Whilst I was suffering with the flu a couple of weeks ago, I was taking Lemsip tablets and they didn't seem to be doing a lot. By day six I was getting seriously fed up with not being able to breathe, the constant coughing and the almighty sinus pain that just wouldn't disappear no matter what I did or didn't do.
As we had run out of Lemsip tablets I asked my partner to get me something different when he went to the shop. He came back with Benylin day and night tablets, telling me the pharmacist had recommended them. Well I would try anything once.

Packaged in a blister pack inside a box, you get 16 tablets, 9 of which are day time tablets and the remaining four are to be taken at night time only.
The pack is clearly labelled with morning, noon, afternoon and night being in a different colour so no-one gets confused with which to take.

I always like to make sure I read the instructions if only briefly through a foggy head, as I know I'm not allergic to anything but on the off chance these will make me drowsy etc then I like to know before I take them.
The box advertises that these tablets will help clear head and nose, relive aches and pains, reduces temperature, and clears catarrh.
I had all the above symptoms except the temperature as that part of it has passed a couple of days ago.
After making sure I was suitable for the tablets, I took my first day time one. Not sure what I was going to expect, I didn't do anything other than lie on the sofa in the same position as I had been, waiting for a miracle to happen.

After about 15 minutes, I could actually tell the difference in my nose. All of a sudden I could breathe a little bit easier through my nose, and it wasn't hurting to cough anymore.
Don't get me wrong, I didn't feel like I could jump from the chandeliers or anything that required some energy on my part, but my coughing decreased for a couple of hours and I felt marginally better.
Until the tablet wore off that was. I could tell after a couple of hours that the effects were coming back to me which was a shame as I couldn't take another for a couple more hours. Still there was something in the Benylin that wasn't in the Lemsip that had worked for me and given me a couple of hours of relief if nothing else.

I didn't want to get attached to taking these but I was determined to take a night time tablet as this was the one that promised to clear the catarrh making it easier for me to breathe through the night with minimum disturbance from the coughing that I was getting a master at during the night.

The night time tablet is different from the day time one as it contains the ingredient to clear the catarrh that is worse at night when you are laying down. The day time tablet has the ingredient to relieve aches and pains that are more noticeable during the day than they are at night.

I found these to help me get through the day when I was feeling bad, or when my sinuses started to hurt again. They worked a lot better than normal paracetamol for me, however as the packet only contained four days worth of tablets, you might have to resort to paracetamol for the tail end of the flu as I wouldn't want to keep taking these on a long period of time as I didn't want my body to become immune to such a good product that worked for me.

There are a few allergy notes that are printed on the instructions that everyone looking to take these tablets should read first. A couple of guidelines are;
- Not to be taken by children under 12
- Not to be taken by people with high blood pressure
- Not to be taken with other paracetamol products
- Not to be taken if you're pregnant or on anti depressants
If you're not sure always consult your doctor or pharmacist first. They worked for me and helped me get back to a slightly more normal day to day life again quicker than if I hadn't taken anything.

A packet of these miracle cures will cost around £3.90.