Plan For An Asthma Attack: Asthma

Content provided by the Faculty of the Harvard Medical School

Plan for an asthma attack

If you have asthma, it is likely that at some time in your life — and possibly quite frequently, depending on the severity of your asthma — you will find yourself having an asthma attack.

The symptoms of such an attack — cough, chest tightness, wheezing, and difficulty breathing — may come on suddenly or gradually. You may have only one of these symptoms or all of them. The attack may be brought on by a respiratory tract infection or exposure to an allergen. Or it may be triggered by smoke, strong fumes, or a change in your medicines. Possibly you will not be able to identify any cause; your breathing will simply become labored. On occasion, you will detect difficulty with your asthma based on the readings from your peak flow meter even before you notice any change in your breathing.

It is best to be prepared so that you will know how to help yourself if an asthma attack develops. If you find yourself having trouble breathing, perhaps even gasping to catch your breath, the worst thing that you can do is panic. Feeling stressed or panicked only makes it harder to breathe and more difficult to make smart choices. The best thing to do is take calm action to restore your breathing to normal — and achieving calm in the midst of great stress best begins with a plan.

Start by considering in advance what you would do in the event of an asthma attack. What would you do first for a mild or moderate attack? What would you do if you didn't quickly get better? What would you do if you were suffering a severe asthma attack? What if the initial treatment didn't work? Having read through this report, you may already have some ideas about actions that you can take in the event of an asthma attack. You also will want to discuss your plan with your doctor, and perhaps share some of this information with family members or friends. When you have settled on a plan, write it out and keep a copy of it somewhere handy. (You can use the blank form provided in this report as a guide; see "My asthma attack action plan.")

During an asthma attack, assessing the severity of symptoms and measuring the degree of airway narrowing are especially important — even lifesaving — so that you can adjust your treatment based on the severity of the attack and how well it is responding to initial therapy. For example, careful assessment will let you know if it is safe to wait until morning to call the doctor, or whether you should seek emergency help immediately.

Last updated:	September 27, 2007