Your Lives - General

How I avoid Serious Asthma Attacks without using an Inhaler - John, Leyland, UK

Now aged 70,  I have been an asthma sufferer virtually since birth, and have tried almost every treatment there ever was, starting off with the pump-action rubber bulb Silbe inhalers. Now, of course, I use the latest treatment i.e. a combination of steroid and bronchodilator inhalers. The steroid inhaler e.g. Symbicort, is used once or twice a day, and Ventolin or Salbutamol is used to provide more immediate relief at the onset of an attack.  It is the bronchodilators that are
most dangerous and more likely to be overused in a panic situation, which can cause severe headaches and have serious effects on the heart, sometimes resulting in death.

Whilst the manufacturers may not be too pleased, here is a tip that for me has virtually eliminated the need for my Ventolin type inhalers. Whenever I become breathless and feel my chest tightening up, I simply sit astride a high backed chair, facing backwards with hands clasped together  and my elbows and arms resting wide open across the back of the chair.  For comfort, I put a cushion or pillow on the chair back on top of my clasped hands, and flop my head down on the pillow, and can stay there quite comfortably for quite some time. However  I find that even after a few minutes, my breathing improves, to an extent that is just as effective as two or three frantic puffs on the inhaler.. Another idea is to sit on a stool behind a high back
settee with arms resting on the back of the settee.  I have used this method many times to stave off a serious attack, and on many occasions have nodded off in the process waking up feeling so much better.

I would be most interested to hear from others prepared to try this out, including children of course, and to learn whether they find the similar benefit.  I can honestly say that this, and sleeping with open windows at night, has kept me free from serious attacks for many many
years. (March 2010) Contact John

I also lost my daughter to an asthma attack - Jean, Pontantwn, UK

On April the 26th my daughter Charlotte died just out of the blue. She was fine all day long, laughing, singing, dancing, talking to her boyfriend all the time playing games. The next min it just happened, my hubby did cpr for 25 min then the hospital for 51 mins. I just can't get my head around it, I cry all the time. I need help but there's not much out there. I love Charlotte, all our family do xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Mum, Dad, Shannon, Lloyd, Claire too. We all miss you. (October 2009) Contact Jean

I lost my daughter from an acute asthma attack - Jacky, Dursley, UK

My beautiful daughter Jasmin, died of an acute asthma attack, aged 19 on 8th September this year. She had been asthmatic since the age of 3yrs, but only suffered moderately with asthma throughout her life. I'm still in shock. I have brittle asthma and have to stay constantly on oral steroids amongst other medication.  I think that's why it just won't sink in she's gone. To have had such a powerful attack, after being well all day and then suddenly having an asthma attack, which caused her heart to fail, is a living mothers nightmare.  She was a fantastic daughter, my best friend.  She looked after me when I had a bad attack and I always did the same for her. I feel lost and alone as nobody understands asthma like another sufferer and she was an amazing person I now have to live forever without. (October 2009) Contact Jacky

See someone if you think you have ashma - Rachel, Malvern, UK

I am 15 and I recently found out that I have asthma. I was in an English class and I was suddenly finding it really hard to breath. My friend who is asthmatic herself noticed and asked me if I was ok, it felt as if someone was sitting on my chest and my breath was coming in gasps. I didn't really know what to do and the whole class was staring at me, my friend took me out of the room and I used her inhaler to calm myself down. It is not a good idea to use someone else's inhaler and now I have my own. My advice to anyone who thinks they may have asthma is that you should go and see someone about it, not wait until something bad happens to you like that. (October 2005) Contact Rachel

Inform people of your condition - Claire, Perth, Scotland

I want to tell this story, not to help myself but to possibly prevent others from thinking the same as I did. When you suffer from asthma, as long as you have your inhalers you think you can do the same as everyone else..well I did. The unfortunate/fortunate! outcome of my story is if it was not for mobile phones I would not be alive.

I got married on the 25th of October 2003 and I am only now comfortable enough to talk about my experience. I would like to think it could possibly prevent this horrid situation occurring in someone else's life. I basically after my wedding went back to college to try and complete my course. I was under a lot of pressure as I was off for a couple of months due to my wedding so I had a whole load of work to catch up on. As I went back to further education when I was 27 I really thought I had something to prove. So I worked my butt off trying to ignore my more severe asthma attacks which had been occurring more frequently than usual. The result of my ignorance eventually came to a head / turning point. I was getting ready for college when my friend called round for me as usual. She noticed I was not very well. She then phoned who she thought was my doctor for me (I could not give her my docs number properly due to lack of oxygen levels) the result of which was I decided to send her away saying I would be fine and to inform my tutors I would not be attending college that day. Very soon after my friend left I started gasping for breath I could literally feel my chest giving up. This was enough to make me look for DOC on my mobile phone I got through and to this day can't remember what I said .. but twenty minutes on he arrived. What happened next scares the living daylights out of me..I stopped breathing when the doctor sat me down he tried to resuscitate me when my heart stopped..he had called paramedics who thank my lucky stars came in time to give me oxygen and an adrenaline shot too restart my heart. The moral I would take from this story is please don't pretend there is nothing wrong with you, talk to people and inform them of your well-being do not wait until the last moment like me. I am lucky. Don't let it get to your last gasp, be aware and make others aware of how you are feeling and coping with your asthma..It is not as trivial as you would at first think. (October 2005) Contact Claire

I pushed myself too hard when running - Katrina, Socorro, USA

I have never been very active throughout my life. That all changed when I enrolled at a school were you HAD to be able to run 2- 4 miles without stopping. Of course they failed to mention this in the admissions department. A few weeks before I went there for the first time I started to run on my own. It was hard work. The toughest part was yet to come. I came to my new school and its based off of the military. So they get pretty mad if you just stop running. I should have stopped sooner. I don't know how it started or why but I started to breathe heavily, gasping for air. When we stopped I could barely stand on my own. I kept blacking out. No one even seemed to notice but I made it back to my room, just barely. This taught me never to push myself to passing out. Until it nearly happened again. This time I was rushed to the infirmary. That was when I discovered that I had asthma. So my advice to you is, if you ever feel like you are being pushed too far just stop no matter if you have asthma or not. For asthma remember that pushing yourself too far can lead to injury or even death. I wish I knew then what I know now. I could have died then, without knowing what I had. It might sound silly to some people but I think its really important that you listen to your own body even if other people think that giving up is a sign of weakness. But once you do stop use everything you've got to get back in there. (September 2005) Contact Katrina

I suffer from Asthma, Allergies and Eczema - Geneviève, Dublin, Ireland

I have suffered from eczema all my life but my parents were my bastions of strength and so supportive. I adore them for their intelligence and love.

When I was old enough to scratch I entered the vicious circle of pain/pleasure etc. Often I couldn't walk and was deeply ashamed of my appearance. I would boil the skin on my legs in the morning seeking relief which of course only made it worse. I missed so much school and social activities as I felt that I was a total monster. Silcox base, tar, ointments etc either did nothing or caused agonizing stinging. My socks and clothing stuck to the weeping skin and my grandmother would apply surgical muslin over the creme, which stuck irrespective. Every morning was a painful ritual of bathing and applying creme aided by all my family.

I pleaded with my mother during my teens to bring me to a a hypnotherapist as I knew well that eczema is 50% psychological and becomes a dependence much like a drug. I went to the quack, and still remember the visual imagery (we had a few laughs) even though it actually didn't work. That had to come from me.

By making this decisive step though I was on the road to recovery along with my mother's help. I was prescribed Betnovate but continued to scratch merrily. One particularly difficult day, as I was crying, in agony, hated the world, and was incredibly angry, my mother was at her wits end and was justifiably upset. She came into my room, told me I was so pretty and gave me a pile of Vogue magazines to flick through telling me that I could easily be like the models if I wished. That night I DID NOT scratch, as it is in fact the SCRATCHING itself that damages the skin not the affliction itself (the rest can be controlled through constant moisturizing, correct diet and exercise etc. ) Every day I moisturized, applied the Betnovate (which takes the itch urge away, deactivating the nerves) and refused to scratch. My relationship with non-scratching became stronger and saying NO was of greater pleasure to me than ripping myself to bits.

Now it has cleared up due to will power and the odd placebo affect of Betnovate creme. My skin became clear and my tans got deeper (underneath it all I have always had very sallow skin). The sun, swimming etc greatly helped the healing cycle as the better my skin appeared the more beautiful I wanted it to become.

I also suffer from allergies of every description and asthma but apart from the lack of pigmentation patches on my feet and a small amount on my hands, nobody would ever guess what I went through. Secretly I keep a small patch on my right hand between my little and second finger as my "stress patch" which I usually scratch during the winter, never in the summer. It is a very silly stress relief but it is relegated to that part only and under control, I keep it is a reminder basically that life is NOT a picnic in the park and that we must take nothing for granted as another poster stated. Eczema and asthma are very hard task masters but they teach you a tremendous lot, such as empathy, tolerance and respect. (September 2005) Contact Geneviève

'How to become a former asthmatic' by Paul Sorvino - Adwoa, Turin, Italy

I had asthma as a baby and toddler, though I can't remember much. From when I was about age six to age ten, I had bouts of what was called asthma - I would get up in the morning and would be wheezing badly. I would be put on Alupent and Franol and would spend the week in bed. We moved to the coast when I was ten, and the asthma stopped suddenly. The next time I had an attack was at age 32 , and it was a REAL attack. It was a stressful time, my parents had just died, and I woke up in the middle of the night unable to breathe. I gasped for breath for abut an hour and a half. I eventually went to sleep. The next morning it was as if nothing had happened, but the doctor said I had a chest infection, and gave me antibiotics. For about 10 yeas after that I had quite a few attacks, usually at night. One evening I had to be taken to the emergency department in the middle of the night. My attacks seemed to be set off by dry white wine, the smell of petrol in an enclosed space, a preservative containing yeast, etc. I used inhalers with not much success. I found that if I kept off wine and milk, I was less likely to get an attack. The attacks would also sometimes come if I had a cold that lasted a long time - it was as if the cold would 'descend' to my chest and the attack would start.

I had bought a book in a second-hand book store called 'How to become a former asthmatic' by Paul Sorvino. I never even read it, but took it with me when I traveled to stay in Europe. One night, about four years after I bought the book, I was a having a very serious attack. I was using the inhaler without much success. I suddenly (in the middle of the night thought 'why don't I just SEE what that book says?'). I read perhaps the first chapter or two and started doing some of the exercises. I wouldn't say I saw much difference, but at least I got to sleep. The next day I continued the breathing exercises continually during the day (not hard to do) and that night I slept really well.

Now, I keep away from wine, cow's milk and a number of things which I think give me a reaction leading to an asthma attack. But if I have something by mistake that doesn't agree with me, I do the exercises, I drink water, and the attack is over. I later read that Paul Sorvino is a famous actor. I have sent copies of his books to friends and mine is lent out, but I notice that the book is out of print. I buy second hand copies. I don't know whether these exercises are good for everyone, but they worked and are working for me. (July 2005) Contact Adwoa

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