Bad Asthma for three months

[noodles2]

I’be had asthma for the last three months that means I don’t sleep properly and have difficulty walking. I keep going back to my gp and have had 4 courses of steroids. Each time I take steroids I get better but then it returns. Taking inhalers as well. On Friday asked if I could see a respiratory doctor and the GP said no. Any advice?

[Bobcat_44]

Frequent flare-ups mean that the dose of your preventer inhaler is not enough to control your asthma. You can ask your GP to encrease the dose. You can also talk about add-on treatment like Singulair or Spiriva Respimat.

[Carriejen]

I’m having a flare up issue now and my nurse thinks it might be because I’m not getting enough of my inhaler in when I inhale it. So because I can’t take a full breath that’s affecting me daily. Do you have a spacer or anything you can use?

[noodles2 in reply to Carriejen]

Thank you for replying. Yes I use a spacer. They have also tried a couple of different preventers and increased the dose. The last course of steroid tablets they increased dose to 50mg per day.

[Carriejen in reply to noodles2]

Sometimes after a flare up it can take time to settle but three months is a long time to worry. I hope it gets all sorted soon

[noodles2 in reply to Carriejen]

Thank you so much. Me too - I’ve had asthma since I was a small child but never like this.

[Carriejen in reply to noodles2]

I’ve only been diagnosed 18 months but this last fortnight has been so bad. I wound up with a chest infection and according to my nurse he inflammation just hasn’t quite settled yet so it’s just a waiting game. Nights are worse

[noodles2 in reply to Carriejen]

I feel for you. Have you been given antibiotics to get rid of chest infection? Also try sleeping semi upright with loads of pillows. Hope you’re better soon.

[Carriejen in reply to noodles2]

My infection was missed by an out of hours doctor who gave me steroids. The next day I went to my own nurse who gave me antibiotics. I’ve also had an ECG and blood tests, had my steroids extended for another 5 days and been referred for a chest X-ray. I’m still not right but much better than I was. Been having daily naps, so thinking that might be helping

[Livre]

Steroids treat symptoms if course, affect the adrenal cortex so suppress dhea production...an anabolic steroid...so this makes lungs more sensitive and irritable so then you have more asthma flare ups.

From what I read, you have corticosteroid course, symptoms subside then you have a break and symptoms flare up?

What’s in your puffer?

You are not getting proper treatment.

You are getting a high dose of corticosteroids anyway.

Telling you to have a higher dose of a damaging product is not the solution.

You do need better advice.

Inflammation affects the lungs structure and that’s not good. Even an aspirin a day... gut likes it after a couple of days and it’s stengthening to the walls, realise anti aspirin propaganda cameout after a more expensive product manifested.

Aspirin reduces inflammation.

My body is badly damaged from corticosteroid puffer, and the more I took it the more I needed. For 2 weeks I have been on Intal White packaged puffer as a preventive which stops mast cells and all the dreadful allergic lung responses and I am managing better even now than one on the steroid puffer, but have it the red steroid..and ventolin blue puffer always at hand.

Maybe look at Ray Peat articles online too.

[noodles2 in reply to Livre]

Thanks for the info. I really want to see a specialist. I have lost faith in my Gp

[WheezyAnne]

I would insist that you are referred to the Asthma Clinic/Severe Asthma Clinic\Respiratory Consultant. I have had Asthma all my life too, and now they have identified that my Asthma has turned into small fixed airway disease/COPD/Bronchiectasis, a bit of everything really including multiple allergies, environment sensitive, and an immune deficiency disease (likely coz of all the steroids), oh, and Osteoporosis. I have had loads of both ear infections and chest infections over the years. Please insist that you are referred to the hospital, as I have noticed that there are so many people on here who have lifelong Asthma and now also have fixed airway disease. This overlap has only recently been recognised and needs to be monitored closely. If your mucus turns green, try and get the GP to send a sample of your sputum in for testing so you get the best antibiotic. 50mg Prednisolone is not good. I was last on 60mg, then spent a month in Addenbrooks. Now on much less, but regular. When was the last time you had a spirometry test?

[Tempered]

You can always cut out the middle man and take yourself to A &E.

My asthma has been controlled for the last 20 years then a couple of weeks ago I started with a chest infection.

I couldn’t get an appointment with my GP so went to the walk in centre. They sent me to hospital where I was admitted.

I’ve got my first out patients appointment with the specialists next month to see if the new inhalers are working and for lung tests.

[mackro]

I have gone through the same experience. Seeing a GP he asked what major thing which I did recently, i.e. moving to new houses, installing new carpets, new paint, etc. Initially my answer was all negative. But when another GP repeated the same question, I pondered for a moment and quickly remembered the air freshner which I have recently installed plus a recent switched from solid-type bath soap to liquid anti bacterial type. Following his suggestion, I get rid the air freshner and reverted back to old-style bath soap. I have also installed an air purifier next to my bed. One week after that the flare-up stopped and I'm almost 100% OK.