What could be causing this reaction in the evening?

[StrongArm]

I know this might sound a bit bizarre but over the last few months, about 3x a week, around 7-9pm I start suffering from some sort of reaction. My chest starts closing up (I am mildly asthmatic) and I get a cough. You can hear the wheeze go in and out of me and if you watch me breathe, I'm getting that pulling in beneath my neck/above my chest.

First time it happened I called 111 who told me to take 10 puffs of ventolin which I did and 30 mins later, I was ok but wheezy for the next 24 hours.

I tried to get in to the GP but I can't get an appointment. Paid to see a private Gp who said it might be hayfever related so on an antihistamine plus brown inhaler.

It is happening less now but it is still happening. I thought it might be something at home but I went out last night for dinner and at around 9ish, I got a v mild version of it. It's always happening indoors. No obvious trigger. Kept a food diary and nothing the same on each occasion.

Can anyone think what it might be? I'm just worried that at some point, the reaction becomes significantly worse if I can't figure out what is causing it.

Sounds like hay fever which is typically worse in the evenings.

If it isn't food then it.must be something in your environment. I have a reed diffuser was bloody expensive (like £35) and it makes me wheeze. I also have v mild asthma.

Do you have a DP who you don't see all day but see after work? Aftershave or perfume they wear?

Do you bath your kids using bubble bath? Does it happen after that?

What do you do between 6-7pm a few nights a week? The gym?

The weird thing is that I do get grass pollen hayfever but I usually get bad eyes/itchy nose and it doesn't affect my breathing. I had a spell of it in early July (affecting eyes/nose but not breathing) and now it's affecting breathing but not eyes/nose. Is that possible?

If I'm at work, I commute back. Get home around 7-8pm. Eat, sit down.

If I'm working from home, I move from upstairs to downstairs, eat, sit down.

I walk the dog after the incidents so not that.

Last night I was out all day, ate at the restaurant and in between main course and pudding it happened. It went away pretty quickly.

It's so bizarre as it feels like it might be something I'm eating but I can't pinpoint it.

Dust?

Hay fever or other sort of allergy.

Do you drink beer? I think grass allergies can be linked to beer sometimes. Could be some sort of progression. I’m not a doctor but thought I’d throw that in.

Another one I’d keep an eye on would be scented candles/diffusers/fresheners. As PP says even expensive ones can be dodgy.

Also maybe some sort of Covid-related cleaning product? Are you scrubbing stuff with something lately that they might also use in restaurants?

I randomly developed a new allergy in my late 30s. No one could work out why. 😕

I do have a candle downstairs to get rid of dog smell and the restaurant had candles last night I think hmm

I haven't lit the one in our house for weeks though...

I might have to light it and see.

If it is hayfever, I can deal with that but think I need to rule out anything else just in case!

Thanks for your thoughts - this has been enormously helpful as everyone in the house is so horrified when it happens they are finding it hard to think of what it might be and just worried about me keeling over!

Hay fever. I'm having the same issue this year, and can only put it down to that. Last year was my worst year ever with my eyes and nose, and this year it's just breathing/sore throat. I'm back on a brown inhaler after not needing for about 6 years.

This is happening to me!
I’ve never been asthmatic/allergic to anything before but for the last 4 months it has happened nearly every other night! I don’t have an inhaler obviously and it’s horrible. My partner has contemplated 999 on a couple of occasions as it has been so bad.
I am awaiting a GP appointment but for love not money cannot work out what is triggering it. If you find out, please let me know!

One more thought - is it linked to your local pollution index? Maybe if it’s muggy that traps things and makes your asthma worse? You can look up online by area.

Have you got a dusty fan?

I don't know if this is helpful but my asthma is always worse after a meal.

Asthma nurses who only work inside very narrow parameters never seem to care when I tell them this but it is real.

Mine is especially bad after lunch which is my main meal and just before I get very sleepy.

I just mainline ventolin and I'm fine again (I couldn't care less how much ventolin I use, my GP says its fine even if the asthma nurse practically gasps when I tell her 🤷🏼‍♀️)

But I guess if this is new for you you should try and see a GP in your regular surgery. Can you do the online consultation?

I'll add my other asthma triggers are dark chocolate and decaf coffee and tea.
I am pretty intolerant of white wine and sparkling wine which I think is the sulphites.

Do you have any selfish neighbours like me who heat up the water every night with wood which churns out smoke.

Hay fever

I agree, it hayfever. I had this earlier in the season and also for the previous two years. I’m most sensitive to tree pollen so it gets me from March to about May but my DH suffers with grass pollen which lasts right through the summer so it’s likely to be what triggers you too.

I can't drink white wine either @actiongirl1978 !

Thanks everyone - will check all these other possibilities out and will let you know if I find out what it is!

GP said I could also take more antihistamines if I needed so perhaps this is the place to start!

@StrongArm I generally take a fexofenadine once a day and then an over the counter at the other end of the day - loratadine or certrizine.

Did you drink tonic water before it happened and have you drunk it before?

What are you drinking or eating before it happens? I have normally quite well controlled asthma, but do find certain foods and drinks can be a trigger. It's quite hard to narrow down, but I think it's sulphites that trigger mine, which can be in certain drinks, or things like vinegar.

Following as this is exactly what happens to DH. His hay fever has been odd this year - usually streaming nose and eyes, but none of that this year and instead it's a wheezy chest and cough in the evenings.
He doesn't have an inhaler and won't see gp to get one. Taking another otc antihistamine does seem to help a bit.
Why would it be affecting people differently this year if it is "just" hay-fever? He doesn't have any other (known) allergies.

Do you have any flowers in the house? My ds reacts badly if any flowers indoors. Hay-fever sufferer.

i don't know why it would be different either @Schoolchoicesucks

thanks @actiongirl1978 she did say if I was worried I should carry on taking a piriton at night and cetirizine/loratadine in the morning so I'll try that for a few days and see if it makes a difference

in terms of food, nothing the same each time. I do drink gin and tonic but not regularly and I've never had an issue with it. Wine does sometimes affect me (for some reason, depends on what it is) so maybe I need to look at what else sulphites are in.

i suppose the true test will be when grass pollen season is over whether it continues or goes away!

I’ve had this, started about 15 years ago. Wheezing, cough and tight chest randomly, couldn’t pinpoint it, it happen on holiday, inside, outside. Went to GP and had some tests but nothing showed up. Eventually we came to a joint decision that it was a non specific allergy and I was prescribed fexofenadine to take everyday. Problem solved! I’ve been on it for about 14 years now, sometimes get typical hay fever symptoms and top up with an otc allergy tablet but don’t get the cough/wheeze anymore unless I forget to take the fexofenadine.