My Life as an Asthma Mom

This is how I feel when my kids get sick. Some days I think, "I can't do this again!!!!" All 3 of my teenagers have asthma (as do I) but when they were younger, they were sick ALL THE TIME! It got to the point that not only did I know EVERY doctor in my pediatrician's office, but I knew many of the other after-hours doctors too. And the doctors and respiratory therapists at the emergency room....... I would always worry if I was doing the right thing.  I would think, " What if I don't take them to the doctor in time?" What if I take them to the doctor and he says "It's just a virus" and I don't listen to my mother's intuition and take them back? How do I know when to go to the after hours doctor and when to go to the emergency room? What if the one of my kids get admitted to the hospital? Is it my fault? Did I wait too long? Should I have insisted the doctor give them oral steroids?  Should I have pushed ...

Well, I'll tell you what it feels like when I have an asthma attack , but it's different for everyone. I had a bad asthma attack Friday night :( Who knows what caused it? The weather has finally cooled down, so I left the front door open a little to enjoy the evening breeze. I thought the pollen count had dropped to low levels, so it was safe to have the door open. But maybe not! Or was it the neighbor's Tabby Kitty who quietly snuck in the house..... Who knows?! Sometimes it's hard to figure out what triggered an asthma attack. Friday night is Pizza/Video night at our house. Yay! I don't have to cook that night! We had already eaten pizza and were watching a movie when my throat started to feel a little "twitchy." I started to cough a little, and my chest started to feel "tight." Then I felt like I had to cough again, but REALLY cough this time. It felt like it wasn't in my throat, but deeper down in my lungs. Then the co...

Now that the kids are back in school, can you relax? Well, maybe! The house might be a little quieter :) But do you worry about your kids having an asthma attack at school? I know I always do! Would they know what to do if they were having breathing problems?    In our county, the nurse/students ratio is VERY high, it's 1 nurse for every 5,900 students. Yep, you read that right! Each school nurse has between 5-8 schools. So chances are, the school nurse won't be there when my kids have an asthma attack. It's not like I can tell my daughter, "If you are going to have an asthma attack, you can have one between 8-11 on Monday morning,  because that's when the school nurse is there!!" If only asthma were that easy..... So how do you know if your kids can handle an asthma attack at school? I would usually help my kids at home. I make sure they use their inhaler correctly, know when to use it, etc. But what happens when they are at school? It can m...

                                                                 I was watching the ABC World News, and there was a report about the wild fires in the Western U.S. They were spotlighting the fires in Sun Valley, Idaho.   A local reporter there said the air quality was so bad that an air quality station had to evacuate - because even they couldn't breathe! How ironic is that?! He said many people there are using masks or bandanas "to try to keep the smoke and ash out of their lungs." I wouldn't last 5 minutes there! Neither would any of my teenagers (all 3 of which also have asthma!) The Beaver Creek fire has burned over 100,000 acres and there are about 700 fir...

Can your child EVER be one of the kids who gets a " Perfect Attendance!!!!! " certificate at the end of the school year? Maybe. My kids never did. All three of my teenagers have asthma (thanks to Hubby and I-they inherited it from us!)  Our youngest two teenagers were hospitalized 12 separate times when they were younger. So they missed A LOT of school. And even the days when they weren't sick enough to be hospitalized, they would spend days at home having breathing treatments. Or just being so weak that they can't do much but lay on the couch and watch TV. It's amazing what happens to your body when you don't get enough oxygen.  AANMA (Allergy & Asthma Network Mothers of Asthmatics) has a great article on their website this month. It's called " Perfect Attendance: Mission Impossible? "  It really depends on how severe your child's asthma is. Maybe for kids who have mild asthma, they might be able to make it through the school year wi...

(American Lung Association)      It's the most wonderful time of the year.....I'm singing that Christmas song in my head. I remember watching a Staples commercial about shopping for back to school supplies. It was hilarious! The dad was gleefully dancing in the aisle and pushing the shopping cart. He would stop and throw school supplies in while his kids were giving him their best "I hate you" face. So if you have school supplies and new clothes for your kids, you are all set, right?! Well, not yet! You need to talk to your school nurse about filling out an Asthma Action Plan (AAP). You need a new AAP every year for your student. There are a lot of versions, most have green, yellow and red zones.     Green means they are okay Yellow means caution  Red means emergency The AAP tells the school nurse, teacher or classroom aid what to do if your student has an asthma attack at school. What medication to give, when to call for help, etc.    Yo...

It's Back To School time!!! Muhahahah! Sorry kids, but it makes parents excited!! Is your school prepared to handle allergies and asthma emergencies? The Asthma Community Network has a list of the 2013 State Honor Roll of Asthma and Allergy Policies For Schools.     Here's a quote from the website: "One of the bright-spots in school policy for 2013 is the speed and momentum of efforts to pass laws in the states allowing schools to stock epinephrine auto-injectors – emergency medication for anaphylaxis, the most severe type of allergic reaction." The list of states that have policies in place to protect students with allergies and asthma comes from the Allergy and Asthma Foundation of America. (AAFA).You can visit their website to see how your state is doing. Does your know if your school stocks Epi Pens in case a student has an allergic reaction to something they ate?  We never thought it would happen to us, but the first time it did, it was VERY sc...

Daughter Kitty is headed to camp. Now that she is a teenager, she didn't want me anywhere around when I dropped her off with the rest of the girls. She did the dismissive hand wave and said, "You can go now."  Oh sure, that's the thanks I get as a parent?! I spent hours helping her pack all her gear! And camping is always more fun with allergies and asthma. Most kids just pack camp basics but it's different when you have allergies and asthma.We have to pack a LOT of medicine and boxes of tissues! At home, she showers EVERY night to remove pollen and dust from her hair and skin. It helps reduce her sniffing, sneezing, and swollen eyes. She won't be able to do that at Girl's Camp - no showers! They are low on water this year. So now what? The only thing we could think of was to send a big package of baby wipes. She'll have to use those to wipe off her skin and hair every night. Sometimes her allergies are so bad that she has to lay with a wet wa...

What a sad story, this strikes fear in the heart of parents everywhere who have a child with food allergies.    It's your worse nightmare come true :( The story was on Yahoo news, and came from a TV station in Carmichael California. 13 year old Natalie Giorgi was having a snack at Camp Sacramento with her friends and family. It was dark and she couldn't see the food that well. She took a bite of a Rice Krispie treat, but it was iced with peanut butter and chocolate on the top. She quickly spit it out, but that little taste was enough to cause anaphylaxis and cardiac arrest, with lead to her death. The Mayo Clinic has more information about anaphylaxis. I know what it's like to have to carefully inspect food anytime I eat at a family gathering, church outing, work party, restaurant, etc. I have a seafood allergy and Son #2 has a tree nut allergy. We both carry Epi Pens. Just in case. American Academy of Allergy Asthma and Immunology (AAAAI) has a list of the 8 most c...