A is for Asthma....

Asthma is a chronic condition involving the respiratory system in which the airways occasionally constricts, becomes inflamed, and is lined with excessive amounts of mucus, often in response to one or more triggers.--definition from Wikipedia
I never dreamed that this little word and its definition would ever have such an impact on my family. Our son Benjamin has been diagnosed with Asthma. Our first experience with an asthma attack was in December of last year. I thought it was a severe cold or maybe even bronchitis. He had a horrible cough that would not be soothed by any of the over the counter cough syrups that are available. When I took him to see our doctor, the doctor immediately said to me, "Let's not rule out the possibility of asthma." After we ruled out the possibility of Pneumonia and RSV he was pretty sure Asthma was our daisy.

I am ashamed to admit that I didn't take it very seriously when my doctor told me Benj had asthma. Honestly, this is what I thought..."I know lots of people who have asthma and they are just fine. Surely, this attack was just a coincidence and it would never get this bad again." I didn't realize how dangerous it could really be. I guess I am the kinda of person who has to learn things the hard way. For those of you who read my last post, we had to come home early from St. George because Benj was sick. Well, it went from bad to worse. By Sunday we were minutes away from Benjamin being rushed to the ER in ambulance and that was while I was sitting in my doctor's office. He had a temperature of 104.7 degrees and was literally struggling for every breath. Asthma was real to me in that moment. I understood better than anyone could have explained to me of how ugly an asthma attack can be. I wanted so bad to trade places with my baby. With every breath that I took I became more frustrated with myself because I was breathing so effortlessly. It is so weird the kind of promises you will make to God if he will just ease your child's pain.

We made it through that 5 day attack with lots of visits to the doctor's office and even more medication. I have a whole new respect for Asthma and I am willing to do anything that is required of me to make sure that my little Lito never gets that sick again! If any one has any good books or websites that you can recommend to me I would love to hear about them.