A Breath of Stale Air

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I want to teach my child to: Appreciate fresh air
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I’ve been under the radar lately obviously! I’ve been on vacation for a little bit, but more than that, I’ve been miserable with allergies and asthma for the past 3 weeks. I’m allergic to things like cats (we have 2), dust, mold, smoke, etc… Usually, it’s just the allergy fit here and there and then I’m fine. But this has been the every day 24/7 allergy fit. You name it, I’ve got it. The scariest of which is the asthma. I’ve gone from using my inhaler once a year, to using it 3-4 times a day all in the span of 3 weeks. I’ve woken up every night with a constricted crackly chest and have had to use my inhaler. That’s when you know it’s bad.

So I went to my doctor on my birthday this week, and was told that the key to relieving the asthma is getting my allergies under control, which I knew. Since I’m not getting rid of my cats, I have to find alternate ways to tackle it. She prescribed Zyrtec to take on a daily basis, then said that if someone has to use their inhaler more than 2 times a week, it’s recommended that they use a steroid inhaler on a daily basis. Ick. Steroids scare me. The pharmacist says that it’s okay because they don’t absorb into the blood stream. I have to puff on it twice in the morning and twice at night. It doesn’t necessarily relieve the asthma like my albuterol inhaler does, but it improves the integrity of the airways in my lungs and helps reduce the frequency of the asthma attacks. Here’s the sticker. My insurance doesn’t cover prescriptions. Total for the steroid inhaler and Zyrtec for one month= $181.80.

I haven’t been able to exercise lately because of the allergies and asthma. So I’ve gained weight, which means I’m not in the best shape to fight the allergies, which means they get worse, which means I can’t exercise, you get the picture. I’m pretty depressed about the whole thing. As we get closer to trying to conceive, I get more concerned that I’m not in the best shape for having a baby. My doctor just emphasized how important it is to be in the best shape possible before conceiving because of all the stress it puts on your body. She’s very concerned about getting the allergies under control before we get pregnant. And I am, too, of course.

I don’t want to be one of those asthmatics! It’s not me. I don’t have those problems! I don’t want to be dependent on inhalers to live. I’m hoping I can knock them down with this round of meds, see how I am, and at least go off the steroid inhaler. Money’s not exactly growing on trees in our neck of the woods. It’s sad that people have to sacrifice their health because they can’t afford prescriptions. Who says it’s only seniors with this problem!