how many of you in here suffer "asthma"

gubber12345

this subject has probably came up here before (i apologise if it has) but as an asthma sufferer i was just wondering how many of you guys in here suffer from it?

what inhalers do you use and how long before a ride do you take them?

i use Symbicort and the blue salbutamol reliever,usually the symbicort about half an hr before a ride and a few puffs of salbutamol about 10 mins before,and then maybe a puff or 2 as needed.

i also take the symbicort in the morning and evening even if i'm not going for a ride just as a bit of control for my asthma.

i find the symbicort quite good but still get it a bit tough at times to breathe if the going gets a bit tough.

anybody else find this?

Mikey23

Asthmatic since I was five years old. Use blue sabutamol inhaler, always take a puff before a run or a ride. No real lifestyle probs but am aware that my lung capacity is reduced which has to be taken into account when doing strenuous exercise

gubber12345

Mikey23 wrote:

Asthmatic since I was five years old. Use blue sabutamol inhaler, always take a puff before a run or a ride. No real lifestyle probs but am aware that my lung capacity is reduced which has to be taken into account when doing strenuous exercise

yeah,been astmatic myself since a young age,and i do think it holds me back a bit but i try and get on with it.

mine only ever bothers me when i exercise,which is known as "exercise induced asthma" apart from that i'm never so bad thankfully.but if i do push myself that extra bit the old asthma always nearly pulls me back in line....but i dont let it put me off i just keep doin what i'm doin as i love it....

atakd

I've had asthma since childhood (40 years) and use Seretide and Salbutomol. I used to use inhalers morning and evening and before riding but didn't need them whilst out, though the first 20 minutes involved a lot of coughing.
Since changing my diet last year and losing 20 kg my asthma has all but disappeared - I've gone from 4 puffs/day to
2 or 3/week and my breathing is as clear as a bell on the bike from the start. I'm not sure what aspect of my diet change has caused this; I've lost similar amounts of weight before but my asthma was unaffected. The main difference this time is that I've given up alcohol altogether, though I can find no definitive research into the relationship between asthma and alcohol - generally the yeast or other additives in alcoholic drinks are blamed.

Twelly

I'm in the club. I am appalling at keeping up with my preventers so I usually go hard on a club ride and collapse at the end wondering where my breath has gone.. Always carry the blue one with me whether I am riding or not. I haven't really had any trouble since I was a child until I quit smoking last year - since then I regularly need to use inhalers.

thegreatdivide

I'm in the blue puffer brigade too :-)

canny_lad

Diagnosed about 8 years ago. Taking the brown inhaler every morning & evening doubled my lung function inside 6 months and looks like I'm on it for good. Luckily it doesn't affect my cycling (or 5-a-side). I would take the Symbicort as soon as you get up, give it a chance to start working before you start your ride.

h34e0f

I suffer from Exercise Induced Asthma (impaired red blood cells) and Costochondritis. I was put on tablets when I was younger but have since taken myself off them. As with most things I have found that the best solution is to man up and deal with it; getting on with it cures the issue far better than the meds ever did for me.

I am a very strong believer in mind over matter.

p1tse

Blue puffer here to

I'm unfit but would love to know how much my poor lungs are hindered by it

Mikey23

Pop along to your local GP and get an appointment with the asthma nurse... Was quite a shock for me thinking I was a fit bunny for my age and then finding my lung capacity is below average. Did get one of those power breathe devices but didn't get into the habit of using it regularly

simon_masterson

I was diagnosed at the age of 7. It hampered me quite a bit when I was at school, but they weren't into prescribing preventers then. Since I've been regularly using a preventer (Pulmicort/brown), which is probably 7 years or so now, I'd say it's very much 'controlled'. Even in the cold air I don't need to use my reliever all that much, and as bad as it's been has been the few week periods when I've not been on it (eg. moved house and town, wasn't registered with doctors yet).

As for my cycling, the effect is minimal. I don't remember the last time I needed my reliever following a ride. My peak flow is 740.

h34e0f

Simon Masterson wrote:

As for my cycling, the effect is minimal. I don't remember the last time I needed my reliever following a ride. My peak flow is 740.

Agree with above. I max my tester out.

NITR8s

I got told i had asthma at the after finishing my first 100 miler and ending up in the back of an ambuelence as i couldnt breath and had a smokers cough (yet dont smoke). I was given an inhaler and peak flow meter as my peak flow was only 500. I used the inhaler and found it made made no difference to my peak flow what so ever, which at the most I have gotton up to 540 (pethetic I know).

Ive just forgot all about it and carried on, not bothering with the inhaler.

giant_man

Blue puffer for me too, had it since a kid, nearly died when I was 10 or so, largely grown out of it now, still have it ocassionally, although I have to say that since cycling it has improved no end. For me cycling has been good for my asthma.

alidaf

I started a similar post a while back. I think it was in the commuting forum. I was quite surprised by the numbers of people that have it. I myself was only diagnosed late last year. It is brought on after strenuous exercise, over-eating and allergens. I gave up kung fu after more than ten years because I felt like I was dying and couldn't figure out what was wrong. Thankfully, cycling seems to help. I don't use a preventer but probably should because I'm using the blue inhaler more than I'd like, but I've never used it during or after cycling.

Occasionally, after a bad night, my early morning commute may be quite slow and after the ride I'll be a lot more tired than normal. I feel better for it though because at least I'm getting some fresh air. Hills can be a problem but on particularly strenuous climbs I push my hand together on the top bar, push back in my saddle, open up my chest and breathe deeply and calmly. Obviously my capacity is a hindrance to the climbs, but avoiding a panic allows me to at least attempt the challenge.

zekizeki

@atakd with regards to alcohol and asthma, most alcohol contains contains preservatives in the form of sulphites which are proven to increase asthma symptoms in up to 10% of the population that's one of the reasons i don't drink any more.

http://www.webmd.com/asthma/asthma-and-sulfites-allergies

http://www.azmacare.com/sulfites-and-asthma/

They are also found in many other processed foods.

From a personal perspective i find that alcohol and fizzy drinks are some of the worst triggers for my asthma.

napoleond

I had January off the booze, when I had my first glass of red wine I couldn't believe the effect it had on me.

I take Symbicort.

t.c.claret

dont personally suffer from asthma but i read Nicolas Roaches book and he suffers from asthma from what i remember, definately a book i would recommend.

Mikey23

Alcohol bad for asthma... Sticks fingers in ears and buries head in the sand

When I first got asthma they hadn't invented inhalers and life wasn't fun. I remember they used to give me ephedrine tablets which I believe just made my heart beat faster to compensate... Happy days

cat_with_no_tail

Diagnosed 30 years ago.

I sort of "grew out of it" in my mid-teens, then grew back into it again in my late 20's.

I have been taking 2 puffs on a Blue Ventolin before going for a ride.

That is, until I went for a checkup with the nurse just last week. She was shocked to hear I was having to use my ventolin as much as I was, and put me on Symbicort. I've been taking 2 puffs on a morning and 2 before bed, and I've just started to properly feel the benefits the last couple of days. Have not needed my ventolin at all and have put in some pretty big efforts.

wheezee

Yep, me too.

I use the green powder dispenser, the brown steroid inhaler and the blue reliever inhaler (which I take with me on the bike).

I'm thinking of getting a light-weight carbon fibre shell for the little canister, as the plastic one seems unnecessarily heavy.

smidsy

Can you dispense it through the same medium as your C02, thus avoiding having to carry two canisters :-)

wheezee

Well, that would be ridiculous.

Chris James

Canny lad wrote:

Diagnosed about 8 years ago. Taking the brown inhaler every morning & evening doubled my lung function inside 6 months and looks like I'm on it for good. Luckily it doesn't affect my cycling (or 5-a-side). I would take the Symbicort as soon as you get up, give it a chance to start working before you start your ride.

Yeah, I have been on a brown inhaler (Flixotide) for about 4 years.

My peak flow increased from 600-650 (down as low as 300 odd on one occasion with a chest infection) to whatever the maximum on the scale is (800?).

I only ever need a blue inhlaer if i have a chest cold, whereas previous cold air or just about anything was a trigger.

matt@theforce

I'm a sufferer. Have suffered ever since I can remember, my stable diet is now the Brown preventer and carry the blue reliver with me.

I don't do bad for living in a hilly part of the country but I'm always the slowest person when out for a ride as I struggle for breath.

Mikey23

Hmm... Thinking I might need to change my meds

gubber12345

Mikey23 wrote:

Hmm... Thinking I might need to change my meds

funny enough mikey so was I.....i take the symbicort but it doesnt seem to work as well as it used to,i used to play 5 a side football and could have run without any probs at all hardly.

thinking of putting an appt on with the quack and seeing what the options are.

matt@theforce.......can be hilly here too,but i can hold my own with the other guys on the flat but when i hit the hills i die a very quick and sudden death as the chest just clogs right up at times..thankfully the other guys hang around a bit so i can catch up....very hateful though as you know your holding them back but there quite cool about it as say we're out as a group so we'l finish as a group (only 3 or 4 of us altogether but a good group if you know what i mean)

durhamwasp

I was 'diagnosed' with Asthma around 13 years old, took my inhalers as the doc said and grew out of it within a year...

Aged 27 i cycled the Cingles du Ventoux, as fit as a fiddle, couldnt be healthier, then 2 weeks later i was diagnosed with it again.

I use my Clenil Modulite 50 inhaler on a morning (2 puffs) and thats it. Generally feel ok, sometimes go through periods of coughing but can't remember the last time i used my blue inhaler. Still, wish i didnt have it.

I blame it all on a cat we got about 1yr before....

ck101

Mild copd with asthma but mainly chronic bronchitis. 1 puff of Symbicort twice a day. Never take the blue inhaler apart from when I have a cold.

No issues keeping up with the group at distances up to 130k at average speed of 30kph.

Take your Symbicort an hour before you ride, bring your reliever and most of all keep riding, things will improve.

gubber12345

Ck101 wrote:

Mild copd with asthma but mainly chronic bronchitis. 1 puff of Symbicort twice a day. Never take the blue inhaler apart from when I have a cold.

No issues keeping up with the group at distances up to 130k at average speed of 30kph.

Take your Symbicort an hour before you ride, bring your reliever and most of all keep riding, things will improve.

i was taking the symbicort about a half hr before my ride...i'l try it an hr before and see how i go,it might need longer to get working than the half hr.

canny_lad

At my last appointment with the asthma nurse she put me on Symbicort as a replacement for the blue & brown inhalers. I take 2 puffs 1st thing in the morning and last thing at night and use it as and when I get short of breath.

Haven't noticed any difference since switching over, seems just as effective.