Have you had asthma since birth? What medication do you take?

I'm 64 and was diagnosed when I was 5 months old

Belinda 5000

I’m 68 and have had asthma since my first year. I wasn’t really treated for it through childhood; I believe my parents figured that “childhood”asthma simply disappeared after a year or so. But by my thirties, I was seeing an allergist who prescribed prednisone followed by a steroid inhaler. Several years later I started allergy shots and using a nebulizer three times daily, while keeping the steroid inhaler. I also have POTS so I’ve now segued into a regimen of Spiriva, Qvar, and generic Allegra. Medicare is allowing both Spiriva and Qvar after some back-and-forth between my doctors and my supplemental insurer (Blue Cross). I hope I can keep my routine- the nebulizer was tough to handle, for me, anyway.

I have an adult daughter whose asthma is about as controlled as mine was fifty years ago- meaning barely. She has horrible flares and is pretty much disabled at this point. Her insurer is not allowing her to keep her old medications (including Qvar) and her current meds are not keeping her condition under control. Every few months she has an attack, goes to the ER, gets prednisone and antibiotics for the infection caused by extreme coughing, and the cycle is reset again. Asthma is just one of her medical problems- so it’s an uphill slog.