Asthma suddenly reappeared after years and scared me half to death!

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So I suffered with asthma from about the age of 13 until several years ago when the symptoms just disappeared, I stopped attending check ups and over time never needed to use an inhaler again.
I recently started C25K (again🤣) and from the very first run my chest felt tight. I've also suffered with hay fever this year for the first time ever.
I kind of ignored the tight chest thinking I was just incredibly unfit! As the runs got a bit longer I felt worse - tight chest while running and then wheezing a bit and coughing afterwards.
Stupidly I still didn't get it checked.
Then on Saturday I went out to run with my best friend. We had to run for 9 minutes I think, which is quite a lot for me.
About 6/7 mins I was getting the familiar tight chest feeling but pushed on. All of a sudden I just couldn't breathe. At all. I was literally gasping for air and my chest/throat felt like they were on fire.
I instantly knew it was an asthma attack and I was terrified. Knowing I'd got no inhaler was without doubt the most frightening thing I've ever felt.
Thank god my best friend has a little boy with quite bad asthma. She recognised what it was straight away and thankfully had one of his inhalers in her car. How I got back to the car I'll never know. I was panicking so much which was making it worse. I was a total crying, wheezing, snotty mess.
She had a spacer for the inhaler too thank goodness, I'm not sure I could have coordinated taking it myself. After 10 puffs I felt loads better, I could feel it work almost immediately.
For the rest of the day I was ok but had a real ache in my chest.
I managed to get through to the gp today and after a check up, and a telling off, I've now been given a seretide inhaler as well as ventolin with strict instructions to go back in 2 weeks to be checked, or before if I'm still needing ventolin regularly.
I guess asthma never really goes away, I've learnt that the hard way this weekend!

I've just recently started getting asthma as a result of hay fever. It's really weird getting asthma for the first time at the age of 51.

You have my sympathies! I hope you can manage it well.
It's really shaken me up being like that after so many years. All weekend I've had such a tight chest and have had to take it easy.
I had definitely got complacent and you forget and frightening it can be when you can't control it.
Fingers crossed this new inhaler will settle this flare up down.

Poor you - my asthma is 100% allergy induced so I've been caught on the hop without an inhaler more than once and it is properly petrifying. Once had a cabbie argue with me about taking me to the hospital rather than home (my ventolin was at home and I knew I'd be fine once I had it).

It could actually be hay fever that's triggered it?

Oh, poor you.
It's absolutely horrible. But it's a myth that 'you grow out of it's.
So pleased you've got decent inhalers one.
Don't go on a run without your blue inhaler!

That must have been scary noYOUbekind. I was so lucky to be with a good friend who could keep me calm and knew how to help me.
I've gone over and over in my head what would have happened if I was running alone 🥺
I think it could be hay fever that's caused it but it seems to be hanging around now. I called in on a friend after work tonight and could only stay 5 minutes because of her cats. I've always been allergic to them but again haven't had any symptoms for ages. My chest felt like it was closing up really quickly.
Again my inhaler sorted it but it's something to remember. I need to make sure I take Piriton if I go again.

now not one

Oneearringlost I will NEVER go for a run without it again.
I have learnt the hard way but the lesson worked. My friend had said she wouldn't run with me again until I'd seen the dr! 🤣

Yes, cats and hayfever are such common triggers. Be aware OP. Sounds like you are. X

Well done OP!

I had similar OP.
I used to have asthma as a child caused by my allergy to dogs. I thought I’d grown out of it.
Then despite having run / exercised all my life in my mid 40s I developed exercise induced asthma. It took me a while to work out why I was getting tired and breathless. Now I have to take two puffs of ventolin prior to exercise

I honestly thought I'd just grown out of it. My symptoms disappeared when I was pregnant and never really came back.
Little did I realise it was waiting in there ready to jump out and grab me when I least expected it.

I don’t know how old you are OP but my asthma nurse told me it’s common for women in their 40s to develop/ redevelop asthma

I am mid 40s so that could be right.
I am gutted about it after so many years symptom free but I really want to get back out running again ASAP even though the thought terrifies me!
The dr said give it a few days for the new inhaler to kick in so we've planned for hopefully Thursday.

I got it at a similar age @ZZTopGuitarSolo. Hope you are feeling better OP.

How scary for you OP! Glad you’re ok.

I’m another one with asthma who thought it went away. Until mask wearing began, kept getting wheezy and having covid tests until it clicked and I got more inhalers from my GP too. No longer wear masks now I’m double vaccinated.

I still run OP. I have two puffs half an hour before I start and take my inhaler with me. I’ve run half marathons since it came back

This is interesting because I am currently waiting for a call back from the dr for DS who had ‘viral wheeze’ and croup quite a lot as a toddler/ small child but hasn’t suffered for a long time. He had an inhaler when he was little, but nothing for years. This last few weeks his hayfever has been off the charts awful, and then last night he just did not stop coughing and he’s been so wheezy today. We’ve done an LFT and I took him for a PCR covid test at 8.30am so we’re currently isolating, although I don’t think it’s actually covid, I think it’s asthma. I’ve given him antihistamine and a couple of puffs of my inhaler (bad mother) and am waiting for the dr to call me back to advise. I have fairly well controlled asthma, but have to have prednisone about once a year when I get a chest infection/bad cold. Being short of breath is terrifying, and he needs something to help his breathing.

Oh whattodo, sorry to hear your ds is struggling. It must be frightening to see your child suffering like that. I'm thankful that I don't seem to have passed it on to either of mine.
My asthma was very poorly controlled through my teenage years, mostly down to me being irresponsible, and I had a few scares. I am determined I am going to carry on running and make sure it is properly controlled.
I had the mask issue today too. I'm supposed to wear one at work, not all the time, but quite lot. Luckily my boss is a friend and could see that I was struggling with my breathing so told me not to wear it.

My asthma decided to reappear last year after no issues for 10+ years. I'd not had an inhaler for several years, in fact I'd been that good that I was no longer eligible for a flu jab as asthma wasn't on my recent records.

Last spring suddenly I was getting tight chested and wheezy again, spoke to the doctor who said they he wondered if I'd had Covid as he'd seen quite a few patients present like me, after testing positive..

I haven't tested positive but may have had it, who knows?
I'm doing lateral flows twice a week for work though.
The dr asked me today if I'd had my jab and I said I'd had one and the next one was on 5th July.
She told me to cancel and rebook the 2nd one ASAP - I'm going tomorrow morning! 🤣

@OverByYer

I still run OP. I have two puffs half an hour before I start and take my inhaler with me. I’ve run half marathons since it came back

This is interesting. I always thought you took the blue as a reliever when you had the symptoms. I've never been told to take it before a run. I may give that a try.

I did Couch to 5k last year and managed ok without inhalers except on days that the pollen was really high, but I do religiously take my brown inhalers morning and evening. I managed to speak to the lovely doctor this evening and she’s prescribed him a blue inhaler, a spacer and some stronger antihistamines for his hayfever as the OTC stuff isn’t even touching the sides. I took him swimming yesterday for the first time in 18 months and I think the chlorine irritated things as well. We’ve still not had his PCR result back, so fingers crossed it’s not actually covid!

A friend with asthma says her symptoms return every seven years! Not sure how common that is but I have heard of it lying dormant for a bit before returning.

Whattodo121 glad you've got an inhaler sorted for your son. I hope he picks up soon.

You poor thing. It's so scary. There's something in the air right now. My hayfever and related asthma has come back this week after being clear for months.