help please at wits end

Hi

I was diagnosed about 18 months ago, I am 54 years old. I have had a cough now since Nov 2012. Spiro confirmed asthma, I did not get any better on steroid inhalers and ventolin, I had a couple of courses of oral seteroids, sometimes these helped sometimes they did not.

Repeat spiro did not show much reversibility so I was taken off meds and then really poorlyl.

Saw consultant who wiith no investigations diagnosed asthma...things did not get better. I had to go off sick the end of Oct as I was so breathless and had a constant cough, including at night, so was SO tired. Productive cough sputum ranged between white to green. Had various antibiotics but they did not seem to work, samples sent off came back as negative. When examined my chest always sounds clear, and x rays reveal nothing my peak flow is always around 400 - 450.

After a sample grew Strep pneumoni sent back to clinic. Have CT scan tomorrow and lung function test in April!

I tried to go back to work in Dec but after a week of jsut doing 4 hours a week I felt and looked awrful. got a meeting with HR tomorrow..no idea what to say.

The consultant gave me two weeks of doxycline and I felt great for about a month after that and last week though i was ready to go back to work.

today I have a cold and my chest feels heavy, I am a bit short of breath and coughing.

currently on inhaled steroids and ventolin..I have taken singular but it did nothing.

Any help and advice would be greatly appreciated

pam

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It may not be asthma, I wonder if the CT is to check for things like bronchiectasis which causes repeat infections. That's what I got diagnosed with a few years ago after a CT.

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Hi, I am right there with you. Laying now in a hospital bed for the second time in 3 months. Got to hear the word ""asthma"" the first time 15 months ago. I was a marathon runner with lung function way above average, now I can't walk 4 meters.

I have tried all sorts of available inhalers, all x-rays, blood and mucus tests are clear. I've had 4 cycles of high dosage oral steroids and two cycles of iv steroids in the last 6 months, and that is the only thing that gets me breathing again... for one week or so, and then it's downhill again.

I've also been treated for Lyme ""just in case"", 9 weeks doxicycline which seemed to help in the beginning, and maybe delayed a bit the need for another cycle of oral steroids (two months interval instead of one).

I'm at the third pulmonologist now. My GP thinks it may be a good idea to do a CT scan but she can't prescribe it, so I have to convince the pulmonologist. It is SO frustrating.

Aside from exercise and stress, there seems to be no other trigger, it's just a continuous day after day worsening of my condition.

I am 38 years old and I have suffered from allergies since I was 24, it started during a high-stress time and it never went away, but it never gave me breathing problems, only sneezing and runny nose.

I've had it, any ideas and suggestions are welcome.

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Just one difference with you: I am constantly wheezing, sometimes more and sometimes less depending on which point of the cycle I'm at.

[Gerardt]

i am 54 have asthma about 10 years started with a frog in the throat and got worse cough out of breath etc constantly getting worse , went to a clown of a pulmonologist top man i was told take this tablet take this tablet etc what a mope very few tests , went to a new guy lots of tests lungs are fine dust allergy etc . You have to be calm and you have to live with it , when cough is bad take steroids the small red ones take 6 or 8 a day for a few days they work super they are very bad by all accounts but they keep you going and kill cough i think they are delta cortisone i actually dont have any at present , they tell me pred is the same and other steroid tablets are the same I HAVE FOUND THEY ARE NOT small red ones work great, i cough a little now when bad non stop , i find i am good at present my doc put me on a sleep apnea machine 6 months on it no trip to hospital used to go about 3 times a year , i am pretty unfit but i had a collapsed arch for a year that was no help , I tried the hair brained ones like natural cures etc no good , i only realise i was out back this evening trying to cut hedges for about 40 mins with a petrol hedge cutter and not really out of breath thats good for me , the other thing is the only steroid inhaler that worked for me is symbicort 400 the rest were useless and my own GP doc put me on that used to puff morning and evening , why was i this good this evening well my stomach was bad last five days and i ate very little and drank loads of water to try settle it , i dont use milk or any dairy , i do eat take away i shouldnt , big meals are no help as is chocolate , strong black coffee is great its one of my go to things when coughing . you have to find what helps you its not easy when u as sick as a dog I know but keep at it , my next thing to try is cold showers the shock to the system is supposed to reset you , no pets no carpets but you can drink brandy !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ger

My doc put me on spiriva , and through the nebulizer pulmacort and symbicort I decided i cant be on everything so packed them in , going good at present but that could change