What are your triggers

[mrsgailowens]

Hi there

I have had difficult to control asthma, for a year now discovering different triggers that set off asthma attacks and chest infections. Interested to find out what triggers people have.?

[frostylm]

Some of mine are cigarette smoke or chimnea smoke, hayfever, air pollution, laughing too much! And stress...strange mixture. What are yours?

[Wheezycat]

I don't have difficult to control asthma, but i had a bad, very extended bout last year with an infection. Since then I have been trying to work out triggers. So far anything, I think, with smoke, so joss sticks, wood burning stoves, cigarette smoke, and I am guessing any other form of smoke. Scent from cleaning materials and perhaps air fresheners. Birch/tree pollen? As you can see I am still learning.

[MMBJI]

Hi, so far, animal dander (all sorts,) dust, smoke(all sorts,) pollen, birch trees, hairspray, air fresheners, some perfumes, traffic fumes on damp mornings, laughing too much, over zealous exercise, feathers, horses (can't even be in the vicinity of one.) etc, etc. Oh and something in our local park at certain times of the year, don't know what yet!

I vacuum every surface in our house once a week, try to keep everything away in cupboards so that dust doesn't collect on objects. When I was little my mum sprayed the carpets with water to keep the dust down.

It is so hard to manage things that you can't see/smell etc. My mother-in-law refuses to acccept that her house is a problem to us. She has had several cats there over the last 40 years. The last died 3 years ago. I am still affected when I visit. Animal dander can get in between pages of books, behind radiators, everywhere!

Another difficulty is that reactions can be delayed, making it harder to make connections between events/people/places/substances etc. And you don't react on first exposure.

Thank goodness they banned smoking in public places, it has been very socially isolating for me over the years, most people have cats/dogs/smoke which means I can't visit most of the people I have known!

Good luck finding your triggers!

[S4r4L0u153]

Hi, my triggers are anything scented-deodorants,perfumes,candles,joss sticks,cleaning products, dust,animal dander,feathers, pollen, cigarette smoke, people vaping, traffic fumes, stuffy rooms, having a cold, the cold air, laughing too much, exercise. Going to other people's houses is difficult, with some I ask them to move everything I'm allergic to, but sometimes I'm too embarrassed to, and if there's been a trigger in there before I arrive it will set me off anyway, just not as badly as when the trigger remains. It sets my chest off, throat feels full of hair, start needing to constantly clear my throat of extra mucus, get tighter chest, and I also itch from head to foot. I react most days because I'm allergic to so much. I do calm down soon after leaving now as I'm on so much medication. I find that most people don't really understand. Some rudely, and annoyingly, think it's all in my head, and others don't understand how badly I feel, and just think it's just a cough, an annoying itch. People think it's not any worse than them reacting to a bit of hayfever which so many non asthmatics react to. My allergies list and my reactions have escalated horrendously over the last 3 yrs.

[Hidden]

Those I know about are dust mites, damp, mould, viral infections and cold (though damp cold is much more likely to cause problems than dry cold). Pollution will cause issues too as will a really bad allergic rhinitis episode (though the latter is rare now due to improved medication to control it - just as well as there were a lot of things that could trigger that, including animal dander from soft coated animals and long or thick coated dogs).

[Hidden]

Mine are House dust mites, Black mould, colds and exercise.

Since I have almost eradicated dust mites from my house colds no longer trigger an attack and exercise will trigger a very mild wheeze.

Mould still makes me very ill but is easy to avoid.

[Hidden]

I'd forgotten exercise: that is a major trigger of my asthma as well. Many thanks SimpleSimon for reminding me.

That's the annoying thing about trying to list out triggers when you have a number of them; you're almost certain to miss one off the list:-).

[mrsgailowens]

Thanks folks. My triggers seem to be growing, smoke, even on a person's clothes. Rabbit fur and straw we have one, it is going very soon. Surf washing powder, bleach, aerosols, perfume, hot drinks/cold drinks. Going into the cold from heat, hayfever, pollen, laughing too much. I am about to go and find out the results of food intolerances, tests.

[Jacey15]

Perfume

Aftershave

Washing powder

Cigarette smoke

Olbas oil

These are the main ones for me and can be difficult to avoid.

[elanaoali]

Dust, cold and damp weather, pollution, pollen, cats,dogs,tree spores, mold, cigarette smoke, strong chemical cleaners, perfumed candles,some kinds of nit treatment, some strong perfumes.

I have been diagnosed with allergic asthma and take monkelaust 10 mg which really helps with my allergies. I also take a hay fever tablet every day. I can go around to friends houses with cats and stay with people with dogs and I am fine. Autumn/winter is my worse time of year. Now I just stopping seretide 250 mg down to Flixotide 250 mg til end of august then back on Seretide.

[Emily-G]

Hi

Mine include pollen, dust, mould, animals, feathers, sulfites, nuts, cleaning products, smoke, swimming pool, cold, damp, wind, stress and laughing, and sometimes nothing that I can work out triggers it.

Hope you find ways of controlling yours, so many asthma triggers are hard to avoid.

Good luck xxx

[ElizabethC]

Cigarette/Cigar/Pipe smoke (though Cigarette is the worst - can react to even the "slip stream" or the little personal cloud that surrounds a person even after they have finished a cigarette.

Changes in humidity/temperature. The last few months have been a nightmare for me.

Perfumes (as in the ones on skin and in products); aerosols and chemical smells.

The worst for me though is a viral infection. Had one that started on New Year's Day this year, within a fortnight was in hospital A&E with asthma exacerbation and then 2 weeks of coughing up my lungs from the chest infection that had been hidden by the Asthma inflammation. From Feb to present my lungs and throat/larynx have been super sensitive and jumpy flaring at the slightest thing.

This morning, after the night coughing returned badly the past four nights, went to surgery and am back on to steroids - previously it was 6 (5mg each) tablets a day its now 8 for a week. I really hope this stops the tightness in my chest and allows me to breath properly for the first time in 3 months.

[Beth_19]

For me its anything with a strong or potent smell such as perfumes, aftershaves, body sprays, cleaners, smoke, etc. I react to the cold and wind if its strong as it feels like it taking the air from my lungs. Animals is a newer one for me as they have never bothered me before but since my exacerbation last year I've struggled especially with cats and dogs.

[mrsgailowens]

Thanks folks

Just discovered that I am full of food intolerances. Eggs, wheat dairy, nuts, yeast, I had tests done a month ago. Now I am waiting on private dietician doing me a diet.

[Lyngal]

Hi colds, house dust mites, excersise , stress, pollen and the biggest one when I'm due to have a period

[Hidden]

Hi mine are dust as am allergic to it perfumes house cleaning products pollen smoke

[Chip_y2kuk]

Dust and pollen <-- I'm allergic

Certain scents

Cold air

Dry air

Damp air

Illness

Cleaning chemicals (tends to be the stronger ones like bleach and as I'm also allergic to chlorine that makes sense)

Smoke of most kinds like grilled food and chimney

Chip

[EmmaF91 Community Ambassador]

Hi

In no particular order (if you're still interested 😜)...

I'm allergic to;

Dogs/cats/horses/sheep dander

Eggs/milk (intolerant but can worsen asthma symptoms too)

Dust/Mould

Tree/plant pollen

My triggers are;

Exercise

Cold/hot weather - (and changing temps - cold outside hot inside etc)

Damp weather

Air condition (esp in cars) - (Dry air)

Cigarettes/smoke in general

Cleaning fluids/solutions

Stress/strong (usually negative) emotions

Illness/Infections

Very strong smells (like you can 'taste' them)

Aerosols (deodorant/hairspray etc)

Ibuprofen/Mefanamic Acid (only worsens symptoms when asthma is bad)

Think these are all the things I've found over the last couple of years 😳. Some 'come and go' depending on how controlled my asthma is, whilst others always cause an issue no matter how well I am. Some will only cause mild problems that I can put up with if I really want too but others will send me straight into an attack. 😕😷

Emma

[mrsgailowens in reply to EmmaF91]

Pretty much a lot of what you have mentioned. I can exercise. I have a lot of food intolerancers, yeast, egg, milk, nuts, a lot of fruits, sugar red meat.

Hot drinks.

Cold air the list is endless.