Has the storm/change in weather impacted on you?

[Lbal]

Has anyone had asthma flare ups preceding the storm and after that we have just experienced? I had a bad asthma attack on the Wednesday night and have been woken every night since. I get seasonal asthma so I am wondering if the change in weather is a big impact? Currently only on salbutamol but need to get a preventative.

[Mandevilla]

I have. Weather is one of my biggest triggers - damp or humid weather is bad, rainy weather is worse and fog is the worst of all.

[Poobah]

Yes, I react to weather changes, usually pressure and humidity. Definitely get maintenance meds, even a small regular dose of inhaled steroids may help more than you realise. But be patient as it will take around 8 weeks for the full benefit to be built up.

[Panda_girl]

Gosh…me too. I’m nick named weather girl. Before there are any visible signs of rain, my chest closes up; Coughing starts. I always wondered if this was a real thing or in my mind🤦🏽‍♀️Glad to hear I’m not the only one. I have cough variant asthma and it’s always flairing up with change in weather, even slight wind.

It’s truly frustrating so I feel for you.

We purchased a dehumidifier and it’s helps some what when I need to sleep on rainy or humid days.

[Mandevilla in reply to Panda_girl]

I've just been lent a dehumidifier - I'm excited to see if it makes a difference!

That weather thing is definitely not in your mind - I get a slight increase in breathing trouble just before it starts raining, and then much worse as soon as the rain actually comes down. We've got that horrible, fine misty rain today, which is the absolute worst!

[Panda_girl in reply to Mandevilla]

Glad to hear…hope the dehumidifier works for you. Same here today, well actually the whole week every evening. So I know what you mean. Please let us know how the dehumidifier pans out.

[Mandevilla in reply to Panda_girl]

Early days, but I think it's working. I had it running in the bedroom with the door closed and every time I went in there, I felt much better after a few minutes. It might be all in my mind, but I don't think so, as my brain doesn't work that way with other things that are 'meant' to make me feel better. And when breathing is this hard, I should think it would be difficult to imagine an improvement!

Today we have clear blue skies and sunshine, so I'll have to wait for another rainy patch to test it out again.

[Ilis]

Hello,

Yes I do know this "phenomen" (let's call it this way). I also have asthma symptoms when there's a big storm, especially in summer (it depends on the pollen I'm allergic to I guess but I am not sure about that, the correlation storm-pollen-asthma is only hypothetical.)

Even though I am unsure if this is a thing or not (if this theory has a clinical value), I've heard about a few asthmatic people who also had experienced the same...

Therefore when I know a storm is coming I close all the windows before the storm and stay inside, and I take a shower to breathe (hot water helps me with asthma, no idea if it could help you too?)

I hope you're feeling better now!

[Lysistrata Administrator Community Ambassador in reply to Ilis]

Also tend to be a weather forecast (for those who have seen Mean Girls, my lungs = Karen's boobs, and just as useful 🤣) My asthma isn't allergic so rather than pollen in my case, I believe it's related to changing pressures and possibly the effect of weather on air pollution. For those with allergic asthma, I believe storms can break down pollen into smaller particles which are more easily inhaled, and this can be part of the picture.

I don't do well with hot and/or humid conditions (used to be cold weather was worse, now it's hot). This means I'm worse with steamy conditions so the shower would make things worse, but I'm aware it may be different for others.

[Ilis in reply to Lysistrata]

Hii,

Yes you gave the complete answer here, so I am glad you found an explanation to your asthma in that particular case (not knowing what is the trigger to an asthma attack can be hard I guess). Even if it has nothing to do with pollens, I have no idea if keeping your windows closed can help...

Maybe your doctor/ pneumologist or your asthma nurse could have a solution for you? Or maybe some people on this forum also suffer from asthma when there's a storm and have already found something to help them, so you could make a new post to ask them?

Take care,

Ilis

[Jollygood]

I once heard a phrase ‘if you want to know the weather forecast ask a farmer or an asthmatic’.

[PhoebePippa2017]

Hi,My severe asthma is triggered by the weather. It is to do with the allergens in the atmosphere which are stirred up by wind or broken down into smaller particles by rain. This means they can get further into my lungs. My preferred weather is calm, dry, no rain (not much of that here in the UK).

During the peak of storms Dudley and Eunice I was very short of breath and using my reliever inhaler more than usual (more than doubled). On Saturday it was back down to normal.

Hope that helps