Do you have a child with asthma?

[tulip27]

If so how do you cope. My dd is 2 and had her first proper attack last night, found her in her cot shaking and puple, I thought it was menningitis as couldn't hear any wheeze, turned out she was past the point of wheeze and on the way to death. Ambulence were great and after some nebulisers was fine. Am now terrified. What if this happens and I don't hear her, or am not there( at work). Help am freaking out.

There are often triggers to an attack, my ds isn't a bad asthmatic but I know to take his inhaler if he's running around, ill or the weather's cold. These are his triggers, then I know I'll be up all night. Was she coughing before? There's nurses trained in asthma at the hospital, did you get an appointment with them? It's important to avoid smoke and dust.

She had a viral respitory tract infection which is always her trigger but normally gets a little short of breath when running at this time and all is well with 1-2 puffs of salbutamol. She was just so quick to go off thats what scares me and it was in the middle of the night. What if it happens again and I don't hear her? I am just scared. to let herout of my sight.

If she's ill and you think there's going to be a problem let her sleep in your bed with you so you'll wake up. I think it's ok for her to have a dose before she goes to bed, even if she's not wheezy. Does she have a preventer inhaler (becotide)?

ds has asthma and is 6 and I still have a baby monitor for him, I think other mums think I am treating him like a baby to still have a monitor but I dont care I need to hear him. Hope you ok, you sound quite shaken up

My dd1 is asthmatic and has been from 3mths old. She is 2.4yrs now and is generally well managed and monitored by the asthma clinic in the hospital although it took us ages to get to that point after lots of admissions and a+e visits. Please try not to freak out it is likely she has had some sort of viral infection leading to the attack.
We still use a monitor in dds room just so that we can hear her breathing and also if she has a slight cough or runny nose then we know it is time to increase her inhalers to pre empt any attacks.
DD1 is also being put onto monteleukest[sp] as toddlers are notoriously bad at taking their inhalers so this is better to help with prevention of wheezing.

My DD has asthma, although the actual diagnosis is 'wheeze associated with viral episodes'.

She had her first attack at around 15 months - no risk factors, and fifth child, so quite a shock to us. She was first hospitalised at 18 months, and we had a major inhaler episode to keep her out of hospital when she was about 20 months. It hit home when we took her to hospital unconcious at 22 months.

We were in and out of hospital a lot between the ages of 2 and 4. We basically dropped everything when she needed to go in, and called upon help from friends when necessary (no one could possibly object).

We co-slept so I was always alert to her breathing. Even after she was in her own bed, we would bring her into ours when we felt she was at risk of an attack. Now, we will sleep with the doors open, and she will get up if she needs her inhaler, or I will here her coughing.

We were told by the GP that if you couldn't hold them for 2 hours with the inhalers, then you needed to go in, so I just used this advice. I distanced myself from the decision making - it was better just to accept the advice. If it was over cautious, then we would be sent home again, but mostly it was spot-on. It is much better to arrive in hospital sooner rather than later, because the treatment is much milder, and will take effect much sooner.

DD has just turned 6 and it is 18 months since her last hospital admission. She had a year of being virtually wheeze free. This last winter she has been quite wheezy but has been able to cope with it herself (it is not as brittle), and she has been able to tell us when she needs her inhalers.