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Things that Help
My aunt keeps asthma triggers out of her house My aunt tries to keep asthma triggers out of her house. She puts traps around her house so that rats or any other asthma triggers won't come in. She keeps her house clean and vacuums a lot so that the dust won't build up and so that myself and my little brother can come visit her. – Jared, 10 It's hard when you can't go outside when it's really really cold. You can have fun in the house, though. You can jog inside, or listen to music, or watch TV, or play with your mom or your brother or your sister. That's what I usually do, when I can't go outside. – Allison, 9 My medicine makes me feel better When I take my medicine, it makes me feel better. It makes me feel like a regular kid. I am still a regular kid but I have asthma. And the medicine helps me so that I am not afraid to play outside, and it makes me be OK. –Jared, 10 I take medicine every day. I do my puff in the morning and then I go brush my teeth. And then I do the same thing at night time, and plus I take my pill. –Anthony, 8 Medicine keeps me from having an asthma attack I take my medicine every day. If I don't I might have an asthma attack, or start wheezing really, really bad. And I could be coughing and coughing and then I might get sick. I take the orange medicine two time and the white one four times. And I take a medicine that goes into your nose because it keeps you from having an asthma attack. –Allison, 9 My parents rearranged their lives Well, my mom has always kept a clean house for me. When they found out I had allergies my parents had to get rid of their dog that they loved. They gave it to my grandparents so it was still in the family, but my parents had to rearrange their life because of my asthma. –Bridget, 26 Always, always, always have my inhaler Whenever I know I am going hiking in cold weather, and really all the time during the winter, or when I know I might get a cold, I always, always, always have my inhaler with me in case of an emergency. –Allie, 18 Check my breathing at least once a day I use a Peak Flow meter on a daily basis. I have to check my breathing at least once a day. I have to take my medication on a daily basis. If I don't take it I have a tendency to feel a little winded the next day, not so bad that I feel like I need to go to the hospital, but there is a difference. If I don't take my medication on a regular basis I am not going to feel 100%. –Bridget, 26 I don't have time to be sick, so I have to take care of my asthma I have an air purifier for my house. I have to put covers on my mattresses and pillows. It's expensive. I have a Peak Flow meter, I have nebulizer machines. I definitely take steps to try to improve my quality of life. I'm working, and I want to go back to school. I don't have time to be sick, so I have to take care of my asthma. I am in the process of looking for another job in the field that I majored in during school. Some people can quit jobs and not work for a couple months. I can't do that, because I need health insurance. I have to take medication, and I have to see my doctors on a regular basis. I dish out a hundred dollars a month just on medication and doctors visits. I stay away from cigarette smoke. I am aware of my allergies in other people's houses when it comes to animals, so it definitely does affect my life on a day-to-day basis, but I have control over it and try to take steps to improve my health. I go to the gym on a regular basis. –Bridget, 26 Wrap up really good when I go outside I can still go outside but I have to wrap up really good with thermals and pajamas on under my jump suit. I can go sledding with my family, but if I fall down in the snow and I am soaking wet, my dad will take me home to let me change into new snow clothes because he doesn't want my asthma triggers to increase. -Jared, 10 |
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Hospital Boston Department of Psychiatry. All Rights Reserved. The information on this website should not be taken as medical advice, which can only be given to you by your personal health care professional. Updated: June 5, 2007 |
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