Can someone who knows tell me whether DS1 could possibly be asthmatic? The only symptom he demonstrates is coughing, almost always in the depths of the night (4.30am today) when he gets up to go to the loo. It is becoming an issue in the house as he wakes us all up.
The way he coughs is a bit odd. You know how it is when you've got or are recovering from a heavy cough and cold, or a nasty chest infection, or whooping cough; where you get the urge to cough and you cough, cough, cough, cough to the point of it forcing the last breath out of you, then you gasp inwards for air for several breaths, either for the whole thing to repeat or for recovery to start as your breath comes back under control. Well, DS does that sort of coughing but the next breath, after 30 seconds of solid coughing is either a small sniff (coughing so hard his eyes have watered) or a small throat clear, like all is 100% OK again. Am I making sense? What I mean is, it's like an immediate recovery which isn't what I'd expect with asthma or, for that matter, a normal heavy cough! He'll then repeat it for maybe an hour, on and off.
Last weekend we were visiting friends for the w/e. We allowed the boys up way too late on night one, then, sadly again on night 2 (they ranged from 11-14). When it came to getting them to settle at 10.45pm, DS1 gets this cough thing again, over and over, so I moved him from the shared bedroom to the study floor as he was preventing the other boys from sleeping. My friend, the other mum, came from her room with her puffer as she is quite asthmatic, telling me it sounded just like asthma to her, and did I think 2 puffs might help? I said let's try, and, after a moment or so, DS was 'fine'. My friend says that sometimes asthma is diagnosed via whether Ventolin works on it or not! I'm not entirely sure that 2 very late nights were The Factor here, though!
DS isn't very sporty but I don't think I've ever seen him gaspy or blue lipped at all. We climbed Snowdon a fortnight ago!
Now I will be blunt here and say DS1 can be prone to attention seeking behaviour. He hates being the only one awake (if he's awake when I go to bed at 10.45pm, he'll give a theatrical throat clear from his room which is really saying "I'm still awake, mum"). Could this be what's happening rather than asthma? A few mins ago he was sitting on the sofa near me, and started coughing. I went 'DS!' and he immediately stopped coughing and said, all aggrieved 'What? I can't help it if I'm coughing, can I?' and it struck me then that if he needed to cough, he'd've continued, not instantly shot a retort back at me.
I am also concerned that if I take him to the GP he'll automatically stick him on Ventolin- I gather you have to fight to get your DC a hospital referral! DS really doesn't need the potential growth stunting effects of steroids, either!
WWYD? I know little about asthma as we've been fortunate for it not to be an issue in our families so far!