I‘m sure I read a post recently about someone being asleep then waking suddenly because they couldn’t breathe, waking with a gasp & a bit of panic. I can’t find the post at all now, I remember thinking at the time that’s happened to me a few times, but don’t remember any of the replies.
I am currently my 6th day of steroids & was feeling much improved by day day 4, but I’ve now gone downhill & my sleep is greatly disturbed due to this gasping for breath. Does anyone else suffer with this & is there a way to remedy it ?
I’d do have severe allergic asthma (tree & grass pollen) & my meds are - Dymista, Fexofenadine 180x4(max dose if required), Fostair 200/6, Alvesco 160(add on) Montelukast & ventolin as required.
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Ya happen to me before could be that you were in a deep sleep and not breathing right.is your body waking you up telling you that.or could be sleep apnea that you stop breathing in a deep sleep
Asthma issues cause that to happen but I think acid reflux and post nasal drip can also cause it (and I'm sure other factors too). If you can actually see a GP it might be useful as they'll hopefully be able to determine what your chest sounds like and so whether it's likely to be asthma or something else causing it. Of course actually seeing someone at the moment might be tricky.
I wondered about acid reflux it’s not something I’ve suffered with before but it could be something to consider, I must check if taking antacid are ok with Montelucast. I have non wheezy asthma so doubt my chest would sound any different, it’s very tight this morning but then the pollen is high today. I’ll certainly ring the surgery tomorrow if there’s no improvement.
Nighttime asthma awakenings are very common (especially between 2-4 am) when your asthma is bad. It’s the time of day when your body is the most inflamed and the combination of a reclining position, dip in hormone secretions, air conditioning if you use it etc combines to worsen your asthma. Pay attention to it and track how many times you’re waking up so you can talk about it with your doctor. Along with things like increased ventolin use and inability to exercise it’s often a sign your asthma isn’t controlled.
But you’re on a prednisone course so you know that much already in my experience it often takes several days for the inflammation to go down after I start a pred pack. Is your peak flow normal? Is your oxygen ok? (If you have a oximeter). Maybe check in with your doctor about all of this if you can-
Yes oxygen levels ok , peak flow not brilliant considering it’s last day of steroids today. I’ve got a telephone consultation with the gp this evening 6pm he’ll probably recommend another week of steroids or maybe he’ll suggest to see how I go on without them it hard to predict a gp & he’s not my usual one. I’ll mention the nighttime waking, I do sleep propped up & ventolin certainly helps to get me back off to sleep. It didn’t happen last night so maybe things are settling down.
Oh good. Glad you’re talking to a GP tonight even if it’s not your usual one. If you don’t already take magnesium, I take it before bed when I’m in a bad flare. It’s an anti inflammatory and sometimes I feel like it helps (always hard to tell what’s doing what when you’re on a bunch of meds!)
Also if you’re regularly having flares like this and are on prednisone often, you could talk to your doctor about biologics. I started xolair last year and it had been hugely helpful for me.
My husband wakes himself up frequently, I often feel like I am on a boat in a very rough sea. He has eosinophilic asthma, paralysis of the voice box, chronic sinusitis (post nasal drip), no sense of taste or smell (that totally went over a year ago) and silent reflux. He also has a silent chest so nothing is picked up by listening to his chest. He was only diagnosed last year and had none of these difficulties before then so we are adapting to a very different life. He takes fostair 200/6, montelukast, fexofenadine, flixonaise. He also takes gaviscon advance after everything he eats. I had never linked his jumping around in sleep to asthma. He wears a smart watch in bed and his sleep tracker is very sporadic.
If you wake up gasping for breath, choking or feel suffocating this is most common symptom in obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) and Hypoventilation syndrome.
It could be asthma, I'd talk to GP about it they can recommend you to a sleep clinic. You will have a sound recorder an oximeter etc to wear overnight at home and have to take equipment back. Results will give a clearer picture.
If it is OSA you will be given a cpap machine.
Asthma or OSA, sleeping more upright helps.
Most sleep clinics are part of lung function departments and they will get you as part of the initial assessment to do LFT's.
I used to called them the night terrors its got so bad that i used to force myself to stay awake as long as possible. mine was accompanied with wetting myself when it happened followed sometimes by passing out before coming to and gasping for breath. i used to force myself to breath in through my nose and breath out through pursed lips until my breathing came under control. it took months of being treated for Asthma before i had a sleep test finding out that i awoke over 100 times an hour. it was also found my heat stopped beating for a few seconds during the night. a pacemaker sorted the night terrors and a CPAP machine sorted my life out. I always needed a afternoon nap, no energy etc, now my days are twice as long and sleep for 8 - 10 hours solid.
Oh I’m so glad you got sorted, how very frightening. I’m certainly no where near that bad & from replies I’m guessing it’s just the asthma nothing more.
Well I spoke to the gp last night & I’d forgotten - I’ve not seen that particular gp for around 3 years now, quite how indecisive he is. He gave me 3 choices,
1) Do nothing no more steroids see how I go on.2) Take a reducing course a reduction of 2 tablets per day or 3) Take another full 7 days!!!! I decided to wait & see what kind of a night I had. I had a reasonable night so I’ve decided to take the reduction option but keep on 8 tablets for the next two days, then providing there is a continued improvement start reducing. As for the jerking awake he said it was a side effect of the steroids.
I have a telephone consultation with my consultant next Monday (routine) so at least I’ll get some good advice from him.
Many thanks to everyone for their input, stay as well as possible xxxx
Hey have you got any signs of mold or a water damage in your home? When there was mold in my home from a water ingress, that was happening to me, along with wheezing and a bunch of respiratory distress. Fight or flight activated, so high intensity and anxiety. The immune system is under attack and wants avoidance.
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in my experience it often takes several days for the inflammation to go down after I start a pred pack. Is your peak flow normal? Is your oxygen ok? (If you have a oximeter). Maybe check in with your doctor about all of this if you can-
Shortness of Breath
shortness of breath 
Sharp intake of breath?
Persistent difficulty breathing 
Stitch/pain in side - shallow breathing
