I've had asthma ever since I was a child so I can't really remember a life without asthma. I take daily inhalers Fostair which is pink and my reliever blue Salamol inhaler. I find it easier to have my inhaler via a spacer and this also makes it easier for other people to give my inhaler to me such as during an asthma attack or when I'm having a seizure. During my seizures my airways go into spasm so I need someone to give my inhaler to me. Other triggers for my asthma are cold or hot weather, dust, allergies, things like aerosols, wrong odours and exercise - even just going up and down the stairs or pushing my wheelchair can leave me breathless or over exerting myself (easily done if you have a chronic illness). I have help with household tasks like dusting and hoovering and making my bed which helps my breathlessness/asthma.
To try and make my inhalers less clinical I found these great sticker wraps on Etsy. I also have a pretty clip case for to put on the outside of my bag to put my inhalers in.
As a child PE at school was difficult because of my asthma as well as having my spinal curvature so my doctor excused me from PE.
Asthma attacks are really scary - it's like trying to breath through a straw and your going dizzy from lack of oxygen and your can see on your pulse-oximeter the number or your oxygen saturation levels slowing decreasing and you're slowly loosing consciousness and you're just routinely taking your blue inhaler waiting for the paramedics to come with a nebuliser.
My asthma is fairly okay. I have my mini attacks but they're well managed. My Dad's well versed in dealing with them being a first aider, my brother not so. He doesn't understand that using deodorant sprays is too much for my lungs and just thinks I'm being a bit of a hypochondriac even when I'm coughing and wheezing.
I just see it as just another illness I live with and thankfully it's one of my less disruptive chronic illnesses but I still find it important to raise awareness and share my story.
Currently In the UK 5.4 million people have asthma and 1 in 20 people have 'Severe asthma'. Just like many other chronic illness asthma needs more research to find out what causes asthma, to develop a better way to diagnose asthma, find a cure and prevent people from have asthma attacks - currently in the UK every 10 seconds someone has a potentially life threatening asthma attack and 3 people each day die from asthma (Asthma UK).
