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Asthma and Future

 

I don't feel it will hold him back

The asthma hasn't really held Brian back, and I don't feel it will.  I think his asthma's a concern if he has overnight field trips at school when he gets older.  That I am a little nervous about, but I'll just insist on being a chaperone.  Otherwise, I don't see the asthma adversely affecting his life.

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I worry how his weight will affect his asthma

Well, Jason is a big boy.  Right now they don't have any worries about his weight, but I'm afraid at one point he is going to slow down on his height growth, but he'll keep up with his weight growth.  I know that if you're obese, then you have more problems breathing and stuff like that.  There are a lot of people in his father's family who are very thin, but in my family people tend to be heavy.  So with Jason having asthma, I try to keep him active by getting him into doing different activities as he gets older.  I hope that it'll keep him going, because I know that with obesity it could cause more problems with the breathing and cause the asthma to act up.

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It's not going to be a handicap for her

Lucy acts, she wants to do dance, she asks to do soccer.  She's very active— I mean, she's not one of the kids that will sit there and watch everybody; she's out there running around with them.  I don't hold her back from doing anything either.  I just let her do it— I'm not going to make her asthma a handicap for her.

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I hope it won't affect his future

I hope asthma won't affect Toby's future because he seems to have it fairly mildly, and it seems to be fairly well-controlled.  He responds quickly when we give him medication so I don't worry too much about that.  I imagine that he might reach a point like a lot of kids do where he is less interested in taking the medication, but right now he's only three, and it is not an issue.

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You want your kids to be perfect

I don't know; you want your kids to perfect and stuff, so hopefully as she gets older her asthma will decrease for her.  Who knows what's going to happen.  I just want Mya to be able to play sports and do whatever her body will let her do without having any problems. 

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I worry it will hinder his ability to play sports

Sometimes I worry about Jordan's future with his asthma.  I worry it may affect his sports.  Jordan is very active— he loves track, football, and wrestling.  I worry that his asthma will hinder his ability to play sports.  Although, he did do football last year, for the first time, there really wasn't a problem.  I am hoping it continues!

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Same worries you have for any child, but the consequences can be greater

My worries are probably not unlike those of parents with children who don't have these special issues.  Will they make the right decision when put in a situation where they are unsure of what to do?  When I'm not there to say, “Do you need your inhaler?” or “Did you check the ingredients?”  I worry about that as he gets older and becomes more responsible for himself and needs to make the right decisions.  I want Evan to have his independence, but I fear for him.  I hope I have prepared him well enough.  Again, I think these are the same type of worries you have for any child, but the consequences can be greater for those with illnesses.  I worry that peer pressure and his desire to not be different from anyone else will make him act recklessly or choose unwisely.

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   Copyright © 2007, Children's Hospital Boston
Department of Psychiatry.
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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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