My Life as an Asthma Mom

(http://www.slashgear.com/asthma-inhaler-prototype-is-nearly-as-slim-as-a-credit-card-22428521/) What IS that silver thing sticking out of the wallet in the screenshot? Why it's an inhaler of course! Silly you, anyone can see that! This story was shared by Allergy & Asthma Network on their Facebook page last week. I read the article and saw the photos and thought, "Come again? What?" The Bloom Inhaler holds 6 puffs from your regular inhaler. The idea behind this is you pre-load 6 doses into this credit card sized inhaler and leave your regular sized inhaler at home. Hmmmm. How does it work? Slash Gear says: "The user inserts the regular inhaler’s canister into Bloom’s matching port and depresses it six times, loading six doses into the slim inhaler. A hermetic seal prevents it from leaking back out, says the company. When the inhaler is needed, the user depresses the upper button and inhales the medication like normal...."  ...

We can't figure out why daughter Kitty is still having a hard time with her allergies and asthma. Are we missing an allergy or asthma trigger in the house? We are in the middle of a bathroom remodel (last week's post). It's REALLY fun to have 5 of us trying to all use the one shower. Sigh. Was there anything else we are missing? This is what we decided to focus on: Make sure we vacuum AT LEAST once a week (this means everything - especially under the beds) Wash the sheets for EACH bed once a week (for us, it works best to pick a day of the week for each bed. So, I wash our sheets on Friday. Kitty's sheets on Saturday, etc. My sons are supposed to wash theirs weekly........yeah, riiiiiight. I'm sure that's getting done!)  Clean the vents (did that when we first moved in....but it's been 11 years. So time to do it again) Change the furnace filters monthly (because we have cats - long story of why we do)  What are we doing right: We...

 My 1950's tub and shower has been the source or arguments between Hubby and I.  I knew the shower was leaking. Hubby said there was NO way it could be leaking. Mmmmhmmm..... The tile wall seemed to be bowing out away from the wall. When I pushed on it, it sounded crunchy (like the tile wasn't stuck firm to the wall like it should be.) Daughter Kitty's allergies always seemed WORSE when she was in the shower. That girl can sneeze 30 times in a row - easy. I knew there was something in the bathroom, but couldn't figure out what was causing problems. I cleaned every inch of that bathroom, and still she sneezed. Asthma Doc was considering starting her on allergy shots - again. (She already had shots for 6 years.) The only thing left  that could be causing problems was the shower.   Hubby kept saying there was no way it was leaking.  Last week I talked about having a housing inspector take a look at your house to see if there's som...

Many people don't realize that there are a LOT of things in your house that can affect your asthma.  Things like: carpet pets dust on blinds dust under beds sheets that aren't cleaned often water damage dusty vents We went through our house with an experienced housing expert to see if there was something we were missing.   Daughter Kitty has been in her yellow zone for a couple of months. She is on the highest dose of several allergy and asthma medicines, but it still having a tough time with her asthma. I thought we were being careful. We have tried many things over the years, such as: Wood floors (easier than carpet to see the dust and keep clean) Removing our shoes when we come in the house (we store them in a big basket by the front door) Vacuum every week with a good vacuum (we have been slacking off on this...) Wash our sheets EVERY week in hot water (we do this, but the kids don't) Get new pillows every January during the White Sales U...

One thing I have learned over the years is that people don't understand that asthma is a CHRONIC disease  (meaning it last for a LONG time) Unlike a cold (which is an "acute" illness - meaning it lasts a short time.) For many of us, asthma is there for life. I can't count the number of times someone has said, "My brother's next door neighbor had a friend in college who met a guy who "outgrew" their asthma, so you will too!"  They mean well, but the fact is that asthma is a lifelong disease. I'm almost 50 and have not yet "outgrown" my asthma! And all 3 of my kids inherited my asthma (sorry about that guys!) They have severe asthma, which means they have been hospitalized 12 times (and one son almost died twice.) I just read this article about families dealing with kids with chronic conditions. It's called "The Connections We Make as Parents of Chronically Ill Children"  Erin Gunn talks abou...

My friend saw an article in BBC news and shared it with me. I may have blogged about this already last year, but this a new article that says: "Scientists at Cardiff University have identified the potential root cause of asthma for the first time, along with a new treatment ." Say what?? The article, titled "Cardiff University Scientists discover asthma's root cause"  is short, but says that the scientists have found the cause of asthma, a calcium recepting sensor - or CaSR. They said they could use a drug that is already available, called calcilytics    (those drugs are used to treat people that have bone-density problems like osteoporosis)  And I had to listen to the video from Professor Daniela Riccardi about 3 times before I could figure out what she was saying. (Come on scientist - use regular people talk so we can figure out what you are saying!) Anyway, check out the article and let me know what you think Happy breathing! ...

Allergy & Asthma Network shared a story on their Facebook page about a student who was disciplined for sharing their inhaler with another student What would you do? If your student has an inhaler at school, and they see another friend having an asthma attack and struggling to breathe,  should they share their inhaler?  I know that legally, prescriptions are NOT allowed to be shared. But - would this be considered a "medical emergency"?  Should they let someone use their inhaler? The student who did so was suspended and sent to an "alternative school."  I know the panic of having an asthma attack and not being able to get my inhaler.     What about sharing an Epi Pen?   I really don't see the difference between sharing an inhaler and sharing an epi pen. Have you ever been on a flight where they asked if anyone had an Epi Pen?    What would you do if someone needed your Epi autoinjector?   What ar...