Every first Tuesday in month of May is observed as World Asthma Day and today being the first Tuesday in May 2019 I would be having a blog guest who happens to be a friend living with Asthma.
Ps: one of those posts I had fun writing about
Sit back, read and after reading be sure to pick one or two from it and kindly share the link for others to read and learn.
Most importantly leave your comments especially your reactions in comments section, for me, my Reaction was Wow!
Find out why?
Introduce yourself please?
Friend: I am Margaret, a 5th year Medical Student.
My humble self: Aka Carmen Gosh. Thank you for accepting to be my guest today and I have a few questions to ask in commemoration of World Asthma Day.
Question: In your own words, what’s Asthma?
Maggie : Asthma to me is a challenge, it’s a risk. It’s enjoying life to the fullest now because tomorrow may be too late .
Asthma is a teacher and a challenger, let’s not forget a bitch that’s a pain in the ass.
I mean i can’t change the situation, so I might as well make the best of it
Question: When were you first diagnosed ?
Maggie : First month after I was born. My mom was like ‘she just noticed I wouldn’t stop crying. Sometimes I would turn blue due to cyanosis so she took me to the emergency ward and I was diagnosed.
Question: What really triggers your Asthma, for I was made to understand alot of things could trigger asthma and it’s peculiar to each individual.
Maggie: Anything really .
From my emotions: Being too happy, being too sad, crying, laughing,To the weather,To flowers,To dust, animal dander, sleeping too long, smoke,The list goes on.
Question: Wow, remind me not to get you flower next time nor chocolate so as not to increase your serotonin level and make you too happy. So what do you do during your Asthma Crises to control/stop it?
Maggie:
- Hydration: this helps but it’s very hard To drink water when you can’t breathe.
- Medications: high dose prednisone, ventolin and Amynopillin orally .
- Aerosol: ventolin inhalers, seretide disc, or my nebulizer
If all listed above fails. I need to be rushed in and given all that but Intravenously.
Question: Oh Ok, may we not get to when all listed fails for the panic level will be high and the thought of you being in the thin line is scary. But generally what’s life for you living with Asthma?
Maggie: Challenging. But I’m up for a good challenge.
Chimnaza: Yea girl, that’s the spirit.
Maggie: But it’s hard sometimes because due to my high doses on prednisone (steroid) I’ve gained a lot of weight. And it’s extremely hard to loose for if I go off my medications I could die. So I had to choose between living big or dying slim and ofcourse I chose life.
Living with asthma is a bit depressing some days. When people just open their mouth and say ‘oh why are you fat or stop eating you’ll loose weight or how can you be big and be a Doctor.
But over the years I’ve learned that people will talk regardless and daily I’m learning to love the skin I am in and Love the woman I am becoming. For some weird reason, I only have crisis in the summer. Other cooler seasons keep my symptoms at bay.
Living with it is also fun. I mean I get to know new stuffs about asthma that regular people don’t.
Living with asthma is special in a way,
Because I feel if I wasn’t asthmatic I would not be this resilient and tough and a goal getter. I mean I dance, I do sports, makeup, sing. Name it…
Asthma pushes me to challenge myself daily. I hate being treated special or being pitied so that makes me try my hardest to be ‘normal’.
Asthma can also be a bitch, sometimes I just have long crisis for days that doesn’t resolve with medications and rest.
Asthma can also be unpredictable, for me anything can be a trigger. I mean the b**h comes also in my sleep.
Question: *takes deep breath* does it limit any area of your life style?
Maggie: Yes and No
Yes because I can’t run for long and eat certain stuff or sniff flowers .
I mean I could but I choose not to.
Because after I have crisis the side effects are worse than the actual problem.
No because If I have my mind on something, I pursue it with everything in me.
Question: Oh Wow, that’s the go getter spirit. Errm do you feel different ?
Maggie: Yes and No Too.
Sure Yes because i can get really depressed and ask why I wasn’t made normal .
Errm No because once I take my medications every Morning and step out, I’m even better and healthier than half the people I see on the road.
Why? Because I focus on it and try my best to be better.
Question: Alright, so what has been your worst experience with it.
Maggie: Hospital runs.
The side effects too: the nausea is the absolute worse, vomiting sometimes, don’t get me started on the headaches, weakness drowsiness tiredness muscle and joint pains.
Question : Great, Any other thing you want to tell my awesome readers?
Maggie: Yeah, People should be educated on asthma and other illnesses .
And be cautious with your words, you don’t know what the other person is facing.
Yea, alot of times people are loose with their words, gets me pissed off and before I sleep daily, I am left with the option of countering every word spoken negatively.
They said and I quote” the tongue is the most powerful tool without bone,metal. It’s a Sharp tool”. We need to learn how to use it carefully.
Thanks for your time and this information, I got enlightened and challenged.
Keep holding up Dear, you rock.
Asthma is real and it exists. It’s not peculiar to some people alone and I have got a handful of friends that suffers from it and a close person who died from it. It sure kills especially when the inhalers aren’t close and not managed properly.
A minute silence for my friend “May his Soul rest in peace”. Amen
Below are Maggie’s:
Her make up page: Melanin_Maggie
Her Instagram: Carmengosh
Her YouTube channel: Carmengosh
You can go watch her YouTube channel where she spoke more about living with Asthma and other awesome stuffs.
Ps: I am not a journalist or in media sector to know much about how to interview, just a medical student that blogs on health, trying to create awareness on health issues but if you have any question or contribution I gotch you.
Till my next post be happy and stay subscribed.
#Worldsasthmaday
Thank you to you and Maggie for taking the time to educate us about asthma. It is a widespread condition, but I feel it doesn’t always get the recognition and understanding it deserves.
you are welcome. glad to help create awareness
Thank you for sharing this inspiring piece. I had no idea how difficult managing asthma could be and the resilience it takes to push through from day to day. Stay well.
you are welcome.
I am fortunate to not have asthma but I have had friends and co-workers that do. I even had a co-worker that I taught how to pass a 2 mile run test that had asthma. We spent a lot of time together learning how he could still run with asthma.
I lost a very good friend to Asthma and I remember it daily, however thank you for helping your friend.
As a fellow asthmatic, I really appreciate your positive perspective and the awareness you bring to it all! Thanks for your honesty and thoughtful perspective, and I am so sorry for your loss. Having inhalers close by is essential.
Thank you, have learnt to live with the fact that my friend is gone forever and hope I can help prevent another loss by creating awareness.
Yes, having inhalers 24/7 is essential.
Sending ❤ your way.
Maggie has a beautiful spirit and is extremely strong. I’m sorry asthma dictates so much of her life, but am impressed at how resilient she is in the face of her challenges. I didn’t realize that people are diagnosed with asthma that early in life.
Yes they can be diagnosed that early and I agree with you she is strong.
Thank you for your beautiful comment, she will see it.
Cheers!