Asthma and Sleep - Asthma Message Board

01-12-2003, 02:19 AM

My asthma is worse in the winter.
In recent, I have been having increasing trouble staying asleep, even with medication.

I notice is is the worst on my back, but, I cannot help that I turn to this position WHEN sleeping. But I wake up every hour now.

Anyone have any suggestions?

Is there some trick for asthma sufferers to get good sleep?

Blue

wrin · 01-12-2003, 01:20 PM

Keep a warm humidifier in the room going, not one of the ultrasonic types. Make sure it has a filter on it.

The reason asthma tends to get worse in the winter has to do with a few things -- one is with our migration to indoor air. Another has to do with how dry the air is and how cold it is.

Get obsessive about vacuuming your carpets and cleaning your sheets. Use high quality sheets (80 thread count) made of cotton that can withstand hot water washing on a weekly or bi-weekly basis. Cover your mattress with dust-mite proof covers and don't forget to vacuum THAT too. Clean your curtains, dust often, keep knicknacks to a minimum. If you take long-acting bronchodilators (advair, oxeze, symbicort, foradil, serevent, atrovent) take them right before you go to bed. Look into possibly increasing your dose. Look into the possibility of investing in a dust-remover. Keep your window closed and keep your bedroom door cracked. Change your furnace filter more often, and use higher-quality filters. Look into investing in a static-charge filter. Buy XXL size pantyhose and cut them out to cover your heat registers -- you'll be amazed at the kind of crap they'll filter out.

But most important is the heated humidifier with filter.

01-13-2003, 03:38 PM

thank you sooooooo much!!!!!

BLue

wrin · 01-13-2003, 06:50 PM

*I* just hope it HELPS.

charleyhorse · 01-13-2003, 07:23 PM

Sleep can be awfully elusive at times. I use a humidified like Wrin suggested and have also found it really helps. Also, I was able to scrounge one of those electric beds that you can raise the head on. It made a huge difference ... much better than trying to raise the bed with pillows or blocks. I find it so much easier to breathe with the head raised. Sometimes you can get these beds free - mine came from a nursing home that was shutting down and they gave them away to people with medical problems. Its been a godsend.

hope you get some sleep