I've been prescribed Asmanex, one puff before bedtime, and I'm scared to take it! I read about the side effects and get a little freaked out. I read that it lowers your immune system and a person needs to be careful of being exposed to infections, and those with chickenpox and measles. I've had chickenpox and a vaccine for measles, yet I work in a school and am exposed to a variety of things. I'm worried about coming down with the flu, colds, infections or being exposed to something while on the medication. I realize this might sound somewhat irrational, although it has kept me from taking the medication.

Any thoughts? How has it worked for you? Thanks.

:wave:Hey there dodgerfan25,

I have been on Asmanex for a little over a year and it is working very well for me. I had been on Advair but I wanted to discontinue using it after hearing in Time that some people died from Advair. I believe it now has a black box warning. I dumped that and the dr who was prescribing it. My current specialist has me on Asmanex 2 puffs in AM and PM. I have had no side effects from it and in fact the other night I was telling my wife how happy I have been with it.

Please keep in mind, what works well for me or anyone else, may or may not work for you. Keep in mind we all have different body chemistries, plus asthma very often is different for different people. Example: I am not allergic to perfumes and thus do not get an asthma episode, but others who are can get an epsiode. DISCUSS THIS WITH YOUR PULMONARY DR.

Also: regarding your other post for asthma or anxiety--brother, I have been in the same boat. For almost a year I wondered which "A" was it when I got chest tightness, which happens to be a symptom of both asthma and anxiety :confused:. I have both illnesses. Additionally, my asthma is very mild (thank God) which made the asthma vs anxiety issue even more confusing. Plus these two ailments can be like the chicken and the egg: which comes first? which causes which? My dr told me just last week that if my peak flow reading was good during a chest tightness episode it is more than likely anxiety. Like I said earlier, what works for me may not be applicable to you. DISCUSS THIS ALSO WITH YOUR PULMONARY DR. My specialist recognized last year I had alot of anxiety. In retrospect I probably had more anxiety than asthma. I went for cognitive behavior thearpy and it helped me tremendously. For the anxiety, I'll take a little piece of .25 mg of Xanax. NOTE: I use the Xanax only when needed, which lately has been 1-2 times a week. AGAIN: DISCUSS THIS WITH YOUR DR.

Since I do not know your specific physical/pulmonary condition, I would say to use Albuterol at a sign of chest tightness.

:wave:

FYI, the Advair issue is overwhelmingly in African Americans. My doctor won't prescribe it to them.

I don't blame you. Had severe palpitations from asmanex. They didn't start until about a week after using - maybe had to get into my system. Dr. said it was a side effect and switched me to azmacort. No problem so far!