First hospital admission

Hi everyone, I've had asthma since I was 7 and over the last 10 months this has been quite problematic, my GP and asthma nurse are fantastic, I must state that my sats are always good, throughout, my asthma has been unresponsive to treatment but have changed to symbicort 200, plus taking usual triple therapy. I was recently admitted to hospital due to tightness in chest, breathlessness worsening on excretion, cough, and peak flow of 250, respiratory dr discharged me as my peak flow reached 300 after nebs (normal is 450) chest xray and bloods clear, still having same symptoms but resp dr thinks I'm fine, own gp monitoring g closely but sometimes I feel like they think I'm a fraud, as sats, X-ray and bloods are normal, but trying to convinc someone that you feel breathless and tight when they don't know how it feels is really frustrating, I'm just wondering if anyone out there feels the same or had similar experience?

Lorraine

[Hidden]

Hi I was in the same situation last year where I couldnt control my asthma & was in & out of hospital every chest x ray was clear, sats looked normal but I could barely get 2 words out. When I got taken into hospital by friends I was discharged within less than 24 hrs after the usual back 2 bk nebs, iv steroids etc, but when I was sent in by my GP/ asthma nurse they would take it more seriously & I was kept in for days evaen 2 weeks the 1 time until sypmtoms settled down & i could cope with 24 hours off nebs & ivs. However all these stays did not get me better, it was my asthma nurse & consultant at the chest clinic who tried me on the different meds who got me on the road to recovery after trying me on azithromycin an antibiotic. Even though my chest seemed clear because my asthma didnt follow the textbook they ignored what peack flows should be & concerntrated on what was normal for me. Just because 1 dr goes by the textbook doesnt mean they all do keep going bk 2 ur GP & asthma nurse & ask 2 try different treatment or 2 be referred to a chest clinic so you can see a consultant. DONT LEAVE IT!!

Good luck

[Hidden]

My gp and asthma nurse are great, I felt really annoyed at the hospital as one dr wanted me kept in over weekend and resp dr said I was fine, and basically got me in trouble for using partners nebs even though I was getting no relief from multi dosing, just wish I could get to whatever is bringing this on and making me fe terrible, thanks for listening

Lorraine x

[Hidden]

Hi Lorraine!

I can be having a really bad attack, with a pf of 50 ot less and still maintain good sats (i have brittle asthma and vocal cord dysfunction) for hours.

Just because you have good sats doesn't mean you're not having an asthma attack, we don't all fit in the textbook!!

Ignore the numpty cons and always get help when you need it.

X

[Hidden]

If multi dosing isn't helping they should be listening to you and doing something about it. x

[Hidden]

Hey Lorraine!!

Like others have said, we dont all meet the same criteria, in fact, I no more people now that don't fit the usual textbook style asthma than I do of the people that actually meet it!!

I like many others have rocked up in A&E on many occasions and my sats have been low, I think in the 2 years I have been bouncing in and out of hospital, I have only dropped my sats 4/5 times and when I did, I done it spectacularly!!

Even when I was put onto a ventilator, my Saturations where still within acceptable ranges, it was my Co2 that wasnt going in the right directions that worried the docs!!

Please dont worry, you are no way near on ur own in this, and if you have any questions or worries please dont be affraid to ask any of us!! thee are some fantastic people within theis little asthmatic community that will defiantly help you along ur breathless routes!!

Always stay in good contact with ur asthma team, they will be able to help you and adjust any medications when needed also!!

Good luck and keep smiling!!

xxx

[Hidden]

Hi Lorraine,

Like Charlie says there are many of us on here who are no text book asthmatics but atypical and we all get frustrated at times. Lets hope that sometime in the not so distance future more understanding of the disease is known and its variabilities then we can all relax and stop feeling like frauds at times.

[Hidden]

Thanks guys for the advice and support, I'm now on 25mg of prednisolone instead if 50mg which started today but I feels like my back and chest are getting tight again, gp said yesterday it could have been more of hyperventilating, hmmm feels more like breathing through a straw if you ask me

[Hidden]

Well I've been ""diagnosed"" and ""undiagnosed"" with asthma at least 25 times! But I had to laugh, because when I saw my pulmonologist about a month ago, when I was having a really bad breathing episode, after seeing this particular doctor for about three years, I think I finally wore him down! He was like ""well since you have asthma..."" and I was thought, ""Oh so now we agree I have asthma :)."" Because I keep telling him, there are all of these allergy triggers like smoke, mold, when it rains, that my breathing gets worse. And honestly, if it's not asthma I don't know what it is! I'm a bit complicated, so I do have other breathing issues too.

Anyways, I find the best thing it staying with a doctor I feel comfortable with, that I can communicate with, who gets to know me over the long term. With my asthma doctor, over time, we've been able to adjust what I do when my asthma gets bad. And if I have to get admitted I know he knows me, my asthma, and my history.

I have gotten some good doctors at the hospital, but often they don't get the big picture when they haven't met you before, unless they take the time to really listen to what you're telling them, and I find that doesn't always happen.

So hang in there! I know my asthma has changed over the years too, so sometimes I still don't feel like I know what I'm doing, even though I have all of the options I've worked out with my doctors.

Bee