Having bad asthma!

[trinut001]

I have been having really bad asthma since saturday. Could I be detoxing? I have a breathing machine I used 4 times yesterday as my inhalers aren't working. I still have no relief. I have had asthma since childhood and have had several bouts of bronchitis or pnuemonia over the years. I am on my 4th week of mostly raw. Most days 100% and the other days around 90-95%. I had really bad headaches in the beginning (I also get migraines) but those went away and now I am having a hard time breathing.

Is there anything I can do to get through this??? Any special foods to eat? Is using all the medications defeating the purpose?

[Raine]

I've read amazing success stories of overcoming asthma by fasting. Have you done a fast or considered one?

The gentleman that developed Gardenburgers had horrible asthma in his youth. He began fasting in his teens and overcame it.

If you decide to go this route, both this site and www.CureZone.com has wonderful water fasting forums.

[trinut001]

I have tried fasting in the past but could never get past 2 or 3 days. I always felt so hungry and would get headaches. I may try one again. I am not sure about water fasting. That seems to extreme for me. I might try a juice fast though.

[Raine]

I have tried fasting in the past but could never get past 2 or 3 days. I always felt so hungry and would get headaches. I may try one again. I am not sure about water fasting. That seems to extreme for me. I might try a juice fast though.

Excellent idea! I did several 3-5 day juice fasts and finally worked up to a 30-day fast and it was amazing. It does seem to be easier to transition into water fasts after achieving juice fasts. Keep in mind that what your body does in 30 days on juice it can typically do in 10 days on water.

[Revvell]

My question here would be, what are you eating? You say 90-95% raw. When you are not, are you eating dairy or wheat? If so, stop! If not, carry on with what you are doing.

Yes, you could very well be detoxing or "retracing". (Might wish to google that). I'd see if I could get by w/out the inhalers as they just keep putting more drugs into your body. I don't know if they still do but, when I had asthma, the stuff they used to supposedly stop asthma, contributed to it.

I would also suggest you do some research on foods that strengthen lungs. Are you doing green smoothies (or smoozies as I call them) on a regular basis? Might consider that as well, if not.




I have been having really bad asthma since saturday. Could I be detoxing? I have a breathing machine I used 4 times yesterday as my inhalers aren't working. I still have no relief. I have had asthma since childhood and have had several bouts of bronchitis or pnuemonia over the years. I am on my 4th week of mostly raw. Most days 100% and the other days around 90-95%. I had really bad headaches in the beginning (I also get migraines) but those went away and now I am having a hard time breathing.

Is there anything I can do to get through this??? Any special foods to eat? Is using all the medications defeating the purpose?

[trinut001]

I am not eating any dairy but I did have some wheat triscuts the other day. Usually when I am not 100% it is because maybe the nuts I am using aren't raw. I have been drinking green smoothies almost every day.

Thanks Revvel I will check into that retracing.

[northernstars]

I had extremely bad asthma so bad the pharmacists were surprised every time I showed up to get another prescription and was able to eliminate it by drinking kombucha tea that I made! It stayed gone for over 10 years and then came back while I was in the hospital after a stroke! Of course they had me on all sorts of pharmaceuticals!

Anything that gets my body into an acidic state will start the asthma again. All prescriptions cause the body to become acidic! So, my husband found a new kombucha mushroom starter on ebay and we ordered that. Once again the asthma is gone!

[shashibala]

I had daily terrible asthma when I started raw. It has almost all gone away unless I accidentally eat a tiny bit of dairy, wheat , or soy, or if I'm exposed to something I react to like bleach. I also wheeze if I eat dried fruits that have preservatives on them. As soon as I feel any tightness in my chest, I begin to eat very lightly. I eat fruits and greens and vegies. Nothing heavy like nuts or dampening like bananas. I go easy on salt, as too much seems to make it worse. And, I drink lots of water with lemon juice and cayenne pepper. I put about 1/2 teaspoon of cayenne in a quart of lemon water. You might need to do less if your system isn't used to the cayenne. It can bother the tummy, so go easy at first. This clears it up every time. I used to get congested and it would go on for weeks until I thought I'd pass out. I'm glad that's over!!
Good Luck!!

[michigan roman]

ive read people say oil pulling really helps with asthma .

[petaltothemetal]

I have allergies and asthma, too.

Traditional Medicinals makes Breathe Easy and Throat Coat teas, both of which help me, although I often have to double up on the tea bags. Not raw, maybe, but better than coffee, which is the other thing I used to lean on when I was trying to slow down use of inhalers. Wheat is a major trigger for me, but you say you've barely touched it. Some non-organic nuts are genetically engineered, and cashews are related to poison ivy - you may want to eliminate all nuts and reintroduce them one at a time, organic only, to see how you feel. You may have gotten some food that has fungal or mold spores on it - or spores may be in the air (is it wet where you live in Texas?) and you're not healed enough yet to not react. Have you been around anyone who smokes or uses a lot of hairspray or perfume? My ex husband used to lie to me about smoking and I was always on the edge of an attack the whole time we were married. Also I used to work in an automotive garage where I was constantly having to get into cars with those stupid formadehyde air freshener trees in them, cigarette butts, old food, etc. I still work in a garage, but now I see almost no customers.

I am SOOO much better now at home and at work but I used to rely on my inhaler and also allergy pills morning and night, plus take occasional epi-pen shots. Umm, not taking your medicine, I don't advise that... we're talking about BREATHING here, not headaches. But maybe you can get the teas, scrutinize your food more and work on techniques to lessen your inhalant use. I definitely agree with the suggestion to alkalinize your body.

One thing I used to do when asthma struck is get someone to hit me with the side of their hand between the spine and the shoulderblade. It will have to be someone with good aim who's not afraid to karate chop you a little. One or two good smacks would sometimes jar a little air into the lung and then I could either use no inhalent or less. Sometimes you can do it to yourself if you find a wall corner and hit yourself into it, but I used to miss and get my spine or my head!:rolleyes:

Do you have any place you can go where you notice you can breathe really well within a few minutes of getting there? Go there, a lot, even when you feel good, and breathe a lot, deeply, repeatedly, the biggest breaths you can manage. Try to think about what the difference is between that place and where you are when the attacks begin. I used to live in a Victorian house and I finally had to move. I used to go almost anyplace that was newer but not brand spanking new (with carpets, paint, counters, etc that outgas formaldehyde and other chemicals) and breathe better. Now I live in a medium-old house out in the country where I feel better, but I still often go outside and lie in the grass to breathe. It is good lung exercise and makes me feel alive.

Good luck.

[petaltothemetal]

I forgot to say - boil water in a pot on the stove and put sea salt and mint in it, then put it on a table on a hot plate, put a towel over your head and lean over and breathe in. This helps, too. Or you can spend a lot of time by the ocean.

[michigan roman]

speaking of boiling water , i dont know if it was just the steam , but years ago i came to like breathing in the steam of boiling cabbage because it gave me as full of oxygen and energized of feeling lungs i ever had .

[lafsalot]

MIght very well be "retracing", but in the interim, here are two things that might helpL

If your chest is still tight, start using a humidifier at night , even during the day if you have to- that will help loosen those thick-as-glue mucus plugs that are blocking your airways. Chest percussions also help to further break it up.

It is only natural to feel anxious when you are SOB which of course only increases your body's demand for more oxygen. You want to slow it down by doing pursed lipped breathing exercises (inhaling slowly through nose, and exhaling slowly through lips held as though your were giving a kiss) This will also help get the stale air out, and clean air in.

Several bouts of bronchitis and pneumonia?! Sure it's not copd? At any rate, if you're smoking, stop. If you've just recently quit, might experience SOB a little longer until all the toxins are out of your system.

Hang in there and hope you are feeling better soon ~ Cathy

PS NOT the time to even consider stopping your meds JMO

[trinut001]

Wow thanks for all the advice. I will try the things you all suggested. I live in colorado not texas but it was raining for 3 days straight! I am not sure if this is related or not. I had to drive to pick up a foster puppy I had that was living in bad conditions. The guy never had her spayed and she is in heat. My asthma started acting up after we picked her up so I am not sure if it is the dog (although we had her before for a month with no problems) or because she is in heat, or it is something else.

Cathy-I do not smoke and never have. I just have bad bouts of asthma that turn into bronchitis or pnuemonia. Usually around this time of year but that was when I lived in Michigan.

[petaltothemetal]

If it could be rain that bothers you (because it encourages mold and fungal spores), I would not use the humidifier because it would humidify the whole room, your bed, your drapes... etc. That's why leaning over a pan of hot water with herbs and salt is good. You drape a towel over your head and when you're done you pour the water out... and usually you do something like this in the kitchen or dining room rather than in the bedroom, where you spend 8+ hours at a time not alert.

[shashibala]

It could very well be the combination of the moldy weather and the dog. I've found that now that my whole system is cleaner, even if I react to something environmental, it never gets as bad as it used to. Hope you feel better!

[michigan roman]

just to re-emphasize = ive read some big claims of oil pulling GREATLY helping with asthma . but i think it takes a few weeks or longer to get in gear but its effects are then long lasting . im thinking it draws pollutants / toxins up out of the esophogas / lungs .

[trinut001]

Thanks all I am feeling better today. I have been looking into the Kombucha tea and also doing the oil pulling. Anything is worth a try.

[Pitaya]

Hi trinut001 :)

I am not a doctor but can share my experiences. I had horrible asthma when I started raw almost 7 months ago. I used my inhalers twice daily sometimes and two months ago realized that I had forgot about them! I just threw them out because I am POSITIVE I will never need them again.

What i did was first and foremost, stuck to my Raw commitment. I knew the foods would heal me, and also knew that ***as the body detoxes everything, including the inhaler medication, the condition gets worse, because it is breathing it out, expressing it, reexperiencing it before it is released***This piece of knowledge helped me get through the worst of times, when I was afraid to move because my breathing had gotten so horrible and I didn't want to agitate it. This process is all about comfortable progression for me: I was VERY gentle with myself, and kept my inhaler with me as a 'safety net' in case, BUT I researched all the naturopathic (non-pharmaceutical) techniques to relieve symptoms and used them. There is alot of info out there, but 3 really hellped me:
1) breathe deeply through nose, then exhale slowly out of pursed lips (form your lips as if they are wrapped around a tiny straw) - make sure to release ALL the air from your lungs on this exhale. this is powerful, because you are helping your broncheole naturally. it may help to send positive healing thoughts, using images, talk to the lungs, whatever helps...
2) apple cider vinegar diluted with water (drink it)
3) steam relief: boil hot water then put a towel over your head over the bowl (forming a "tent") then breathe in steam until you feel clear again. or sit in bathroom with really hot shower running.

avoid all dairy and mucus-forming foods. i ate detoxing foods like watermelon ALOT at first, to facilitate the body's healing.

realize that alot of this is fear and security, and as you heal your life, this will heal deeply the rest of you. for me this was the last bit of reliance on allopathic doctors and medicine, and WOW what an eye opener to realize my dependence on it (before anything was even really wrong!!). i feel so free and natural and at one with Life now.

i know you will do this too!

take good care of yourself.
remember healing IS possible.
be gentle.

love,
pitaya

[Pitaya]

by the way I incorporated oil pulling, one water fast, and 2 cleanses in my healing journey. these are all mentioned by others here and I'm sure really helped me too.

i just did.
the healing came.

[trinut001]

Thanks Pitaya for the info.

I am going to do a juice fast next week. I am going to shoot for 5 days but we will see how it goes.

It would be so wonderful to not have to depend on my inhaler anymore!

[Pitaya]

you are welcome!!

i forgot to say about that breathing exercise: do it over and over again until your symptoms subside. it works better than the inhaler after a while (though it takes some getting used to at beginning)

air purifiers make a big diffference too especially if you have a pet and start at $20.00

best,
pitaya

[mikeschn]

Whew,

I get asthma too, so I can relate.

I had lots of allergies growing up, so most of my asthma is triggered by allergies.

You mentioned you just picked up a dog. What kind is it? You might be allergic to dog dander. (I think cat dander is a lot worse, at least for me.)

Are you allergic to pollen? You might be mixing in something with pollen into your green smoothies that you are not aware of.

And yes, when it's cold and wet and I overexert myself, my lungs get irritated, and I get asthma.

If you can isolate the cause, that's half the battle...

Mike...

P.S. Oh yea, like pitaya said, I use a hepa filter in my bedroom every night, all night long.

[trinut001]

mikeschn I picked up an Australian Cattle Dog (anyone want a dog? lol) I had her here before and didn't have bad asthma. I have 2 cattle dogs now and a border collie/cattle dog mix. Maybe adding a 4th dog to the crew is what did it;)