The Scariest

There are many scary times I’ve had but this takes the cake so far.

It happened in my 20’s. I was considered healthy, fit, and trim and it was a humid day and week. I can't remember what I was doing but all I know is I suddenly couldn’t catch my breath. I went to my rescue inhaler and pumped 2 times and deeply inhaled. I waited for 3-5 minutes, but I wasn’t feeling better. I get up and notice that I am still short of breath. I took another 2 puffs. Another 5-10 minutes and I still felt like a rock was on my chest.

I called my doctor and then went to urgent care. She sends me to the hospital. They do an x-ray and turns out I have pneumonia. Not the first time I’ve had it, but for an asthma sufferer, it makes a not-so-good situation worse. I caught pneumonia more frequently after that and didn’t recover as quickly.

Now in my mid 30’s, my life is a lot more slowed down to tame my symptoms. I have a persistent heavy cough that comes up if I exert myself or am exposed to smoke and or dust and allergens. My lungs were never the same after the pneumonia bouts. Now when I get cold symptoms or a cold, I get pneumonia.