Severe Asthma Advice

[Emerysangel]

Hi Everybody,

Just joined & hoping to get some advice....

My husband has had asthma for his whole life but has had it under control. He hadn’t had an attack since he was a child. Last year he was injured & had a collapsed lung. Since his accident his asthma has been unpredictable & occasionally uncontrollable. He has had several severe attacks in the last few months.

Has anyone else had an experience like this or any advice on how I can best support him & cheer him up? He’s become very withdrawn & depressed.

Thanks,

Angela x

[8405loi]

Your husband is lucky having you, I'm sure you'll have more support on here too.

Has your husband been invited to pulmonary rehabilation classes from his doctor/respiratory nurses? I found these classes amazing, although tough at first! They certainly had lots of good tips, motivation to exercise which is helping me get back on track.

Best wishes & good luck to you both! 🙂

[Hidden]

i had a collapsed lung in 2008. It made my asthma weird. So much so steriod inhalers often make my asthma worse when it is flared up but once it settled again my asthma happy with steriod inhalers. originally in 2008 I was on nevuilsers daily now blue inhaler is my best friend. I still use a wheelchair and have neurological and endocrine problems but i find encouragement in small achievements like typing a reply or hilding a cup.

[ChrissieMons]

It is very common for ill health of any kind to make you depressed and depression makes the athma worse, so I think you might need a two pronged approach as it were. In a way, depression is kind of catching, so if he is down, it affects you. Talk to your GP about any help you can get with making him feel more positive - CBT could help him, but I'm no expert; you'd need to ask your GP. If he gets more control over his condition, perhaps with input from a consultant, he will feel better, but the mind and body issues are so tangled together I think you have to find ways to deal with them both.

[WheezyAnne]

Has his GP referred him to the hospital Respiratory Consultant, who, in turn may refer him to the nearest Specialist Asthma Clinic? If not, I recommend he asks his GP to do this, as this is the best way to help him get back control of his Asthma. Pulmonary Rehabilitation is now offered by the Respiratory Team for people who have COPD, which includes those of us with Severe Asthma. It is really worth while him going on this, if he can. They cover Anxiety and Depression on the course, linked to long term lung conditions, as well as exercising safely and eating correctly, new medications and ways to manage your lung condition.