Flowers from Barclays - the sequel

[watervole]

This has been a bad winter for asthma - I've had to take four short courses of steroids so far (which is far worse than my average one course per winter).  Sometimes I can identify the trigger (eg. flu), sometimes, I can't.  I had a bad attack on Boxing Day bank holiday which remains of unknown cause (I think the bath bombs I bought Entorien were part of it, but not the whole story as she was very sensible and restored them to their double layer of plastic bags as soon as she realised what I'd given her).

Today, I think I've had a narrow escape.  As soon as I came downstairs I started wheezing.  (I'd escaped the New Year fireworks by making sure all the windows were closed overnight).  The flowers from Barclays were in the kitchen and were starting to open out.

My next door neighbour has just been presented with a large bunch of lilies and dahlias and is very happy with them!

Comments

[kerravonsen]

That's the icing on a very bad cake.

[sigisgrim.livejournal.com]

Certain flowers frequently used in cut flowers give me asthma related problems. I don't wheeze as such, but I do get short of breath and have sinus issues. Lilies are particularly bad, and geraniums do something similar to me. There's also a foliage plant that is often used to pad out a bunch of flowers that causes the same effect. They only have to be in the house a couple of hours for the problems to start.

I also have to make quite large detours around stores like Lush as just going past, particularly in a shopping mall, can set off an asthma attack. The Lush store in Merry Hill is particularly bad, to the extent that I have to go past it on a different floor!

[watervole.livejournal.com]

Lush can be very bad for me too. I also have to give the Body Shop a wide berth.

[sigisgrim.livejournal.com]

I can go in the Body Shop, but only for a short while.

Perfume areas in department stores can also trigger an asthma attack in me. I either have to use a different entrance or take a big deep breath before I go in and march straight through. Thankfully the perfume doesn't seem to spread very far.

[watervole.livejournal.com]

I can see we're very alike in our problem areas. Perfume can be a big problem for me. I can't go into buildings with perfume dispensers (not for more than a few minutes) - I actually persuaded my gym to remove the one they installed.

(The Radisson were very good about switching theirs off when one of the Odyssey members had a problem. It was gone within 20 mins of my first raising the issue)

I occasionally have to ask friends not to wear particular perfumes. Some seem to be okay, others are not.

[sigisgrim.livejournal.com]

*nods*

I think I have more of a problem with things that are scented than perfumes as such. One company I worked for had some small meeting rooms (a typical domestic house room size). These weren't used very frequently, but were cleaned studiously every day by the cleaners with lots of polish. I had to ask Personnel to get the cleaners to use less polish. And those automatic scent dispensers that seem to be increasingly popular are just vile!

One other asthma trigger I have is cigarette smoke, fresh or stale.

[watervole.livejournal.com]

When I say 'perfume' I mean 'hair products', 'after-shave', 'laundry products', etc. It's really hard to find unscented detergent for washing clothes.

I never use aerosols of any kind for cleaning and have found alternatives to many other products. Microfibre cloths are wonderful.

Cigarette smoke - agreed. I can't be near smokers for long.

Dust is the worst.

[vjezkova.livejournal.com]

I must agree, this winter is worse for me too. Nevertheless it is nothing in comparison with you and your problems. I am still happy with Ventolin, only I sometimes wake up at night wheezing but one dose works nicely for me. Again - sometimes it happens, sometimes not and I have no cue why.
Also laughing too hard leaves me wheezing and coughing.Normally I am a giggler... it has been very rare recently but I am still the same person:-)
So far, the only perfume that has made me sneeze but not wheeze, is my lady boss´ sweet and heavy one.

[watervole.livejournal.com]

Laughing a lot can trigger asthma for me too.

If you wake up at night, check that you've recently washed duvets and bedding. Also, vacuum your mattress when you change the bed. It may be dust in the bedroom that is the problem.

[vjezkova.livejournal.com]

You are right - and I know the rules. But these are very weird, one day yes and two days no, no matter how much I use a vacuum cleaner. I use a special "duvet" made of pure sheep wool, my daughter bought this and a pillow in a special producer, it is anti-allergic. But I suspect that I miss sleeping with my balcony door open, or at least a window open. I never have a heating on. Unfortunately opening anything is out od the question in severe freezing these days.

[watervole.livejournal.com]

Open windows definitely help, but as you say - not at this time of year!

Do you have a preventer inhaler?

[vjezkova.livejournal.com]

No, to tell the truth, I have never considered my problems serious and still I think of it like about unpleasant seasonal trouble. You have asthma with all the terrible symptoms though and I feel for you and I admire your self-control, stamina and determination.

[watervole.livejournal.com]

If asthma causes you to wake at night, then a simple steroid inhaler at a low dose should cure the problem entirely. You'd only need to use it in the winter in all likelihood.

My asthma is acutally fairly mild, it's a problem simply because I can't use preventer inhalers.

My son can use them and his asthma is controlled perfectly with just one puff a day.