25 with bronchiectasis

[iamgg]

Hello good evening! I'm from the Philippines. 😊 How are the people here? Does anyone here has a bronchiectasis ages 30 below? I wanna know you and I just want to find out and relate to you! I wanna hear your stories because I know this type of illness doesn't choose any specific age. Of course any age can also comment down below and share pieces of advices. Thank you, have a nice day. 😊

[Alberta56]

Welcome to the forum. You are very young to have bronchiectasis. I think the tips for living healthily apply whatever age you are- eat sensibly, drink plenty of water and exercise as much as you are able. Do they have Pulmonary Rehabilitation courses in the Philippines? A lot of us have found them very helpful.

[iamgg in reply to Alberta56]

Yes it sounds dismaying but I can't do nothing from it and just have to fight for it. 😐🙂 And thank you for your tips. I don't know if we have Pulmonary Rehab here. We have little access here when it comes medical things unlike in Europe which is very very accessible and free. I will find if you have.

[Hidden]

Hello iamgg and well done for reaching out to others with experience of bronchiectasis. I am 72 and have lived with bronch since I was 3 years old. There are also quite a few others on the forum who have the experience of how bronch affects young people and have led full and active lives. ( and continue to do so) The secret is in taking control and managing the condition. Self management and managing your doctors. Making sure that you have a bronchiectasis specialist because general respiratory consultants don't know enough about it. The specialist should tell your GP to give you a rescue pack of antibiotics to keep at home to start when an exacerbation begins and they should have a physio to teach you methods of loosening and bringing out the mucus. I don't know the health system in the Phillipines but I hope that this is available to you.Self management in scrupulously emptying your lungs every day of the mucus in which the bacteria which make us ill like to breed. Being able to recognise when these bacteria are beginning to multiply and taking antibiotics quickly. A good diet, plenty of exercise and not being defined by your condition. Do come back if you have specific questions. We bronchs are here to support you and have accurate memories of what growing up and living with it is like.

[iamgg in reply to Hidden]

Thank you so much Littlepom. I have read before your experiences here and I truly admire you for being active, brave, strong despite of the illness you have taken since you were very young. You became an inspiration to me and to many here. I still don't know if there is a bronch specialist here in our place all I have is a Lung/ pulmonary specialist. And may U ask what's the meaning of gp?

My doctor doesnt give me rescue packs of antibiotics. She says that I should come to her everytime I am unwell and experiencing discomfort. Sometimes I think that it isnt appropriate since I must not go to her immediately everytime I experience symptoms since its costly and it is far from our home.

[iamgg in reply to iamgg]

And having rescue packs with me is very important.

[Hidden in reply to iamgg]

hello iamgg, it’s lovely to hear from you. In the UK the GP is the general doctor which we all go to as first base with any medical problem. They usually prescribe the antibiotics for our exacerbations.Unfortunately they know nothing about bronch and confuse it with copd which is very different. The guidelines for the treatment of bronch (you can find them on the internet) state that the patient should have an emergency pack at home to begin as soon as an exacerbation begins and that this should be two weeks of the appropriate antibiotic. I presume that the doctor who is insisting that you visit her every time is a respiratory consultant. She is displaying the fact that most general respiratory consultants also know very little about treating and living with bronch. I suggest that you send her an email containing the bronch guidelines and requesting that she instruct a local doctor to keep you supplied with the rescue pack. You aren’t alone with this problem. For some reason many doctors in the UK are refusing to supply emergency packs for copd patients and this is also causing problems for bronch patients whose doctors do not understand the difference between the two conditions. I do hope that you get this sorted out because the infection has to be caught very early on in order to prevent the cycle which leads to more lung damage. You need to be very proactive over this. It is enough of a burden that we have to include daily management and learning to know when the bugs are having a party without having to fight ignorant, obstructive medics for the drugs that we need.

By the way. I have never considered that I have an illness. I just live with the little devil that I have to keep in its place. Being determined to do this, to live life fully and be like everybody else can be tiring and many people do not understand that it sometimes takes three times the effort to do what they do without thinking. You sound as though you are well able to take control and you have a community of feisty bronchs here to support you. Don’t forget to empty those lungs every day!

[Izb1]

Hi iamgg and welcome to the site x

[iamgg in reply to Izb1]

Thank you for the warm welcome. 🤗🤗

[watergazer]

hi and welcome iamgg Littlepom is a great person to talk to about bronchiectasis. I would say we can all experience different symptoms. I don’t have much off a cough or sputum until I get a flare up but then I am badly affected and it can take a while to recover. I also have asthma so sometimes it’s difficult to tell whether it’s asthma or bronch that’s affecting me Take care x

[iamgg in reply to watergazer]

Aww thank you for the welcome. And yes, Littlepom, I heard her stories and her comments everytime someone posts here. My case is called traction bronchiectasis and I have few information about my illness. Hope you are coping with your asthma and bronch. Take care as well. 🤗🤗

[Jaybird19]

welcome to the site . littlepom is very good and knows a lot . i have what is called atypical bronchiectasis not so much production of sputum until get an actual infection . then I do and bacteria cause green sputum . I also have asthm a i am told like wqatergazer.

are you living here or in the phillipines ? we do have many of your people working here and they are always very helpful and kind.

[iamgg in reply to Jaybird19]

Nice to meet you. 🤗 I live here in the Philippines and I am currently here. Yes we have nurses working in UK and they are hardworking. Thank you for appreciating our people. Take care as well 🤗

[Morrison10]

Hi, I was born with PCD, unsure when developed Bronchectasis, but think might have been when age II was very ill. I’m 87, 88 in July. Advice from Littlepom is very good. Best wishes, Jean x

[iamgg in reply to Morrison10]

Hello Morrison10 nice to meet you. Advance happy birthday and your age is quite amazing! I am remembering as long as I can the advices of Littlepom. Thank you. 🤗

[Patk1]

Hello & welcome to the forum. I do hope yr bronchiectasis is mild.the main things are to empty the mucous frm yr airways ea day,drink plenty of fluids to help thin it & try to stay away frm people with viral infections - colds,coughs,flu etc as they can cause an exacerbation.treat infections quickly.there are lung clearance tips on ALUK.

[iamgg in reply to Patk1]

Thank you for the tips. This is a great help. I was diagnosed traction bronchiectasis. I do not much understand it as my doctor didnt explain it very clearly. And yeah, drinking plenty of fluids is very important but sometimes I feel my stomach bloat whenever I drink too much and I am an acidic person. I am also thinking that the reason of my acid reflux is the water than I am taking much. 😐

[Alberta56]

There are pulmonary rehabilitation courses on the internet. Some people here prefer them to going to a class. A GP (general practitioner) is a doctor.