Managing Asthma Symptoms: Identify and Track Asthma Symptoms

Where to Begin: When you have asthma, it's important to know how to notice asthma symptoms quickly, then deal with them. Getting control of your asthma also means tracking your symptoms over time.

Asthma symptoms are a popular topic, so a quick review should help as you learn how to manage athma effectively.

Asthma is a chronic disease involving airway inflammation. When people with asthma are exposed to asthma triggers, airway inflammation may worsen. That causes airways to narrow, mucus to increase, and breathing to be more difficult.

Early Warning Signs: This is a list of some of the earliest asthma symptoms that tell you problems with breathing may be starting:

• Feeling tired
• Itchy throat
• Runny nose
• Headache
• Chest tightness
• Change in the color, amount, or thickness of mucus

Symptoms of Asthma Attack: Early warning asthma symptoms are bothersome, but they become really problematic when they develop into a full-blown asthma attack. With an asthma attack, you may notice:

• Wheezing
• Chronic Coughing
• Shortness of breath
• Tightness in the chest

Life Threatening Symptoms: When an asthma attack becomes life-threatening, the symptoms you may notice include:

• Trouble focusing or talking
• Trouble catching your breath
• Nasal flaring, which means that your nostril size increases with each breath, a sign that you're working harder to take each breath
• Cyanosis, which is the medical term for a gray or bluish tint to your skin, beginning around the mouth

If symptoms do progress to this point, be sure to get help right away! Call your doctor or go to an emergency room. Don't delay; quick action is crucial in keeping you or your asthmatic child healthy.

How to Prevent Asthma Attacks: There are a few ways to prevent asthma symptoms from intensifying into an asthma attack:

• Follow your asthma treatment plan, including taking all of your meds as prescribed
• Avoid your asthma triggers as much as possible
• Identify asthma control problems before things get bad enough to cause symptoms by using a peak flow meter
• Track your symptoms so you can pick up on patterns and triggers you may not have realized were there
• Use an Asthma Action Plan to guide your actions at the first sign of asthma symptoms

What Will Help: One of the keys to good asthma management is having a great working relationship with your doctor. That way, you can be partners in your asthma management. If you are not sure how to start a dialogue with your doctor about your role in asthma control, our tips for talking with your doctor should help.

It's also important to have the right kind of doctor as your partner. Your family doctor may not be the right choice. Learn more about the types of doctors who treat asthma and choose the right doctorfor you.

In Summary: Follow each of the steps above to identify, manage and track your asthma symptoms, and you'll soon be on your way to top notch asthma control!