If you are fighting off an illness, you might be experiencing a fever as one of your symptoms. Sometimes the reading on the thermometer is your only indication, and other times, you can feel really sick from it.

The silver lining is that if you have a fever, chances are that it is your body’s way of fighting off your illness. Not all fevers need to be treated with medication or interventions, so read on from our AFC Urgent Care Indian Trail team to learn more about fevers below.

Why Are Fevers a Good Thing?

When your body responds to an illness by spiking a fever, it is a sign that you are having a healthy response to sickness. Your body temperature has increased to 100.4 degrees or higher to encourage white blood cell formation and is now creating a less-than-ideal environment for the illness or infection to thrive and grow.

If you don’t feel any residual symptoms from your fever, there is no need to take medication to bring it down. You can simply just ride it out and let your fever do the work for you. If it is making you feel ill, you can certainly treat it with OTC medication and drink plenty of fluids. Just remember that even if your fever is reduced, it doesn’t mean the medication is treating your illness, just the fever.

Common Fever Signs

• Elevated body temperature of 100.4 degrees or higher
• Chills, shivering or shaking
• Body aches
• Fatigue
• Sweating or flushed skin

When Is a Fever Considered Dangerous?

Thankfully, most fevers are not dangerous and never become serious concerns. They typically break when your body starts to overcome the illness and you usually start to feel much better at this point.

If you have a fever that will not go away, keeps coming back or reaches 103 degrees or higher, it is best to be seen by your care team to figure out what is causing your fever. Extremely high fevers can eventually lead to organ or brain damage in the most severe cases.

Common Causes of Fever

• Colds and the flu
• Infections
• Bronchitis
• Teething in babies
• Pneumonia

Do you have a fever that just won’t break? Come see us at AFC Urgent Indian Trail.