Sweetie, as someone who's had one of these summer colds get thee to a doctor. "Elephant on the chest" is often the symptom of walking pneumonia.

It's absolutely treatable, but the longer you wait before treatment starts the longer you'll be sick.

Neti pots are nasty, but VERY useful if it is just a head cold. I'm usually better within two days if I use it.

The other good vitamin is zinc. It's particularly helpful in lozenge form.