I was started on the above inhaler just before Christmas,, 19th December to be precise , taking two puffs morning and evening.
I’ve had mild asthma since age 11 , now 57, primarily exercise induced. It didn’t bother me at all for many years but recently I’ve been feeling like my rib cage has been swapped for one a couple of sizes smaller when I walk. Although my blue reliever inhaler doesn’t make a difference to this symptom, I have nevertheless been told it’s asthma and given the steroid inhaler. I’ve not noticed any difference yet but I suppose it is early days. My main problem is that I have been feeling increasingly lightheaded and slightly dizzy and I’m wondering if it’s the inhaler or whether I’ve got something else going on.
Any thoughts would be appreciated, thank you.
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Threecats
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Hi 3C, I would think there is something else going on there. I’ve been on Clenil or it’s cfc variant for about 20 years and have had no side effects even when first starting it. Suggest a visit back to the doc is best thing to do.
Clenil is a steroid inhaler so the maximum effects will build over a period of about 6 to 8 weeks. If you feel no improvement in control of your symptoms by then, then I would go back to your doctor for a review. It's interesting that your rescue inhaler (blue) doesn't improve your breathlessness, suggesting something else is at play. Asthma is the obvious diagnosis but if your prescribed meds aren't having any affect on your symptoms you need to assert that with your doctor after giving the inhalers a good trial. Keep a simple symptoms diary, just to satisfy yourself and your doctor that there's been no improvement.
The light headedness can be a side effect of both Ventolin and Clenil and may improve after you get used to taking the medication. But if it's ongoing, again it's something that you need to discuss with your doctor. There are other inhalers that may suit you better.
Inhaler technique is important though and YouTube has various vids on how you should use your inhalers to get the best results. Keep your shoulders down, exhale fully and then breath in the medication using the diaphragm and inhale thoroughly, keeping those shoulders down and try and hold your breath for at least 5 seconds. Exhale gently and repeat if necessary. Rinse thoroughly to ensure no residue is left to cause other oral side effects.
If at any stage your symptoms become worse then don't hesitate to go back to your doctor rather than wait 6 to 8 weeks. Feeling light headed or faint doesn't sound like asthma and can be caused by either inhaler, but if you had these symptoms before using either inhaler then that's something you need to stress with your doctor.
And next time you experience the shortness of breath/tight rib cage, check the colour of your lips. If they're tinged with blue then it would suggest that something other than asthma is the underlying cause and you should make your doctor aware of thus symptom at your next appointment.
I suffered extreme breathlessness over time and all the GP/consultants treated it as asthma, which I've had my entire life, it was the obvious cause. It turned out to be anaemia and my blood count was so low I ended up in hospital on transfusion. Just a scenario that's easily overlooked. I must admit that for 18 months I'd been saying "it's not asthma", but I should have been more assertive in my appointments and insisted on some tests. A simple blood test would have sufficed.
Thank you for your very detailed and helpful reply Poobah. It’s interesting to know how long it can be before the steroid can have its full effect. I wasn’t aware of the dizziness before starting the inhaler, hence my suspicion that it might be the cause.
Also interesting about your anaemia diagnosis. I had an echo in October that showed mild pulmonary hypertension and did wonder if that might be having some effect but have been told it isn’t, I also have a curvature of the spine that limits my lung capacity and presume that is having more effect as I age. Anyway, I’m seeing a respiratory physiotherapist next week, I’m hoping she will be able to give me advice on breathing exercises for both the asthma and to try and counter the effects of my spine problem.
Thank you again for all your advice. I’m glad you eventually got an answer to your problem but what a shame it got to that stage before the anaemia was picked up. I hope all is well now.
Definitely exploit the respiratory physiotherapist. Detail your struggle with rib expansion and that will help them focus on your specific symptoms and teach you the required exercises. Good luck with your appointment.
I had similar symptoms when starting on the same meds same dose at 54yo with adult onset asthma. The blue reliever gave me the shakes and made me light headed which is a common side effect. It will take a while for the Clenil to work fully as has been said. My ribcage ache was put down to the way I was breathing and also not exhaling fully due to poor breathing technique. The diaphragm and belly breathing method helped me.
Go easy on yourself this early on. Give the Clenil a chance to work and time for yourself to adjust to being more affected by the asthma. My GP reassured me with similar concerns after a few weeks. Hopefully your GP will do the same. Good luck.
Thank you for your kind reply, Deepbreath. I must confess I am still a bit in denial about this. I also have atrial fibrillation and so am very cautious using the blue inhaler as it can trigger episodes of AF for me but you’re right, when I do take it, it gives me the shakes , too.
Very interesting what you say about not breathing properly, I do suspect something similar going on with me too, as sometimes my ribs feel like they’re “locked” for want of a better description. As I’ve mentioned above, I’m seeing a respiratory physio next week, so hope she will give me some advice on that.
I have similar issue, every time I take Clenil,2 puffs bid it seems to bring asthma on.I stopped Qvar as it was doing the same thing. I have stuck with Clenil as it’s only mild but annoying, now wonder if it’s actually doing harm as would be used to it by now. Thought maybe just irritate sensitive lungs? & what’s the alternative?. Hope you find solution & would be good to know your findings please. Good luck.X 🤞
That is interesting to hear, Fraid, I had noticed that myself but thought perhaps I was imagining it. I do wonder if it’s the propellant which is causing the irritation. If I find anything out I’ll certainly let you know. Thank you for sharing your experience x
Hi just seen your reply in this post sounds like you might be allergic to the steroid inhaler given it brings on your asthma not helps. I was only 10yrs old ( now 42) when my mum noticed that the steroid inhaler becotide/ clenil actually caused me to have asthma attacks to the point of needing to be nebulised my mum refused to give me my " brown inhaler" back then but the asthma nurses were not as good when it came to my reviews thay insisted I demonstrate with the brown inhaler not the blue and because I refused to fully press down the nurse done and caused me to have a asthma attack believing that I was making it up even when a Dr was putting me on a nebuliser Infront of her yet I was not removed and this attitude carried on until I was in my 30's I am asked by a resant dr due to a respiratory illness why I'm not on a steroid inhaler and I informed him that I'm allergic to them he looks at my asthma file and say's about in the past and what happens I told him you wanna try it fine but before I get to reception I will be in full asthma attack he turned around and said right how about we just try another one and asked if I heard of quiver I said I would try he warned me that as soon as I feel I can't breathe let him know and we stop and try another if same after so many have been tried he was going to put on my file allergic to all proventers and asthma is to be managed by ventolin only.
I'm allergic to all proventers it's now on my file so my point is if you are having attacks and need your reliever or nebuliser get hold of your Dr and get some type of test done as you could be allergic to the proventer but also see how you are on different brands of the inhaler believe it or not I'm very hyper sensitive and I can only have one specific inhaler the ventolin evohalour by GSK any other blue ventolin/ salbutamol inhaler I'm allergic to so two things I hope can help you out one sounds like you are allergic to the one you are using and two are you ok on a different brand? Either way talk to your Dr.
Thank you for sharing your story, Winters. I’m sorry to hear what you’ve been through and am glad to learn that your allergy was eventually recognised and taken seriously. I do take a very small daily dose of Bisoprolol and have had to change the brand due to an allergy to the fillers used in the original one I was given, so allergy is certainly a possibility. I definitely need to look into this further.
No worries when I seen that it was mentioned how the inhaler was making the asthma worse given my own situation I thought I better throw in the fact of allergy as nobody else had mentioned it I thought if you heard my story and how long it took me to be labelled as allergic to all you would also see that it's not a common thing to suffer and really in truth thay ( the asthma nurses) need not to dissmiss the possibility so easy the reason I mentioned other brands and I get this "stupid remark" alot about how all inhalers have the exact same ingredients in them that is true but what about the quantity? You might have a little bit more of one item than another or how thay are combined? And that is why we are allergic to some but not others makes sense right? I promise I'm not a Dr or a scientist I just used my common sense here yet the stupid remark is asked to me by dr's,nurses and most of all asthma nurses and for me that's frightening. I hope this helps you find answers
Unfortunately, I know where you’re coming from , having experienced similar from certain medical professionals in the past. Thank you again for sharing your story.
You are more than welcome Threecats as I said I just seen the reply and thought I better mention it we do come here for help and advice so hopefully I have helped you by sharing my story and given you some advice that you didn't have before hopefully this will help you out with your options.Good luck
I found my breathlessness increased slightly when I first started using Clenil, but one of my biggest triggers is alcohol, so the doctor reckoned it was probably the alcohol in the propellant causing it. For the first couple of weeks, I took Ventolin straight after the Clenil, and once the asthma was more under control, I found that the Clenil no longer caused a problem. (And different inhalers can definitely cause different reactions - I can't remember the name of the one they started me on before the Clenil, but it caused major breathing problems. I wasn't nearly so bad on the Clenil, even at the start - just a slight puffiness compared to full-on I-can't-breathe trouble I had with the other one!)
I do get shaky and lightheaded after taking Ventolin, but again, I've found if I take it promptly, as soon as I feel any discomfort, the symptoms are not nearly so bad (I was waiting until I was really struggling for breath before using it, as I've always been the kind of person who uses medication as a last resort!) As I used to be shaky and lightheaded after having an asthma attack pre-diagnosis, I suspect that the shakiness is probably as much due to the stress of not being able to breathe properly as it is to the Ventolin!
Have you got a way to help calm yourself down during the I can't breathe stage? As to alot of people this is a combination of a panic and asthma attack ( oh my god I can't breathe panic).
Because I've had asthma since I was 2yrs old I've found ways to calm myself down easy actually I've even had to tell people off for making me laugh when having a asthma attack ( thay make more fuss than me) I think my father -in-law has to be the best for making me laugh during a asthma attack he seen I couldn't breathe and I had my inhaler in my hand ( I'm trying to regulate my breathing so I'm concentrating and getting ready for the right time to put my inhaler in my mouth it's a brand new one by the way) so he rushed to me stealing my inhaler and runs out of the building ( yeah what the hell!!! I'm stunned I'm still trying to regulate my breathing and I'm thinking ok maybe he's getting a Dr I am in a non English country and he doesn't talk English and I don't talk Arabic and that's why he stole my inhaler because it's from my Dr in my country) well he comes back and I'm stable I just need the inhaler he's telling me in Arabic " here I got you a new inhaler as yours empty take now you be ok yes" he thought my inhaler was empty and bought me a new one I couldn't help but laugh and give him a smile but I had to re-do my breathing because I laughed during a asthma attack I couldn't help it I ended up with two new inhalers over that.
But try to distract yourself during the panic stage just don't laugh counting, a song, meditation , planning out your day ect .
Give it a go a good song fighting one that helps is " I will servive"
Those are really good tips. I don't tend to panic as such - having had untreated asthma for two years, when I had no idea why it was happening, how much worse the breathlessness was going to get and if I'd actually stop breathing, now that I have something that works to make it better, I don't tend to get anxious any more. It's more the physical effort of trying to breathe that leaves me feeling shaky and exhausted after. So making sure I reach for the Ventolin as soon as I feel uncomfortable and not trying to 'wait it out' has definitely been the best thing to do. But while I'm waiting for it to work, I do find that mentally repeating something I know, like a poem, helps take my mind off how horrible I'm feeling.
Happy new year, I think for most it's as you said that wait to get the inhaler in you and of course trying or waiting for the big breath as I have said I've been asthmatic since well forever so I made it fun I've had to talk or point talk during these phases of attacks I've even told my husband ( ex husband now) that if he didn't leave me to do my breathing ( point talk kind like sign) me and him would end up in a fight and I would win he thought I was joking about that but anyone who goes through what we do have no problems flooring class clowns like my husband let's just say he learnt never to mess with a asthmatic I had fun because of him joking I managed to get the big breath and I'm very patient so attack over now WWE time on husband ( I don't like sports) I won he's looking like " how you do that you couldn't breathe 5 minutes ago you shouldn't have been able to it's impossible " all is fair in love,war and trying to breathe lol.
Asthma is a part of you learn to know the signs but don't fear them make the worst side of asthma fun and you will impress people by how amazing you are because you are doing something impossible.
Thank you, Mandevilla, that’s very interesting. I hadn’t thought of the alcohol content of the inhaler. I’ve avoided alcohol since my AF started a couple of years ago and so wonder if it might be that. I must say, I am with you on not taking meds until I have to😊
The 'don't take meds unless you have to' works for most things, but don't do it with the Ventolin. It's so much easier to manage if you use your blue inhaler the moment you first realise your breathing is a bit off.
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