Disadvantages of Asthma

by John Esposito

Asthma is a pain in the butt for everyone who has them. The good news, the symptoms can get better as an adult than as a kid. Bad news, asthma still had, and still has, a lot of disadvantages for everyone involved. It irritates the lungs and throat, and it makes you cough until you take your asthma medication and drink some water to soothe your dried, hacked up throat.

When you have asthma, you can’t exercise for long periods of time without suffering an asthma attack or coughing and wheezing, you get asthma attacks, you get side effects from asthma medicine, the school won’t let you anywhere near your inhaler during school hours, asthma wakes you up during the night, asthma attacks can be fatal, asthma attacks can happen at any time, and they can induce anaphylaxis.

Needless to say, when you are a lot smaller, and your airways are a lot smaller, your asthma will be harder to deal with. And there’s a chance that asthma may not ease that much in its symptoms when you grow into adulthood. Still, it can be managed as long as you are aware of its disadvantages and as long as you are willing to put in the effort to ease the disadvantages and prepare for them.

1. Can’t exercise for long periods of time without coughing or wheezing

When you run, you feel like your lungs are on fire and you have to stop running and cough nonstop for a few minutes. You hack up a storm, and it doesn’t stop, at least not until you get a drink of water or until you get your inhaler. That’s pretty much what asthma can feel like if you ran for a long period of time, it could irritate your lungs, especially when it’s cold outside.

Disadvantages of Asthma2. Asthma Attacks

These can happen anytime, out of the blue. They can also happen due to exercise. That’s why it’s important to have asthma medication close by. And that’s why you should tell your doctor about every single asthma attack that happens just in case something unusual or out of the norm happens.

3. Side effects in asthma medicine

you might get a headache or dizziness from your asthma medication or even a sore throat. It can also induce nervousness in an individual who takes asthma medicine.

4. The school won’t let you have your inhaler near you when you need it

Well, this is kind of a dumb policy that some school districts have for kids. Basically, kids have to have their inhalers kept at the office until they have an asthma attack. That’s dumb because an asthma attack can probably kill a child before they reach the office, and that all depends on the severity of the asthma attack.

5. Wakes you up at night

asthma attacks can happen out of the blue and they can also wake you up at night.

6. Asthma attacks can be fatal

Asthma attacks can be fatal, especially since their attacks are respiratory in nature.  This is why you need to be diagnosed by a doctor and given medicine to regulate your symptoms. Otherwise, you would die. Or you would be in the hospital in the ER. Whichever the scenario, it’s better safe than sorry.

7. Asthma attacks can happen at any time

They can happen anytime, even when you are sleeping or sitting down reading a book. They can be pretty unpredictable, especially when you’re a young kid. Being separated from your inhaler is really inconvenient since no one can tell when or where these attacks will happen and how severe he or she will be. So, always be around your inhaler whenever possible and, if possible, try homeschooling or search for a school that lets you keep your inhaler around you at all times. And if it’s your child you’re concerned, do the same but for them.

8. Asthma medicine could induce anaphylaxis

Disadvantages of AsthmaAnd that means people can still get allergic reactions to their asthma medicine. If you get anaphylaxis, go to the ER immediately. Anaphylaxis is fatal, and it will kill you unless you get yourself to a nearby hospital or emergency room, stat.

9. It’s not curable

Asthma is something you have to live with for the rest of your life. However, the good news is that symptoms do ease as you grow from child to adult since your lungs and respiratory tract also grow enough to ease the symptoms. Depending on who you are, though, it really depends. Some people do grow, somewhat, out of most their symptoms while others improve only a little of their symptoms. The best you can do is consult with your doctor and manage your symptoms the best that you can.

Overall, the best you can do with your asthma is manage it with asthma medication and by consulting with your doctor about how to better manage it. You can try natural ways to ease your asthma symptoms, like eating ginger.  You can ask your doctor about any way that you can ease your asthma symptoms and how you can prepare for any eventuality. You can also read a book about how to ease your asthma symptoms or ask anyone with asthma how they ease their asthma symptoms and you can run those solutions with your doctor.

Whatever the case, you can also clean your clothes regularly, clean your house once a week, bathe your pet regularly if you have a pet or just avoid pets altogether, and wear a face mask when it’s cold outside. There are a lot of ways to live with asthma, and it doesn’t have to interfere with your life, even if it is a pain in the butt.

When you have asthma, you can’t exercise for long periods of time without suffering an asthma attack or coughing and wheezing, you get asthma attacks, you get side effects from asthma medicine, the school won’t let you anywhere near your inhaler during school hours, asthma wakes you up during the night, asthma attacks can be fatal, asthma attacks can happen at any time, and they can induce anaphylaxis.

About the author

+ posts

You may also like