Having had 2 major attacks and a number of lesser ones plus a nasty infection in the last month, i am finding the recovery process incredibly slow. At the moment i have made virtually no improvement since discharge which im finding hard to deal with.
I was wondering how long does it take others to recover from attacks and or hospitalisation?
I was always told by an ashtma nurse of 15 years experience that it takes at least a couple of weeks from a basic in and out attack and she use to reckon on at least a month for a serious attack. That was jsut for one.
The way I was always look at is , think of a sprained ankle. If you did that once you know how it can balloon up and take weeks to settle. When the worse is over and you first start to walk on it, it will swell often till it really settles.
If you apply that to our poor lungs the swelling and inflammation is there its just that we cant see it. We have to continue to use the lungs 24/7 so we cant even put them up to rest. It is so hard to forget as we cant see or look in them to see how red and angry they are but if you could I think we would all be more patient.
May sound a bit mad but this is how I now look at it and it has helped me, my gp did giggle when I told her.
Hang in there it has been a rough time on the lungs and even whilst you are trying to recover they are battling the pollen etc.
Try hard to be patient easier said than done I know only too well.
hi
well i have just come out of hospital after 2 weeks and i was really ill
it feels like along time but the more you relax and chill out the easy its
i find it hard to do that but if i do the same things i would do when i am well after coming out i find i am ill longer and worse so just chill and dont rush it to things and you will find things get easyer
Speedy
Thats an excellent way of looking at it and really helped put things into perspective , it also made hubby realise thats why i cant just get on with things that i was doing prior to admission! To true about the pollen as well, everyone seems to be mowing their lawns today aaaggghhh!!
Sealover17- I would love to just be able to rest but im a mum to 3 very active children and i dont want them to have to miss out on things just cos im not well , they have to miss out on enough when im in as it is.
Hi Hops, I haev alwys founnd taht my recovery tiem is vrey slow. My admisions haev in been in teh past abouut 6 wks logn and it tehn took a goood 8-9 wks aftre taht to gte bck to soem kinnd of normailty.
Last yrs admision of 6 monthss hsa tken a lot logner - 12 wks offf wokr aftre discharge - btu culd haev doen wiht a lot logner as haev suffred fro it.
In teh futuer i tikn i wil tyr and giev mysefl as logn as i nede to recovre. Donnt despaiir - i knwo it is esay to say btu hopefully tings wil improove slowly.
loev and huggles
rusty
Kirsten
The way I was told to think of it was that when you have one severe attack after another without time to recover from the preceeding one then you have two recovery times or however many attacks it was in total!
I sympathise as it always seems to take me twice as long to recover everytime now!
Hi
I agree with you... Im finding it harder and harder to 'get well' after my attacks. Im currently being admitted every 3-4 weeks to ITU I just get home and Im readmitted again. I don;t think im having time to recover between attacks. Even when i can breath I feel unwell and weak for weeks after. Like you im a mum to a 3 year old and find it difficult as she suffers enough when Im in costa.
Keep your chin up.
Truly x
Well its now been 9 days since i was dischrged !
Saw my GP this am and he wanted me back in , have dug my heels in and am staying put(hossie werent doing anything i cant do at home!)
He did say that due to the nature of the attacks it would take time but he had hoped that i would have seen some improvement so i apologised and said""sorry to dissappoint u!!"" which had us both laughing and me wheezing more than ever.
Speedy i told him your analogy to the sprained ankle and he was impressed and has made a mental note to use it! Said ti was spot on so 1 brownie point to u!!
Im desperately praying for some improvement soon as i really want/ need this hip op on 8/5 but its impossible to rest (3 kids and all that!)
Has anyone any tips for a quicker recovery other than a miracle!!
I play the bagpipes and the more regurarly I play the less frequent my attacks and the quicker I recover but u gotta be well enough to play them if the first place...and you gotta put up with a lot of moaning from housemates but that's the fun part
Wow a piper, that's very cool! I wish I played, but my parents said I already played too many instruments (their excuse). Must take a whole lot of puff, good for you! Can you play any highland dance tunes?
Brynne
i play the clarinet but it sometimes makes me more breathless what instruments do u all play and do they help with your asthma
xxx
p.s. i think iit is kwel to play the bag pipes
I used to play the clarinet as a child/teenager but basically since i have been brittle i am barely able to get a note out of it !(i was grade 7)
Things are plodding on with me and lack of improvement i think im starting to accept that its going to take me alot longer to recover this time and just try my bset to cope with it.
Helloooo!
I used to play the clarinet too!
Then I found an unloved Tuba at school, adopted that for a year then changed it for an Euphonium as was slightly lighter!
Sadly sold clarinet around 6 years ago!
still play the piano when I can get near one.... Oh, and still have my recorders!
Kate
XXX
i was in for 2 hours on tues and still not recovering
Kate- i also played the recorders and now Rosie is .Sadly all mine dissappeared during the time from when i left home at 17 to when i actually collected all my stuff from home 5 yrs later!! So have now forked out for sopranino,descant, treble and tenor recorders for the girls!
I also played the sax and loved it, Once Chloe is a bit bigger she will learn the clarinet too.
Well 2 weeks on i still feel the same justabout as when i escaped was hoping for new lungs as bday pressie but they havent emerged yet!!!
Hugs Kirsten (((hugs)))
Guess in a way feeling the same is good on one hand !!!
Least you aint feeling worse !!!
Sorry not very use am I today lol
Have another hug istead (((((((((huggles)))))))))
i plaay the celloo and painno - mucch easire as nto dependennt on lungs beign good. Findd taht playign thme is alsso goood physio foor my handss.
I knnow it eassy to say hops, btu be patiennt, i am suer u will starrt to recovre soon. hpoe u haev a relaxign bannk holidy wekend.
rustty
Thought of this thread in town today and bought daughter a recorder - am regretting it already and i'm blaming you musical lot!!!
I play guitar (taking my grade V soon), flute and sax
The flute and sax r quite dependant on how strong my lungs feel.......
I got quite sore and out of breath during my last lesson,
but then my PF wasn't that fab that day either...
I used to play clarinet and was to grade 8 but wouldn't be able to get a note out of it now! I also play guitar and sing. Haven't tried guitar since being brittle for fear of finding out that is something else I can't do. I try and use my singing techniques to control my breathing, sometimes it works! Other times I just get really frustrated. Supposed to be singing for a friends wedding in July so fingers crossed!
I can sympathise with the whole recovery thing. Each attack I have had in the last year seems to have been a little worse and so hence I don't seem to bounce back as well and the ""recovery"" time seems to get longer and longer. I wonder what is normal now. Things that I used to be able to do as second nature completely knacker me now! It is very frustrating as I am only 31 and cannot work and really feel like it has taken over my life. It is very hard to stay positive but I find my hubby and family and friends (including you guys on here) are my life line. I have a strong faith too which helps but believe me some days all I want to do is cry.....and generally do! Am pinning my hopes on RBH trying to help more and also have recently got higher mobility DLA so am able to get a car. Am really hoping that this will give me a bit of confidence back and feel like I am a little less trapped inside four walls too! One thing you have to do though is break things down into bite size chunks, we all try and do too much too soon and then end up falling flat on our face. We should be pleased when we achieve the little things! Am talking to myself here just as much as everyone else!! 
Hang in there everyone, stay smiling and thanks for all your support.
Foxy xx
Slow recovery
Like you Hopalongkp I am having the same problem I have not wolrked for 3 months due to 2 hospital visits in 2 months and the slow recovery is really getting me down. My mind is saying ""come on get moving and stop being so lazy"" my body is saying ""I don't think so"" I am fine if I am sitting or resting but as soon as I wlk or do anything I get really wheezy. I am starting to feel like there is not light at the end of the tunnel, and that is not me I am normally a glass half full type of person. I can only say what everyone is saying to me ""listen to your body and don't try to rush it else you will end up back in hospital"" I know this is hard but we all know it is true.
Hope you get better soon
Take care
Slow recovery
Like you Hopalongkp I am having the same problem I have not wolrked for 3 months due to 2 hospital visits in 2 months and the slow recovery is really getting me down. My mind is saying ""come on get moving and stop being so lazy"" my body is saying ""I don't think so"" I am fine if I am sitting or resting but as soon as I wlk or do anything I get really wheezy. I am starting to feel like there is not light at the end of the tunnel, and that is not me I am normally a glass half full type of person. I can only say what everyone is saying to me ""listen to your body and don't try to rush it else you will end up back in hospital"" I know this is hard but we all know it is true.
Hope you get better soon
Take care
Recovery Times
I have the same problem-I am currently in 1st year @ 6th form and have missed virtually the whole year plus years 10 and 11 (GCSE). It is difficult but just try to stay positive. Look at it from the angle if its cold or wet outside then at least you're warm and dry inside (hopefully). Good Luck to you and evry1 else getting over asthma attacks
Keep your brain going and the body will catch up!!
I have been 'out' for just over 2 weeks now, after five and a half weeks 'in' which included an ITU visit.
My first week or so was spent sleeping, but now things are beginning to move a little.
I try and do one specific thing a day which gets me out of the house, even if it is just getting in the car and going to the local shop. Today's treat was Tesco (it was a big one with an electric scooter trolley). After an hour and a half there I came home and slept for an hour, but it was worth it.
I am now making sure that I do something each day which makes my brain work as well. I do cross stitch and crochet. I am doing some distance learning studying via my PC.
I suppose what I am trying to say it that just because our bodies are taking their own sweet time to recover from attacks, there is no reson our minds should stagneat.
My body hates the outside world at present (pollen / weather changes) so I watch the world from behind glass (windows, doors, windscreens) but my BRAIN IS OUT THERE!!!!!
hi blackfrog,
You seem to be doing well, hope you continue to improve :o) What are you studying?
take care
Christine
I did the impossible this last few weeks and STAY out of hossie despite alot of problems but Im still finding the recovery time long and HARD to put up with when I want to do more than sit at a pc lol
Time off work
Prescription waiting time 
Recurrent croup and asthma
