Cultivating Community: Introduce Yourself!
This Asthma Awareness Month, we want to highlight opportunities on Asthma.net to learn and connect with others impacted by asthma to cultivate a supportive online community.
[Reminder: please do NOT include any personal information, such as your phone number, email address, or physical address. We want to protect your privacy!]
Introduce yourself! What is your name? Age? When were you diagnosed with asthma? This is a safe place to connect and share. ❤️
I just joined. I am 73. Diagnosed with severe asthma last year. My doctor is not versed in this disability nor am I, but I do have a pulmonologist. Even though I officially do have severe asthma, my breathing seems okay for the most part so I questioned the diagnosis.
However, for years I have had episodes of blacking out and I now know they are full blown asthma attacks. I had no idea but it all makes sense now. It starts with a dull pain between my shoulder blades that grows stronger before I start feeling hot and start seeing spots. Then if I can't sit down, I will drop to the ground. I have yet to be unconscious, but I do find inhaling really hard and I gasp desperately making uncontrollable sounds as my airways tighten up.
This happened last week at work and I noticed the overhead florscent lights looked purple. It was so odd. Does anyone else notice this?
Hi,
and welcome!
I am so sorry you are experiencing this. You said you have a pulmonologist, have you see them recently? I lung function test, like spirometry, will give you an answer regarding your diagnosis.
Your symptoms, like lights looking purple are not typical for asthma, so I'm wondering if something else is going on?
~ Lorene, Team Member
I am 78 and have been diagnosed with asthma since age 5. I am a retired respiratory therapist, having worked for 30+ years. I have never observed symptoms like yours in an asthmatic patient, myself included. Please get more testing.
Hi
I totally get what you mean. For me, it's usually a combination of things. I start feeling this tightness in my chest, like someone's squeezing it, and my breathing gets more labored. Sometimes I'll notice that I'm coughing more frequently or wheezing, especially when I'm trying to sleep. And like you mentioned, I might start feeling jittery or anxious, almost like a sense of impending doom. It's like my body's way of giving me a heads up that things might get rough soon. I find that having my Ventolin from https://topsup24.com/buy-ventolin-um.html at all times gives me a lot of peace of mind.
As for the Apple Watch situation, that's a bummer. I rely on mine a lot for tracking my health metrics, so it's disappointing to hear about the pulse ox feature being disabled. But hey, sounds like you've got a workaround with the iPhone 15 Pro and a separate pulse oximeter. It's all about finding what works best for you, right?
Hi! My name is Debbie. I have severe uncontrolled eosinophilic asthma. I was diagnosed one year after my COPD diagnosis ten years ago. I also have severe scent intolerance.
I am 60 years old. The way the weather has been, and the added agony of very high pollen, I have been doing a day to day battle with the elements!
I am a captain with the COPD Foundation. I love to cook and garden!
I hope everyone has been able to manage their symptoms. 🙂
Cool! Several of our staff members here also work over there (myself included). Glad to know all your bases are covered. 😁
I give you credit for working hard on hydration. That's a huge struggle for me -- super helpful to remember that hydrating foods are also helpful. I tend to forget that.
Sounds like you have a solid plan for doing the things you enjoy and staying safe. Keep taking good care of yourself and enjoy that nice morning weather! -Melissa, asthma teamThanks, Melissa! As I always say: Keep calm. Stay strong. Carry on!!! 😄
Hope your day is a great one! 🌼
I had children's asthma, cold weather asthma, and outgrew it. Turned 50 and my allergies & asthma came back. I was stunned. I'm 71 now, and after getting some kind of lung virus in Europe last summer, I'm still having problems clearing my lungs. I had cortisone injections twice since then, and my breathing clears up for about a month. I've read about "Breath Deep" tea from Yogi helps with phlegm, but can't find it locally. Any other suggestions? BTW, if I practice saxophone for 10 minutes, it helps break things loose a bit. Isn't there some mechanical device out, that helps, too ?
Hi. Thank you for your comment here and for sharing with us about your asthma journey. There is a device that I wrote about on our sister site called an Acapella. Similar to what may happen when you use your saxophone, it vibrates airway walls and can help facilitate secretion clearance from your airways. If you want to check out that article I will post a link here (https://copd.net/clinical/flutter-valves-acapellas). I have heard others talking about tea helping with secretion removal, but that is not something I personally am familiar with. I look forward to hearing what my colleagues or other community members have to say. Wishing you all the best. John. community moderator. Looks like you can buy Breathe Deep online, if that helps you! https://www.amazon.com/Yogi-Breathe-Deep-Caffeine-Count/dp/B07CMDWZBF/
Curious to hear how you feel about it if you try it. 😀 -Melissa, asthma.net team
