Unfortunately, for all people that are unlucky enough to have been hamstrung by asthma, it is a lifelong condition. But just because it will probably be with you for the rest of your life it doesn’t mean you or your child has to suffer. With the proper information, caution and a solid plan, you can take control of your asthma and severely diminish its effects and the hold it has on your life.
If you are tired of your asthma stopping you from doing the things you want to do, pay attention to these 5 steps that will help you ease your asthma.
Understand Your Asthma Triggers
You may know of some already and know how to deal with them, but for those who don’t, it’s very important to understand what makes your asthma flare-up. These triggers can also be different for different people and should be handled to different degrees of severity depending on the type of asthma you have and how dangerous it is.
Pay attention to when you get symptoms of your asthma like shortness of breath or bad coughing and really pay attention to your surroundings and write it down. After some time of recurred incidents, you will have a good idea of your triggers and will then be able to avoid them.
The most likely triggers are allergies, cold weather, the common cold or other types of common upper respiratory conditions.
Less common triggers can be odorous sprays that hang in the air such as household air freshener, hair spray or perfume. Cigarette smoke is obviously a common trigger and should be avoided by asthma sufferers.
Exercise
While it causes discomfort and many find it hard to exercise with asthma, it is actually good for you. Just as exercise is good for your overall health and body, it is good for your lungs and respiratory system. Research shows that people that suffer from asthma who exercised for at least half an hour most days were almost three times more likely to have control over their triggers and common symptoms.
If fully exerting yourself is too much and causes severe symptoms then you could try some easier activities such as swimming, hiking or yoga. It’s important to find exercises that you find enjoyable because you will be more likely to stick to them and improve your overall health and asthma symptoms.
Deal with other conditions
For those of you that are unlucky enough to have to put up with more than one underlying health condition, dealing with those first can ease your asthma symptoms. These could be more serious underlying conditions such as sinus infections or acid reflux, or more common illnesses such as the flu or common cold. Similarly, these conditions may not even be related to your asthma or respiratory system.
Allergies are another common condition that a lot of people suffer from but are unaware of. If you think you may be allergic to a type of pollen or pet hair talk to your doctor to discuss the best course of action.
If your lifestyle is particularly busy you may experience a lot of stress or anxiety which can actually make asthma symptoms worse. If you feel this may be the case, you can try to avoid stressful situations and practice relaxing exercises such as meditation. If it is quite serious then speak to your doctor about possible solutions.
A clean home is a healthy home
This leads on from the allergy triggers in previous points. Many people don’t realise the amount of dust and pollen that live around their house, which is normal because it is hard to notice unless you come into contact with large quantities. Breathing in this dust can worsen your asthma by exacerbating your respiratory system.
While you can’t get rid of dust completely, there are many things you can do to stop it from building up. Make a schedule and be sure to wash your sheets, clothes and towels regularly. Similarly, vacuuming around the entire house is key, and make sure to get under furniture and into the small nooks.
Ventolin Inhaler
While this may be something you already use or have trialled in the past, a good inhaler is a very convenient way to address and ease the symptoms of asthma without having to stress about changing your whole life. The most common one used is a Ventolin Inhaler. This inhaler uses the active ingredient Salbutamol sulphate which targets beta-2 receptors found in the lungs. Stimulating them and allowing them to relax opens the airways. It is a relatively cheap alternative that you can carry with you wherever you go to ensure you’re always prepared when your symptoms flare-up.
You can find out more information and purchase Ventolin online here:
Unfortunately, asthma is a lifelong condition and many sufferers will have to deal with it for the rest of their life baring a scientific breakthrough. But that doesn’t mean you have to put up with the condition and let it stricken you. There are many easy things that can be down to ensure your symptoms don’t affect you as much as they could. Be sure to understand what triggers your asthma so you can learn to avoid it. Similarly, exercising and limiting dust in your home can do wonders for your symptoms. Where it’s not possible to continually keep on top of all of these practices, a handy Ventolin inhaler can immediately alleviate your symptoms should they ever be exacerbated.