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Trouble with my asthma and congestion visiting my grandma

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Posted 11/17/2006 9:10 PM (GMT -6)
I need some help and suggestions.
Whenever I visit my grandma at her apartment I experience alot of asthma problems. I wheeze and cough and my nose becomes real congested. My son and I, Spend alot of overnights at my grandma's. In the middle of the night I am interrupted with chough and wheezing and a congested nose. When waking in morning I have a huge amount of nose congestion and coughing. Any suggestions,ideas, for me please Thankyou. eyes
Posted 11/18/2006 10:14 PM (GMT -6)
is her apartment moldy, musty or mildewy-?it may be that--something that is hard to deal with. Maybe a dehumidifier or a deep, deep cleaning-with chemical free products of everything may help, but if she has an old carpet or drapes or something unknown-it may remain a mystery. I am unable to go to my upstairs bedroom anymore because of my asthmatic response and have yet to figure out the problem. i am better in the rest of my house...it is frustrating for me as well.
Posted 11/20/2006 1:00 PM (GMT -6)
Thanks Strawb,
No I haven't witnessed any mold, dust in her apartment. In fact she is very clean, and the carpet isn't that old. So, I am stunned at what could be causing me so many problems when I am over there. I am going there Thursday for Thanksgiving so I am going to pay attention to anything that stricks me that could be contributing to the problem. Thankyou, STRAWB for the advice and replying. It is a mystery. I have no clue to what could be triggering the syptoms. Her apartment is always so clean and organized nothing that seems to act up my nose and asthma. We will see how it goes Thanksgiving. Thanks again have a great Thanksgiving. Brandi.
Posted 11/20/2006 6:10 PM (GMT -6)
younglady94: Dust mites are the #1 trigger for children w/asthma & if you also have a dust mite trigger, this might explain your reactions. A person can be clean beyond belief, but thousands of dust mites live in mattresses (even new ones), pillows, drapes, & carpet. You can control this trigger if you carry your own pillow which is encased in a dust mite cover (must have zipper or other enclosure as one which simply slips on does not hold the dust mites). You might want to also invest in an air purifier...they are portable and you can carry them w/you. Have you ever had an allergy test? This is the 1st step to controlling your asthma. If your nose becomes congested, you may want to run a humidifier as this will add moisture to the air and inturn, this the secretions so you won't be so congested. If you are asthmatic, ask your MD about taking a neb/MDI tx about 15 minutes prior to your visit. Good luck!

Intended as asthma education info only, not medical advise.
Posted 11/21/2006 12:35 PM (GMT -6)
Thank you, pegleg for you suggestions. I appreciate any help I can get on here. I have had allergy testing done about 8 months ago. Everything turned out negative. But, I do have some skin allergies. I have had mild/moderate asthma for 5 yrs. I can't figure out what is triggering my nose and asthma at my grandma's apartment. Every time I am there this happens. Exact pattern every time. I have never used a nebulizer. I wonder if that would help me. Do you have any other suggestions for me? Thanks, have a nice day! Happy Thanksgiving!!!!!
Posted 11/23/2006 11:41 PM (GMT -6)
 

Hi there,

im so sorry to hear your having so much troubles.

Does she wear purfume? Are the bed linens scented? Sometimes certain kinds of scents can trigger asthma, whial others dont.  For me, if i go through a mall, and i go through a perfume area, im fine, but lavander bed linen spray scent and i cant breath at all.

You should for sure have a nebulizer, or at least some Salbutimol you can use,

2 puffs, and the asthma attack goes away,

youmust have heard of it?

What do you do when you get an asthma attack?

Posted 11/24/2006 1:49 PM (GMT -6)
Josey,
Thanks, for reply. My grandma, doesn't wear much perfume. It is not strong smelling. I take along my Albuterol inhaler with chamber spacer. I take the medication when I need it. I am thinking about asking my allergist for a nebulizer. The asthma attack usually occurs when I am laying down at my grandma's house. Then during the night it wakes me up the asthma trouble. The Albuterol medication has helped pretty much everytime. Brandi.
Posted 11/25/2006 1:02 PM (GMT -6)

tongue  Hi,

 I would get an air cleaner and take it with you.

Maybe you already have one at home that you could take with you and try it. Put it in the bedroom where you are having trouble. I think that would solve your problem. That's what I do when I go to my daughters b/c she has dogs,which I'm allergic to.

                           Shirley

Posted 11/26/2006 10:00 PM (GMT -6)
Thankyou, achoo for the advice. I do have a air purifer at home. I will take it with me the next time I go to my grandma's. I see my allergist December 13th for checkup. Hope all is well. Brandi.
Posted 11/27/2006 3:04 PM (GMT -6)
The first question that comes to my mind is does your grandma have a pet? Also, if the apartment is older, then it is likely you are dealing with a mold issue in the carpets or walls or possibly a dust build up in the ductworks. I second the suggestion about taking your air purifier with you to see if it helps.
Posted 11/27/2006 5:03 PM (GMT -6)
Hi Brandi,I think that air cleaner will work well for you! Let us know how you fare.
Hugs Shirley
Posted 11/27/2006 8:17 PM (GMT -6)
cool Thankyou, all for the advice and suggestions. To answer Shirley's question. No my grandma doesn't have any pets. The building his older, but don't know how old it is. The air purifier is something I will try next time I go there .
Posted 11/28/2006 6:45 PM (GMT -6)
Some people are allergic to cockroach dust. This does not mean that your g'mother has roaches. Just about all older bldgs have some sort of bugs which die inbetween the walls, disintegrate, & the a/c & heater vents pick up the "dust" and distributes it throughout the house. My son is allergic to cockroach dust & I'm a clean-aholic. He always ended up in the hospital in Oct & March/April. Halloween & Easter occurs during this time period and since he's allergic to cockroach dust (found in chocolate candy) his exacerbations were full blown! He quit choc candy and his asthma attacks diminished. I couldn't eat chocolate for over a year. Now I simply call it my "protein!" Hope you find the answer to your problem soon. You might want to talk to your MD about being on routine txs right before, during, & shortly after your visits to curtail your exacerbations. If an MDI is used w/spacer and correctly, it is just as effective as a nebulizer. Your local ALA might have the Krames on Demand Program which shows pts step-by-step of using an MDI w/spacer.
Posted 12/15/2006 9:13 AM (GMT -6)

I believe that your problem is  dirty air.  You should really try an air purifier.  I don't know where you live, but you should try and deal with a reputable source.  There are many types of air purifiers out there.  Make sure that you can try it out first and make sure that it works for you.  If you would like more information, just reply to this email.

Thanks

Posted 12/16/2006 11:29 PM (GMT -6)
yeah Reginator, thanks for reply. I do have an air purifier. I use it in my home. Haven't brought it over to my grandma's. I would like any information you can give me. Brandi.
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