Yes, apologies for sounding flippant, that sounds like more than a cold.
I've had 'flu twice in my life. It's a really horrible thing. Can't do anything at all, just stay in bed for days until it passes and it took me more than a week until I was even starting to feel better. I got a cold recently and was on the bike four or five days later. If it had been 'flu you could probably have sold the bike and I wouldn't have cared
Interesting, and that's usual, but it can go the other way. I had 'flu a couple of months ago. Diagnosed by doctor (I'd just been through Dubai airport, so I was worried as about every nasty contagious thing in the world starts with "flu-like symptoms") It was definitely the flu, fever, muscle pain, mild delirium, headache. And the onset was really quick (another indicator). Anyway, headed off to bed with paracetamol, slept the clock around and 24 hours later I was basically better. Run down, and still with cold symptoms but all the flu symptoms banished. Meanwhile, there was a cold going around Melbourne that was so severe the I knew three people whose upper respiratory tract infection had led to chest x-rays and first-time asthma diagnoses. So I was "lucky" to only get the flu.
