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My husband, very healthy 72 years old, says he has been getting these little "private flus" his whole life. No one else gets them. They come along with high fevers.


He has always gotten fevers with every sickness he contracts.


Anyways I've been able to cut back on his little private flus, but making sure the bedroom temperature doesn't get to low.


It's just the strangest thing. Has anyone ever heard of this happening.



My guess is either a autoimmune diseases of some kind. And I know this is really reaching, I've wondered if he got malaria in the service

Does he still have his tonsils?

I had flus and such like this for my entire childhood. Abated a little in my teens but came back with a vengeance in my 20s. I saw an ENT and he diagnosed the problem in under 5 minutes… cryptic tonsils. In short, my tonsils had pockets where bacteria and whatever else would get trapped. They had been poisoning me all that time! My ears had been infected so often that I permanently lost some hearing in my right ear.

Had a tonsillectomy and it was the worst physical experience I’ve ever had. It’s rough surgery on an adult. Forget ice cream; even water felt like razor blades in my throat. Took a month to recover.

But it was worth doing… no more flu, coughing, strep or ear infections since.
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Anxietynacy Oct 2, 2024
Good thinking, actually he had his tonsils out in his late 20s because of his recurring fevers.

Yeah he said it was not fun
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Entirely possible he contracted malaria.

I have a friend that did indeed contract malaria in the service of our country and he swears by tonic water because it is the only place he can get quinine from. Says a couple of glasses and he is much better.

Can not hurt to try.
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Anxietynacy Oct 1, 2024
He was in Panama, that's a great idea with the tonic water. I've heard that but never thought of it for him.
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A sinus infection can cause a fever. Has your hubby had a recent allergy test? Even though allergies don't usually cause a fever, if the sinus gets wracked out from an allergy, here comes a possible fever. Mold spore can cause me to have a mild fever if I ignore it.


Another thought, wonder if hubby is on a med that could cause a "hot flash". I know there is no fever with a hot flash, but maybe there is a connection. Just thinking out loud.
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Anxietynacy Oct 1, 2024
Nope, none of those, been his whole life. When he gets a cold he gets high fevers, and is sick in bed. Not like the usual whinny man sick either. 😂 He gets really sick, from any virus.

And extremely healthy, very active 72 year old but is highly susuptical to fevers.

Any vaccine make him really sick, too.

When he got vaccine in the service in his 20s he would end up in the hospital.

It's just such a puzzle
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I get fevers myself sometimes mostly at night. No other symptoms, like a sore throat or anything, just a fever and chills. It has nothing to do with the bedroom temperature.....I keep it very chilly in there year round. I've had these fevers for many years. They come out of nowhere and disappear as quickly as they come. I've always felt like my body was fighting off an illness of some kind when the fever appears, doing it's job. That's all I can think. I take 2 Tylenol and that's all I normally have to take, because I'm fine in the morning. Strange, isn't It? I have no autoimmune diseases or other conditions, and am thorougly tested every 3 months since I'm in remission from stage 4 cancer. But these fevers were commonplace long before the cancer came about.
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Anxietynacy Oct 1, 2024
Thanks lea!!

It's so strange! Good to know someone else experience this
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Bringing this back up, I don't see my husband doing anything about this, old time farmer type, but I will try to talk him into taking to doctors on his next physical. I think it should at least be on his charts

He got a fever during the night last night, first time in a long time, probably 6 months. It's hard to regulate the temperature this time of year. I had the window open and it got chilly.

I was sleeping and I felt him reaching for me for warmth, some shivering.Cuddled up and felt him, he was warm and shivering and I fell back to sleep very quickly.

Today back to normal.

I'm thinking a chart, and one of those gun like thomometers, so I can just zap it when I'm half asleep, so we know what his temperature is.

Any others thoughts?

Thanks guys
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Have u had his thyroid & hypothalamus checked. I think you should take him to an infectious disease Dr.
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Anxietynacy, when I read your post the first thing that popped into my head was when was the last time your hubby had seen a dentist? Dental X-rays would show if he is dealing with any type of infections
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Anxietynacy Jul 7, 2024
Good point, but nope goes every six months.

I do realize now after what geaton said, that I haven't cured it at all by not letting him get cold, I've just solved a trigger , but what ever it is , it's still inside him

I keep wondering about malaria, he was in Panama jungle in the service, right after Vietnam ended.

He says no he had malaria pills, but we all know that nothing is 100 percent.

I'm thinking that would be the first place to start.

I worry about these things more as we age , wondering what could come of it
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Thanks greaton, I will "try" to get him to do that.

We have just gotten so use to it , it's kind of his normal.

And was telling some friends about it last week and made me start thinking about asking here.

And since I've realized sleeping in the cold is a trigger, it happens a lot less.
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Geaton777 Jul 6, 2024
A fever is considered a symptom, not an illness in and of itself. Does someone take his temp when he seems feverish? Or is he just complaining verbally about being hot? If a fever is the only symptom, then please stop referring to it as a "flu" as this is totally inaccurate and misleading, especially if you talk to his doctor about it. He gets random and inexplicable fevers. Period. His doctor will ask how high his fevers go and for how many days it lasts. Someone other than your husband needs to be verifying it with an new, accurate thermometer and documenting this and any other things that occur right before his fever. This would be extremely helpful towards a diagnosis, if one is possible.

Here is an interesting article I found:

"Cold intolerance isn’t an illness but is a symptom of an underlying condition. It may be connected to issues with thyroid regulation, the hypothalamus, or blood flow. Or it may be a symptom of conditions such as anemia, hypothyroidism, fibromyalgia, or anorexia. 

Cold intolerance is when you’re extremely sensitive to cold temperatures and is more severe than the normal feeling of chilliness when you’re outdoors on a cool day.

Some people are prone to feeling cold, especially those who have chronic health problems or little body fat."

Source: https://www.healthline.com/health/cold-intolerance

Does your husband make use of his free Medicare annual wellness check-up? If not he should go and let his doc know he's having this symptom. They can do labwork to check his thyroid and other things that affect his metabolism.
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Maybe someone -- like a doctor -- can test him. Labwork, in-person exam, etc.

I had a few years where my glands in my neck would become so swollen I couldn't swollow my own saliva, and with a fever and bad chills. Had to take prednisone to bring down the swelling. No one else in my family would get it. Standard medical testing and imaging showed nothing unusual. Went to the ENT (I had no tonsils). Nothing. Endocrynologist. Nothing. They finally even referred me on to an Infectious disease specialist MD (AIDS, Dengue fever, malaria, you name it and I was tested for it). It was never diagnosed and finally just stopped happening. This was happening over a span of several years. Our bodies are complicated and sometimes we never get to know answers.

Please start by taking him to his doctor while he is actively sick with his "private flu".
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