I have been changed from seretide 250 to symbicort 100 yesterday because my asthma is out of control and i am finding it hard to breathe as out of breath everyday, anyone on this?
because my asthma is so bad at the moment i dont think it will work and what i really need is a refferal
I had a similar experience when I was changed from symbicort to seretide, my asthma got worse but I just kept going and ended up having to have a neb and steroids to get me back on track. Dont leave it too long to go back to your gp/nurse or phone the asthma uk nurses.
Hope you get some help soon.
Anguilla
yeah well went to see the doctor yesterday, and will see how i get on with this, as was on seretide for months as did not work and ventolin does not work, i am thinking i will have to go back and ask about nebs as dont think this one will work if others wont
For me symbicort was fab, didn't fully control me but did a lot.
They won't even think about giving you nebs yet as GP's are not supposed to prescribe them. If your current GP/asthma nurse feel you are still not controlled and feel they have tried everything in their power they will then refer you to a respiratory consultant, and like the GP they probably won't prescribe you a neb.
Have you been admitted to hospital before?
I do really need to see a speaclist as asthma out of control and breathing is difficult espically when sleeping and already asked twice for one, but doctors are hard work and doing to ask when i have to ring up for more antibiotics
Give it a chance, asthma control can take a bit of tweaking, plus it isn't a good time of year for lungs at the mo with cold and damp weather.
Nebulisers will only be prescribed for home use if all other avenues have been exhausted. They are not a quick fix - it is better to be on a higher dose of preventer than to fix it with a high dose of ventolin.
Nebulisers are only given to people who have severe asthma, who need it as maintenance to keep them out of hospital. eg I was in hosp years ago every 3-4 weeks for periods of 1-3 weeks at a time! Or to people who are brittle type 2, where a neb will save their life with a sudden severe attack. I have a strict protocol to follow. I have tried lots more of meds, therefore there is still scope for improvement with meds for you.
Keep a diary of symptoms and your peak flows for your GP and asthma nurse. They they can assess how things are going, tweak meds and if needed refer you on.
Take care
Kate
Hey, I changed from Seretide to Symbicort and since then haven't looked back. May I ask what exactly you hope for with a referral? I am not asking to be rude, more than just curiosity, as I had referrals before my asthma got to this stage and didn't get anything out of them, it was my 3rd referral that things were finally starting to get better.
*EDIT* I have had home nebuliser therapy for about 9 months now, and have to say that yes it has been excellent for maintenance (along with pred and other things, 50+ trips to hospital in a year) but it never was supposed to be a quick fix and a lot of doctors are hesitant about them as there is a possibility of people relying on them way too much, with tragic and very sad results.
I agree with the others, give symbicort a chance, 
*hugs*
well am needing a refferal as i am struggling to breath, hurts to breath, struggle to do day to day things or walk with out getting out of breath and looking for control and into more options of treatment as want to be able to breath better as is tiring and dont want it ruling my life.
my asthma got worse before the cold weather, been like it for months and seretide has not helped when was on 250 and ventoilin not even doing anything
I would say you definitely need to see your GP, rather than just ringing them. You could also maybe look at why the asthma symptoms come about and how you can prevent them. For example next time you get wheezy/short of breath write down what you were doing before, what could have triggered it. Have you also considered taking an anti-histamine (they can be brought OTC) in case it is allergy related.
You don't mention whether or not you've been in hospital/A&E with your asthma, as this can be quite a good indication of whether or not a consultant would be a good idea.
i will go back to see them but only saw him on tuesday
looking at you profile still on the lowerish end of the BTS guidlines so still plenty of options to try and remember just as it seems out of control to you, might just be th time of year. Need to work out triggers and someetime little changes for example for me cutting down on diary helps me. looking what times of day, what you are doing with a critical eye can find out why your having problems. For example I am more active when at work this is when I am at my worse so Im working on improving excercis tolerence during my time off. I also twicked with when I take my medications so they are in my system for the night when I am. I dont believe a specilist at this stage would be appropiate unless having lots of admissions.
Sometimes people get used to be short of breath all the time so learn a different pattern of breathing that makes you hungry for breath so a physio might be a better idea first and then they can pick at whats asthma and whats not
I am on symicort and find that i cant seem to get enough suck so transfered over to aresol versions. it can take some time to build it up in your system for you to feel better.
I know that is your opion, but i know my asthma best then anyone espically docotrs as had it all my life and it has never been this back where i am struggling to breath and can get enough oxygen, also i am very stubborn so will fight to get what me and my conditions need
and dont eat dairy
i was just staying dairy for me not necasserly you had to
the feeling of not being able to catch your breath is a weird one that can be any number of things and MIGHT not be asthma, could be dysfunctional breathing thats why I say try seeing a chest physio and if it is asthma can give good tips on how to cope better without medications.
Seeing a specilist is not a quick fix and sometimes they arent much better than the nurses. how about first trying to see a resp nurse at the local hospital
I personally find my local resp nurse better than my consultant, and i see one of the country's top paediatric doctors!
I personally find my local resp nurse better than my consultant, and i see one of the country's top paediatric doctors!
I was changed to Symbicort 100 as my asthma was out of control aswell. Now I am glad to say (and so is my Nurse and GP) that my asthma is now under control.
I was told by my nurse that if I wasn't using it properly it would not help. I am not sure if this is the case with some of you but for me the Symbicort has worked wonders and I would reccomend anyone whos asthma was as out of control as mine to get it.
I was lucky really, my GP was awesome and basically made sure we checked everything. I know its frustrating when you feel like your struggling, but really having a neb at home isn't a quick fix nor is it a miracle cure. Have you tried other add - on therapies such as singulair or bambec?
Yes i have been on singluair for over a year and made no difference , for over the last year it has been only been getting worse, i was high does of seretide and that did not work
When my asthma was really bad a few years ago (pregnancy does wonders for me during and for a couple years after!) the combination of symbicort & singulair got it back on track.
Geina xx
I was changed over to Symbicort 200 from my blue and brown ones. It takes time to change over but I have had good results from it.
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