Asthma Help Please...

Do you have an air purifier?
My nephew suffers from asthma, he can't sleep without one running constantly in his bedroom.

In case of an emergency, and this might freak you out, but it works, coffee, or any other high caffeinated drink can help, the caffeine actually helps open up the airways.


[linkhttp://ezinearticles.com/?Coffee-and-Asthma?&id=59422]http://ezinearticles.com/?Coffee-and-Asthma?&id=59422[/link]

I had heard about caffeine. I was trying to avoid it since he has school in the morning but if it comes down to it, we may have to try it.

He has an air purifier in his room. I should go make sure its on. The power went out yesterday a couple of times so it may have turned off. Thanks for the reminder.[]

DH has asthma and I was also going to say caffeine.  Sometimes just a warm drink will help though too I think.  He always says coffee but you might be able to accomplish the same thing with warm water or maybe even hot cocoa.  I think you can also buy an over the counter inhaler that isn't as strong but might be just what you need in case of an emergency.  DH has used those at times.  I think it is called Primatene Mist. 

Give him a prescription dose of Benedryl -- Benedryl is actually a good cough suppressant used at prescription doses (Call Wal-greens -- they will tell you)
 
If he gets really close to a constant attack, I used to put ice in a wet washcloth and just lay it on my chest and sip ice chips and water.
 
I use a homeopathic - Ipecachuana - to help contol my asthma.  Actually the best I've found is Heel/BNI's "Asthma blend.  But homeopathy can work fast (faster than a regular pill or inhaler) but that's not easily found this time of niht.

Keep him calm and mellow tonite. Also, try to keep the temperature constant (some people let their house get warmer or cooler at night depending on what they like ). Theophylline in tea works well too. We actually give a big dose of this to refractory patients to actually treat asthma Good luck, I'm sure he will be fine for one night, we'll keep our fingers crossed for you!

I did send him to bed on Benedryl. I may wake him up around 2 or so and give him another. Poor kid, he's taken so many benedryl in his lifetime that he can take way more than me. 1 pill knocks me on my butt. He can still function on 1 adult strength pill. And I'm 3 times his weight.

I think I may be a little late on this tread.   I know what your son is going though with his asthma mine has been out of control lately thanks to allergies also.   Coffee does a good job of calming down an attack make it Black without No Sugar or Milk, be prepare for him to possible vomit to help break up the mucus.  Make sure to keep him calm and relax cause if not it can make asthma attack worse.    As a back up plan you may want to look into a breathing machine most insurance companies will pay for it I got mine for less than $40 dollars.  
 

I have asthma so I'll share what I know.

1. The puffer is a rescue inhaler - it is supposed to be for emergencies, not a maintenance drug. Unfortunately all doctors are not created equal so you need to find an asthma doctor for your child. The general rule of thumb is that if you're using your rescue inhaler more than a couple of times a week your asthma is not controlled. I often have my inhalers expire before they are emptied.  There are many ways to manage allergy-induced asthma.

2. Having no rescue inhalers in the house is a dangeruos game.  When you're having an asthmatic attack the tidal volume in your lungs is low, and when you go to sleep having an asthma attack you can have a deadly crisis. People still die of asthma. My brother was caught without his rescue inhaler and he died. You should have a full rescue inhaler in your home. All these remedies about caffiene and benadryl is playing a dangerous game.

YMMV
Paula

Thanks for the advice everyone. Kale didn't even wake up once last night. And we now have two puffers in the house.

Paulaedwina, I understand about rescue inhalers and maintenance inhalers. Kale is on both, Flo-Vent for maintanence and the ventolin rescue inhaler. We have been playing around as per doctors instructions trying to get his asthma back under control. He's getting better but is still in the iffy zone. Had we had a real emergancy, I would have headed up to Emerg, but I was trying to avoid that. I have Kale and now Kali, and BF works nights so hauling both kids up to the hospital would have been a hassle. I would have done it though.[]

I have had asthma all my life too. I know how hard it can be to live with. I have my own remedies, such as sucking on ice, but thought I would ask anyway, just in case.

Candace, I hope your boy is all right.  A little late, but if such a situation happens again, I would go to the ER.  My daughter has asthma and if she didn't have Albuterol (immediate) inhaler and she needed it, I would be very afraid.   Allergy season is definitely affecting her, also. 

I give my daughter flax seed oil every day.  Since she's begun, it seems to have helped her lung inflammation a lot. It was recommended by a doctor who has said his asthma has been completely controlled by taking flax. 

I got caught wtihout my daughter's inhaler once.  We were on a walk and she had a mild exercise induced reaction.  Scared the heck out of me and that won't happen again. 

I hope you got some rest and your boy is feeling better!
 
Edited
I see we replied at the same time!  Glad Kale's doing well!

Flax seed oil huh? I have some of that in capsule form that I sometimes add to the dogs food. Maybe I'll try it.

Kale very rarely has activity induced attacks anymore. He's in pretty good shape. Laughing too hard will sometimes trigger one though. Weird cause he can run around like crazy, climb trees, ride his bike and nothing. Get him giggling though...

Its really been allergy induced for the last bit.

Good to know, Huskymom. I always start with the basics just in case the person doesn't know.

Paula

Does your son take Singular?  My daughter has asthma and the doctor besides the inhalers she's on, also takes Singular once a day. It's a tablet that is for asthma and also allergies. When my daughter called in a refill for her Singular, the insurance company wanted to know if she had asthma because I guess some doctors are also prescribeing this for allergies also. The insurance company paid for it cause she has asthma but told us not if it's just for allergies. My husbands work company recently switched providers, hence the question. The singular really seems to work for her. []
I hope this helps.

ORIGINAL: twelvepaws

Candace, I hope your boy is all right. A little late, but if such a situation happens again, I would go to the ER. My daughter has asthma and if she didn't have Albuterol (immediate) inhaler and she needed it, I would be very afraid. Allergy season is definitely affecting her, also.

I agree with this, twelvepaws. I have had asthma all my life.

I also wanted to say that the idea of giving benedryl (diphenhydramine) for asthma is NOT a good idea. Especially large quantities. Strong antihistamines make the lungs dry and brittle, and even MORE reactive and susceptible to allergens, dust, etc. This is something I've experienced and I've also been advised by docs NOT to take drying antihistamines.

Benedryl is good if someone his having a severe allergic reaction, true. But not for generalized asthma. Does that make sense? If someone can't breathe, they go to the ER. Period! Breathing is number ONE on the Things I Have To Do list! LOL

I have a nebulizer machine donated to me (I have no insurance) by a friend who got a new one from her insurance company. It gives me GREAT peace of mind. If I have an attack at least I have that. That's the first thing they put you on in the ER if you don't need an epinephrine shot (adrenaline).

I am not a doctor, but have been managing moderate to severe asthma and allergies all my life.

To sum up: There are great emergencies, severe attacks where your lungs close up right away. If you don't have a nebulizer machine, or if it doesn' t resolve the problem ASAP (three minutes), GO TO THE ER. If it is from a bee or wasp sting, or other allergen don't mess around. Give the person their emergency shot (you should get one from your doc if you know you have those kinds of allergies) and go to the ER.

If it is constant wheezing and difficulty breathing but NOT a severe allergic reaction, use your nebulizer machine. See a doctor as soon as you can if that doesn't clear things up. If it gets worse, go to the ER.

People going into anaphylactic shock often have their throats close up. Taking something orally is NOT a good idea. ER!!

Signs to look for:

Blue lips: go to the ER!
Blue fingernails: Go to the ER!
Hunched over, labored wheezing: go to the ER!

Asthma is the number two or three killer of people these days. It's right up there in the top three. Don't mess around if someone can't breathe!

BTW: Coffee can save your life in a pinch, but only if you are NOT a daily coffee drinker. Asthmatics should not drink coffee on a daily basis because it depletes your adrenals with every cup, making chronic asthma far worse. It also causes your liver to dump all your water soluable vitamins, which means you lose all your B and C every time you have a cup. If you are a coffee drinker, start taking vitamins right away!

I don't have time to write more, but I'm posing this because I don't want the lurkers, of whom there are many, to think that they can NOT go to the ER if they just drink a cup of coffee.... I'm sending this with the hopes that folks will take asthma seriously and not just something they think is psychosomatic. It's not, and it kills if not taken care of.