Chest infection again!!

I don't need a reply to this, I am just being miserable at the computer instead of my family! I thought I had recovered from my first asthma attack needing hospital treatment (14 April) having taken 8 days of 8 prednisolone and a week of antibiotics. I have only been using my reliever a couple of times a day and I have doubled my symbacort to 4 times a day and only waking once or twice at night. Although still a bit wheezy I assumed that was volcanic fallout!! Having spoken to Asthma UKs really really helpful nurse on Friday I returned to my GP who has told me I have a chest infection and need stronger antibiotics for another week. I am fed up with taking pills and feeling horrible. I really wanted to go to work on Monday but my family all think I should stay home again. Does it normally take this long to recover from an attack and is there anything I can do to speed things up?

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1 year and counting for me!

Hi

Hang in there. Reading your post was very autobiographical for me! My initial advice to you is be a bit careful with the symbicort. The second would be see an asthma nurse. I dont think antibiotics always work the best for asthma (trust me you name it and i've probably had it)

I had a really bad bout in oct 08 - the GP got it really wrong and said its bad flu. The bad Flu sort of stayed until the rhinitis kicked in then Sept 09 the bad flu became a chest infection and then blatently asthma. They gave me symbicort 400/6 which then gave me odd side effects and i ended up with a lot of fluid on my lungs and then also had another flare up- once i read the leaflet i decided to ask my doctor to swap me. the current inhaler (seretide 500mg) is great but i've ended up on preds as my asthma nurse said I have some fluid again plus i clearly had a another sinus infection and the seretide needs boosting.

Sounds like your preventer needs boosting and maybe add in something like singluair (this controls your asthma while the chest infection can be treated). I've learnt from people here who also suffer that there is a lot of ways to get back on track.

I've been suffering for technically more than a year but i have a new strategy - I swot up on my own symptoms keep an eye on them - keep a peakflow chart and speak to my asthma nurse about this. Any changes means (like a drastic drop in Peakflow) stepping up the preventer at the moment for me before i get to the infection stage.

take care your not alone...

[angievere]

As Confused says - you are not alone. I am all too familiar with what seems like long periods of ill health -chest infection, cold, another chest infection, rhinitis etc. It's very wearing, but I find it does eventually pass. This winter has been awful for colds/asthma and my son has been absolutely plagued with them but he's had about 4 good weeks now. We take Vit C and multi vit - I like to think it helps! Take care.

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my final bit of advice!! - I could not Pm you!

Make your Gp's listen to you - keep going back and make sure they understand how much it affects you and that it is serious and should not be grouped into a chest infection or a severe allergy or a cold.

Antibiotics work for different things but they reduce immunity so you start going round in a circle the best thing i ever did was stop taking medicines my regular GP gave me - with the stab in the dark approach and it was the side effects of too many things together. My current asthma doctor/Nurse is from my local hospital and she is great and thats why I am feeling upbeat again someone who understands in a medical capacity.

keep going back to the GP's as it sounds as though you have stubborn asthma like me!