I had been taking Qvar 100 twice a day preventative inhaler for three years after not being on any asthma meds for over twenty years and then in the last few weeks I felt bad after I had taken it and it didn’t seem to help anymore. My doctor changed me to the powder inhaler pulmicort turbhaler 200 twice daily and I have tried it for two weeks and that has not felt good either. Now they have tried me on another one Flixotide 50 four puffs a day which has made me feel terrible after taking it for only one day.
I get hay fever as well and the doctor has said to take reflux medication in case that is causing it alongside. Lansoprazole 15mg
Any help and advice much needed? It’s making me feel anxious as to why they are making me feel worse.
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Hazyeyes
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Is it making your asthma worse like causing an asthma attack sorry but you didn't mention how it affects you?
It's possible that you are allergic to them I can't take any proventers at all as if I do I have a asthma attack within an hour most of the time it's 10 minutes after taking a proventer I've been like this since I was 10 when my mum noticed that the brown one was very bad but it only got recognised by a doctor a few years ago .
Yes it is like they cause asthma straight away and for about two hours of taking it. Like chest tightness and can’t get a full breath. Thanks for telling me you experienced something similar. What do you have instead? Last night I didn’t take the second puff of the flixotide as it would have been terrible. So today I think I will go back to the powder one as it was not as bad as that one. Do you think it will matter if I change as I don’t want to not take anything ?
I just have the blue inhaler only and if I am really bad the doctor may put me on the nebuliser I take my blue every day mainly at night but normally it's only just before bed then as i need it.
A suggestion to see if my issue and your issue are the same is do a log with peak flow one week take both inhalers as advised and write your peak flow before and after you take both, then do the same with just your proventer for a week and then for the last week do the same but with just your blue inhaler as this is over the space of 3 weeks and 3 different ways of doing your inhaler it will show you and your doctor which way works best also note down if you need any help from a nebuliser or hospital and why. This should better help you out .
That’s interesting thank you for that, yes to try and eliminate what is not helping. I had a feno test a year ago and the consultant said my lungs were as if I didn’t have asthma but that as I had it as a child she said asthma is variable and that I had to take the preventative always as a safety precaution. So has your doctor said not to take preventatives?
Yes my doctor has actually put on my records allergic to all proventers so do not issue any. I get blue inhaler only and my repeat is for two instead of one but before this was done I had to go through a month of trying different proventers and letting the doctor know how thay made me feel after a few days after the 3rd one he gave up and made that note on my records and since then I've never been told to"just try a proventer" I now get told about special rules with the blue inhaler if I need to.
Hi, I agree it would be useful to know how you didn't/don't feel well - both the change as to why they switched the inhalers and how you're feeling with the new ones.
It seems they've kept you on the same type of medication as they're all just steroid inhalers (not combi inhalers), albeit different steroids, and that you've tried MDI (inhalers you press) and DPI (dry powder).
Without knowing your symptoms, so bit of a guess, my inclination would be either they haven't yet found the right steroid base for you (there are lots!) or that maybe you need a combi inhaler which combines the steroid preventer with a LABA (long-acting bronchodilator/long-acting version of your reliever inhaler). One can, I'm sure, be allergic to the drugs in preventer inhalers just like any other drugs but to be allergic to them all would be very uncommon I think. I suspect it's more a case of finding the one that suits you or it being something else adding to the pot rather than just asthma (hence why GP has added the reflux medication).
Do you monitor your peak flow? Has this changed with the new medications?
How long have you been taking the lansoprazole?
New medications will take a while to kick in, some take a couple of weeks but others take longer and of course, while they are doing so, your body will be thinking hey where's my .....(whatever you were on before), which would mean a period of adjustment.
Thanks for replying. My symptoms before I was changed onto the new inhaler was not wheezy but every now and again throughout the day only trying to get a deep breath and it feeling like I couldn’t. But the rest of the time I’m not breathless. I was told I had a dysfunctional breathing pattern two years ago which may have been caused by chest breathing and it turned into a cycle of keep trying to get a deep breath and then focusing on it which made me worse.
The new inhalers and my last one just in the last few weeks made me feel more breathless after taking it for a couple of hours and then it wore of and I start to feel better. I was terrified last night as I was supposed to take two puffs of a flixotide 50mg but I could only take one as it instantly made me struggle like it caused asthma.
Worried now as what if I’m allergic to them all. But I have been on the Qvar for three years and felt ok until recently.
Also I can’t take ventolin or relievers as they make me worse and give me hallucinations on occasion.
Ah the ventolin issues probably explains them keeping you to just steroid preventers. Have you tried terbutaline (Bricanyl) dry powder inhaler as a reliever? Maybe you have and it does the same as ventolin but I find that a better reliever than a ventolin inhaler.
I wouldn't say that your symptoms with the preventer inhalers you've tried mean that you're allergic to them. Inhalers can have the side effects that they can cause shortness of breath so it might just be a case of getting used to the inhaler if the effects wear off after a couple of hours (with the idea that with perseverance you wouldn't get the effects any longer). It could also be there's a mix of the dysfunctional breathing (very common in asthma) and anxiety (also common if you're struggling adjusting to new medications) which are mimicking asthma symptoms when you take the new inhalers.
The powder reliever sounds good I had not heard of that. Yes today I have tried the powder one again and for just a few minutes it feels bad then it goes off, so I am going to persevere with the pulmicort as it suits me more than the propellant ones. With the breathing disorder it is so tricky as I never know if it is asthma or anxiety causing it. As if I focus on something else and don’t keep trying to breathe in it eases off. But if I try and get a deep breath and it feels awkward I keep trying to get one and then it all gets worse.
I think the summer and allergies haven’t helped. As last winter I went to Lapland and I didn’t have any asthma there as it was cold and dry. I thought I would find it tough there but I didn’t. Also I don’t know if you know if milk affects it but I noticed if I have milk on cereals those days it seems worse. I don’t have food allergies though.
Milk (and any food....or any trigger actually) is incredibly personal. Anyone who says "milk is a trigger" (unless making it clear they mean just for themselves) is wrong. It could be that it's a trigger for you for an asthma mimic like silent reflux, which can give similar symptoms.
The is it DB, asthma or anxiety stuff can be really hard to fathom. EmmaF91's post in the link above is really good. Think it takes time to notice, acknowledge and distinguish symptoms and what helps them, or not, in terms of unpicking it.
I have Pulmicort and find the dry powder inhalers better for me - hence also getting on with the Bricanyl reliever. Hopefully the more you persevere with the Pulmicort, the more effective it will be and the side effects will diminish.
Yes you are right, there can be many different triggers and stress can make it worse I think. I had a stressful situation that came up and I had just changed the medication a few days before, so it could be all of that combined. Thanks so much for taking the time to give me advice. I think I spend a lot of time wondering about asthma and being scared of it in case it gets bad that probably plays into the anxiety of it all. But I have really good times without any symptoms for years sometimes which is good.
It is and hopefully you'll be back there soon. It's all just a big nightmare really - if we're not deliberating anxiety, asthma or anything else then doctors are jumping to that as the reason when it's not that! 🤦
Sorry to hear you are suffering. I've experienced nearly identical symptoms to you, except I was prescribed Fostair as the preventative treatment. I had not really had any asthma symptoms for approx 5 years before and did not even really need my blue ventolin reliever but my hayfever was particularly bad this year and my breathing became very bad. However, the Fostair didn't seem to work at all, even when my one puff twice a day dose was increased to two puffs twice a day and my breathing seemed to be even worse. My peak flow was a little lower than normal (350 rather than usual 400) but not drastically so.
During the same period, my anxiety was also sky high. I struggled all day every day with breathlessness, a tight chest and severe anxiety due to not being able to breathe. I then developed severe heartburn and acid reflux due to my inhaling too much air, I think. I also suffered (and still do) from dry congested nose and heavy chest except I do not have mucus at all.
Meditation and breathing exercises did not seem to work and seemed to exacerbate my breathlessness as I was ever more conscious that I was unable to take the deep breaths they were suggesting. This made my anxiety even worse.
I then went to my GP who was confused by my asthma symptoms as my peak flow was not bad and the Fostair and Ventolin were not working. I was eventually prescribed Sertraline, an anti anxiety medication as he thought that most of my symptoms could be due to anxiety - the breathlessness, tight chestedness etc symptoms are similar for asthma and anxiety.
I no longer take the Fostair as I feel it contributed to my anxiety and am now feeling much better though I am still feeling slightly congested but can now take deep breaths.
I'm not suggesting that our issues are the same but it could be that your breathlessness may also be anxiety related rather than pure asthma symptoms, especially with the heightened worrying situation with the coronavirus pandemic. Maybe something you could discuss with your GP?
Have a word with your asthma nurse when your review due or you gp about it.
Are you under the Respiratory Consultant at your local hospital if are you can always ring the hospital up and ask for your consultant secretary and explain about your inhaler she either have a word with your consultant or the specialist Asthma Nurses who work with the consultant.
Thanks yes I think I will try to get referred again. As I phoned the respiratory physio that I saw for advice , but she said as she hadn’t seen me in a year she couldn’t advise me on anything, which I was disappointed about. With Covid and the way things are running at my doctors they haven’t even said I can see the asthma nurse. I think they are doing everything online. Except I don’t seem to be able to get in contact with the asthma nurse. You have to wait two days for the doctor to come back to you as well with a text message which is hard to explain it all in. Sorry for the rambling 😞
what you do is ring up and say your asthma bad and your preventer not working and using your blue inhaler alot you need see someone urgent. the receptionist should either get you in or put you on phone call from the duty gp if you say its urgent you might get through quicker. Are you under the Respiratory consultant still if you are you can give your consultant secretary a ring she will either ask the consultant or their specialist asthma nurse and give you a call back.
Give asthma uk nurses a call they can advise you as well.
I found them good but as for your gp if you still having problems you can always change surgeries. I've had no problems either speaking or seeing gp or my adthma nurse at my surgery.. warn you they can't at moment do in surgery asthma check ups but you can speak to her/him over the phone.
My doctor messed around with different medications, then when i was fed up of his experimentation i insisted on being sent to a hospital. I chose to go to Southampton hospital because they are accredited as a national centre of excellence. They were brilliant, first they tested me for allergens and i found my triggers, then they-tried a couple of inhalers and also gave me Montelucast tablets. Dont let your GP randomly experiment, find a hospital that specialises and insist on going there.
The omaprazole may eventually cause long term problems, it reduces your much needed stomach acid, which in turn will stop you absorbing your food properly, it allowed Helico bactor Pylori to get a hold in my mother, which in turn caused an ulcer. The ulcer ruptured, mum collapsed with only a 15% chance of survival. She did survive but dont take this medicine lightly, investigate what happens with low stomach acid. - Known as Hypochlorhydria.
Thank you for your advice. I am really sorry your mum got so poorly on that medication and I have stopped taking it now as I didn’t feel any good effects in fact it upset my stomach and I would rather take gaviscon on occasion than those as they seemed really strong. I agree that my doctor shouldn’t just keep trialling sprays on me. He said to me it’s trial and error really finding what suits you! I have gone back to the pulmicort powder one as it seems to be getting used to me now. But to be honest I always felt better before being on the sprays unless I had a chest cold or allergies.
What is montelukast like? What allergies did you get tested for?
I got some allergy tests done and it came back just dogs and grass that I was allergic too. But I didn’t feel they did that many.
Then they did a Feno test which came back normal. But my other doctors said that doesn’t mean anything so not sure why I had it? This was all a year ago though and since then I have had Qvar for a few years and more recently them trying other sprays on me while I felt bad recently.
Montelukast is often used as the first add-on medication after inhalers, and can be prescribed by a GP - it doesn't need a referral. So for moderate asthma really - yes some people with severe asthma will be on it but being on it doesn't make one's asthma severe. It's supposed to help with any allergic response I think. Depends what they think your triggers might be I guess?
I haven’t been offered that one. But I was offered singulair to try about a year ago and I didn’t try it yet. They suggested switching to pulmicort powder inhaler which I have stayed with now as I had a horrible reaction to Flixotide inhaler and after three years on Qvar I started to feel like it was helping anymore. I think it may have been due to the pollen triggering it and the heat. I spoke to my asthma nurse the other day and she said as long as my peak flow was staying fairly stable she was happy which is between 430 and 450, I’m 5ft 8 inches and 55kg.
She said it can sometimes take 6 weeks to get used to a new inhaler, it has been three weeks now and it is feeling like I’m getting used to it and more stable.
I haven’t continued with the reflux medication as it didn’t help and I don’t get reflux that I am aware of.
That sounds promising if the Pulmicort us gradually helping more and more - be good if that does the trick for you. Your nurse sounds switched on too.
Peak flow is difficult to comment on because you'd need to know your best when you're well (even if that's relatively well!) The expected levels are only an average and many people's bests are higher or lower than that "expected" value. But if they're staying stable and the nurse is happy that sounds good for now. Actually as the pulmicort kicks in more, it might increase anyway.
Singulair is montelukast, just the brand name for it rather than the generic drug (like Ventolin vs salbutamol). But if the inhaler is working for now I'd stick with that and reassess in a few weeks. You'll hear or read horror stories of montelukast but many many people take it with no side effects at all, in case that allays concerns if it is suggested again.
Oh I didn’t realise it was the same drug. Yes I read the side effects and was worried.
I have a complicated history with asthma. Mostly if I have become unwell they have given me predinisone. But I guess you don’t want to get to that stage of needing it. I had to go into hospital about 6 years ago and my peak flow went to 360.
But I had not been on asthma medication for 25 years at that time and had been ok up until one spring after I had my baby and then the asthma came back. They put me on so much ventolin that I was shaking it was horrible. Then gradually weaned me off it, but I have never felt so bad on that drug, so I get scared about new medication but ultimately it saved my life so shouldn’t complain! Then a couple of years later a consultant said I was getting palpitations and he said he didn’t think I had asthma symptoms and he gave me a beta blocker that would sometimes induce asthma and monitored me and said stay on that for a while to get you over the ventolin issues and stop all your asthma treatment which I did and for two years I was as healthy as I had ever felt. Then I got some chest colds when my daughter started pre school and they put me back on them and took me off the beta blockers. Have been on asthma medication again for last few years.
My best peak flow is about 450.
It’s a rollercoaster sometimes but mostly ok luckily.
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