Past few days I have had difficulty breathing so I went to a pulmonary specialist and turns out I was having bronchospasms which I guess is related to asthma. She gave me 2 inhalers and I took them home. One of them is a corticosteroid and there were warnings on it about infections and it making your immune system work less. So now I am freaking out a bit. I know that we should not be taking steroids when we have Lyme but the not breathing is not fun either. Any advice? I am calling the doctor back later today. I am scared.
BTW, she thinks this is caused by allergens in my apartment so she is giving me an allergy blood test.
Posted by glm1111 (Member # 16556) on :
I had SEVERE asthma for years. I used to use an albuterol in haler. I am completely asthma free for over 4 yrs.
The key for me was taking antiparasitic herbs. Many Lyme sufferers have Parsites/worms. Do a search on hear for parastes.
Gael
Posted by Camp Other (Member # 29797) on :
I've suffered from asthma, but my breathing problems have improved after treatment for two things: GERD and Babesia. I don't know if you're familiar with GERD, but it means gastro-esophageal reflux disorder or formerly known as serious heartburn.
I took Prevacid and Protonix for a while and changed my diet and that reduced the wheezing episodes I got. I took Mepron and Clarithomycin for Babesia and it reduced the chest pressure and constriction I'd been getting.
All is not perfect - I carry an albuterol inhaler around. But I found that by reducing allergens in my house and changing my diet things improved.
I've seen my allergist for blood tests, too. I've discovered much as they can be helpful, they aren't entirely accurate. So I worked on cleaning up my place with friends' help to remove and reduce the most common allergens.
Apparently the most important thing you can do is make your bedroom allergen-free.
Removing carpets is a good thing, as carpets hold a lot of dust and dust mites (a major allergy for many) and pet hair as well as mold if you've ever dropped water on them.
Also, using a dust-mite cover for your mattress and pillowcases which keep out dust mites help.
Keeping shelves and dressers minimalist and frequently wiped down reduces dust. (No knicknacks or piles of papers.)
Using an air purifier *without* the ionizer turned on helps, too. (There is research that indicates ionizers can trigger asthma.)
All these things can help. Good luck and please let us know how it goes. Maybe your LLMD can suggest an alternate inhaler or medication during this time?
Posted by kidsgotlyme (Member # 23691) on :
My daughter does an inhaler for her ashtma along with her meds for lyme.
It's been fine for her.
Posted by feelfit (Member # 12770) on :
I'm on an inhaler daily x 2 called Flovent..i tolerate it well along with my treatment.
also have a rescue inhaler called Xopenex it doesn't affect the heart like albuterol.
have you been tested for CPN? I never had asthma in my life until i contracted TBI's. I think CPN is a BIG player for some.
good luck, ff
Posted by the3030club (Member # 21898) on :
I have asthma too. i was using my albuterol inhaler 4-5 times a day.
Advair was the magic bullet for me. I know it's a steroid but LLMD says it's such a small dosage and even less gets into your blood and rest of your system.
The key for me was a low dosage. 2 different doctors gave me the 250mg inhaler 2x a day and it made me feel crummy. I tried going to the 125mg dosage once a day and thats what i'm on now. works great.
Posted by Carol in PA (Member # 5338) on :
Bronchospasms can be caused by a magnesium deficiency. Low magnesium causes muscle twitches and spasms.
Look into a salt inhaler for asthma and congestion.
This is dry salt crystals in a tube. You inhale air that flows through the salt, picking up salt ions. This reduces inflammation in the lungs and kills bacteria.
This vendor is in U.K., so shipping time is two weeks. There are several manufacturers, you can look at eBay for "salt inhaler" to find vendors in the U.S., and get it in a couple days.
Good luck.
Posted by sutherngrl (Member # 16270) on :
My asthma became much worse once I became ill with LD. I used an albuterol inhaler. That one is steroid free.
Right now my asthma is so much better. Don't know if it is due to lyme treatment or not; but I am not needing to use my inhaler.
I would ask your LLMD if its okay to use one with a steroid in it. I would think its not enough steroid and not in the blood enough to be of that much concern. I mean you do have to breath!
Posted by bashibazouks (Member # 28286) on :
I thought I had asthma for years, but my LLMD told me it's actually infection with Mycoplasma pneumoniae and that I should avoid inhalers like the plague. Just something to think about if you haven't already been tested for mycoplasma-- it has many asthma-like symptoms.
Posted by Dawn in VA (Member # 9693) on :
Here's my take on the whole steroidal inhaler thing: You can't fight Lyme if you can't breathe. If you need it, you need it. One thing that might help ease your concern is to make sure that you rinse your mouth and gargle after using; may help keep systemic infiltration to a minimum.
I agree with others here on some things, too: increase Mg, DEFINITELY check out CPN (it was big for me as well and really exacerbated regular asthma). Perhaps adding molybdenum (and/or selenium) would be worthwhile, too.
Posted by BackinStOlaf (Member # 23725) on :
Thank you for all the responses. What is CPN?
feelfit: 'Xopenex it doesn't affect the heart like albuterol."
That is one of the inhalers I was given but I think the pamphlet it comes with says it is albuterol?
I had to miss work yesterday due to heart palps
Posted by keltyl (Member # 14050) on :
This is so weird. I used to have asthma problems all the time. For the last, at least 6 yrs, have had no problems.
Dec. 22nd I got full blown asthma. Had to use albuterol inhaler about a week. Not sure if it was being around a cat, or I had overindulged on a certain food.
Posted by BackinStOlaf (Member # 23725) on :
I have never had any breathing issues my entire life. I'm 31 yrs old. This is all very strange.
Posted by elizzza811 (Member # 24713) on :
IV Rocephin got rid of my breathing issues. In fact, that was one symptom that disappeared early on in treatment and has never (knock on wood) returned.
Posted by feelfit (Member # 12770) on :
keltyl,
CPN.org...explains about chalymida pneumonia...not sure if i spelled the first word correctly.
my immunologist said that xopenex doesn't cause the heart stuff like abuterol does. I had a lot of racing heart with abuterol and none with xpoenex. I don't have to use a resuce inhaler at all....but do use the flovent daily.
I never had asthma either..until now....think it has a lot to do with CPN for me.
good luck Ketyl
Posted by Carol in PA (Member # 5338) on :
quote:Originally posted by BackinStOlaf: I had to miss work yesterday due to heart palps