 times a day. It will seem to be doing nothing, but it is working. Trust me. It is safe to take in pregnancy.

Bub will be fine, so don't worry. It is only a prob for bub if born while you have the active infection. After 3 weeks of coughing, you are not really a danger any more. The only thing that may affect bub is if you are not eating/drinking. I could not even have water, so had to be on a drip. I found thicker food like custard went down better and I didn't vomit it out (sorry if TMI ) while coughing. I guess with my bigger belly, things got harder. Try to eat before 6pm at night - it helped me get a better night's sleep.

Drink heaps of water (or what you can) and get lots of rest. Hope you feel better soon