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Asthma..It’s serious<br />
Deanne’s Story<br />
Have you ever been laser focused on one<br />
breath? The one breath that you are willing<br />
with everything in your being to fill your lungs;<br />
the one breath that you are fighting to keep;<br />
the one breath that you are so scared will not<br />
easily move through your body the way that<br />
everything in your learning about good health<br />
promises it should? I have. And it sucks.<br />
I’m a 54-year-old woman,happily married to the<br />
love of my life. I grew up in Perth, spent 27 years<br />
living in Melbourne and returned “home” to WA<br />
in 2010. I had never had respiratory problems of<br />
any kind in Melbourne, or indeed in Perth as a kid<br />
but on arrival back in WA I got a horrendous cold<br />
that resulted in sinusitis and eventually surgery to<br />
have my sinuses drained. Somewhere along the<br />
way I started finding it difficult to get my breath.<br />
A childhood friend, a nurse and life-long Asthma<br />
sufferer, suggested I look at using a Ventolin. I<br />
went to the Doctor, she tested me and said yes,<br />
I was borderline asthmatic and that it would<br />
probably be a good idea to have a puffer when I<br />
needed it. The doctor also gave me some Seretide<br />
and suggested I use it morning and night and<br />
wean myself off when it “felt right. You’ll know,”<br />
she said confidently.<br />
I didn’t know. I felt like I was an imposter. Not<br />
really an asthmatic. Who contracts Asthma at 50?<br />
Isn’t it just a kids disease and you grow out of it?<br />
How do I know when I should take this medicine<br />
or not?<br />
I had good days and bad days but the bad days<br />
were hell. Up to 12, 15 times a day I’d be sucking<br />
the life out of my Ventolin but the breath never<br />
was easy, my lungs hurt, my throat hurt; I was<br />
forever thinking “I’d better go to the hospital, I<br />
might die”. My husband was worried and I was<br />
frightened. It went on like that for a year.<br />
My nurse friend said I should go and talk to someone<br />
at the Asthma Foundation WA. OMG! What a lifechanging<br />
event. Two hours of informative, caring,<br />
thoughtful advice.<br />
Models that I could see, touch and understand<br />
what was going on in my body. Demonstrations<br />
of spacers. Relevant data on what Asthma was<br />
and how I could best manage it in my life. All<br />
of it delivered with empathy, understanding and<br />
genuine desire to help and support me.<br />
I ended up in tears of relief. I wasn’t alone, I<br />
wasn’t crazy - I just had a doctor who really wasn’t<br />
the full bottle on Asthma. I came out of that<br />
meeting armed with information, two spacers and<br />
a determination to find a new doctor who was<br />
experienced with Asthma treatment. I found my<br />
new doctor, my Asthma is well controlled and I<br />
haven’t used my Ventolin in 6 months.<br />
Thank you Asthma Foundation WA – you gave me<br />
back my life, one easy breath after the other.<br />
Deanne Tindale<br />
Do you have an asthma story to share?<br />
AFWA would love to hear your personal experience with<br />
asthma and any experiences you have had .<br />
By sharing your asthma story you will also inspire, educate<br />
and connect the wider WA community affected by asthma.<br />
To share your story please email ask@asthmawa.org.au or<br />
alternatively contact us 08 9289 3600.<br />
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