My Life as an Asthma Mom

     Well, about triggers.    I already mentioned mine being cold temperatures (along with dust, grass, trees and ragweed)   Exercise induced asthma My Son #1 has exercise induced asthma.   I can always tell when he's been playing ultimate Frisbee with his friends, because I can hear him coughing all night.    You would think by now he would remember to premedicate (use his inhaler 20 minutes before he does sports). But he never remembers.    Respiratory infections    He also has problems with respiratory infections making his asthma worse (as do most people with asthma). A simple cold for people without asthma usually morphs into pneumonia or bronchitis.   Strong emotions  Son #2 has problems with emotions. Every time he starts a hearty laugh, he instantly starts coughing.   Grass, trees and ragweed   He is also allergic to all animals, and anything green that grows (grass, trees and ragweed.) ...

Asthma is one wily little devil.    It seems people think 'no big deal - give use your albuterol inhaler' and that will cure everything!    Not exactly. Asthma seems to change over time and wax and wane.    It can be hard to figuring out what your asthma triggers as those can also change over time.    I was shopping for a baby gift last week at a local retail store and suddenly felt my chest tighten up and the hard cough starting.    I have no idea what happened! Was there a dusty shelf? Chemical sizing on the baby towel I bought? Something too fragrant in the baby shampoo aisle? Something on the aisle where I bought the rubber duck? I was fine once I used my inhaler and left the store. I have shopped there for almost 15 years and never had a problem. Sometimes you can't figure out why you had an asthma attack.  Sometimes, I'm so busy, it takes a few minutes to dawn on me that I'm having a hard time breathing and getting that ...

My name is Andrea, and I HATE asthma!  Asthma has changed my life forever.  Originally an Interior Designer, I went back to college for another degree ( this time in Public Health) to help other families with asthma.  I got a crash course in asthma 10 years ago when my middle son was hospitalized with "breathing problems", and then we found out he was diagnosed with asthma. Asthma can be overwhelming with all of the unique lingo, medications, and equipment. I inherited asthma from my parents, and it comes from my husband's side of the family as well. That meant all three of our children also have asthma. We've had countless doctor visits, middle of the night ER visits, and 12 hospitalizations for asthma.  My three children and I all have different asthma triggers and different asthma severity levels. That means we all have different inhalers that we use to treat our asthma. By sharing what I have learned over the last 10 years, I hope to be able to t...