ventolin and tremors any advice?newly diagnosed.

[TheEnthusiasticTroll]

hi basicaly I have newley been diagnosed with asthma, it has taken a while, Im actually quite poorly. Peek flow this morming of 250 and have been given an inhalor. My mind is generally shot anyway due to my symptoms but seems worse since taking gth einhaler.

I have relied upon the inhaler all day and I have manged to get my peek flow up to 400 this evening. But Im finding my thought proccess is very poor now, more so than without the inhalor and Im having really bad tremors. I have taken the inhalor 2 puffs x4 times a day as that is wjat was instructed, however inbetween that I think I have had to use it alot maybe another 8 times, so all in all I have had 24 puffs? I imagine that is quite alot and it is midnight and Im not in the remotest bit ready to sleep despite being so physically and emotionaly drained and unwell.

What should I expect my line of treatment to be and is there any alternative to so much ventiolin and these side effects. I dont think I can function with running a home, studyimg and working feeling the way I do. Luckily Im on a break from uni for the summer, but the kids are off soon and I need to get well and have some sleep. I found talking to my beautifull dd so difficult today, let alone cooking, cleaning and home work. I have never felt so helpless and useless and need to get well.

bump

Your ventolin ought to be relieving the tightness as it occurs. I know peak flows are very subjective and you will come to learn what is a good flow for you (make sure you record your peak flows when you feel wellfor this purpose).

If you are breathless whilst talking and the ventolin is not reliving, you need some help - sharpish, like tomorrow. get an emergency appt with the asthma nurse at your GP or go A&E.

I feel much better this morning, no shortness of breath so far but tremors are still there. hopefully today will be far better I will keep monitoring how I feel today, just so fed up of feeling like this. but hopefully I will find myself on the mend.

If I take too much ventolin I get the shakes too, and also insomnia - not nice. Its a long time since this happened to me tbh (asthma well under control due to great asthma nurse). Also I've been allergic/asthmatic all my life so I'm used to coping with it - a new diagnosis means that you need support with coping. I agree with LittlePushka - make an appointment with your asthma nurse. To me you have been taking a lot of does and you're not getting the relief you need.

When I'm wheezy a hot steamy shower does help.

thanks, I have an appointment on tuesday with the asthma nurse. I also wondered what course of treatrment I may expect to get it under control.

I have had tremors and slight sight disturbance after taking too much ventolin, and 16 doses in 24 hours is way above the maximum recommended. You should not have to use it that much, so it is obviously not working for you. It is likely that you will be put on a preventer regime, which should cut down on your use of ventolin almost entirely.

I have been asthmatic all my life, both seasonal allergic and exercise induced, and until last year had been 'managing' my symptoms with ventolin and becotide inhalers, but was not symptom free. Last year I was switched to a Symbicort inhaler, which contains budesonide/formoterol, and for the first time ever am very nearly symptom free. Don't be afraid to go back to your doctor/asthma nurse and say that it is not working, and keep on until they find something that does work for you.

Have you been prescribed any steroids or a steroid inhaler? If I have a peak flow of 250 and that amount of ventolin isn't helping, I have been told to see the gp for prednisolone.

If you have been prescribed steroid inhalers they may take a couple of days to work, but steroid tablets should make you feel much better within two or three doses.

Large amounts of ventolin have made me feel very shaky/jittery in the past.

Another tip i have been told is that using a spacer for the ventolin and taking 8 puffs through it when you are very bad is the equivalent of the nebulised dose you would receive at hospital.

I had steroids last week for 5 days when I first seen the Dr and she suspected It may be asthma. The steroinds helped imediatly and I felt well all weekend but they stopped monday, when I had t/c with dr. she just said to book in with asthma nurse, but that isnt untill tuesday next week. But after the steroids ended I was back to aquare one by tuesday, So I went back to Drs. yesterday, walk in clinic so i seen another Dr. Who gave me blue ventolin inhaler and said see how i get on with that and the nurse will decide if the blue ventolin with antihystamines is enough, He didnt give me a spacer either. I was surprised he didnt give me more steroids TBH, but when I asked he just said see how the inhaler 2 puffs x 4 daily works for now.

So far so good today though still not been breathless and have only had 2 puffs about 7.30am but have only just stopped the shaking in last 10 mins, but will have another does lunch time, so will get shakes again I expect

The others are right, large doses of salbutamol do make you shaky plus raises your heart rate. When my DS was very poorly in hospital due to his breathing he was having 10 puffs every 20 mins (he was under 3 yrs old too) so I wouldn't worry about overdosing on salbutamol but I wouldn't recommend taking more than the recommended dosage without getting medical advice. Using a spacer is also a very good tip, it's a much better way of getting the medication in properly.

With DS I was told that it was very hard to OD on Ventolin as you would be too shaky to take it anymore. So don't panic about that. But it does sound like you need more help.

You really need to get a steroid inhaler, I'm shocked the gp hasn't prescribed one. My asthma is very mild at the moment, but has been bad in the past - even though I don't have any symptoms the asthma nurse still wants me to take becotide, with a spacer as that increases the efficiency of the dose.

So to have asthma bad enough to need steroids but not to be prescribed a preventer inhaler is not great practice from the gp.

thanks for replies, Ill make sure the nurse knows how bad i have been.

While you're waiting to see the asthma nurse, it might be helpful to talk to one of the asthma specialist nurses on the Asthma UK adviceline. 0800 121 62 44 free from a BT landline Mon-Fri 9-5pm

I don't have asthma but my DS had a severe attack last year which resulted in 2 weeks in the intensive care unit. He constantly had the shakes, even more so when he was hooked up to all kinds of drips.

24 puffs is a lot to be taking, we was told that if DS required more than 10 puffs in a four hourly period then he needed to be in hospital and to call an ambulance. Don't really know how this differs with adults but we have always been told never be frightened to call an ambulance with asthma because you can go down hill so fast, my DS was fine 20 mins previous to an attack whilst waiting in a&e for an attack he'd had at home but was calmed in the ambulance, had another in a&e which resulted in the resus room and about 15 doctors surrounding him.

Scariest time ever.