Warning Signs of an Asthma Attack

Asthma is a debilitating condition that affects millions of people around the world. There are so many causes for this condition. Have you ever been cleaning your house and start to feel the onset of an asthma attack? Many chemicals we use to clean with can be taken into our lungs and cause an asthma attack. The first sign is the inability to breathe in deeply, second is shortness of breath, and then comes the inability to breathe. Inhalers are then used to open up the airways to allow more movement of air in the lungs.

Asthma attacks rarely happen without warning. When you feel your chest start to tighten up, or you get dark circles under your eyes, or you get a nagging annoying cough, could be warning signs that you are about to have an attack. Early warning signs can help you get to your medications faster, like an inhaler or a nebulizer treatment in worst case. By learning these warning signs, you can prevent an asthma attack that could possibly send you or someone you love to the emergency room.

Times you need to act fast is when your chest starts to feel tight, you start breathing faster than you normally would, you run out of breath, and you are not doing anything physical, your skin turns bluish gray, or dusky in color, or you are having trouble talking in sentences. Fast heartbeat or pulse can also give you a warning to act fast, the faster you see the signs, the faster you can intervene with medications.

Without some sort of intervention, you may lose consciousness and even die. For some people, attacks can rise very fast, when symptoms become unmanageable in just a very short time, so treatment should always be at hand and taken immediately so you can ward off a full scale asthma attack. They can also vary in how severe each attack can be. Mild asthma flare ups seem to occur more often than severe attacks.

Wheezing and coughing doesn't always mean you are having an attack, those can be just another health condition, such as heart failure, respiratory infection, or a number of other serious problems. The causes of severe asthma attacks are still unknown; we mostly look at people that have a history in their family that have had asthma in the past, and the severity of those attacks. People with histories of asthma have a higher risk of life-threatening asthma attacks.

Diagnosis of asthma and the actual status of an asthmatic can be found by your doctor through a series of tests, such as your level of consciousness, the use of involuntary muscles of breathing, exhaling and inhaling, and the respiratory flow of oxygen absorption, and other physical symptoms. Findings by your doctor can help you find ways to avoid many different kinds of attacks in anyone who has persistent asthma.

A general rule of thumb is if your medication or your reliever is not working properly, after taking it you don't get relief within 5 minutes, you should get help quickly as possible, with symptoms that we have discussed. Have a self management program in place, and a precautionary measure, so you are always ready for whatever problem might come your way.