# Exercise induced asthma



## Kirstie (10 Dec 2008)

Hi all,
I've just been diagnosed with asthma - exercise induced apparently.
I'm currently feeling a bit crap about it. Are there any sufferers on here and how do you manage the condition?
I'm currently taking ventolin 3x per day and monitoring peak flow twice a day as instructed by my GP. I have to do this for a month and then return to my GP for a review and take the ventolin when required.
I've noticed it's easier to breathe with the ventolin, but as I'm also suffering with a cold at the moment it's difficult to see a massive improvement. I know that asthma is fairly common and also manageable but it feels like a big deal at the moment  so any encouragement and reassurance would be appreciated.
Thanks


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## Crackle (10 Dec 2008)

Cor, not you as well. I was diagnosed last year and I think Chris James relatively recently.

Did the same. Peakflow for a month before final medication which I now take everyday. I use a turbohaler of Symbicort for management and I also have a blue easi-breathe to use before excercise to open up my airways. My actual lung capacity is still good, above average, it's my small airways which are a bit blocked, which results in me often sounding and feeling out of breath doing everyday stuff. Once excercising though, my asthma doesn't affect me now it's controlled. Prior to it being controlled I began to struggle with breathing during and after excercise.


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## DaveP (10 Dec 2008)

Kirstie,

+1...

I find that when I cycle in the cold at night, I tend to suffer...

Have often thought about getting a Respro mask, but unsure if it would help me.

At the mo controlled by Qvar, but take the ventolin out on rides...

Have not used the ventolin yet, when my chest feels tight I slow down a little at a time until I feel OK...

I am sure that you will quickly get to grips with it, keep going.....


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## Kirstie (10 Dec 2008)

Thanks both.

It was riding in cold, damp air (freezing fog to be precise!) which gave me my first attack a couple of weeks ago, and I had another problem in the middle of the night on Saturday - I was in Cyprus but again the temperature had dropped, my window was open and the sea was just outside!

So cold and damp probably give me problems. Up until recently I only had one other episode about 3 years ago in an all night race - again it was cold and damp. 

Normally I have no problems whatsoever with breathing/wheezing, recover quickly on climbs, and don't get particularly breathless. It has come as a bit of a surprise. 

My peak flow is well down and I hope that it improves soon!


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## Chris James (10 Dec 2008)

Maybe my doc was a bit lax.

I originally got wheezy after a bad cold getting on for two years ago. Thinking back I had been intermittently wheezy at nights for years but thought everyone else was too!

Anyway, the doc dished out a blue inhaler with instruction to see how I got on with it and said that I probably didn't have asthma. I tended to disagree with him as the salbutamol definitely improved my breathing.I used it pretty regularly for a month or so and then everything seemed to clear up during the summer (when hay fever kicked in instead!).

Anyway, over a period of a year or so I got back to being wheezy, at nights mostly, again. Cold air was a bad trigger, especially if tied in with a bike ride. I would often start rides slightly wheezy but after a while, as long as I took it steady, my breathing seemed to improve.

Anyway, the long and short of it was that I got to be wheezing more and more often, and not just at nights. I picked up a cold and got to the stage where I needed to go on all fours when I reached the top of the stairs to get my breath back! I had a pretty poor weekend of waking up every two or three hours needing my inhaler and had huge coughing fits that seemed to suck all the air out of me. My wife was concerned enough to tell me to sleep in the next room but to bang something if I thought I was dying so she could phone an ambulance!

When I went back to the docs on the Monday morning they put me on steroid tablets and then on a preventer. I had a few issues with the medication (!!) but have now been on my current preventer for about two and a half months.

The good news is that my breathing is brilliant. I hadn't realised how poor it had been getting before it finally gave out. My peak flow was at that point about half what it should have been. My current inhaler flixotide really seems to do the trick. I have since had a couple of colds (we have young kids who are always snotty). Normally a simple cold would be enough for me to be on the blue inhaler for weeks, but with the preventer I haven't needed the blue inhaler at all.

I took a pre ride shot of salbutamol before the Holme Moss loop ride and the reliever with me but didn’t need it despite it being absolutely freezing and a pretty hard ride for me after all the lay offs I have been having recently.

So my experience so far has been quite positive. One thing I would advise is that if you feel your breathing is getting worse then don't struggle on / go into denial like I did. I think I am probably only very mildly asthmatic, and looking back I was wheezy as a very active teenager so maybe I have always had a tendency that way. Managing my asthma has meant that my breathing is now better than I can ever remember – and that includes periods when I rowed in the national championships, climbed alpine peaks, did Scottish winter mountaineering etc

This is a bit of a rambling response I am afraid Kirstie. I suppose the point I am trying to make is that you definitely need to monitor how your breathing is. However, you shouldn’t feel like you are somehow crippled or limited in any way.


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## DaveP (10 Dec 2008)

Kirsti,

I also went for a raft of allergy tests, and among the triggers I responded positively to was mould spores, so what at first seemed to be a “simple” cause and effect in fact ended up a little more complex, not trying to be alarmist here, but it may be something worth thinking about.

It kinda made sense for me as I was inhaling then exhaling at a greater rate, so I was “importing” a larger percentage of the things that I was allergic to and getting a chain reaction going on, what made matters worse for me is that I have a nasty habit of skip-breathing (I tend to hold, or take a long pause before I breath out).


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## Crackle (10 Dec 2008)

Like Chris, I'd ignored the fact that I coughed and gurgled my way through the night and had reached the stage where my sleep was often disturbed. I didn't know why until a particularly bad virus finally made it pretty clear there was something amiss. I think it was when I got off the bike and had to sit hunched for twenty minutes to breathe that I realised it wasn't just the virus which was doing me in. 

Once I began using a preventer the difference was profound. Virtually doubled my usual peakflow overnight and quadrupled my post excercise peakflow. Mine is still relatively mild but I couldn't now manage without inhalors so it's definetly taken hold since diagnosis.


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## Lazy-Commuter (10 Dec 2008)

Mine tends to come on most during the hayfever season and a bit as we head into Winter. I use becotide daily as a preventer, plus the ventolin as required.

On the plus side, my peak flow has improved quite a bit since I started cycling and my GP was quite impressed with me earlier this year.

So, staying at the best fitness you can and making the best of your cardio-vascular system is the way to go. And cycling's a good way to do that. (Stating the obvious a bit, really, but still ..)

But, remember to stay on top of it.


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## Kirstie (10 Dec 2008)

Thanks for all the stories! I suppose the good thing is that I went to the GP as soon as i thought something was wrong, and I haven't been struggling on for long. The slight pisser was that I went to A&E a couple of weeks ago following the freezing fog ride and they told me it wasn't asthma after listening to my chest. If they had I would not have had the problems I had in Cyprus on the weekend, which was a bit of a nightmare and rather anxiety provoking as I was away from home and didn't have access to a doctor. Luckily one of my friends had a bottle of olbas oil and I spent a lot of my time with my head over a bowl of hot water/olbas and breathing it in on a hanky. I managed OK with it, but as soon as I got the ventolin I could see the difference in my breathing.

If I'm honest I've not had many breathing problems in the past, except for in the cold and damp as I said before...oh well. 

My current problem is that the ventolin is giving me the shakes really badly - like I've had way too much coffee - so I am waiting for a call back from my doc as to what I should do with the dose.


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## DaveP (10 Dec 2008)

Kirstie said:


> My current problem is that the ventolin is giving me the shakes really badly - like I've had way too much coffee - so I am waiting for a call back from my doc as to what I should do with the dose.



For me those symptoms represent taking too much...


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## Kirstie (10 Dec 2008)

DaveP said:


> For me those symptoms represent taking too much...



Yes I suspect that's what it is but I'm taking the prescribed dose - 2 puffs 3 times a day. I'll see what the doc says when he rings me back.


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## DaveP (10 Dec 2008)

Kirstie said:


> Yes I suspect that's what it is but I'm taking the prescribed dose - 2 puffs 3 times a day. I'll see what the doc says when he rings me back.



Hope it gets sorted for you.....


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## jay clock (10 Dec 2008)

In terms of dosage one doctor told me to start with a high dosage and work downwards until you start to get symptoms again, then go back up one step. Otherwise you will always be edging up in the hope it works better. 

I had asthma for about 15 yrs from age 20-35 but it faded away. Exercise helped, so get on that bike!


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## Kirstie (10 Dec 2008)

jay clock said:


> Exercise helped, so get on that bike!



Yes yes I will get on that bike - I do so regularly - but not while I have a cold as well!


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## yoyo (10 Dec 2008)

The shakes indicate too much medication. 

I also suffer in the cold and damp and have very low peak flow (in the 300s). Exercise leaves me struggling significantly, so I prefer to cycle alone at my own pace. I also get tight chested in the summer and reckon it is an allergy to some type of pollen. These have been my symptoms all my life. At present I can't find my inhaler.... The environmentally friendly ones don't work so well, so I resort to holding hot-water bottles or their equivalent on my chest. The tightness and difficulty breathing take longer to disappear but it does work.


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## louise (12 Dec 2008)

Just came across this thread

I am a severe asthmatic and on a long list of medication and am "nebuliser dependent"

Ventolin can give you the shakes even on a low dose for the first few weeks (I often need 5-10 doses at a time) do not do this without G.P say so. On a really bad day I am like a jelly baby on Vodka!

My best piece of advice is make sure you go back to the docs as he requested and take 2 doses of ventolin before getting on the bike. Also find out if GPs has an asthma clinic.

On a cold day give your lungs chance to adjust to the colder weather, no belting down the road at 20 for the first mile or two.


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## louise (12 Dec 2008)

yoyo said:


> I also suffer in the cold and damp and have very low peak flow (in the 300s). Exercise leaves me struggling significantly, so I prefer to cycle alone at my own pace. I also get tight chested in the summer and reckon it is an allergy to some type of pollen. These have been my symptoms all my life. At present I can't find my inhaler.... The environmentally friendly ones don't work so well, so I resort to holding hot-water bottles or their equivalent on my chest. The tightness and difficulty breathing take longer to disappear but it does work.



Certainly not something I recommend, asthma can be fatal so always make sure you know where your inhaler is and don't ignore worsening asthma. A few years ago I had a severe attack and it took 20 mins for the ambo to arrive if I hadn't had my meds with me it is doubtful that I would of survived that attack.


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## Kestevan (13 Dec 2008)

I've had Asthma for years. It mainly rears it's head in Summer and is triggered by my hayfever (I love Summer).

In winter however the cold/damp can make breathing difficult without actually triggering an asthma attack.... just a baby elephant sitting on your chest, rather than the whole herd..

I've found I must take the preventer 2x a day, and hit the ventolin just before I head into the cold. Just one squirt about 10 mins before I leave seems to allow me to acclimatise and prevents onset of major symptoms.

Oh, and you do get used to the stuff, the shakes and headaches will go away eventually..... unless you OD on the stuff


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## louise (13 Dec 2008)

Kestevan said:


> Oh, and you do get used to the stuff, the shakes and headaches will go away eventually..... unless you OD on the stuff



Which in my experience is pretty impossible to do, I have taken the equivelent of 125 puffs  via my neb while awaiting the arrival of an NHS taxi!

I am allowed to take upto the equivelelnt of 100 puffs via my neb before I make the descision to dial 999, I also have atrovent at the same time which does the same thing as the ventolin.

Please do not attempt to do this though if your inhaler is not working get help.


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## ASC1951 (13 Dec 2008)

Kirstie said:


> Hi all,
> I've just been diagnosed with asthma - exercise induced apparently.
> I'm currently feeling a bit crap about it.


Yes, me too - both the diagnosis and the feeling crap about it. For the first time in my life I'm told that there is something wrong with me which I can treat but which no amount of 'lifestyle changes' are going to make disappear.

I took my prescription along and bought the peakflow meter (which I have used) and the blue ventilator (which I still haven't unpacked). The Practice Nurse measured me a week later and told me that my measurements were perfectly normal for my large years and small height, but there is no ignoring that, with hindsight, I have been coughing for two or three years and have been wheezy for at least one. For the last couple of months I have had the tight chest and the day after my December 100 miler I felt 'very average'.

I'm still in denial about it all. I live in a damp draughty house and am 15% overweight (which seems to be a factor in everything up to ingrowing toenails), so I'm still kidding myself that returning to 11st and investing in a damp course and some double glazing will sort it all out. Given that I have been on the finger-wagging end of the BMI scale for most of my adult life, that's a lot of kidding.

My asthma is obviously very mild, since I can still run, swim and cycle at reasonable intensity, so my first thought has been to ignore it.
"Won't it just be uncomfortable?" I asked a GP friend.
"No. If you don't treat asthma you will progressively lose lung function. If you don't think you are going to live a lot longer, fine, ignore it".

All you other posters are obviously thinking, "Idiot. What's the big deal?" Maybe it's just having to face for the first time that, no, I'm not going to live forever and from now on bits are going to start dropping off.


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## pubrunner (14 Dec 2008)

Hi there, 

I've had exercise induced asthma for over 20 years. The Doc prescribed Ventolin to be taken about 20 minutes *before exercise -* if I don't exercise, I *don't* use it. He also prescribed Becotide - to be used 3 times a day. 

I also use a PowerBreathe about 5 minutes before exercise *and it helps a great deal* - it really seems to open the airways. Apparently, quite a few full-time athletes use such devices.

See : http://www.powerbreathe.com/expert.html

Finally, I also have a Salt Pipe - see 

http://www.livingiseasy.co.uk/help/Press_Releases/Breathe_Easy_Salt_Pipe_160105/

It certainly helps me.

All the Best


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## pedaling (14 Dec 2008)

I would let your friends, family, work colleagues etc know about this so that they are aware of what to do. My asthma isn't generally bad, only when I was very young, but a couple of years ago I had an attack and my friends were with me - thankfully they knew what to do, as it progressed so quickly I couldn't have explained really. I began shaking and temporarily lost the feeling in my legs and arms so it definitely is something that can surprise you, because I hadn't had an attack for years (and haven't had since.) My friends helped me immensely to steady my breathing and I managed to get it under control, but I do think that them being aware of it made a big difference. (Wasn't used to keeping my inhaler with me - now I almost always do!)


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## summerdays (15 Dec 2008)

pedaling said:


> I would let your friends, family, work colleagues etc know about this so that they are aware of what to do. My asthma isn't generally bad, only when I was very young, but a couple of years ago I had an attack and my friends were with me - *thankfully they knew what to do*



I have a friend with asthma and I wouldn't know exactly what to do exactly apart from get help and look for their inhaler. What else can you do?


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## meenaghman (15 Dec 2008)

I contracted asthma after getting severe bronchitis - couldn't shift it for 4 months..after a rugby training session. .. usual story I kept training with result that for a while I would have to stop just walking 100 yards or so. A couple of things advised by a work colleague who was also asthmatic and a keen runner.
I lived in Southampton and there was a clinic there. I agreed to do some trials. (had to have 2 lung biopsys as part of it) but they did so much monitoring and I learned so much about various parts of research and Asthma etc.. that it was worthwhile (don't recommend biopsies - uncomfortable !) 
They also did loads of allergy tests. found out that it was basically house dust mild, and cats extreme reaction - I was renting a room in a house with cats - I moved out and conditions improved dramatically in about 2 weeks. Current house has no carpets and also has a steam room and an integrated house hoover which helps keep dust down. 
I am ventolin only and it only improves my breathing by about 7-10 percent but my peak flow is above average for someone my height. I use a pwr breathe to help with cold air days.. 20-30 blows before going out in the air.. then taking it easy just to start. I only take ventolin just before exercise. When I was doing the trials I was on a preventer and I think it helped although biggest thing was getting out of the house I was in and away from the cats.
Be prepared to use Ventolin after rides also to help with a warmdown.. sometimes if I push hard (early season 10s) then I feel v wheezy and lungs have fluid which its best to cough up / relax airways otherwise risk of infection. There are some breathing techniques which I haven't tried. I don't know if anyone on here has tried this. It was popular a few years ago.
http://www.buteykoselfteach.com/?gclid=CM2CpdKjwpcCFUse3god5lfYSA
and has apparently been seen to work. 
Other things I found useful - non duck down quilts / pillows helped me. and staying off the booze (in terms of dehydration) helps too. Don't get too down about it... I remember when I was first diagnosed and struggling to walk 100 yds getting very down about it, but I've found exercise and the bike in particular very good therapy.


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## Kirstie (15 Dec 2008)

Thanks for the advice everyone - it's all extremely helpful. I like the sound of the powerbreathe and the salt pipe so I'll look into those more. My experience is nowhere near as bad as others' on here either. At the moment my peak flow is back to normal for someone my height (490), but I imagine my norm is a bit higher because of my fitness.

I am still taking ventolin as prescribed (3 times a day), rather than when I need it, but I'm finding that I need it pretty much around those same times anyway. Because of the cold air I'm finding that I am reluctant to go outside (what's that about?!) and things do get worse if I breathe in cold air, even if I have my mouth and nose covered. I really like going outside too! It's all a bit weird. 

Apparently there's a new preventer on the market which is amazing - it's purple - and to get it you have to ask for it by name. Does anyone know the name of it?


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## Crackle (15 Dec 2008)

Kirstie, I think you'll see from the posts that everyone's asthma, whilst still being asthma, presents in a slightly different way. It's a case of getting to know yours and learning to manage it. Hopefully that will happen quickly but be prepared for it to take a bit of time to figure out.


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## Crackle (15 Dec 2008)

Kirstie said:


> Apparently there's a new preventer on the market which is amazing - it's purple - and to get it you have to ask for it by name. Does anyone know the name of it?



Sounds like Seretide. We might have one at home, so I'll check. If you are only on a reliever at the moment then your asthma is not yet controlled, hence the cold air reaction maybe. Presumably there's an asthma clinic appointment in the offing?


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## Kirstie (15 Dec 2008)

Crackle said:


> Sounds like Seretide. We might have one at home, so I'll check. If you are only on a reliever at the moment then your asthma is not yet controlled, hence the cold air reaction maybe. Presumably there's an asthma clinic appointment in the offing?



Thanks Crackle. Yes I am just on a reliever at the moment. I am going back to the docs next week to get fixed up with a preventer - we don't have an asthma clinic as such, but I do have an extremely good GP.


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## louise (15 Dec 2008)

Yep its seretide, been around a while its a combination of flixotide (a steroid) and salmetoral (a long lasting version of salbutamol) their is also symbicort which is a combo of pulmicort (streroid) and femetoral (a long acting reliever). The difference between the two is that you can increas/decrease the dose of sybicort depending how your athma is where as seretide you can't.


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## Danny (15 Dec 2008)

I've has asthma since I was very young, but in my case the severity of it has changed a lot over time. When I was young it used to suffer throughout the year, but as I have grown older it now just tends to occur from mid July to end August. Presumably I'm allergic to something at that time of year, though it is definitely exacerbated by the damp summers we have had for the last few years.

Bad chesty colds can also set it off, as can the cold damp conditions we had when you were first affected.

So you may well find that your asthma is seasonal and/or triggered by certain allergies or other illness. In any case most asthma sufferers do not become permanently invalided or incapacitated so there is every chance that you'll be able to go on cycling and drinking pints as normal.

You may just have to watch out for the warning signs of an attack and be prepared to take it a bit easier when you have bad days.


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## Crackle (15 Dec 2008)

louise said:


> Yep its seretide, been around a while its a combination of flixotide (a steroid) and salmetoral (a long lasting version of salbutamol) their is also symbicort which is a combo of pulmicort (streroid) and femetoral (a long acting reliever). The difference between the two is that you can increas/decrease the dose of sybicort depending how your athma is where as seretide you can't.



Yes I use Symbicort and as a result I don't have a reliever as I use the Symbicort instead. This suits me better and I only use the easi-breathe pre-excercise.


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## WelshYiddo (15 Dec 2008)

Another wheezy person here!

Asthma has unfortunately played a pretty big part in my life. I've had it since i was 5 or 6 but it has got easier over time (apart from a bad chest infection a few years ago which knocked me for months) so that now i only have mild asthma, which is mainly exercise induced. Cold air makes things much worse but thankfully hayfever isn't too much of a problem anymore. 
As others have said, to combat it I take my salbutamol 15 mins before exercise and take it easy - listen to your lungs they will let you know when they've had enough! 
Allergies can also play a big part - house/dust mites, mould spores, animal fur, foods etc. I can't go anywhere near rabbits - horrible furry little buggers!
My mother also suffers with it as does my youngest son. He's only 3 but we've been in hospital many times with him (including last Xmas, which was nice). He's taking Pulmicort and Salbutamol, and fingers crossed, is getting stronger (loves his bike by the way).

Don't let it take over your life, it can improve immensely through medication, exercise and management. But take it seriously. My cousin didn't. She was only 24 when she died.

On a lighter note I'm hoping to do the Lon Las Cymru next year for the charity Asthma UK. Them hills should test my lungs


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## pedaling (15 Dec 2008)

summerdays said:


> I have a friend with asthma and I wouldn't know exactly what to do exactly apart from get help and look for their inhaler. What else can you do?



The main thing is trying to get them to relax/ calm down (as vague as this sounds.) The more stressed/ anxious, the worse the situation will become. If you have a paper bag to hand you can try breathing in and out of this apparently. (My parents said they've done this when I was young.) Keep them aware, alert - I remember going very dizzy when I've had asthma attacks.

There's probably more things if you have a google, but this is what I remember.

Also spotting the signs is important - they might complain of a tight chest/ lungs and pass it off as nothing, but try to be alert because it might not be nothing!

Hope that helps.


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## DaveP (17 Dec 2008)

pedaling said:


> If you have a paper bag to hand you can try breathing in and out of this apparently. (My parents said they've done this when I was young.) Keep them aware, alert - I remember going very dizzy when I've had asthma attacks



Ped,

Have seen this recommended for someone who is hyper ventilating (as this knocks up the levels of CO2 ) but never seen this for an asthma attack…

As one of the growing band of the wheezy ones, anyone else tried this?


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## pedaling (17 Dec 2008)

I think most of my asthma attacks (last one included) have led to severe hyper ventilating (so much so that I associate the two together!), but I'm pretty sure you can use it anyway.


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## DaveP (18 Dec 2008)

pedaling said:


> I think most of my asthma attacks (last one included) have led to severe hyper ventilating (so much so that I associate the two together!), but I'm pretty sure you can use it anyway.



Ped,

By the sounds of it I am more fortunate than some of the other posters on here..


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## pedaling (18 Dec 2008)

DaveP said:


> Ped,
> 
> By the sounds of it I am more fortunate than some of the other posters on here..



Perhaps, but an asthma attack here and there, hayfever now and then... I could be much worse off!


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## Kirstie (1 Jan 2009)

Thanks everyone for responding to this thread - reading about everyone's experiences has been very helpful. My asthma is now well under control and I am back out on the road in the freezing fog without any problems...well the only problem I have is losing fitness from a 4 week break but that will come back no probs. I can still sprint and climb pretty well. I've been out today and am back out again tomorrow for a longer ride. 

The best piece of advice was taking ventolin 20 mins before riding as I have done this and it really works. I haven't had any breathing problems on my current medication. Also a slow warm up helps a lot too. I think a power breathe would help so I will be getting myself one of those.

So I'm happy for now


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## BIGSESAL (2 Jan 2009)

Hi,

I found that exercise, mainly cycling, impoved my condition and stopped it from flaring up to often. The doctor said this was because the exercise had helped increase my lung capacity and so when my asthma got bad I could still breathe. But then my asthma is not exercise induced. 

My advice would be to lay off exercise for a few days if you feel a cold coming on. Also try taking vitamin C tablets or eat/drink alot of fruit as this helps stop you getting the cold and a bad flare up.

And if your asthma gets really bad ask the doctor for steriods. I did this last year when my asthma got really bad and I could hardly do anything without stuggling to breathe, infact I fainted once because I exerted too much effort climbing the stairs (not the best 17th birthday). The doctor gave me 8 tablets to take each day and it really worked. Although I don't think they would be good for your health long term.


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## Speicher (2 Jan 2009)

pubrunner said:


> Hi there,
> 
> 
> I also use a PowerBreathe about 5 minutes before exercise *and it helps a great deal* - it really seems to open the airways. Apparently, quite a few full-time athletes use such devices.
> ...



Kirstie, if you are thinking about getting a Power Breathe, please look at the above link, from pubrunner. You will see that there are Powerbreathe Classic versions and Powerbreathe Plus, the latter has the added improvements etc, and is probably better than the Classic. I mention this because I have seen adverts in the Newspaper offering "special" price on the Classic, and I suggest you look at the Plus version. I have a Powerbreathe Plus, and should really use it much more often. Pubrunner, does not say which one he has.

I was out walking today, on the Malverns. It was much colder than I expected, and about half an inch of snow. I am used to getting breathless with my asthma, but this time I was really struggling. Those people on this thread, if you are out in very cold air, what can you do to warm up the air you are breathing in? 

The person I was with has no clue about asthma, and probably just thought I was "out of Puff." I had my inhaler with me, but that seemed to make little difference in such cold air.


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## Kirstie (3 Jan 2009)

Speicher said:


> Those people on this thread, if you are out in very cold air, what can you do to warm up the air you are breathing in?
> 
> The person I was with has no clue about asthma, and probably just thought I was "out of Puff." I had my inhaler with me, but that seemed to make little difference in such cold air.



Thanks for the advice on the Powerbreathe.
To warm the air up I do two things: First I breathe in through my nose and out through my mouth. the air has further to go when you breathe in through the nose and so it is warmer when it reaches your lungs. In the cold this can hurt but the more you do it the less it hurts. Second I wear a buff around my neck and pull it up over my nose and mouth, so I can create warm air within the buff by breathing into it. Even if it slips down when I am riding all I need to do is sit up and hold it over my nose and mouth until I can get some warm air in.


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## Speicher (3 Jan 2009)

I think I have got what might be called a buff in my walking kit. I will take that next time I go out in such cold weather. Thank you for that tip. I have also moved my Powerbreathe to somewhere I will see it, and remember to use it.


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