Hi All,
I’ve had asthma for a long time but it’s changed in the last year, I know present as non wheezing and I lose my voice, I’ve had 5 episodes this year 1 of which put in hospital for a short time but I don’t think the doctors believe me as I don’t wheeze, does anyone else have the same symptoms?
J
Hi Jason. I don’t wheeze, but I don’t loose my voice. I have read posts by others who don’t wheeze either.
Hiya, I wouldn't mind so much but getting fed up with doctors thinking nothing is wrong with me.
I have the same problem Jason. I tend to go armed with peak flow charts, but sometimes it makes no difference if the GP listens to my chest.
On the other hand, I go for regular appointments ( thank goodness) at the respiratory clinic at the hospital - monitoring visits. I have had countless appointments and no one there has ever listened to my chest. They work off symptoms.
Two totally different approaches.
Hi
Sorry to hear you’re not doing well.
Having read another reply of yours on a different thread suggesting that salbutamol doesn’t help the issue, have you looked in to any asthma mimics/comorbidities such as vocal cord dysfunction/inducible laryngeal obstruction, or a breathing pattern dysfunction? It may explain what you’re experiencing and why asthma meds don’t help, why you keep loosing your voice and why you’re not wheezing having always done it prior! Has your PF been affected during these episodes? (Not that’s PF is the be all and end all, but it does sometimes help show the picture a bit)
It may be that it’s your asthma, it may be a mimicker or it may be a mixture of both! There’s some info on breathing dysfunctions here; healthunlocked.com/asthmauk.... Unfortunately I don’t think anyone’s don’t a write up on VCD/ILO yet (they are the same thing 😅) but a quick google will help with that. If you do think a mimic is involved then you can go armed with that suggestion next time you see the AN, and luckily a lot of mimics are ‘easily’ treatable (breathing exercises etc)
To answer your original question tho, it is possible to have asthma without a wheeze 😅. My wheeze depends on the trigger; allergy triggers I don’t wheeze (tho i tend to get saturation issues), but other triggers (exercise/weather/infection etc) I do get a lung wheeze (but sats usually remain stable 😅😂).
I know it’s a BH weekend, but if you’re concerned or need further advice or just want to talk it through with someone the AUK helpline nurses are great and can be reached on 0300 2225800 M-F 9-5. Alternatively their WhatsApp service is 07378 606728.
Good luck and hope you find the answer soon!
Fabulous info EmmaF91.
I don't wheeze -my lungs just shut down -has happened many times in hospital.I can wheeze when airways start to open up again.
As one consultant said 'beware the silent chest' not all asthmatics wheeze if attack severe but as you so rightly state there are causes other than asthma.
Yup. The magically reappearing wheeze is a fun one 😅😂. I usually tell docs that my wheeze is the last to appear with asthma, first to disappear if silent chest (my cough also disappears/goes pathetically weak and high pitched). It frustrates me tho as very few docs actually look for silent chest, so what can happen is ‘fight for neb as no wheeze’, then get a wheeze and it’s ‘oh crap, let’s give ALL THE DRUGS’ 🤦♀️🤦♀️.
Hi i generally dont wheeze but I do find people expect you to... and my peak flow doesn't always represent a true picture of actual symptoms. I'm currently in hospital and because no wheeze and peak flow stable last 3 days no nebuliser even though tachycardic, and resp 30. I'm confused... but I wish you good luck!!! 👌😁
Right up until last year I was a “classic” asthma sufferer. I had a series of attacks that at first I thought were panic attacks (racing heart rate, difficult breathing) as I wasn’t wheezing and had a good peak flow. My doctor also said anxiety as my PF was great. However they went on for hours ( worse one was 12 hours) which really didn’t make sense to me if they were panic issues.
It wasn’t until one of these attacks happened with a wheeze that I took my blue. My heart rate dropped after about 5 mins and my breathing became easier. Next time it happened there was no wheeze but I went straight to the blue and low and behold I responded.
My asthma meds were increased and the attacks stopped after 3 weeks of treatment.
Good to hear you almost sorted, the blue rarely helps, mine also last for several days, the first 1 this year lasted 5 weeks before letting up, when I had classic asthma it was so much easier, everytime I call 111 they think I'm having a heart attack because of the chest pain.
I did find that I was taking more and more blue with each attack. It was rarely lasting more than an hour before I became tight again and breathless. A daily attack became the norm for me for about a month.
My meds where stepped up to the next level which reduced the frequency, then under the care of a consultant up another level, after which I went 3 months attack free. My last attack was Oct 19. I’ve had some wobbles but nothing like what it was.
Whenever I’m really bad my usual gasped first comment to medical staff is “I don’t ever wheeze”
Hi Jason, I don't usually wheeze. Sometimes I get a very small wheeze after an attack but usually my chest just gets tighter until I can't breath. This can build up over a few hours or come on more suddenly. It is very frustrating at times as, in my experience, doctors expect asthmatics to wheeze. Don't let it put you off. After years of symptoms I know now it is asthma but for many years I didn't deal with things well because I thought maybe it wasn't or I was making too big a deal of things. It was after a huge attack that I knew I had to go about things differently. Even of there are other possibilities other than asthma it is worth looking into.
I hope you get some answers.
I’ve been suffering like this since the beginning of March. No wheezing just a tightness in my chest and my ventolin has no effect whether I take it or not. My asthma has been controlled for 48 years so I can’t understand the change. I have been put on Montelukast tablets and over the past months, been prescribed Forstair, Duoresp Spiromax and now Flutiform which I have to say is helping a little. Problem is when you can’t see a Dr face to face it’s extremely difficult to get a good result. I have to say Asthma UK have been amazing and without their advice to change to Flutiform I would still be struggling even more than I am at the moment. Hope things improve for you.
Hi,
I changed to Flutiform at Christmas after my biggest attack and it seemed to help but I'm now on my 5th serious attack this year, I used to have possible 1 bad attack a year when I had wheezing asthma so its very confusing
Hi, yes I can’t say Flutiform has cured it but compared to what it was on the other inhalers it’s an improvement but it’s so frustrating to go from having well controlled asthma then to suddenly having this tightness most days. Had chest X-ray and bloods all came back fine. Eventually given steroids but again no change. It’s a little scary thinking what else is there to try and like you say very confusing!
I don’t wheeze so therefore I don’t always get to the GP when I should. Many a time I’ve had a chest infection which then takes weeks to clear
Hi Jason
I used to wheeze when I was a child but since I was put on Seretide 15+ years ago it stopped the wheezing but my main symptom now is tight/sore chest. My peak flow also doesn't really drop despite my symptoms being pretty bad, again seems to be since I've been on Seretide. I was told by an occupational health GP once that because I didn't wheeze I didn't have asthma...! Most doctors now understand this isn't the case but you still get some who don't realise this. I was tested for vocal chord dysfunction a few times but they found no evidence, though it can come and go, however I don't lose my voice so vocal chord dysfunction may be an issue for you. Have you been referred to ENT to see if they can investigate this?
Many of us don't wheeze. I have severe asthma and even during my worst attacks I rarely wheeze except when I do forced exhales. This is common with severe asthmatics whose asthma manifests in their small airways. So frustrating how many doctors and nurses don't know this.
Yes if they hear me wheezing I'm normally in the sh##$%.... I've been heard wheezing 3 times in 6 years none of which where very good .... but normally don't wheeze
I dont have a wheeze only when I have a chest infection. It is annoying when dr say you fine because there is not a wheeze. I wouldn't going to the dr. You will find out yourself what normal for you. I have 100 per cent oxygen when I am poorly and when I am myself and because of that I dont always get the right treatment. I find it frustrating sometimes too.
I don’t wheeze, but after many many tests & hospital admissions it was found that I have both severe asthma & VCD (which in my case is laryngospasm). The laryngospasm stops me breathing momentarily & then makes my voice v hoarse, or I lose it totally for a few days. It’s not painful but we’re now realising that it’s usually my first warning sign that my asthma is about to escalate.
I have GERD, rhinitis and asthma, I got the rhinitis and asthma after GERD. I don't wheeze either, it just gets tighter in my chest. I also have a huskier voice now either caused by the GERD or inhalers.
Hi, Yes I don’t wheeze at all. I have asthma and even if I get a chest infection I don’t wheeze but I get shortness of breath when exposed to a trigger and it can come on suddenly if I don’t take my preventatives.
I also developed a dysfunctional breathing pattern and had to have a respiratory consultant to train me to do diaphragmatic breathing it really helped and I still have to practice that breathing daily as it focuses you away from the chest breathing panicked feeling. It takes a lot of perseverance and of course you must take the reliever when you need it. But it is a good back up to helping stabilise yourself when things are tough. The pollen really affected me this year and doesn’t normally this much. Things are seeming better now.
I also got told by a consultant that silent reflux can create the shortness of breath and worsen asthma without a wheeze so I think that can be a big issue.
I had a nasal laparoscopy and a feno test and they couldn’t find any other reason why my breathing was so bad other than mild asthma combined with silent reflux.
I rarely wheeze, but do lose my voice at least twice a year.
I’ve heard a lot of people say they don’t wheeze when they are having a bad asthma attack so I guess it’s quite common. Unfortunately I’m not one of them people I always have a wheeze to the point I have friends who name me wheezy after the penguin from toystory. So sometimes not having a wheeze is a good thing 😂
Yeah I'm sure that can be annoying (like I get called Darth Vader because of my nebs 😅) but when you don't wheeze you're usually not believed (whereas wheeze is automatically asthma to many docs, paramedics, people in general). And if it's very bad no wheeze can mean silent chest which is dangerous. So I'd choose wheeze if I could! 😂
Like Twinkly29 I would actually prefer to wheeze for the same reason - no wheeze doesn't mean the attack isn't as bad, just makes it more likely you won't be believed! It's also harder to pick up that someone's chest is quiet/silent due to lack of air movement so there's a danger that someone will miss it and say 'it's clear so all fine'.
Even if not in a bad attack, some drs also seem to expect a wheeze with any degree of asthma which again isn't the case, as there are 4 classic symptoms of asthma and you don't need to have them all. Sometimes you can reel off 10 other signs/symptoms indicating poor control but for some the wheeze is all that matters, and not having it again can lead to not getting treatment even if you're not acute and in silent chest.
That actually makes a lot of sense as i had a really bad attack a month ago and the paramedics listened to my chest and said there was reduced air entry but no wheeze I was barely conscious and had low sats luckily they went by what they saw rather than what they could hear so I can imagine how frustrating it must be for you to have to go through that when you are feeling so bad
Got to see a new doctor and she has decided that I most likely have copd now, I've got to wait to see a specialist but after reading up on it I don't think I do, so confused again.
That’s a really interesting thread you’ve started Jason_E. I didn’t realise that there were so many people out there who don’t wheeze.
I used to feel a bit of a fake because I have never wheezed either. My chest feels what I can only describe as ‘fizzy’ - my asthma nurses obviously don’t have anyone else who gets that feeling because they just look at me whenever I’ve said that, sometimes too I feel as if I’m breathing in damp, steamy air or else (most common) I get chest pains - I used to think I was having a heart attack - now I know I’m actually needing to increase my brown inhaler for a while. Sure enough that fixes it so I suppose I’m not a fake after all.
There certainly seams to be lots of different types of asthma and as I asthma nurse said, gp's only know about the regular type, after that they don't have a clue which is fair enough as they have to know so much anyway but what annoys me is when they don't believe you so when you get one that listens its great.
Asthma does seem to be a very complicated condition and research seems to be uncovering many different variations in presentation.
I rarely wheeze and struggle more with being able to inhale. I have been told it is bronchial spasms. However, in the UK I find doctors and nurses are not well educated about asthma. If I say I don't wheeze then I get odd looks but I do try to educate them that not all asthmatics wheeze.
Bit late to the party here! I did wheeze when I was a child (long time ago) but over the past few decades have just (!?) been really short of breath when I'm having an exacerbation.
Last week I was in A and E and I'm sure it wasn't seen as an emergency with just a heaving chest and the inability to complete sentences.
I don't know what to do!
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