I am in my 50s and have had asthma since I was a very small child. Most of my adult life it hasn't bothered me much at all and I haven't even had to take a regular preventer. A couple of years ago I had a cold which resulted in a cough that never really went away. It got to the point where I bearly noticed it. During that time my husband was ill with cancer and I spent very little time thinking about my own health. He died earlier this year and gradually I have noticed this cough getting increasingly worse. I did not have any weazing and nothing seemed to make me feel as though it was my asthma. I eventually went to the doctor who suggested Gaviscon in case it was stress related stomach upset and antihistame in case it was an allergy. I had to ask him for a chest x-ray in case it was cancer. He also suggested I take my preventive medication regularly. Although the preventer relieved the cough a bit, it did not help much so the doctor increased the dosage. The problem I now have is that I have a constant sore throat and I am only taking enough medication to find a balance between the cough and the sore throat.
I'm reluctant to go back to the doctor as its such a long drawn out process of explaining it all to him over again and I don't feel that he is interested.
Rather than taking the medication I would prefer to find out why I have this cough. Can anyone tell me whether it is likely to be stress due to my bereavement? I did mention to the doctor that I am stressed but he wasn't interested.