Off to a great Memorial Day Weekend

Well, asthma has been cooperating with me these last few days...earlier in the week, had a few dips in PF's, but I bumped up my neb treatments and seemed to have made the difference. Doing better now, PF's in the green zone, occassional chest tightness, especially when outside a lot, so take the occassional albuterol inhaler and back to normal...my normal at least :). Enjoying the long weekend with the family, it's already been super busy and it's only late Saturday night. Have a 3 yr old birthday party to attend with my daughter and a graduation party tomorrow evening for a family member, then a BBQ on Monday, so I'm feeling pretty confident that my lungs will be doing great for me this weekend. Yeah, and it's been like 97F on Friday and 94F on Saturday...tomorrow I think is more of the same. It's going to be a loooooong summer and it's only MAY!

Another Tuesday

PF's are in low 60% range, so took a neb treatment and feeling much better...popped my numbers up. Feeling better now...although, now I have a toddler fussing at me...so got to go. I need to put one of those quick updates on breathing stats on my blog...I'll have to figure that out later.

Been relatively calm lately

Haven't posted in a while, mostly because not much going on with the asthma. It's been relatively quiet, peak flows have been in lower green zone for about a couple of weeks now and haven't had to take any breathing treatments. Yes, the occassional inhaler when I feel chest tightness, but at least no nebs. It's nice that we are finally in "summer" here in Texas. My asthma does much better when the temps hit above 80 and stay there even at night only dips to the upper 70's.

Yellow zone again

Back in the yellow zone this morning, peak flow dropped to about 60%, so taking a neb treatment and it's already opening me up and some congestion is loosening...ugh!!!

Back in the Green Zone Again

Well, sorry for the delayed update, but the good news is.....I'm finally OVER the flare and cold and back in the green zone at 88%...haven't seen that peak flow in a good month or so. Off all prednisone and back down to my maintainance medicine requirements...yippee! I'm glad to be breathing easier, and NOT coughing all of the time. I know my husband is glad I'm not coughing all of the time and feeling better. Over the last several years he has gotten a crash course in dealing with a severe asthmatic and in reading me better. I can be a very stubborn asthmatic sometimes! I'm one of those poor perceivers, but doing my peak flow several times a day has helped me out tremendously.

I've got the stories from college that scared my roomates have to death, although I didn't know it until afterwards, when they told me. I was that asthmatic that slept with their inhaler by their pillow, never left home without it...because I didn't take my maintenance meds like I should have and thought they didn't work on me...go figure! Now that I have a child and understand the stressors, I can't imagine what my Mom felt when I was away at college and she could audibly hear me wheezing on the other end of the phone and then asking me "did you take your meds"...to which my answer sometimes was "yes, I think so"...obviously NOT. It took me a severe asthma attack during Christmas break and having doctors get in my face and lecture me about the consequences of not taking care of my asthma, which had landed me in that state, before I took it seriously.

Status Quo

Well, I feel better than the other days as far as the head congestion goes. Although, it's been harder for me to get an accurate peak flow because everytime I blow into the meter, I start coughing and can't get an accurate reading. The readings I have gotten are in my 70% range, even on prednisone. So, taking a treatment now, hopefully that will pop my numbers back up. I think I just got hit with a whammy of a respiratory infection that my daughter had several weeks back and the extremely high pollen levels, windy and lower humidity we have been having here in Texas (yes, i'm an asthmatic that actually does better in humidity). Overall though, my energy level is improving and I have been able to sleep better at night, not coughing all hours of the night...and now my cough is more of a productive cough instead of the tight, wheezy cough. So all in all, I know I'm on the upward track. Probably dealing with another week or so of coughing, oh well, pretty use to it by now. Takes a month or so to fully get over an attack, if you don't end up in a rebound attack. Anybody else take as long?? or longer??

Doing Better -- Peak flows on upper trend

Well, doing better I've tapered down to 30 mg prednisone and my peak flows are trending to upper yellow zone and lower green zone; so, back on the upward path. Still have a lot of head congestion and more of a cough from post nasal drip, but I can totally handle that!! I at least feel MUCH, MUCH better. I'm SO, SO glad I got started on the meds and caught the flare before it got really bad. My peak flows for me are a big key in how I'm doing. I don't always perceive how bad my breathing is. So, I check them frequently. Took me many years of stubborness, but finally figured that part out!!