With close friends it wasn’t as embarrassing to need my inhaler, but still annoying. Sometimes they would want to do things that I couldn’t do because of my asthma, and I would either have to go home or prevent them from doing it.
Michelle, 22
I don’t do it with them
I don’t like having asthma because there’s a lot of stuff I’m allergic to. Whenever my friends do stuff around things I’m allergic to, I don’t do it with them. I wait for them to be done or I just do it just for a little bit.
Lucy, 7
One of my friends has asthma
One of my friends has asthma too the same as me– she’s allergic to cats, I’m allergic to cats. She gets itchy like me. Usually me and her talk about what we do with our asthma, and we just talk about some stuff, and we play.
Lucy, 7
It’s the little things that make it hard
It’s the little things that are hard about having asthma and being around friends. Like having to stop three times to sit down on a walk from your dorm to the T because you cannot breathe. Or asking your peers not to smoke around you because you won’t be able to breathe. Not being able to laugh with your friends because you won’t be able to breathe. Small things that you really feel in a big way.
Michelle, 22
Never lost friends
At the time it was difficult because I had environmental allergies as well as having asthma, so like if I went to a birthday party and they had a dog I’d only be able to stay for like an hour because I’d have an asthma attack. I had a lot of friends who were very caring and compassionate. I also had friends whose parents were aware of my situation so I never lost friends over it. It wasn’t anything that prevented me from maintaining friendships. My friends used to think it was so cool like, “Wow, you can handle needles.” I made people aware of my illness– they had to know about it because if anything was to happen to me they have to be able to react. I used to have friends come with me to the hospital because they were so interested to see what it was like. It never really affected my friendships with them when I was a kid. It doesn’t now, either– like I have a boyfriend. It doesn’t do anything when it comes to friends.
Bridget, 26