Jessica Simpson Hospitalized With “Crazy Painful” Bronchitis During Pregnancy

From Prevention

• Jessica Simpson has been hospitalized with bronchitis for the fourth time in two months during her pregnancy.

• Simpson says the journey has been “crazy painful” in a post on Instagram, but she is slowly getting better.

• Doctors explain when and why bronchitis can lead to hospitalization.

Jessica Simpson has had a tough time in the health department lately. Simpson, who is pregnant, has struggled with severely swollen feet, acid reflux, insomnia, and multiple rounds of bronchitis over the past few months. And she just revealed that her bronchitis recently got so bad, she had to be hospitalized for it.

“After a week in the hospital for bronchitis (my fourth time in 2 months), I’m finally home!” she captioned a shot of herself on Instagram, wearing a face mask. Simpson, who plans to name her daughter Birdie, also said that “coughing with Birdie has been a crazy painful journey. I am slowly getting healthier every day.” (She also added that her baby was monitored the whole time and is “doing amazing.”)

Simpson ended on this note: “Sending love and prayers to all the mothers who are going or have gone through this. OUCH.”

What is bronchitis, exactly?

Bronchitis is a condition that causes inflammation of your bronchial tubes, i.e. the airways that carry air to your lungs, according to the U.S. National Library of Medicine. Bronchitis often causes a mucousy cough, shortness of breath, wheezing, low fever, and chest tightness.

“It’s usually caused by a virus, including the same viruses that cause the common cold and flu,” says infectious disease expert Amesh A. Adalja, MD, senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security.

Given that bronchitis is usually viral, antibiotics won’t help in this situation, so doctors typically recommend that you get rest, drink plenty of fluids, take aspirin or acetaminophen for a fever, and possibly take a cough suppressant, Dr. Adalja says.

Does bronchitis typically lead to hospitalization?

Even though it’s not a pleasant condition, “we don’t usually hospitalize someone for bronchitis,” says William Schaffner, MD, an infectious disease specialist and professor at the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine. However, given that Simpson is pregnant and had a few bouts of bronchitis, her doctors may have been worried that her condition could turn into pneumonia, which can be serious and even deadly, he says.

And if her bronchitis was caused by the flu, doctors would want to keep a closer-than-usual eye on her. “Pregnant women can have serious complications of influenza that are comparable to people aged 65 and older,” Dr. Schaffner says.

Plus, if you happen to have symptoms of bronchitis and it’s just not clearing up or you have an underlying lung condition like asthma, you might actually need to be hospitalized for it, says women’s health expert Jennifer Wider, MD.

Bottom line: If you’ve been diagnosed with bronchitis and you are feeling terrible, unable to eat and drink well because of your illness, having shortness of breath, coughing so much that you can’t catch your breath, coughing up blood, or have an uncontrollable fever, Dr. Adalja says it’s time to call your doctor. It’s likely a sign that your condition is getting worse-and could be progressing to pneumonia.

FOLLOW PREVENTION ON INSTAGRAM

('You Might Also Like',)

• The Best Yoga Mats, According to Top Yoga Instructors

• The Shockingly Simple Diet Change This Woman Made to Drop 54 Pounds

• 4 Ways To Fix Your Cracked Heels At Home