Hi, I’ve recently been diagnosed with allergic Asthma and it’s suspected I have COPD (I also have RA) I started my Trimbow today but have been using a blue inhaler for six weeks now. I’m sleeping upright every night due to wheezing, creaking and coughing (I’ve been doing this for over three months) and I’ve been using my blue inhaler a lot, I was wondering if this is okay? My prescription says to use it as two puffs, three times a day but my doctor said to use it whenever I felt I needed to - I just worry it will stop working or cause me more damage somehow?
If anything it feels like the Trimbow has made me worse but I’m telling myself it will just take time, I hoping that’s right?
thank you in advance for any advice or help anyone can give me with this
Nikki
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Entropy-
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Hello Nikki,welcome to this group.I don't know the answer to your question,I only joined a couple of days ago.But I am sure in the morning people in this group will be able to assist you.They are very friendly and helpful
From mid summer 2024 I have become increasingly breathless. By December 2024 it was bad enough for my GP to organise a Spirometry with Sabutomol lung function test, by mid January 2025 my GP pronounced mild COPD. However, there are two aspects of COPD - asthma and / or bronchostenosis ............ although TBH, it all the same to me. Either way, I don't know which of the two my GP is treating.
In January 2025 my GP prescribed my blue inhaler, called, Easyhaler with Sabutomol and I can inhale that twice at a time up to 4 times per day .......... this makes 8 inhales per day. TBH, I actually got no instructions on use from my GP. Got it from NHS online.
Oddly enough, I have good sleep and when I am woken up at night it is from osteoarthritic pain in one or other shoulder ( usually the left ). I'm a side sleeper, tending to favour my left side !
I don't think it is brilliant by any means and I tend to favour my nasal spray to control my lungs ...... Mometasone furoate 50 micrograms per actuation. This suggests to me that my sinuses are causing more problems than my GP realises. I have never been put on Trimbow. Yet 😱.
Thank you for your reply, I’m not sure I’d been using my blue inhaler properly have you checked that you are? I had a better night last night so I’m going to try and see how today goes before I call the doctor back.
I’m a bit confused by it all still too, I’ve looked up some of the information about Asthma but haven’t looked very far into COPD yet as it scares me too much. There’s been a lot of lung cancer in my family and my Aunt passed from Emphysema a few years back.
Right now I’m just trying to get my breathing under control as my cough and mucus production are making everything difficult, after reading some of the posts on here I did some controlled coughing before I tried to sleep which brought up some stuff which I think helped them used my blue inhaler properly.
Going to try the Trimbow again now. I hope your symptoms aren’t too uncomfortable
Just making the correction for Entropy- to avoid confusion, as they are new here and to lung probs.John, u could request a lung ct scan to clarify yr diagnosis
my rescue inhaler is briycanol for some reason ventolin has never worked for me I would take it as needed within reason if trimbow isn't working go back to your gp
Thank you, I had a better night last night, I only woke up twice, and so I’m going to try using the Trimbow again this morning and see how today goes. I think I’m learning to use my blue one better and I’m picking up a spacer today. So tired of going in and out of the doctors for weeks I’m desperate for the Trimbow to just work
Hi, thank you, yes a specialist nurse (I think?) showed me how to use the Trimbow with the spacer on Friday but I don’t think anyone ever mentioned there was a technique to using inhalers on their own. But Tbf they may have and I didn’t pick it up
Hi, sorry to hear you are struggling, with eosinophilic asthma it's super important to bring the mucus/sticky casts up really well every day, developing a daily routine of breathing physio and huffing are a must, you can Google these or could ask your gp for a referral to a physio, you'll find the inhalers work better when your chest clearance is good, carbocisteine helps breakdown the mucus might be worth asking your gp about adding this to your regime, perhaps ring the ALUK nurses on the helpline for their advice, your gp probably won't know what they're dealing with re the eosinophilia so you might need to push for a consultant referral, these respiratory illnesses need expert care to manage properly, I'm glad to hear you slept better last night, exhaustion doesn't help anything x sending you lots of good wishes, I have eosinophilic too so happy to help if I can x Nicola
I'm sorry I didn't mean to upset you xx I know how difficult the eosinophilic journey is, and until I joined here last year thought I was the only person trying to live with it, it is manageable and does get easier the more you understand it and the more time you put into managing it each day, it's a journey lots of people on here have been on, and they will all offer you as much help and support as they can as they have done for me x sending a 🤗 x Nicola
I found a gadget called an AeroBika really helped to bring the mucus up. It would be worth asking your doctor about this when you next see them. COPD is not so scary these days-it can be brought under control so the wheezing and coughing can be largely done away with. Good luck- you are in a bad place at the moment, but things should start to get better. By the way, welcome to the forum.
Hi, I find your body needs to adjust and get used to the medication (inhalers) . I went through 6 different inhalers to find the one that worked for me, each one was used for two weeks and talked to gp . now have a preventer inhaler 2 puffs a day and a blue inhaler (reliever) as and when needed . Like you my doctor just said use when needed but I have only needed it a few times, you do need to keep an eye on dates. I had one 3 months passed it’s date and it didn’t work. Kevin
Hi Kev, thank you, I’ve just checked the dates on them all (they’ve given me two of each) and they are all good, but I will keep checking. I’m to have two puffs in the morning and two in the evening of the Trimbow, I don’t think I did it properly yesterday, I was far more careful this morning and I should be able to use a spacer this evening. I don’t suppose you know if I will be able to lay down properly again at some point when I get it under control? I can’t even sleep sitting up on my right side (I just have continuous coughing fits) but I can on my left and carried on sleeping after sliding down in the night (which has previously been waking me up).
Also I notice it’s not sunny today, is it likely that that may have made my night/morning a bit easier? Or do we just have good days and bad? Sorry for all of the questions and thank you so much
Anything & everything! Can affect our breathing. You should find u get more of the inhaler absorbed using spacers.do breathe in deep& slow( softly) + hold breathe for few seconds, before exhaling slowly, when using inhalers - it also helps it to be absorbed.
When I was put on Trimbow I found it took a couple of weeks before I really felt the benefit.I suggest you persevere for a while.If no change in couple of weeks then reconsider.
Phone the surgery and ask to see someone ASAP, preferably the asthma nurse if your surgery has one. You need someone to check your inhaler technique and it's best to you a spacer if you have one, if not ask for one.You shouldn't need to use your blue rescue inhaler so often so you either need your preventative inhaler regime tweaked or your technique improved. It is difficult to get it right in the beginning so ask for help.
Hi, thank you, yes I tried to use my spacer with my rescue inhaler but couldn’t get it right so I’ve used the Trimbow without it now I’ve got the hang of it on its own. My nurse is off for Easter but I thought I could ask the pharmacist to show me what I might be doing wrong tomorrow or my GP failing that? I’m trying to use the spacer taking three breaths as I struggled with one.
please contact your health professional tomorrow or ring 111 for advice ….its Wednesday tomorrow and the long weekend is coming up .
You have been diagnosed with asthma due to an allergy ….did allergy tests show which substance affects you . My three asthmatic daughters are allergic to different things …housedust , dogs , horses , grass pollen , nuts .
It’s hay fever season now too , birch pollen gets me .
So you were given only Ventolin / Salbutamol / Salamol for six weeks before Trimbow ?
I have problems with the blue inhaler , I have to get the balance right between preventer and reliever .
Did your health professional check your inhaler technique , give you a plan of action , what to do in an emergency etc ?
Please get checked tomorrow , and your pharmacist and ALUK helpline will be open tomorrow for advice as well
Hi, thank you, it’s all been a bit of a blur to be honest, just over three months ago I started coughing at night and my chest started creaking, loud creaks, squeaks and other odd sounds, I found I could only sleep sporadically sitting up on my left side, I was coughing up thick sticky mucus of different colours, I then caught a cold that my son brought home from uni and I had a chest infection day and night so the GP gave me two lots of doxycycline which made no difference so I gave a sputum sample which came back as showing no infection, they then gave me my first blue inhalerI went for an X-ray which showed nothing so I had a blood test which had a high Eosinophils and other inflammatory markers (I have RA so I often have those), I was really struggling for breath by this point when moving around or when getting into bed. I then had a Feno test which was 156 and they booked me for a spirometry and they said I have Asthma and possibly COPD as the cough is so constant and I’m an ex smoker. I assumed this was Eosinophilic because of the Feno test but I haven’t received the letter yet so maybe I’m wrong in that? Ive stopped my elderly cat from sleeping in my bedroom and have made sure it’s completely fur and dust free which I think helped a bit. I’m still creaking and wheezing at night or if I walk up the stairs or to the bottom of the garden, I can still only lean on my left side. The phlegm is usually light green now or dirty white but it’s not so thick or sticky, I’m drinking a lot of water and avoiding pop which seems to set me off.
My nurse said to call the GP if I have any problems as she’s away for Easter
The above advice is a good idea, your profile says you were diagnosed eosinophilic yesterday, this could be why you are so dependent on the blue inhaler, it works for short bursts (4hours) to open up your airways, but shouldn't be over depended on, I know this as I became totally dependent on the blue salamol before my eosinophilic diagnosis, I was taking 2 puffs every 4 hours/24 hours a day at one point, when I got this desperate I went private and he was appalled I'd been left by my gp using so much, it can give you problems with your heart if you over use for extended periods of time, so I would echo what's been said and speak to 111 tomorrow, they can give you a gp appointment if needed, I was put onto fostair 200/6 as a maintenance, also I hate to suggest it but in my experience prednisolone (a steroid tablet) works wonders for eosinophilic asthma when the inflammation+mucus become too much, I really would push someone to see you tomorrow, before the long Easter weekend, I'm not suggesting you need all/any of the things above, these are simply the things from my 3 year journey that if I share might make your journey a little easier🤞let us know how you are x Nicola
Thank you so much, I’ve had a much better day today I do think the Trimbow is helping and I’m using my blue inhaler properly (although I couldn’t get to grips with the spacer) I will ask the pharmacist what I’m doing wrong with it tomorrow as my nurse is away for Easter. I’m still dreading tonight but I’ll do some controlled coughing, and use the blue inhaler before I try to sleep as I did last night and hopefully it will be okay. Thank you so much xx
Use your ventolin as and when you need it ... once the Trimbow is on board and working you will find you need your ventolin less but give it some time ..Especially if your GP has advised it good luck 😍
I have been on Trimbow since mid September and am really happy with it. I have COPD and also sleep sat up which is best for me. I rarely use my blue inhaler { Ventolin } but I am told I can have two puffs 4 times a day.
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