My Life as an Asthma Mom

This follows under "My Asthma Doc is a genius!" I learned so many things from him over the last 19 years since my kids and I were all diagnosed with asthma and allergies.  In fact, we REALLY miss him since he retired :( My kids are all college aged now, but when they were little, we had a tough time controlling their asthma - especially with Son #2. He was in the hospital 8 times (2 of those were ICU.)  Asthma Doc had tried everything he could think of. In fact, he was thinking about sending us to National Jewish Hospital in Denver to see if they could figure out how to treat my son. (They specialize in respiratory care.) Asthma Doc asked us many questions about our home - such as: Does anyone smoke? Is there mold in our home? Do we have pets? Do we have carpet or wood floors? Do we have a fireplace? Do we burn scented candles or scented plug ins? Does our son sleep in a bunk bed? I have to admit I was a little puzzled when he asked about...

We are going to have a full moon again tonight, only today is Friday the 13th, so it's supposed to be extra spooky! I didn't think much about the full moon until I was talking with a friend (who is a GREAT yoga instructor!) She always gives a short massage or positive thought at the end of yoga. One thing she said was that our bodies are like a full moon. Sometimes we are definitely "full" and feeling great! You know the days - coworkers are getting along, no one is fighting at home, dinner turns out great and you have lots of energy. And then there are days when we are like the moon - when it's just a sliver (usually called the crescent moon.) Those are the days when I want to smash my alarm clock with a shoe. I want to stay in bed and skip work, but I can't. So I hope I can just get through the day at work, go through the drive through for dinner, and then head to bed. And it's the same way with asthma. Some days I don't even ...

Someone just asked me, what's the worst time of year for you with allergies?  Ummmmm....year round. Many people think those with seasonal allergies (hay fever) just have allergies in the spring when the flowers and trees bloom. If only. IF only.... For many of us, fall can be just as miserable. I have woken up coughing several nights this week - which is very unusual for me. That is a sign that my asthma is not well controlled. In fact, Baylor University has an easy way to check if your asthma is controlled.  It's called the Rule of 2: (Baylor University Rule of 2) Since I am now waking up more than 2 times per month, I need to figure out what is going on. I already take a daily, controller inhaler, so that should keep the swelling down in my lungs. Since The Hubster just cleaned and vacuumed our room, I know dust isn't the cause of my asthma attacks. A quick check at the pollen count in my area shows Ragweed, Sage and Chenopo...