For those who aren’t completely sure of what it is, let me explain. Asthma is a condition where a person’s airway becomes inflamed, narrow and swollen, and produce extra mucus, ehich makes it difficult to breathe. A person can either have it for years or their entire life. It can only be in minor cases where it will only affect someone during a certain season or time of the year. It can also interfere with someone’s daily activities, such as walking or playing a sport, or going out with friends. It is treatable by medical professionals. The symptoms of asthma vary from person to person, especially the severity of it. Some of the symptoms include wheezing, coughing, difficulty breathing, and chest pain. Medical professionals prescribe rescue inhalers to those who have asthma and they use it when they need it. In severe cases, longer-acting inhalers are prescribed. It is definitely not a pleasant condition to have. Sometimes, asthma attacks can be life-threatening. Did I write this article to give you the whole background of asthma? Nope, not at all. This is just a little information to help you understand it a little bit more. Let’s get to the story, shall we?
On September 22, 2016 at about 2:45 in the morning, I was lying in bed when something did not feel right. My chest was hurting for a few hours before, but I didn’t think anything of it. I had asthma since I was little. As I grew older, it wasn’t as bad or so the doctors and I thought. Anyways, I turned over onto my side to get comfortable to fall asleep. As I closed my eyes, I realized that I was not able to breathe as well as I was a few minutes ago. Thinking a little that it may have been how I was lying, I rustled around until I was comfortable again. Although that wasn’t the case because I still couldn’t breathe any better. I then started coughing for what seemed like eternity but was actually only about thirty minutes straight. I was having difficulty talking and when I was able to, I had to use the breaths that I was able to take. I was scared, just like anyone else who this has happened to. I didn’t have an inhaler, I haven’t even used one for years and all of a sudden, I was having an asthma attack. I was eventually able to get my breathing under control a little while later. Finally, I was back to breathing normally and after calming myself down from what happened, I was able to fall asleep for the rest of the night. Thankfully there was no more attacks after that one.
It is a scary experience. I thought I didn’t have asthma anymore since, in some cases, it goes away after a few years. Well that morning, I realized that it was still there. You may not have them often, I didn’t have one for quite a while, but it can definitely still be there. Other attacks may come along with it as well, such as panic attacks and anxiety attacks. I know that morning, I definitely had a panic attack as well because it caught me off-guard. It is always better to be safe than sorry. Which is why I now have an inhaler, just for this case. You never know when it may happen again or how severe it will be the next time. Always be aware, sometimes you never see it coming.