Any question answered...

I've got a really productive and persistant cough since I had a heavy cold for the last 6 days or so.

This cough is keeping me awake at night and it has got to the point that all the coughing has strained my stomach muscles and given me a sore throat!

Can anybody recommend a way for me to help my body expel what it is trying to expel? Do expectorants work? Maybe inhale steam?

Not sure about a cure but just to warn you I had something like this that went on for 6 weeks (!!!) last year. All good after it stopped but it fucked me right off (it was the sleep disruption that was the worst). I got a bit worried after 4 weeks (in my mind I had lung cancer or ebola or something) and went to the GP. They said there was a lot of it around and it was a virus. They gave me a choice of waiting it out or taking some antibiotics. I did the latter and it worked (or more likely was a coincidence).

Nothing else helped - I tried every over the counter cough remedy going. All of them crap. I'm healthy, exercise, eat well and tend not to get sick at all but this took ages to shake. Hope your version is less severe.

Oh and just as I was getting better my girlfriend got the same thing.