Now I know how Darth Vader feels.

IANAD, this is just what I've experienced as a patient with asthma. On the infection front -- asthma doesn't give me infections, but bad chest colds can kick up the level of inflammation in my lungs and make the asthma much more of an issue than it normally is for me. (Antibiotics don't do anything for this type of inflammation for me, by the way, because it isn't actually an infection, just the inflammation residue left after the virus goes away. I have to go to steroids. Fortunately that's rare!) Usually, for me, the asthma isn't an issue; I carry a rescue inhaler in case I run into one of my rare triggers, but otherwise, it's under control. (I also avoid allergens like crazy, but I'd be doing that regardless to help with hay fever.) Other people need regular meds to keep their asthma under control. (It sounds like if you do have asthma, it's currently not under control -- meds that don't work for you now may be more effective at prevention once the level of inflammation in your lungs is more controlled.) The goal with modern medicine and asthma (at least here in the US) is to keep the asthma under regular control such that the rescue inhaler is only rarely needed (in fact, I have a number of inhaler uses per week over which I'm supposed to see my doctor), so I think you might find the pulmonologist very helpful. It sounds like everyone you've seen thus far has been a GP or emergency medicine doc? If so, you definitely need to start with a specialist. On preview -- good! The specialist is definitely the place to start. And an allergist also sounds helpful, just make sure they use skin testing instead of the ELISA (blood test) which is highly non-reproducible for many people. Also, if you go back on steroids, make sure you're using one of those dispersion tube thingies and they've showed you how to use it and how to inhale -- sounds stupid but it can really increase the delivery of the drug. And they should show you how to use a peak flow meter and track your lung function, which can help narrow down things that may be helping or hurting.

You probably did have pneumonia/bronchitis/the flu those other times, but a lot of people with mild asthma only get symptoms when they have a respiratory infection, and then they just get really knocked down with the infection. To be fair, the hallmark of asthma is wheezing, some people who don't have asthma get a little wheeze with bronchitis/URIs, and if you have a cough-variant asthma (i.e. you're not always wheezing when you see the doctor, sometimes just coughing) it could be pretty difficult to diagnose. Your pulmonologist may do testing called pulmonary function tests to help establish a diagnosis. Just seconding a few of what I think are the most salient points made by the helpful posters above: - The key is to prevent yourself from getting to the point where you need the rescue inhaler (or steroids) in the first place, as much as you can. Some people can do that by trigger avoidance or lifestyle modification, other people need maintenance medications, used daily, for prevention. This is sort of the foundation of that red-yellow-green plan that was noted above. I'm not sure if it's used in countries outside the USA, but I think it's a helpful way to think about asthma in general. - A peak flow meter can also be very helpful in monitoring how you're doing with your breathing (and help to follow a red-yellow-green type plan). I'd strongly second (or nth!) that suggestion. - If you need the meds, use them. I am pretty sure you're not saying you're only trying to treat your asthma with alternative therapies and not with prescribed medications, but just in case, I definitely agree with the posters who emphasized this point, because I have seen some *extremely* ill young people who tried to avoid taking their asthma meds (trying to tough it out, running out of scripts and not getting refills due to lack of insurance, etc) and either nearly died, or actually died. Seeing a young, otherwise healthy person die these days is a pretty sobering testament to the power of asthma. - Although some people swear by the nebulizer, it technically should work approximately equally to the regular inhaler - it's just that an inhaler does require a little bit of technical skill to use, otherwise the medication ends up on the back of your throat rather than in your lungs. For people with more severe asthma exacerbations I do always use the neb because you can run nebs back to back or continuously (in the ER).

Stress is very triggering for asthma, as is the fear of an attack. Please take your drugs.

I've been given steroids which did nothing, I've been given ventolin and symbicort which give temporary relief but that's not good enough, there has to be a better way to manage this than simply to throw drugs at me and tell me to keep an eye on it when I get a cold! In my experience, the steroids work, but it takes weeks/months. It's a long term management solution that reduces the number and severity of attacks, but does not stop them. It seems like it isn't working, but it does. I'd advise you to give it more time. This is important, because treating asthma with a *buterol inhaler is a terrible way to deal with asthma long term. It's not very good for you.

My life really changed when I was first given an Advair prescription. It takes time to work - give it time. My insurance stopped covering it last year, so I tried Symbicort. Even though it's a generally similar drug combination strategy as Advair, they are NOT the same, which was obvious pretty soon. So - try different drugs, even if someone says 'they're the same thing' because they're not, and the details of the differences do matter.

Wait, what? A chest X-Ray gave you an asthma diagnosis??? I have asthma, but I have triggers. Like exercise, sulphur preservatives, cold air and dust mites and cats (almost anaphylactic level). I can tell I have asthma because I get a terrible wheeze and can't breathe and I take salbutamol and it goes away, largely. This is obviously a terrible way to treat it... But that's what my asthma looks like. I take ventolin before running, I don't laugh too much if I'm drinking white wine and I farking avoid cats (and horses) like the plague. Oh yeah... and we have a Dyson. My kids have had asthma and have had asthma attacks where salbutamol relieves their symptoms. Asthma can't give you a chest infection.... You need a respiratory physician if you've had such dreadful diagnoses. You're currently in Oz??

I have had asthma for about 30 years. In NY it's just wheezy asthma induced by exercise, cold, and smoke. In CO I had cough-variant asthma on top of the wheezy asthma, but I was never able to nail down the trigger for the cough. 99% of the time, inhaled corticosteroids do the trick with the my wheezy asthma, but don't touch the cough variant. Because everyone's triggers are different, it's difficult to offer specific advice. For example, because I have cold induced asthma, I took a puff before I waited outside for the school bus in the winter and drank from a thermos of hot, strong coffee while I waited. (The steam, heat, and caffeine helped keep my breathing passages dilated.) The coffee was a suggestion from my pediatrician, who said that he would prefer that an 8 year old drink coffee and breathe than not drink coffee and not breathe. I also puff and drink coffee before exercise. Asthma can be triggered by respiratory infections, food, medicine, smoke, weather, pollen, air pollution, pet dander, pests, mold, exercise, emotions, and strong odors. The best way to control asthma is find your triggers and avoid exposure or take medication before unavoidable exposure. I suspect (but am not a doctor, of course) that your asthma is an allergic reaction. You should see an allergist to help you nail down your triggers.

Sorry - a correction - that should be I crumbed lamb chops in milk, with breadcrumbs. So that's gluten and dairy all in one dish. Sigh.

Hi, I just thought I'd post a follow up and let you know how it's progressing. I got blood tested for your standard allergies (pollen, animal hair, dust, mould) and I'm in the clear, but that was all they tested for. Anyway, the asthma has mostly gone and the chest infection comes and goes but the interesting (or really really sucky thing) about it is that I'm fairly sure it's a histamine response to either milk or wheat or both. I've gone off wheat and dairy just on a hunch and it has slowly gotten better but on the odd occasion I've had tiny amount of milk (I accidentally crumbed lamb cups in milk, the day before yesterday, totally forgetting) and it all came back again. Within minutes I was coughing, wheezing, mucus, the works. For the whole day. This was very recent so I've yet to see a doctor. If anyone would like to weigh in, do they think it's an allergic response because that's where my head is at. I've googled lactose and gluten intolerance and that doesn't seem accurate but lactose and gluten allergy certainly does match. It would explain why I've had this so called chest infection for months while was still munching away on bread, lattes, icecream etc and not getting better. So if there's an allergy test for this (Is there? And can a regular doctor do it?) I will get it done, in the meantime no wheat or dairy for me. Fun fact, my sister can't have any dairy without getting major sinus headaches and my mum and other sister both get very congested with milk so it looks like a family trait. Thanks again for all your responses and to those concerned that I was not taking my drugs, I most definitely am, I like breathing! I was just hoping there was an additional lifestyle change I could make to manage it. Unfortunately it may involve cutting out major food groups. If anyone has experience with a dairy or wheat allergy I would love to hear it, it may end up being relevant.