Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with asthma

Puff, puff, OWWWWWWW

Madamina — Mon, 28 Dec 2009 14:21:22 -0800

All my life I've had this problem when doing any sort of cardio activity: my throat can stand my breathing for about 15 seconds before it starts to burn like hell. I've tried breathing differently, asking for medical advice, drinking various beverages before/during/after working out... nothing. It's happened when I've been in better shape and when I'm a lazy slob. So I avoid cardio, which I have always desperately needed. How can I overcome this and work out pain-free? This proudly Amazonian fattie is joining the MeFi Fitness Challenge (hells yeah!) and must get a throat problem taken care of. I've seen this thread, among others, which lead me to think it might be some sort of exercise-induced asthma, but who knows.

Drinking water before or after the exercise doesn't really do much; neither does trying very hard to breathe through my nose instead of my mouth. I've brought it up with various doctors and fitness instructors, but nobody has given me even a hint of how to fix it.

I've historically also had respiratory problems (constantly running nose, infections like clockwork when the seasons change, strep throat loads of times when I was a kid), so I've considered having my tonsils out, but haven't had it done.

Because I work at the top of a large hill (and, in fact, DO walk uphill both ways when walking to/from work), having good cardiovascular health is important even if I don't lose weight/bulk. I've been avoiding it for the last six months, and even walking up it twice a day for four years has rarely made it any easier.

So are there things I can do to make running/elliptical/aerobic exercise less searingly awful? Are there particular exercises or activities that will promote good cardiovascular health while not making me breathe so hard? I feel like the slow recumbent bicycle gets me exactly nowhere.

Special consideration goes to stuff that won't make me bounce too much, as parts of me bounce enough already. Pounding joints = bad. (5'7", 240ish, top-heavy.)

Am I doomed?

generic230 — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 14:01:16 -0800

Does asthma always get worse over time? I had bronchial asthma that went undiagnosed for 20 years despite many trips to many different specialists all of whom told me I did not have asthma. Guess what? I did! It was bronchial tho, and apparently, it doesn't manifest as wheezing, but in a chronic cough. Anyway, It got diagnosed 3 years ago. At the time, I had 68% lung capacity. Last week I was tested again and I was significantly worse. The doctor said it was because I wasn't using the right inhaler (because another doctor told me not to use it). Anyway, the new inhaler is great, works good, but, my question is this: Does asthma ALWAYS get worse over time? Can you keep your lungs at the same level, or, is it just the nature of the disease that it gets worse over time, and eventually, I'll need more steroids, more emergency inhalers, etc.

Secondly, is it bad to be exposed to allergens that trigger the inflammation over a long period? I mean my cats. I thought I could "tough it out" with them, until my latest tests showed a 20% decline in my lung function results. Now, I'm wondering, will this constant exposure, even WITH the steroids, antihistamines, inhalers, allergy pills, etc, be damaging over time?

Also, would it be better for me to live in better air? I live in Pasadena, CA, bad air quality. But my lung doc has never mentioned this could make it worse.

How can I kill a cough that lingers for a month?

joshrholloway — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 04:50:12 -0800

Why do I always have a cough that lingers for about a month after I've had a cold, and how can I get rid of it? For as long as I can remember, after I've had a cold, I still have a hacking cough for about a month afterward, which tends to finally go away abruptly. The cough is the only symptom that lingers after everything else goes away, and I feel fine otherwise. I've had asthma since I was a kid, which I'm assuming is the cause of (or at least a large contributor to) this problem.

This is a dry cough. I don't ever cough up any phlegm or anything like that. If it gets really bad, I can use my rescue inhaler and it will help me for a few minutes. Cough drops also help, but not a lot. The weird thing is that I never have any other real problems with my asthma besides this.

I've talked to multiple doctors about this and they have all kind of shrugged it off and implied that it's just something I have to deal with. While I can deal with it, it's just annoying to have to explain to people that this terrible hacking cough is just my asthma acting up and that I'm not contagious.

So has anyone else ever dealt with anything like this? Do you have any recommendations on how to kill this stupid cough without waiting a month?

do i need a medic alert bracelet?

nadawi — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 16:26:58 -0800

When is a medic alert bracelet necessary? how useful are they actually? i'm a 28 year old female that's allergic to penicillin, erythromycin, and i'm asthmatic. it seems like all three of those could come up in a situation where i wasn't able to speak for myself. lower on the list of "things that are wrong with me" - i have a severe allergy to poison ivy that doesn't look like poison ivy, but could potentially kill me (my eyes, lips, and most alarmingly-throat swells up. the only medication that works is a steroid shot). i only say lower on the list because it takes 24 hours or so before i'm in such bad shape that i have to be in the hospital and i've always made it before my throat as actually swelled to the point of not breathing (but the doctors are all agreed that 12 hours or so more and that's exactly where i would be), so it doesn't seem like an emergency responder sort of situation.

so! do you have a bracelet? what has you wearing one? are you in the medical profession, and if so, do you take notice of them? would you take notice if someone had the symbol tattooed on the top of their wrist, with the allergies/conditions tattooed under the wrist? am i foolish to not wear one?

Non-steroid alternative for toddler asthma?

LittlePumpkin — Sat, 03 Oct 2009 14:52:09 -0800

allergist wants to put our two-year daughter old on FLOVENT -- wife and I would prefer to avoid giving her steroids - is CROMOLYN as effective for cold virus-induced asthma in a toddler?

As I awoke one morning from a troubled dream, I found myself with winged feet.

Lieber Frau — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 10:20:43 -0800

Runningfilter: A minor miracle of transformation. I could barely run at all, but last night I ran 2 miles. Why might this have happened, and have you ever had a similar experience? In late April or early May, I started a run/walk couch to 5K program. As I progressed, I was repeatedly disappointed with my results and frustrated by setbacks. For some reason, I could not run for more than 6 minutes, tops, even after being on the program for several months. After 6 minutes, and more often, 4 minutes, my chest would feel like it was going to explode, and I would run out of breath. This continued happening no matter how many times I ran a week. In addition to that, I kept getting shin splints and the pain would keep me out of the program for days at a time. Finally, I said fuck it, gave up running, and joined Crunch.

That was in late July. Yesterday night, I wanted to work out but didn't want to go to the gym, so I decided to try running again. I stepped out the door and started jogging at a medium pace. Five minutes in, I realized I had been running for five minutes. "Hmm," I thought. "This is interesting. Last time I ran, I couldn't make it four minutes without a problem, but I just passed five, and I'm feeling fine." Ten minutes in, I thought the same thing. Fifteen minutes in, I was amazed. I thought "let's try and see if I can make it to 20". Twenty-five minutes later, I stopped running. Not because I felt bad, but because I didn't want to push my luck. I was not heaving and gasping for breath. In fact, I felt great. I checked when I got home, and I ran around two miles. And my shins felt fine.

I have never run a mile in my life. Not even in gym class. In high school, I weaseled my way out of the dreaded Mile. Knowing I was allergic to dandelions, I rubbed a big bouquet of them on my face and purposely suffered an asthma attack. (true story!) The last time I tried running, in July, I couldn't make it four minutes. I couldn't make it around the track at the park. And I would have gotten shin splints almost immediately.

What gives? It was like waking up and discovering I could fly. Two miles! I wasn't exhilarated til much later, after I stopped being confused. What could have possibly happened in those two months?

Here is my list of possible factors in this miraculous transformation:

1) I quit smoking (i was a light smoker, a pack every 2 weeks or so) in March of 2009. However, ten years ago when I did not smoke, I had similar shortness of breath when running, so I do not think smoking is the only issue. But, perhaps my lungs have repaired themselves more since July.

2) I suffer from allergies and I live with a cat who exacerbates them. In August, discovering that my lungs were working at a much diminished capacity, my allergist put me on Allegra and a nasal inhaler and I banished the cat from my bedroom. This has greatly improved my sleep (I used to wake up coughing every night). Perhaps this has helped my breathing.

3) I make it to the gym at least twice a week, sometimes three times, and when I'm really good, four. I have been for the last couple weeks training on an elliptical machine on a pretty grueling setting. Perhaps this was the conditioning that got me in good enough shape to run for over 20 minutes.

4) I have radically altered my diet to be pretty low cal. This started in late June if I remember correctly. For the most part, I only eat vegetables, yogurt, and low cal grains during the day, then a sensible dinner.

5) When I was running the Couch to 5K program, I obsessively checked my stopwatch and flicked from mp3 to mp3 on my iPhone. This time, I put on a nice long mixtape and didn't worry about time or changing tracks. I just settled into the rhythm of the run, and was startled when I happened to notice how long it had been. Perhaps I reduced the stress factor, and was able to relax and just run.

I can't wait to try and repeat this experiment. But I'm still baffled as to how I did it. Has anything like this ever happened to any of you before? Do you have any ideas how it might have happened to me?

How do I tell the difference between being overweight and impatient, and exercise-induced asthma?

Jaie — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 14:56:11 -0800

Joined a gym a few months ago. We often jog 400m as a warm-up. I say "we" but in actual fact I can't do it. About halfway through I lose all ability to breathe properly - I think I may be taking very shallow breaths, but it's hard for me to tell exactly what happens. I feel like I can't get enough air, there's a lot of breathy noises, and I get hot as blazes. I ran pretty consistently a few years ago, but always indoors - the one time I tried running outdoors was a complete failure.

Did a little research on exercise-induced asthma today. Yes, I have pre-existing allergies and eczema, live in an urban area and workout outdoors, all of which fits for asthma. Oh, and my live-in boyfriend smokes, although only outside. But I'm also late 30s and probably 50 pounds over my ideal weight. (Not that I am completely out of shape, having taken 3 or 4 bellydance classes a week for a year or two.)

The trainers at the gym think I should just be patient, but they aren't outside with me to hear what I think of as wheezing (but which may only be loud breathing).

My question to you: I know YANMyD, but if you were, should I come see you? Or should I give it more time? And if it only happens when I run outside, how is a doctor going to diagnose it anyway?

Sinus Infection induced Asthma isn't going away, help?

pyrom — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 15:18:16 -0800

Sinus infection two years ago led to immediate symptoms of exercise-induced asthma. After two years, it's gotten better, but never fully disappeared. Will it ever go away? Am I impeding my recovery by continuing to utilize an inhaler? Two years ago, I had two sinus infections within relatively close proximity of each other. Each time while recovering, I'd go for daily runs, during which I'd have to stop because it became almost impossible to breathe.

My doctor prescribed me an inhaler and said that the infection somehow affected my lungs, and that the symptoms would eventually go away.

Almost two years later I can run without the inhaler- on some occasions, I don't realize I've forgotten to take it until the end of the run, but at other times it is, to a noticeable degree, harder to breathe. The symptoms are exasperated by cold weather, but are for the most part much better than they were two Septembers ago.

I'd like to be able to stop using the inhaler completely.
Am I impeding my recovery by continuing its use? Will my symptoms ever go away? My symptoms only occur during intense exercise and are otherwise nonexistent.

Any information is much appreciated!
(I hope to formally ask a doctor about this upon my next visit, but this may be a couple months from now.)

How can I prove my workplace is making me sick?

Anonymous — Sun, 16 Aug 2009 17:40:03 -0800

I think my work place is causing respiratory problems for me. How do I go about proving it? I started a new job a few months ago. I've had declining health every since. I have a persistent cough and wheezing. Sometimes it's difficult for me to breathe. I have not been able to get rid of it. I've been to my doctor numerous times and am an inhaler, allergy med and prilosec (helps breathing function, go figure!). I would think nothing of this, that maybe I have developed asthma in my 30's but my husband and I have noticed that my cough disappears by Saturday morning and is back in full force after I return to work. The place where I work is in the basement of a medical facility. Our area is carpeted and the carpet is black with dirt (?). I've been told by a few that there are radon and carbon monoxide issues there. My current manager disconnected the carbon monoxide detectors because "they kept beeping after we turned them on". Given that, I think the ventilation is extremely poor. In addition, the place smells funky - there's a pungent odor that hits you when you walk in the door. It's a bitter smell, for lack of a better term.

My question is how do I prove they the area is making me sick? Or find out for sure? I never had any of these problems before working there. And I'm miserable and relying on an inhaler most of the day so I can breathe. Are there lawyers that deal with this? What do I do?

Help for cat-induced asthma?

SampleSize — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 14:33:36 -0800

The cat allergy question has been asked before, and I do have the standard itchy eyes, stuffed nose, sneezing, etc. However, I'd specifically like suggestions regarding cat-induced asthma. Mine is severe enough that, although I haven't done it for years, spending 24 hours in a house with cats has put me in the emergency room and on a nebulizer. One person in that previous thread mentioned that Claritin helped. Has anyone else had experience with something that helped not just their cat allergies but the cat-induced asthma as well?

help me find a doctor for my asthma in oklahoma

nadawi — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 12:42:15 -0800

i have asthma, i live in oklahoma, and my inhaler just ran out. i have no insurance and my boyfriend makes too much for aid programs - now what? i moved to oklahoma not to long ago and now it's time for me to get another inhaler. i love in owasso (just north of tulsa) and the only walk in clinic in town is $120 for the visit. i am use to walk in clinics being more like $50. adding to the money woes is the fact that the inhalers have been changed to the non-CFC versions which are far more expensive (use to be $12 per inhaler, the last one i got was $50). i don't work and i have no insurance, but my live in boyfriend claims me on his taxes so my household income is too much for any of the assistance programs i can find.

i wouldn't mind paying $120-200 if i could find a doctor that would give me an inhaler with 6 or so refills, but every clinic i've gone to will just give me the one inhaler and if i really, really beg they'll give me a single refill. i can't seem to get a doctor to understand that this is a chronic condition and i don't have $100 to plunk down every 2 months just so i can keep breathing.

so - any tulsa clinics you can recommend? any programs that can help reduce the price of medications or the doctor's visit? any advice on getting the doctor to give me more than one refill?

I can't stop coughing!

prunes — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 22:41:43 -0800

Chronic cough has bothered me for two years. Five doctors have been unable to help me. I am at my wit's end. Help! As I write this I am suffering from a coughing bout that has kept me up two hours past my bed time.

I developed chronic cough sometime around when I started working in the summer of 2007. I am a healthy white male in his twenties. I feel like I have always tended to cough a little, but it was around that time that things got really bad. Over the course of these two years I have been to five doctors: my childhood pediatrician, two internists, an asthma/allergy specialist, and a pulmonary specialist.

I saw the pediatrician around a year and a half ago. She did not know what I had. She gave me antibiotics (clarithromycin perhaps), nasonex, and advair. These did not seem to help.

My allergist did two lung tests which he thought confirmed I did not have asthma. I was also subjected to a battery of 20+ allergens. I was allergic to 75% or so. But this was during the winter and during that time I was still suffering from my cough, and because of this the doctor did not think it was allergy induced. As a diagnosis by exclusion he thought perhaps I had acid reflux and recommended nexium. This I took on and off but got the flu during that time and so was very bad about taking my meds. I was highly skeptical of his diagnosis, although I admit that after very spicy foods I do cough (but to be fair I also notice my sinuses running heavily). But I also notice that I cough after eating especially bland foods sometimes. It's really hit or miss though.

Things started getting REALLY bad about four months ago. This motivated me to get a physical. I passed this physical with flying colors. I was tested for TB at that time. My doctor also did blood work to test for walking pneumonia, which I had in high school. The test came back negative and noted that I had the antigens. No surprise there. The doctor suggested I take a CAT scan and reiterated it might be possible that I could have acid reflux. The CAT scan came back negative. A "cookie swallow" was suggested for in the future. He noted that when he listened to my lungs as I sang AAAAAA, one chamber sounded as though I was saying EEEEEE, which he thought could be indicative.

The pulmonary specialist agreed that he did not think I had acid reflux. He observed that my throat was highly irritated and that I seemed to have nasal trip, most likely due to allergies. He thought that because I have been coughing for so long that my cough reflex was worn to the point where anything and everything made me cough. He recommended a full assault. He prescribed me prednisolone, clarinex, singulair, and codeine cough syrup, and recommended nasal irrigation.

This regimen brought my cough to a more manageable level but I still experience bad symptoms. Things will especially flair up when I am trying to go to bed and when I am working out. For the latter the pulmonary doctor prescribed an albuterol inhaler; it flat out does not work. And I can be sitting in my chair beside my bed not coughing but after I do my routine and get into bed I will start feeling like my lungs are wheezing and begin coughing. Anxiety plays a role I think.

I am getting to my wit's end. I feel like my doctor's are blowing me off, but I know of course that they have other patients with life threatening illnesses and that a case of chronic cough, which is so difficult to diagnose, ranks low on their list of priorities. Suggestions?

How do I get the stamina and health of diplomats, CEOs and politicians?

wingless_angel — Sat, 25 Apr 2009 16:42:08 -0800

I'm just about to start a new job that will involve a lot of travel, negotiation, and meeting and greeting. How do I get the stamina and health of diplomats, CEOs and politicians? I'm going to be starting a new job in which I have to travel a lot and be on my game, meeting a lot of new people. I hope this job will put me on the path to more NGO work and one day, the EU or the UN.

My health, while not exactly fragile, can be easily upset by sinus infections, asthma, migraines and jetlag. I have read in the past about CEOs who swear by 6am starts, yoga and exercise to stay alert and healthy and I will gradually start to do this. But what can I do for my overall health and resilience while flying a lot and being away from regular routines? Any roadwarriors here in a similar situation?

I have travelled a lot, but predominantly for leisure which means I have more time to do these things, but when I've travelled for conferences etc that's when I've fallen down in the past by not exercising, eating well and succumbing to sinus problems. My main exercise is cycling, and I can't take my bike ont these trips!

I don't want to become superhuman and work 24/7, but I do want to make sure that I am alert, engaged, and healthy on the road. How do I stay healthy and increase my stamina?

Which came first, asthma or excema?

Anonymous — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 12:43:34 -0800

Does anyone here have any experience treating BOTH excema and asthma? I have been having asthma episodes, which is something that I have rarely had to deal with (like 10 years ago). When my Dr. made the recent diagnosis of asthma, he mentioned in passing that it was easier to make this call due to my chronic dry skin (excema). I got well, but last night I started coughing and weezing again and now I am poking around the net trying to figure out if there is a way to treat the excema (which I, admittedly have just looked upon as a feature of my life in winter) that would help the asthma.

So anyone here ever dealt with this? Thank you in advance.

How is your non-CFC asthma inhaler working out for you?

mediareport — Tue, 24 Feb 2009 19:52:54 -0800

If you recently made the switch from a CFC-propelled asthma inhaler to a non-CFC-propelled inhaler, how has it been? I've seen news reports that the spray is softer so you may not feel like you've gotten the full dose, and the inhalers have to be cleaned more often, and was curious to hear from people who've actually made the transition as I wait for my seasonal allergic asthma to kick in any day now. Any hints for making the adjustment smoother?

My apartment is suffocating me

Unred — Sun, 18 Jan 2009 19:35:16 -0800

It seems that I may have asthma and all my symptoms started after I moved into my apartment. Can anyone tell me the things I should look for to trouble shoot the problems causing my cough? Also, considering its a "loft" like space with no other rooms to sleep in, is it okay to break a lease (in NYC) if it seems that my apartment is making me sick?

New house smells like...bread?! And what to do about it!

spinifex23 — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 12:55:57 -0800

So, you all have been following my travails in Seattle living for a while now. In Craigslist, I thought I found the perfect room - furnished, nice roommate (who is also the landlord), clean, in a new house, and in a good location. But, the whole house smells like sweet, yeasty wheat bread, and my asthma is not amused. The roommate also owns two cats. When I went to look at the place, I asked about the smell, and she said was the two catboxes that she had. But, it smelled too heavy and 'nice' to be the catboxes, especially since she said she cleaned them that day. The litter she uses is Feline Pine, which I have used in the past, and it didn't smell like that at all. Plus, I work with 30+ cats in a shelter every weekend, and it doesn't smell as heavy as this place does.

More details: In Seattle, it's a house in the Rainier Vista Community, which is a 3 year old housing complex with houses built in a 'green' fashion. The house itself is 2-3 years old. It has a gas stove and fireplace. The house itself is very clean. She also keeps plants, but only a few of them. The overall smell is 'wheaty', and the air feels moist inside. So now that I've moved in, I have a HEPA filter with a clean pre-filter going 24/7 in my room to try to get rid of it, and I sleep with the window cracked, but that doesn't help the rest of the house, and I'm still having asthma issues. The smell is everywhere in the house at the same levels, and it doesn't go away at all - it's constant. The upstairs has carpeting where my room is, but the downstairs is hardwood floors.

The roommate did notice a 'new house' smell when she moved in, but she says that it's gone. I really want to eliminate this so that I can stay here, because otherwise it's a nice place. And we are stumped as to what it is. (To the roommate's credit, she is working with me on this, and if I do have to leave, I'm not tied to a lease, it's month to month. So I don't have to worry about that, at least.)

Is my ashtma inhaler making me cough? Would tablets be better?

soulbarn — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 10:44:14 -0800

I've got asthma, which is allergic and exercise-induced. It is rarely bad except when my allergies are acting up and I'm exercising intensely. Lately I've developed a problem that I believe is related to my inhaler. My usual routine (only when I do intense cardio) is to take a dose 30 minutes prior, then one dose an hour during the activity (we're talking very intense activity), which lasts one to three hours. I will take an extra dose, up to one per hour, if I experience chest tightness, which I'd say happens about once in three or four sessions. Outside of exercise, non-symptomatic. If I don not use the inhaler during my regular sessions, I definitely get chest tightness every time.

The problem is that I believe the inhaler irritates my throat - using it too much, I assume. I cough a lot, and even a little bloody sputum, which is definitely not good. So I need to stop that. I understand that albuterol tablets exist.

I know I should ask my doc, but are the tablets something I could use prior to the exercise that I'd normally pick the inhaler for, and then keep the inhaler for only the big moments - true rescue, so to speak? Or would I have to take the tablets on a regular basis? Or would they not work that way at all?

Casein Allergy Solutions?

Texasjake987 — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 08:01:20 -0800

My girlfriend has recently formed as casein allergy as a young adult. She is not "lactose intolerant". Are there any solutions to dealing with this outside of cutting dairy and other casein rich foods out of her diet? more inside... While apparently common mostly in younger children, this allergy has afflicted her recently in her early twenties. Typically the common solution applies to the former demographic and involves removing casein from the diet, and gradually allowing your body to form a tolerance to it. However, because she's already been exposed to it for twenty+ years, doctors have simply recommended to just not consume casein. This is pretty tough, as it is extremely present in dairy foods. Red wine also gives the same allergenic reactions as well, and I recently read somewhere that casein is used as a binding agent in red wine.
Her reaction to casein manifests itself in her lungs and chest, causing wheezing and coughing not unlike the symptoms of asthma.
She typically tries to avoid taking antibiotics/medicine/etc... if there are other natural alternatives available. It would be nice if certain types of teas, herbs, spices, supplements or vitamins would help to address the problem.

So... are there any remedies for this allergy that anyone knows of that may help allow her to slowly leak more dairy, etc. into her diet?

Lactose intolerant folks have tablets they can take to allow them to eat dairy for a short window of time, or take other supplements....
is there anything similar for this case?

Allergy problems in mid-atlantic region.

Raichle — Mon, 19 May 2008 20:56:20 -0800

Is anybody else in the mid-Atlantic, specifically Pittsburgh, area getting massacred by allergies right now? I've always had some allergy problems, but nothing like what I've been going through lately. I'm having a really hard time breathing, for about 2 weeks now, and I feel terrible all day long. I've always had a touch of asthma but it usually only cropped up when I had a cold or went around farm animals and was always easily cured with one puff of albuterol. Now, on my doctor's advice, I am taking a double dose of loratadine (staggered by 12 hours), advair, and albuterol as needed and still having problems. I'm pretty sure it's allergies since it gets much worse when I go outside and seems to improve in air conditioned situations. What's puzzling to me is that I'm not having as many nasal problems as I would expect for how bad the chest congestion is. I've been tracking the pollen/mold counts through the AAAAI Web site and I'm beginning to see a pattern that might indicate a mold problem but tree pollen has been really high in this area as well, so I can't be sure yet.

What I'd like to know is if anybody else has been having more problems than usual. I haven't tracked the counts before so I don't know if these counts are unusual.

My body hates jogging...

TheOtherWay — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 09:08:45 -0800

My body has an irrational prejudice against jogging, though not most other exercise - can anyone explain why? More inside... I'm a 40 year old in middling physical condition. And, my body hates to jog. I can't come to any other conclusion. I've been swimming 1-1.5 km 2-3 times a week for 2 years. No heavy breathing when I finish, heart rate below 130 after a mile in the water. I ride 50 - 100 km a week during warm weather months, walk the course when I golf and do the Royal Marines calisthenic program a few times a week (and breath very hard during that, no question, but without asthmatic shortness of breath).
So, yesterday, 7 at night, temp about 60F, I tried to run with my 8 year old, as he's going to be doing a short "mini-marathon" (1.5 k) for early elementary kids in June. 200 meters in, I can feel my bronchiae going into full on "crimped hose" mode, and I'm sucking wind even while falling behind my son. We got through 800 meters, and I needed to walk off the asthma spasm. After that, I was able to do wind sprints with him, no problem. But, when I tried that regular old jogging pace again - bang! - everything closed up, and I was sucking wind again. This has been a consistent pattern with me since my teens. Haven't gotten a satisfactory answer from a doctor yet. So I come, in supplication, to MeFi...
Can anyone out there tell me why I can swim, bike, sprint and do fairly challenging calisthenics without asthma, but 200 meters into a light jog, I feel like I'm breathing mustard gas? Help! Can anyone recommend a diagnosis/approach/course of action/solution that will let me go running with my son?

Asthmadora?

Tullyogallaghan — Thu, 10 Apr 2008 18:40:03 -0800

Every August the 15th my mom used to come down with a terrible case of seasonal asthma. Back in the 50's people used to do a lot of home doctoring so to try to survive these attacks she used to get a product from the local drugstore called "Asthmadora" which she would burn in a saucer and inhale in a closed room. She would feel better after several days of lying in a dark room and breathing the Asthmadora air with labored breaths. I always thought it was an unusual product (smelled like marijuana) as the sweet, ashy smell was fairly potent and had an unforgettable scent. As a small child I was scared when mom was sick and anxious for her to hurry up and get better so I was glad when the Asthmadora was burning as it helped her condition. I have since "googled" this product and 'can't come up with anything. Am I the only person out there who remembers it? Thanks

What's the cheapest way for me to get a prescription for asthma medicine?

richrad — Sun, 06 Apr 2008 17:04:30 -0800

What's the cheapest way for me to get a prescription for asthma medicine? I've had asthma most of my life but it 'disappeared' for a few years. It's back now and I need a refillable prescription for albuterol inhalers. I don't have health insurance and I live around the Kansas side of Kansas City. I have one inhaler now from a recent trip to the Walgreen's in-store clinic but that prescription isn't refillable. I'm going to have to spend enough on the medicine so I'd like to make the doctor's visit as inexpensive as possible. Bonus points if you can refer me to a specific clinic or doctor.

Living close to a freeway in the Central Valley: asthma for sure?

DakotaPaul — Sun, 30 Mar 2008 00:10:35 -0800

I have mild asthma. My wife and I live in California's Central Valley, and are considering moving to a place that's within 500 feet of Interstate 5. Would living so close to a busy freeway in the valley all but guarantee that our four month-old son develops asthma? The place we're looking at is perfect for us in many ways, but proximity to I-5 is a turnoff. Is there any way to mitigate freeway pollution. The cards are already stacked against my son thanks to my genes and the valley's sucky air quality.

Asthma Vapineze?

chez shoes — Thu, 07 Feb 2008 15:45:15 -0800

What is the meaning of the Asthma Vapineze sign on Fairfax in Los Angeles? Been wondering about this sign, also seen here, for years. Googling only confirms what a mystery it is.

Anyone??