Anyone with exercise induced bronchoconstriction/asthma?

emmab0902

Does anyone suffer from exercise induced bronchoconstriction? A couple of weeks ago I experienced a sudden dramatic decrease in my exercise tolerance, especially in running.

My blood work all came back perfect - no issues with low iron or B12 - doc even ruled out slim possibility of pulmonary embolism as I had recently been briefly overseas (no illness etc).

At this stage EIB is his best guess pending further investigation. I have been on a tiny dose of beta blocker for 9 years but the dose has only decreased a couple of years ago and I am on a quarter of the smallest tablet.

Keen to hear of anyone with knowledge or experience particularly if you've gotten through it successfully. Even though I'm 47, I'm a competitive swimmer (with several national titles) so am not keen to throw it away and just sit around. I don't want to go from 5km to couch lol.

RoseAllisonx

I also have asthma, my doctor prescribed me an inhaler that I have to use 30 minutes before working out (seretide diskus, idk where you’re from but that’s the one I have, I also take beta blockers but those are more for my migraines)
It helps me a lot, I really notice the difference when I forget to take it.

Edit: misread something, changed it. 😇

DeserveVictory

I was diagnosed with asthma at 2 ... apparently, that was the earliest they would make a diagnosis even though I was in the hospital very regularly with breathing problems since birth. I have pretty much every trigger - allergies, foods, exercise. In Canada, they would require a lung function test to make an asthma diagnosis. Are they sending you for one?

You shouldn't have to give up swimming. Swimming is one of the best exercises for asthma. But you may have to cut back or stop until you have a diagnosis and treatment plan. You'll likely end up with at least one inhaler. I have a ventolin (salbutamol) inhaler as a "rescue" inhaler that treats asthma attacks when they happen. Sometimes I take it as a preemptive measure before doing something I know from experience will be a problem (swimming for long periods, very steep hikes, ect). I also have a corticosteroid inhaler (Flovent, Qvar, etc) as a long acting anti-inflammatory to prevent asthma attacks in general. There are a variety of different versions of these treatments in different inhalers and pills. Your doctor will work with you to figure out what works best for you. Everyone's asthma is a little different.

Out of curiosity, have you made any changes to your diet recently? Or had something change in your environment (moved, got a pet, been around alot of smoke, ect)? I've been doing some casual research into different potential causes of asthma and different methods of treating. Mostly I find its related to:

• Allergens -pets, pollen, smoke, etc (a sensitivity to an allergen can show up later, ie: wild fire smoke exposure today and affect gym performance tomorrow) and allergies can develop at anytime
• Molds - there is some compelling research linking asthma symptoms to molds like yeast
• Diet and body stress - asthma symptoms have been linked to our bodies being stressed from vitamin deficiencies, food sensitivities, highly processed foods, red meats, maybe gluten, and diets high in bad fats

emmab0902

DeserveVictory wrote: »

I was diagnosed with asthma at 2 ... apparently, that was the earliest they would make a diagnosis even though I was in the hospital very regularly with breathing problems since birth. I have pretty much every trigger - allergies, foods, exercise. In Canada, they would require a lung function test to make an asthma diagnosis. Are they sending you for one?

You shouldn't have to give up swimming. Swimming is one of the best exercises for asthma. But you may have to cut back or stop until you have a diagnosis and treatment plan. You'll likely end up with at least one inhaler. I have a ventolin (salbutamol) inhaler as a "rescue" inhaler that treats asthma attacks when they happen. Sometimes I take it as a preemptive measure before doing something I know from experience will be a problem (swimming for long periods, very steep hikes, ect). I also have a corticosteroid inhaler (Flovent, Qvar, etc) as a long acting anti-inflammatory to prevent asthma attacks in general. There are a variety of different versions of these treatments in different inhalers and pills. Your doctor will work with you to figure out what works best for you. Everyone's asthma is a little different.

Out of curiosity, have you made any changes to your diet recently? Or had something change in your environment (moved, got a pet, been around alot of smoke, ect)? I've been doing some casual research into different potential causes of asthma and different methods of treating. Mostly I find its related to:

• Allergens -pets, pollen, smoke, etc (a sensitivity to an allergen can show up later, ie: wild fire smoke exposure today and affect gym performance tomorrow) and allergies can develop at anytime
• Molds - there is some compelling research linking asthma symptoms to molds like yeast
• Diet and body stress - asthma symptoms have been linked to our bodies being stressed from vitamin deficiencies, food sensitivities, highly processed foods, red meats, maybe gluten, and diets high in bad fats

Hi no nothing has changed at all. I am going back to doctor in a few days and will get referral to specialist. I'm in New Zealand

Machka9

I have exercise induced asthma ... I started noticing something in my teens, and it seemed to flare up now and then through my 20s and 30s but it wasn't diagnosed until my late 30s when it started happening quite regularly.

I use an inhaler before I run or cycle, especially on cooler or damper days.