Strangest early warning signs

Question:

> I’ve noticed that PMS seems to worsen my asthma symptoms, and I’ve heard > reports that peri-menopause is a time when adult-onset asthma starts or > "outgrown" childhood asthma resurfaces for many women.  I’m not sure about > men, but they seem to have their own mid-life issues, so I suspect they have > an analogous situation.

(I didn’t set the personality up right — it should have been "Grey" to start with. Oops!) Anyhow, this is the case with my asthma as well. What a terrible time to have problems with your asthma! You already feel gross, bloated, moody… and then to top it off, you can’t breathe well! Heather

Response:

>> I’ve had Asthma for 58 years. These are the only warning sign I’ve ever >had. >A strangling/tickling sensation in my throat and coughing are my earliest >symptoms these days (not always both together).  Coughing with every word >and night wheezing were my main symptoms for a long time (while I was in >denial that anything was wrong). > My ‘early warning sign’ is stiffness in my shoulders.

Good thing you’re an American, or it might have been your upper lip!        Sorry, you’re probably not amused, and will skewer me for it later. –Jane (also an American) – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> It’s a terrible responsibility – but somebody has to be the Americans.

Response:

>> I’ve had Asthma for 58 years. These are the only warning sign I’ve ever >had. >A strangling/tickling sensation in my throat and coughing are my earliest >symptoms these days (not always both together).  Coughing with every word >and night wheezing were my main symptoms for a long time (while I was in >denial that anything was wrong).

My ‘early warning sign’ is stiffness in my shoulders. It’s a terrible responsibility – but somebody has to be the Americans.

Response:

> I’ve had Asthma for 58 years. These are the only warning sign I’ve ever

had. A strangling/tickling sensation in my throat and coughing are my earliest symptoms these days (not always both together).  Coughing with every word and night wheezing were my main symptoms for a long time (while I was in denial that anything was wrong). –Jane

Response:

I’ve had Asthma for 58 years. These are the only warning sign I’ve ever had. Al

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> I was curious what the experts say about early warning signs, so I > searched the Internet. > Among others, they list: > – Wheezing (well, duh) > – Drop in peak flows (also, duh) > – Persistent Coughing (yet again, duh) > http://www.saltspring.com/ART/asthmanotes.htm > To me, those are TOO LATE warning signs.   > They probably also list "death" as an early warning sign of a heart > attack. > — > Steven D. Litvintchouk

Response:

I also get really grumpy.  Another symptom is I have trouble sleeping right before my asthma starts acting up.

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> Good point b/c if I’m ever having a bad asthma day especially in the > past when I was not properly medicated then I would get confused a lot, > my thinking would be slower and everything would be dim and less > colorful. > Once I was out with my father in this state and he just thought I was > being difficult he did not realize that I wasn’t feeling well. > Dana > P.S. I can also get very irritable when my asthma is acting up!

Response:

> Good point b/c if I’m ever having a bad asthma day especially in the > past when I was not properly medicated then I would get confused a lot, > my thinking would be slower and everything would be dim and less > colorful. > Once I was out with my father in this state and he just thought I was > being difficult he did not realize that I wasn’t feeling well. > Dana > P.S. I can also get very irritable when my asthma is acting up!

I’ve noticed that PMS seems to worsen my asthma symptoms, and I’ve heard reports that peri-menopause is a time when adult-onset asthma starts or "outgrown" childhood asthma resurfaces for many women.  I’m not sure about men, but they seem to have their own mid-life issues, so I suspect they have an analogous situation. –Jane

Response:

> > With me, I get this peculiar feeling in my chest.  I can’t even describe > it well.  It’s not pain, it’s not exactly a tickle, it’s not exactly > tightness, it’s not exactly burning sensation.  It’s just an odd feeling > that something isn’t quite right in my chest.  But I know it’s not how I > "normally" feel down there. > This might sound very strange, but I know that if I get a tickle > just under my chin (it feels like a "skin" tickle to me, not a > throat tickle), I know something really bad is about to happen. > I’ll actually scratch the itch but it won’t go away. Does anyone > know what causes it? My boyfriend has the same warning sign.

Allergies, apparently: http://www.acsh.org/publications/priorities/0804/itching.html (the connection between asthma and itchy chin is mentioned) — Steven D. Litvintchouk                  

Response:

Good point b/c if I’m ever having a bad asthma day especially in the past when I was not properly medicated then I would get confused a lot, my thinking would be slower and everything would be dim and less colorful. Once I was out with my father in this state and he just thought I was being difficult he did not realize that I wasn’t feeling well. Dana P.S. I can also get very irritable when my asthma is acting up!

Response:

That is bizarre b/c that is exactly how I feel in that state. Everything appears darker and poorly lit. It is like everything has less color (just my perception of course). Dana

Response:

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – >  This might sound very strange, but I know that if I get a tickle > just under my chin (it feels like a "skin" tickle to me, not a > throat tickle), I know something really bad is about to happen. > I’ll actually scratch the itch but it won’t go away. Does anyone > know what causes it? My boyfriend has the same warning sign. > Hmm, this is a completely uneducated guess, but I wouldn’t be surprised > if it was a "referred" sensation–that the cause of the sensation is in > the lungs, but you perceive it elsewhere.  For instance, diaphragm pain > is often felt in the shoulders behind the clavicles.  I am definitely > not willing to put money on this guess, though. > I also get the same itchy feeling in my chin and neck, usually during a > severe attack during allergy season.  Scratching doesn’t touch it. > zg

Itching under the chin is a recognized asthma-associated symptom. I have found it mentioned in a 1862 medical text.     Larry

Response:

> I describe it as "itchy lungs"  & it drives me nuts!  LOL… but it is a > good warning sign for me!

"Itchy" may be the right word for it.  Except that in my case, the feeling exists even higher up too, where my trachea ought to be. — Steven D. Litvintchouk                  

Response:

> Oh, and the other sign that my breathing is going to get > really funky very rarely ever happens. I had lung damage > in my lower right lung, so I suspect that’s part of the > problem. I’ll be walking and suddenly have a stabbing > pain in that side, in the lower chest (just below my > ribcage). I’ll often stop and hold my side… it scares > me. Then, a really scary feeling… As I walk, I’ll feel > a "pulling" feeling in my side….

I was curious what the experts say about early warning signs, so I searched the Internet. Among others, they list: – Wheezing (well, duh) – Drop in peak flows (also, duh) – Persistent Coughing (yet again, duh) http://www.saltspring.com/ART/asthmanotes.htm To me, those are TOO LATE warning signs.   They probably also list "death" as an early warning sign of a heart attack. — Steven D. Litvintchouk                  

Response:

 This might sound very strange, but I know that if I get a tickle > just under my chin (it feels like a "skin" tickle to me, not a > throat tickle), I know something really bad is about to happen. > I’ll actually scratch the itch but it won’t go away. Does anyone > know what causes it? My boyfriend has the same warning sign.

Hmm, this is a completely uneducated guess, but I wouldn’t be surprised if it was a "referred" sensation–that the cause of the sensation is in the lungs, but you perceive it elsewhere.  For instance, diaphragm pain is often felt in the shoulders behind the clavicles.  I am definitely not willing to put money on this guess, though. I also get the same itchy feeling in my chin and neck, usually during a severe attack during allergy season.  Scratching doesn’t touch it. zg

Response:

Oh, and the other sign that my breathing is going to get really funky very rarely ever happens. I had lung damage in my lower right lung, so I suspect that’s part of the problem. I’ll be walking and suddenly have a stabbing pain in that side, in the lower chest (just below my ribcage). I’ll often stop and hold my side… it scares me. Then, a really scary feeling… As I walk, I’ll feel a "pulling" feeling in my side. I don’t know what’s going on, but it feels like my lung is pulling away from whatever holds it there. I know that’s not what is actually happening, but it’s a very odd feeling that’s hard to describe. I’ll use my inhaler, hunch over and take a moment to stop walking. Heather

Response:

> > Sometimes the only warning sign I have is suddenly I become intensely > tired. I’ll just be at the store for example and I’ll be fine one minute > and the next I am exhausted and feel like I am under water. And my > surroundings always appear different when I am in this state. Once I > How do they appear?  I am asthmatic, but don’t have warning signs like > yours.  However, I have had episods where things appear darker or badly > lit.

I get this, too, but never quite attributed this to my breathing or asthmatic episodes. I’ve had many episodes along with this feeling that things are dim that also involved a feeling of lightheadedness and sometimes even confusion. For example, the most vivid episode of this happened when I was playing flag football in a gym class (it was a requirement, bleh). I had the ball and was running to score when I suddenly felt confused and lightheaded. I stopped in my tracks and wondered what I had just been doing. Well, by the time I gained my senses, my teammates were pissed because someone grabbed my flag and we lost the chance to score. I ended up having a bad coughing fit followed by wheezing and bronchiospasm. I sat down, used my inhaler and I think I ended up sitting out the class that day. Heather

Response:

> Sometimes the only warning sign I have is suddenly I become intensely > tired. I’ll just be at the store for example and I’ll be fine one minute > and the next I am exhausted and feel like I am under water. And my > surroundings always appear different when I am in this state. Once I

How do they appear?  I am asthmatic, but don’t have warning signs like yours.  However, I have had episods where things appear darker or badly lit. — — Lou Pecora   – My views are my own.

Response:

> With me, I get this peculiar feeling in my chest.  I can’t even describe > it well.  It’s not pain, it’s not exactly a tickle, it’s not exactly > tightness, it’s not exactly burning sensation.  It’s just an odd feeling > that something isn’t quite right in my chest.  But I know it’s not how I > "normally" feel down there.

This might sound very strange, but I know that if I get a tickle just under my chin (it feels like a "skin" tickle to me, not a throat tickle), I know something really bad is about to happen. I’ll actually scratch the itch but it won’t go away. Does anyone know what causes it? My boyfriend has the same warning sign. After the itch, I’ll usually have a bad, forceful coughing fit, my face will turn red and I’ll start wheezing. My wheezing is very noticeable, too (my doctors have commented that they don’t see a lot of people with such an audible wheeze.) Heather

Response:

Sometimes the only warning sign I have is suddenly I become intensely tired. I’ll just be at the store for example and I’ll be fine one minute and the next I am exhausted and feel like I am under water. And my surroundings always appear different when I am in this state. Once I puff on my inhaler I am usually lifted out of this state within 15 to 20 minutes. Anyone else? Dana

Response:

> I was just curious whether other folks had noticed some really weird > early warning sign that they were about to get an attack if they didn’t > do something fast. > With me, I get this peculiar feeling in my chest.

Sounds rather like the one I describe as feeling as if my lungs were made of aluminum foil and were crinkling up…? > Anybody else have a really weird early warning sign that they swear by?

Well, I several, for different kinds of attacks.  There’s the Crinkle, the Vague Breathlessness (a small airways thing), the Burning Sensation (usually after exposure to a chemical trigger), and several others.  The Wet Wheeze is often the most serious–when I start to wheeze and have a lot of mucous rather suddenly it often means I’m In For It.  It comes with a sensation like my chest has several wet washclothes in it.  :-) zg

Response:

> I was just curious whether other folks had noticed some really weird > early warning sign that they were about to get an attack if they didn’t > do something fast.

I just woke up and felt like I was going to strangle.  That usually means coughing, quickly followed by wheezing and fullness in the left side of my chest are close behind if I don’t do something right away.  Also, I get a sense of shortness of breath sometimes. –Jane

Response:

I describe it as "itchy lungs"  & it drives me nuts!  LOL… but it is a good warning sign for me! Lisa

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> I was just curious whether other folks had noticed some really weird > early warning sign that they were about to get an attack if they didn’t > do something fast. > With me, I get this peculiar feeling in my chest.  I can’t even describe > it well.  It’s not pain, it’s not exactly a tickle, it’s not exactly > tightness, it’s not exactly burning sensation.  It’s just an odd feeling > that something isn’t quite right in my chest.  But I know it’s not how I > "normally" feel down there. > But if I ignore it, and don’t puff my albuterol, I will definitely start > coughing within an hour or so.  No kidding. > Anybody else have a really weird early warning sign that they swear by? > — > Steven D. Litvintchouk

Response:

The other "old reliable" for mr is "trying to suck an oxygen atom off of a water molecule!"  I was a chem major…

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> I was just curious whether other folks had noticed some really weird > early warning sign that they were about to get an attack if they didn’t > do something fast. > With me, I get this peculiar feeling in my chest.  I can’t even describe > it well.  It’s not pain, it’s not exactly a tickle, it’s not exactly > tightness, it’s not exactly burning sensation.  It’s just an odd feeling > that something isn’t quite right in my chest.  But I know it’s not how I > "normally" feel down there. > But if I ignore it, and don’t puff my albuterol, I will definitely start > coughing within an hour or so.  No kidding. > Anybody else have a really weird early warning sign that they swear by? > — > Steven D. Litvintchouk

Response:

I was just curious whether other folks had noticed some really weird early warning sign that they were about to get an attack if they didn’t do something fast. With me, I get this peculiar feeling in my chest.  I can’t even describe it well.  It’s not pain, it’s not exactly a tickle, it’s not exactly tightness, it’s not exactly burning sensation.  It’s just an odd feeling that something isn’t quite right in my chest.  But I know it’s not how I "normally" feel down there. But if I ignore it, and don’t puff my albuterol, I will definitely start coughing within an hour or so.  No kidding. Anybody else have a really weird early warning sign that they swear by? — Steven D. Litvintchouk                  

Response:

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