[Anonymous]

HI, so I apparently have asthma! I saw my gp in February just to get my reliever repeat prescription renewed and I ended up being referred to the asthma nurse (won't go into detail)! The reliever was for hayfever, though I occasionally used it in winter. For as long as I can remember I have had hayfever. My main symptom has always been coughing and being short of breath. I assumed that coughing all night and being constantly out of breath was normal for me so I ignored it. I never thought of asthma! I first got the inhaler when I was 9, I'm now 18. I was never asked to go and see anyone and the prescription was always renewed. I only went because I thought it was getting worse and I was starting to feel weird after eating certain foods.

So the questions...

1) when am I supposed to use the reliever? I know this is a stupid question but no one has ever told me. I use it now when my symptoms are really bad and stqop me from doing things. For minor symptoms I tend to ignore then, or just assume that it's not asthma. I've kind of always thought if I'm out of breath it's because I'm exercising and I'm unfit (eventhough I dance for 5 hours a week!) so, when should I use it?

2) how long will I have to use the preventor for? I have been using one that says 100 on the box and the nurse said after six weeks she would reduce it. How long till I don't need it? I hate taking it. I have literally never had to take daily medication in my life (I don't take anything for hayfever, I just live with it) and I hate it! Is it to do with the peak flow graph I've been keeping? That's still all over the place and I'm in week 5!

Sorry if these are stupid questions. I don't know anyone with asthma, and when I asked the nurse a question she laughed at me so I don't really want to ask.her anything else :/

Thanks for any help.- I will rep!

[Clare~Bear]

What kind of inhaler is it? Mines ventolin and is used to prevent me from wheezing, so I take once a day when I have a cough to stop me getting wheezy and half an hour before doing sports. Others are designed to be taken when you're having an asthma attack.

[Anonymous]

I have a brown one (sorry don't know what it's called) and a ventolin one.

[ArtGoblin]

1) Take it whenever you feel you need to. If you feel the tightness in your chest, then it's right to take it.

2) I've been on the preventer for 19 years, sorry. But I guess you're nowhere near that if the nurse says you should be able to come off it. Peak flows are really hard, don't worry. I always score really low even when I'm feeling fine just because I'm not very good at doing them!

[Anonymous]

The nurse didn't say I could come off it as such, she just mentioned that I might be able to reduce the amount after six weeks, so I'm assuming that she'll gradually decrease it to nothing? I have no idea how this stuff works!

[heidigirl]

Take your reliever inhaler when you need to; you may find that after a while on a preventative inhaler you're using it less. I was probably using mine a couple of times a week before my asthma diagnosis (about a year ago-aged 23! Suspect I had had it for a while before that but it definitely got worse when I started uni) and after starting my preventative inhaler, I've only used it a handful of times. I almost entirely stopped needing it after the first two weeks, and I've pretty much only used it since because of the hayfever season.

I'm pretty sure preventative inhalers are a lifetime thing; they don't cure you of asthma, they just prevent symptoms for as long as you're taking it. I understand it's annoying to have to take it though, I have such trouble remembering mine. Sometimes I get lazy and lapse into not taking it very regularly but I've found that's a bad idea-I just end up feeling awful again. I have to keep it right by my bed if I'm to have any chance of remembering it at night, or I get lazy because I can't be bothered to get out of bed when I realise I haven't taken it and go across the room to get it.

I don't see why your asthma nurse would say you might be able to reduce the dose of your preventative inhaler before you've even seen how well it works for you; as I understand you're usually started on the lowest effective dose-so if anything, you would be more likely to increase the dose if it wasn't effective for you. What is your preventative inhaler and what dose are you on? I guess if you'd been put on a higher dose it might be reduced-but not to nothing, just the lowest effective dose.

[Anonymous]

(Original post by heidigirl)
Take your reliever inhaler when you need to; you may find that after a while on a preventative inhaler you're using it less. I was probably using mine a couple of times a week before my asthma diagnosis (about a year ago-aged 23! Suspect I had had it for a while before that but it definitely got worse when I started uni) and after starting my preventative inhaler, I've only used it a handful of times. I almost entirely stopped needing it after the first two weeks, and I've pretty much only used it since because of the hayfever season.

I'm pretty sure preventative inhalers are a lifetime thing; they don't cure you of asthma, they just prevent symptoms for as long as you're taking it. I understand it's annoying to have to take it though, I have such trouble remembering mine. Sometimes I get lazy and lapse into not taking it very regularly but I've found that's a bad idea-I just end up feeling awful again. I have to keep it right by my bed if I'm to have any chance of remembering it at night, or I get lazy because I can't be bothered to get out of bed when I realise I haven't taken it and go across the room to get it.

I don't see why your asthma nurse would say you might be able to reduce the dose of your preventative inhaler before you've even seen how well it works for you; as I understand you're usually started on the lowest effective dose-so if anything, you would be more likely to increase the dose if it wasn't effective for you. What is your preventative inhaler and what dose are you on? I guess if you'd been put on a higher dose it might be reduced-but not to nothing, just the lowest effective dose.

Hi, thanks for your reply

I don't know what the preventer is called but it's brown and the box is brown and white if that helps? I'll look what it is when I get home. I take 4 puffs of 100 micrograms (not sure if the units are right)
I was using the reliever at least once a day since my hayfever had started. Without hayfever it was about 2 or 3 times a week.
So I'm always going to have to use inhalers
She also said something about an action plan but refused to explain that to me!

[The_Procrastinator]

It's pretty simple really.

The preventer is used to prevent a flare up that requires you to use the reliever.

The nurse has started you off on a pretty standard dose. When you go back, she will assess whether you stay on this dose, need an alternative type of preventer, or whether you can try dropping the dose slightly. A good indicator of how this dose is working, is whether or not you need to use the reliever, and how often. I have allergic onset asthma (i.e. caused by hayfever and other allergens) and whilst I was on a beclomatasone inhaler (the brown one), I was still using the ventolin (blue one) 6 or 7 times a day, clearly my asthma was no longer well controlled, so the medication got changed. The inhaler I use now is much better at controlling my symptoms, and I use the ventolin generally about once a week. The "action plan" is probably just finding the right balance of type of medication, and frequency of use.

You may find that after the spring and summer months, you no longer need the preventer if you asthma is related to seasonal pollen levels alone.