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3% Saline vs. 7% for Nebulizing
MAC & Bronchiectasis | Last Active: Oct 21 7:32pm | Replies (87)Comment receiving replies
Airway clearance can be completely exhausting. Less so I find if it's done 2x day. The morning for me always takes longer than p.m. clearance. Sometimes I use back to back saline vials (so total of 2) which I find gets the gunk out faster and more complete. Remembering to relax and not force the exhalations helps with the exhaustion factor. Gentle but firm exhales.
Do you have asthma? I do and the last 6 months I really pulled back on the steroid inhaler. Somedays I forgot to use it! Unbeknownst to me my asthma got worse and it expressed itself as bronchiectasis exacerbations. Gobs of gunk. Pulmonary suggested a month's trial where I take steroid inhaler 2 puffs/day b.i.d. to see if that helped calm things down. I am a week in of upping the dose and it has helped tremendously. It's made clearance easier. Less gunk. I don't want to stay on this steroid dose long term but until things get under control I'm staying with it. Maybe until the first frost?
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I don't believe that I actually have asthma, though at times I've had asthma-like symptoms with a cough getting away from me. I've used a steroid inhaler for some time now, though some days I skip it, which probably sort of defeats the plan to use it daily. I have concerns about using it long term and I'm not even sure how helpful it is. Guess I wouldn't know unless I gave it a break for a month or so. Recently, on a trip, I did have a bad flair-up. Hmm...maybe I had been skipping my inhaler. I can't recall. Perhaps that did add to it, though it was during a 100 degree weather stretch and I think that is what really effected it. Who knows? I hope you continue to find relief from the inhaler. So much of dealing with this BE seems to be about experimenting and seeing what works for you personally. There is not one regime for everyone to follow. Of course, that does make sense. We are each unique to some extent. Thanks for your input!