I started Trikafta five days ago. I was on Kalydeco for 9-10 years, so I realize my experience with this med is different than most who are on it, because I’ve already experienced the lung-clearing benefits and so none of this is related to the “purge” that others are posting about.

(Also sorry if this sounds snippy - it’s 4am and I’ve just woken up from another coughing fit and so I’m very frustrated with the situation)

I unfortunately haven’t really noticed much of a change (I’ll keep taking it of course, since I haven’t been on it long), but the biggest problem for me is that

every. Single. Night. I wake up with the most painful, continuous dry cough. It feels like there are knives in the base of my throat every time I breathe in the slightest bit too much. It burns, the way an allergic reaction cough might feel. I can’t even describe it correctly. It’s so painful and I don’t know if it’s a common side effect or if I should tell my doctor.

Not really sure I want to stay on a medication if I’m never going to be able to breathe freely again…

TL;DR - painful breathing problems after starting Trikafta. Is this common?