Can you describe asthma please?

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SureBett

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After 3 yrs of this chest/breathing issue that starts each July it is clearer to me that it has something to do with the pollens in this area in July, which they say the major pollen is grass seeding...in VA.

The bad thing for me is I am 53, and having to sort out menopause with these asthma type symptoms....the trigger is also cold air....I had a breathing problem in dr's office 2 wks ago because I was in a cold room, he thought it was a panic attack...he said I wasn't wheezing....last fall, I had a breathing test that involved being in a booth and breathing before and after albuterol...they said normal, what is normal? so confusing....

i guess my question to all of those of you who has had years to deal with this problem, What does it feel like? with all things depending on the individual of course....I mainly start feeling like I can't breath out as much as I can breath in....a heaviness, then when I cough I know something is going on, because I have never had post nasal drip coughing or even a chest cold but maybe once or twice in my whole life......coughing isn't a normal thing for me, maybe that isn't healthy....

Anyone who can enlighten me, it would be appreciated....is there fatigue involved with these flares? thank you
 
I also live in VA and with the weather like it has been I haven't been going outside on some days not until 7 because of the heat. At the start of an asthma attack the center of my chest gets real tight. Like an elephant sitting on it ok maybe not an elephant.

If I can I move away from the trigger...such as perfume, smoke, anything aerosal if need be I will use my rescue inhaler. My perventive mediciation is advair. I am also one of these people that doesn't wheeze unless I have a really bad uppper respiratory infection.

Hope you feel better.

Johna
 
There are many doctors who are not very good at evaluating or understanding Asthma. Many doctors do not recognize that Asthma can cause either serious breathing difficulties and wheezing, or just tight or labored breathing. A patient who is wheezing and struggling for breath is easy to diagnose. But... many doctors will fail to recognize a patient's "labored" breathing or their "tight feeling chest". Plus..... most doctors either don't know what to tell their patients, or don't want to bother, or know that little can be done for the "tight feeling chest", so they blame it on the patient by telling them that their problems are caused by their stress or anxiety.



During that breathing test, were you experiencing "labored" or "tight" breathing?



For me, tis a little more problematic than for most. I have multiple health problems which can all cause labored or difficult breathing, in part or in unison; Asthma, Heart Failure, Atrial Fibrillation, Insulin Resistance, and Heart Valve disease.

That said... the most common signs of an Asthma problem, for me, are: First I start feeling some tightness in my chest. Then I start feeling warm. Then I start feeling tired. Then, the longer that I don't get away from the irritant, or trigger, the sicker I get and the longer my chest stays tight, plus..... the tighter my chest gets. The breathing problems can last for hours; plus the malaise or "ucky" feeling can also last for hours, and sometimes for days.

I am on Flovent, which helps to prevent me from having a serious, wheezing, full-fledged Asthmatic attack, but it does nothing to help with the "labored" or "tight" breathing.

I hope that you are doing better, and that you have already found the answer to your breathing problems. Take care......... :wave:
 
Johna, the weather here has been intolerable, but strangely enough, it is the AC air that gives me the most problems...when it is hot, and I go into a store, the AC is cranked so low to keep people in there, that I can barely breath and know that a problem is going to occur....I have heard this described as cold air asthma....I know other merabers of my family have had this..

But I did test for lots of allergies to grass and weeRAB..molRAB...the usual stuff, I have a cat but did not test positive for that, but I am still not convinced of that...

My doctor calls VA, allergy central...and particular the southeast area.....
 
Did you see a pulmonologist when you did the breathing test? If not, I strongly recommend that route for a true dx.
 
Thanks for the reply, yes a lot of what you say about your attacks are similar to mine...especially the sick feeling, or what I had been calling flu like feelings of fatigue, I had no other way to describe it to doctors so they would understand...but still, they didn't..

I had two tests last week to rule things in or out...I had a reflux test, which didn't show reflux, however, the doctor told me that it wasn't a conclusive test, it didn't mean, that I didn't have it...I thought, then why this type of test? and why would they have you do it first thing in the a.m. without having food or water on your stomach? the problem for me is after meals and especially in the evening...

I also had a methocholine challenge test....which showed that I did experience some tightness at the last syringe of irritant I breathed....the tester said he looked for a 20 percentage of symptoms, but I registered a 6 percent range....I told him that cold air such as blowing air by a fan or AC turned really low was my main trigger...don't know how they test for that...

The next day however, after going into a store with the AC very cold and blowing in some areas, it was obvious to me that regardless of that 6 percent range, I was having difficulty breathing....then the next day sitting in a movie theatre with the cold AC blowing down on me was another indicator for me that I was in trouble....I had to leave, go outside, and try to go back in....

The temps here have been so hot and the humidity so bad that public buildings go overboard with the AC, not to mention the medical buildings....

I am not sure where I will go with this problem as of yet....the pulmonologist thought I was having more difficulty with something called VCD...vocal cord dysfunction....because of my throat involvement....but I know from the reading material he gave me that sometimes you can have both VCD and asthma going on....I am going to post to ask if anyone has ever heard of this problem, as it is the first time I had....

thanks again for your reply
 
To me it feels like my lungs have just shrunk. I feel like there is no space to breathe air into. I have trouble getting air in, not out.
 
Titchou when I had the breathing test apparently, the procedure was to have that first for some reason, and then if it showed a problem, to see the lung doctor. The only thing they did was tell me it was a normal test...I had a sister that was ill when this was going on, so I was so stressed about that, and trying to be with her as much as possible caused me to back away from the problem and hope it got better with the winter. It did, but then again, I am not in the habit of going out without covering my face on cold days....so that is probably why it didn't flare then....

I have had allergy testing, and even started allergy shots last year but had to stop them because it seemed like it was making things worse....I had to take a step back....

To me it seems that the major time it starts up is always July, but gets worse each year as it has for 3 yrs now....I am going to try to be more organized this time with a treatment plan...I was not happy with the ENT office treating my allergies, the doctor was never available for questions about this asthma onset issue.....I was always talking to what seemed like teenagers on spring break whenever I called to get info.....young is good, but quite frankly, I needed some experienced authority when I called the office, and found a lot of "one size fits all" information to my questions...I have heard others say that ENT offices are not always the best place to get treated when asthma is involved...

I have so many questions about asthma in general...
 
Its very simple to describe. You can't take full breaths because your lungs close up. It takes way more effort to breath than usual and when you breath, it nearly always makes a wheezing sound. It varies in intensity, sometimes its only slightly harder to breath, other times its a battle to stay alive. I have vague memories of sitting in the back of the car puking in a bucket (vomitting all the phlem I'd swallowed) while being rushed to the hospital by my mother when I had acute asthma attacks as a kid. Its pretty harsh asthma I remeraber thinking that life was nothing but suffering and a struggle to survive because thats all my life had been up until then. When I was 12 the asthma went away completely and I've never had it since. That is until I moved back into a house with cats, thats when I realized what was causing the asthma all that time. I was allergic to cats.
 
my son (3.5yrs) has asthma and i treated him with high doses of vitamin d, digestive enzymes with every meal, non pasteurized milk and low dose iodine/iodide drops. he has not had another bout of asthma in 7 months. when he gets a cold it develops into asthma symptoms and pneumonia. he was constantly on a nebulizer treatment and steroiRAB and antibotics.
when he gets a cold, ill kick in the non pasteurized milk which comes from a reputable milk farm, increase digestive enzymes and a bit more vitamin d and he can kick it all by himself. it doesn't manifest itself into other illnesses.
 
Well, to answer one that you haven't asked...no, not all asthmatic wheeze. And yes, you could have allergy induced asthma. I suggest an allergist, not just an ENT. If you were having problems with your shots, they can help you handle that. It's a long process - 5 years - and requries dedication. It is not for the faint of heart. But you do need to get this sorted out.
 
For me it usually involves mild to moderate shortness of breath and mild to moderate chest pain. This is for the mild "attacks" that I have. Then I also have severe attacks which are always triggered by exercise. During those, I usually can't breathe easily at all for several minutes. I'll be extremely out of breath. I don't usually notice chest pain during these attacks though.

My asthma is primarily caused by exercise and seasonal allergies. I'm also mildly allergic to my cat plus some household chemicals.
 
I don't wheeze.

Mine started early this spring from pollen. My chest felt tight and tingly, like there wasn't enough air. As it got worse, I was panting for breath just strolling down the street, and I felt like someone was sitting on my chest. I started to feel very tired. I finally went to the ER because I was sitting on my couch panting so hard it was difficult to talk. Even then the doctor could only hear a very faint wheeze, but they gave me albuterol and I felt a lot better.

If the breathing test is done when you are feeling ok, the results may be normal. A methacholine challenge test can usually identify asthma even when it isn't acting up.

Definitely, regular allergist or pulmonologist. Meanwhile, antihistamines (like claritin or benadryl, NOT decongestants) may help keep things from getting worse.
 
SureBett, I feel your pain, i live in NH and I am going through the exact same thing as you except for the cold air, cold air usually makes me feel better. if I an having an attack I turn on my AC in mycar or open my window. i usually get these attacks after I eat or mostly driving in the car, I find my self taking short breaths trying to get a good one and sometimes breathing out is harder than in. I just had an Endoscopy and I do have some acid reflux but DR said this wouldnt cause breathing issues. My Dr out me on advair and it seems to have helped a bit but I am not sure I should be on this if I dont really have asthma. Moreover, I am a singer in a band and the horseness is a killer. I also fear singing because I am scared of having an attack during it. I get dizzy sometimes when I cannot breath (not sure if that is common) alot of times I get over these symptoms in a few minutes (they just go away) I do have a very stressfull job maybe is is stress...
 
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