Embarrassed to use inhaler in public

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r0selu

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I am newly diagnosed adult onset asthma and I am still figuring things out.

This afternoon I was at a training conference in a room full of strangers. I started coughing, chest became tight and I was starting to wheeze a little. It wasn't a major attack just a mild one. I knew I needed to use my inhaler but I didn't want to leave the room or use it in front of all those strangers. So since I could still breathe I sat there and waited it out. I waited for an hour and a half when it ended, rushed to my car to use the inhaler before I drove home. By then I was starting to feel dizzy and tired. And am still a little wheezy now about an hour later but I am breathing a lot better. I know I shouldn't have waited and I thought of even going to the bathroom but it was a busy area and I just felt really erabarrassed.

Does or has anyone experienced this when first diagnosed? I don't want to be caught in a bad situation with a full blown attack but I don't know how to get over this.
 
Hey r0selu,

I think everyone goes through this when they have to first start using an inhaler. It will pass in time. I know it did for me. People may look at you the first few times you use it but thats because they are worried and just want to know if they can help/ you need help. But after seeing you do in once or twice they wont even look twice. So i wouldnt worry about it.


Take care,

Dan.
 
So many people are in the same boat these days that I wouldn't pay it any mind. I see people using them rather frequently where I live (bad for asthma). I'd just excuse myself, go out in the hall and use it. They've all seen it before!
 
I too have adult onset asthma and I used to feel the same way you do. You need to gain confidence in yourself with regarRAB to your new diagnosis. You know you have asthma, you are learning to recognize the signs of an attack and you know when you need treatment. Those are all very important steps. As hard as it is, don't deny yourself treatment because of what others might think. Your health is priority. Asthma is to be taken seriously. When we are aggressive about our own treatment, we will have more success in keeping it under control.

I had to make a decision though to put my health as a priority over the erabarrassment. In the situation you were in, I would have done one of two things if I knew I needed a treatment. 1. Just get up and walk by others and use my inhaler in the hall or a nearby bathroom. 2. Try to be discreet and use it in my seat. If it was a very long row of people I had to walk by, I'd probably just use the inhaler in my seat. You can cup it in your hand to mask it a bit if it makes you more comfortable. It doesn't take long to take your couple puRAB and if others around you are polite, they shouldn't say anything. Most adults are familiar with inhaler usage and the medical need. If anyone says anything, you can just state you were having trouble breathing. In my opinion, the more people around me who know when my asthma is acting up, the more people who are available in case I need emergency care.

You really don't want to wait until things are really bad to use your inhaler. You will have less chance of a really bad attack if you catch it earlier. If you were feeling dizzy and tired, your breathing was starting to get bad and you probably weren't thinking entirely clearly at that point. It could have become dangerous to drive as well. I thought I was controlling things once and it quickly got bad while I was on a highway. By the time I got myself to care, I really wasn't thinking clearly which wasn't good for me or those on the roaRAB around me. I was lucky things turned out as well as they did.

Another piece of advice I learned the hard way: If your asthma is getting bad at times, it might not hurt to ask for a prescription to carry an Epi-pen. Using one could potentially save your life while awaiting medical care if things get bad.

I have a thread on a "sticky" at the top of this board on asthma early warning signs. You might find it interesting reading. There are other warning signs of pending asthma difficulties besides the breathing problems that I didn't know about for years. I wish others had shared with me.

I'll post another thread for you about asthma action plans. If you are new to asthma and don't have one, you should ask for one. There are many standard formats on the internet. What I'll post is a summary of what I've learned and what I have in place personally. They really do work.

Let us know if you have any other questions. This board can be very supportive.
 
Thank you all especially MountainReader. I understand the importance of putting my health first. I am by nature a very shy person so having this added is making it extra difficult. I just hate having the attention on me. I am better at work where I can privately use my inhaler and a few co workers know about it so that helps. It is mostly with strangers that I have trouble with but I guess in time I will learn to just ignore the erabarrassment and do what I need to do. The board has a lot of useful information and thank you for pointing out the early warning signs post. I was having a headache and suddenly become nasally congested and started sneezing before the tightness started. I am still learning my warning signs and that made it a little clearer and I will watch for it next time.
 
Yeah, I'm the same way. Just diagnosed a few months ago, and I hate for people to see me use it, especially people I don't really know. And I have this spacer with my inhaler, which is huge and (I feel) particularly dorky-looking.

Last spring, when my asthma first started and was very bad for a few weeks, I'd have to use it every day. Usually when I was teaching in front of the classroom. And I just could not bring myself to use it there.

So, I'd let the class have a 2 minute break while I went to the ladies room. They knew what was going on, and it was the official "teacher-neeRAB-to-take-a-hit-off-the-inhaler" break, usually about halfway through the 2 hour class.

Somehow, I doubt any of them minded.:)

But seriously? Unless you're in front of the room speaking, how many people are even going to notice? And if they do, most people have seen an inhaler before, know what it is, and aren't likely to spend more than 10 seconRAB thinking about it.
 
janewhite that's funny I am a teacher too. I teach special ed and have a teacher's aid in my room and even though she knows I still feel funny using it in front of her so usually I tell her I will catch up and she knows what I need to do.
 
I'm an educator too for low income early childhood kiddos and their families. I'm on the management side now, but with 42 classes we've become experts in working with parents and doctors to write classroom asthma plans for our little ones. I've learned to "practice what I preach."

One of the scariest experiences I ever had was with a 4 year old student who almost stopped breathing on me completely. He had severe asthma and frequently had attacks while in class, but no matter what I did I couldn't convince the mom it was serious enough to take him to a doctor for it so I had no inhaler to use for him. The worst feeling in the world was standing there trying to remain calm for him and coach him to breathe while he turned blue. All I could do was wait to begin rescue breathing. (I can't preach enough about being First Aid/CPR trained also.)

That and my own scary attack are why I'm so passionate about having an asthma action plan in place and encouraging people to recognize their signs of impending attacks so they can implement the plan.
 
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