Treating Asthma Naturally....???

[InkyGirl]

Someone commented on Zsu's latest post saying she cured her sons Asthma naturally, well, I looked at her blog and she hasn't cured him. She's treating him naturally, all while he's wondering around wheezing and having asthma attacks.

This upsets me. As an Asthma sufferer and the sibling of a major asthma sufferer I know how awful it is to have attacks and not be able to breathe. I know natural medicine can work, but with stuff like Asthma I feel like it's not the best course of action.

It did make me feel better to read that she still keeps the nebulizer and abuteral on hand in case of extreme emergencies, but still she goes on about how much money they've saved by not getting all the Rx's. WTH?

thebondurantfiles.blogspot.com/search/label/natural%20healing%20and%20medicine

[Alecto]

In all sincerity, I wonder if this qualifies as medical neglect.

[ladypuglover]

Someone commented on Zsu's latest post saying she cured her sons Asthma naturally, well, I looked at her blog and she hasn't cured him. She's treating him naturally, all while he's wondering around wheezing and having asthma attacks.

This upsets me. As an Asthma sufferer and the sibling of a major asthma sufferer I know how awful it is to have attacks and not be able to breathe. I know natural medicine can work, but with stuff like Asthma I feel like it's not the best course of action.

It did make me feel better to read that she still keeps the nebulizer and abuteral on hand in case of extreme emergencies, but still she goes on about how much money they've saved by not getting all the Rx's. WTH?

thebondurantfiles.blogspot.com/search/label/natural%20healing%20and%20medicine

When I had my youngest son a dear friend died from asthma because her husband and in laws decided for her that she didn't need to take her rescue inhaler or be rushed to the ER until after 14 hours after the start of her asthma attack. Her husband came up to my room to tell me congrats on my new baby and that his wife/my friend died a few minutes ago. So yeat I would call it abuse. No, I'm still not over her death and the way her husband and his parents allowed her to die and then not give a fly flip about it. Her kids are the same ages as my 3 oldest sons are.

[forever ago]

In all sincerity, I wonder if this qualifies as medical neglect.

It most certainly should.

I treat mine 'naturally', if 'naturally' would mean staying away from things I'm allergic to, bundling up when it's cold outside, staying indoors when there's smoke from wildfires (surprisingly common in eastern NC), keeping everything clean, and staying away from smokers. There's been wildfires in my area too and smoke blowing in from fires further away, combined with little rainfall and humidity it's rough on me too.

Fucking licorice to 'strengthen his lungs'? Does this retard know a damn thing about asthma? The problem isn't so much with his lungs as it is with the airways TO his lungs getting inflamed and swelling up! The reason he can't breathe is because his own airways are restricting the amount of air reaching his lungs! What a dumbass...

Get that poor kid an inhaler, life will be much easier for him.

[Deleted12]

Ugh... seriously?

What's especially depressing about this is that asthma tends to be cyclical, so when you start feeling crappy it often means you're on a downward swing that can last for a few days or weeks, but on the bright side sometimes if you throw all your resources at it you can stay fairly healthy for a few days or weeks with very few meds.

Untreated asthma might mean that the kid can never get to a place where he has a good stretch, and it can result in long-term damage to the lungs if not death.

BTW, albuterol inhalers in Mexico are $5, no scrip. Pulmicort is $35. If you have a friend going down there, stock up.

[InkyGirl]

When I had my youngest son a dear friend died from asthma because her husband and in laws decided for her that she didn't need to take her rescue inhaler or be rushed to the ER until after 14 hours after the start of her asthma attack. Her husband came up to my room to tell me congrats on my new baby and that his wife/my friend died a few minutes ago. So yeat I would call it abuse. No, I'm still not over her death and the way her husband and his parents allowed her to die and then not give a fly flip about it. Her kids are the same ages as my 3 oldest sons are.

That is so sad. I'm so sorry. Asthma is not to be messed with. This mother and people like your friends family upsets me. :evil:

[ladypuglover]

That is so sad. I'm so sorry. Asthma is not to be messed with. This mother and people like your friends family upsets me. :evil:

Me too, that's why after 9 1/2 years I still remain pissed. She was too young of a mother to be stolen away like that and to leave behind 3 little ones with no mother but a bunch of abusive freaks to care for them. I better step off my soapbox because I am still pissed off about the whole story and it hits way to close to home for me.

[Vex]

What pisses me off is that one of two things will happen:

1. Her son's asthma gets worse or doesn't improve, and he has to suffer needlessly because his mother is a psycho.

or

2. Her son's asthma improves and vanishes by itself with age (which was the case with me, fortunately), in which case she will be convinced her natural 'therapy' 'cured' her son, and she'll just believe in it even more and feel even more smug and justified in her scorn for modern medicine.

Either way, it pisses me off.

[clibbyjo]

I have treated cough variant asthma naturally in myself and 2 kids. The inhaler was always there"just in case".

I took my daughter to the Dr. of Chinese med. who himself was an asthma sufferer and he wrote a book on curing it naturally. http://www.inner-strength.com/ His plan worked for maintenance,but if she got a cough/cold, she would have a flare up and be back on steroids and meds for a months. I have a friend who is an herbalist(with a degree)and she recommended mullein as a rescue. She gave it to her own daughter for years and her daughter had regular asthma. Sure enough, it works in seconds, just like an inhaler(a tinture with a little water).I always have mullein on hand and anytime we have a flareup(cough and cold season especially we go through it) we go for this first.(it has always worked, 5+ years) I still always have an inhaler around(and not expired) just in case. I would never mess with asthma and the mullein has always worked. I do recommend it as a "natural inhaler", but I would also have your regular one ready to go if it doesn't work for you. I have been in the ER for asthma several times when I was pregnant, I try to get the breathing under control before it comes to that with my kids and so far it has worked.

[JosiePye]

It did make me feel better to read that she still keeps the nebulizer and abuteral on hand in case of extreme emergencies, but still she goes on about how much money they've saved by not getting all the Rx's. WTH?

And she'll save even more money if he, you know, dies from an asthma attack. This woman is an idiot.

[Luna]

Had to de-lurk to respond to this thread. Hi!

I work as an asthma educator for a large Children's Hospital. It's parents like this that drive me up the wall! They think that they know better than the professionals how to treat their child's asthma. Yes, I know you know your child but unless you have studied medicine for years, you do not know better than the professionals who are trying to their best for your child! Asthma can be controlled but NOT if you don't take the medications your doctor prescribes. That poor child! Living so close to forest fires and with an idiot mother who refuses to take care of him properly! He could die! It just makes me so angry!

Rant done.

[forever ago]

What pisses me off is that one of two things will happen:

1. Her son's asthma gets worse or doesn't improve, and he has to suffer needlessly because his mother is a psycho.

or

2. Her son's asthma improves and vanishes by itself with age (which was the case with me, fortunately), in which case she will be convinced her natural 'therapy' 'cured' her son, and she'll just believe in it even more and feel even more smug and justified in her scorn for modern medicine.

Either way, it pisses me off.

Indeed, untreated asthma can cause a LOT of problems. Fortunately mine is mild enough that all I have to do is stay the hell away from smoke and aspirin (which I'm allergic to), and carry an emergency inhaler. Unfortunately, it was worse when I was a child, went away for the most part, and came back at 17. :( Seriously, people who refuse to believe in modern medicine disgust me. They're idiots and they're dangerous. I don't care if she wanted to treat her own asthma with licorice and stinging nettles, but to subject a child to lack of treatment... it's barbaric, simple as that. The worst thing about these people is that whether or not the kid fucking DIES, she'll just say 'oh, it's God's plan' and feel even more smug. There's no winning with these people...

[tinuviel]

It's just fucking sick to brag about how frugal it is to neglect your kids. You know what's even more frugal?Not having kids you can't afford.

For people who take pride in being less materialistic than their worldly counterparts, they sure do seem to make an idol of money.

[fundiefan]

These idiots are taking medical care back to the dark ages. Next thing you know they'll start leeching their kids and claiming it is a natural cure.

Modern medicine exists through thousands of years of progressive research, trial and error. All based on attempts to cure, alleviate and prevent health issues and their symptoms. It is not some made up thing pulled out thin air to hurt people.

While modern medicine does not have all the answers and sometimes more problems can be caused (side effects) and sometimes individuals just can't tolerate treatment for some reason or another, it is not an enemy to our health. Its goal is to help, not hinder. It's not perfect - nothing is. Used with alternative and natural medicine, it is a wonderful thing that has kept billions of people alive and healthy. Hell, even without alternative and natural options people have been kept alive and healthy.

I think it is arrogant and selfish to believe you know more than years of study and education. When it's your kid, who has no say in his health or treatment, you deny that kid the right to health.

[ElphabaGalinda]

I would have died of asthma if I had a mother who didn't use modern medicine. Alternative and natural medicine can be great, but sometimes, people need modern medicine. Doctors prescribe medicine to help, not to be evil. Normal parents would rather their kids live than save money. This is horrible.

[Austin]

Unfortunately, it was worse when I was a child, went away for the most part, and came back at 17. :(

It came back? That sucks!

I wonder if that's common (for it to flair up again). One of our twins had asthma as child, but is now 18 and has not had any issues for four years, went off of Singulair a long time ago, and doesn't carry an inhaler any more. Our doctor says it's not uncommon for children to "outgrow" asthma, but she never mentioned it could come back :shock:

It seems like a lot of people don't take asthma seriously, like it's just similar to hayfever or something. Uh, no, asthma can and does kill people. This woman is a disgrace as a mother.

[Jessica]

When I had my youngest son a dear friend died from asthma because her husband and in laws decided for her that she didn't need to take her rescue inhaler or be rushed to the ER until after 14 hours after the start of her asthma attack. Her husband came up to my room to tell me congrats on my new baby and that his wife/my friend died a few minutes ago. So yeat I would call it abuse. No, I'm still not over her death and the way her husband and his parents allowed her to die and then not give a fly flip about it. Her kids are the same ages as my 3 oldest sons are.

:shock: Why was this person not arrested?

[forever ago]

It came back? That sucks!

I wonder if that's common (for it to flair up again). One of our twins had asthma as child, but is now 18 and has not had any issues for four years, went off of Singulair a long time ago, and doesn't carry an inhaler any more. Our doctor says it's not uncommon for children to "outgrow" asthma, but she never mentioned it could come back :shock:

It seems like a lot of people don't take asthma seriously, like it's just similar to hayfever or something. Uh, no, asthma can and does kill people. This woman is a disgrace as a mother.

Asthma doesn't ever really 'go away'. It goes into 'remission' and can come back at any time, much like cancer. A lot of people, however, never have problems with their asthma again, while for others it'll flare up around 18-21 and during other hormonal flare-ups.

My asthma is quite mild and I'm fortunate enough to have grown up in a rural town (albeit one I absolutely loathe) without a lot of pollutants. I had a few very mild flare-ups when I got to high school, but when I was 17 some girls at Governor's School decided to spray a metric fuckton of bug spray indoors... on the third floor... where my dorm was. :( First real asthma attack in years. On top of that, I was in a fairly large city for six weeks. Ever since then I've had about as much trouble with asthma as I did as a child, then again it wasn't long after Governor's School that I went to college in another fairly large city.

[slickcat79]

Indeed, untreated asthma can cause a LOT of problems. Fortunately mine is mild enough that all I have to do is stay the hell away from smoke and aspirin (which I'm allergic to), and carry an emergency inhaler. Unfortunately, it was worse when I was a child, went away for the most part, and came back at 17. :( Seriously, people who refuse to believe in modern medicine disgust me. They're idiots and they're dangerous. I don't care if she wanted to treat her own asthma with licorice and stinging nettles, but to subject a child to lack of treatment... it's barbaric, simple as that. The worst thing about these people is that whether or not the kid fucking DIES, she'll just say 'oh, it's God's plan' and feel even more smug. There's no winning with these people...

I had the same issues. I started having asthma symptoms when I was 11-12, took a few different meds for a couple of years to control it, then it more or less went away when I was 14-15. A couple of years ago I got really bad spring allergies and the asthma came back (I was 23-24). So angry. Even with insurance the medicine is almost $170 per refill. My symptoms are not that bad, so I can stretch out how often I take it even if that is not exactly as prescribed. I have the "luxury" of that because I am an adult and responsible for my own health and safety; I can monitor and respond to my symptoms and have the medicine on hand when I need it. That mother has no right to put her child through that when he has no way of taking care of the problem himself.

Natural remedies are fine to work with, but if they are not working, try something else! It seems like a lot of people start using natural/herbal medicines because they are not happy with how the traditional meds work, so why can't it work the other way? Start treatments in the way you feel comfortable, but if it's not working, move on :roll:

[YPestis]

Asthma is not to be trifled with. It can, and does KILL. I think this lady is playing with her kid's life. Yes, asthma can go into remission and then flare up again. I guess her kid is in remission and may well not see another asthma attack for a long while. However, it can flare up again when he's sick, when his body is under stress, or for unknown reasons. I just hope the kid will have access to an inhaler for emergencies. There's no substitute for modern medicine during emergencies.

[forever ago]

Asthma is not to be trifled with. It can, and does KILL. I think this lady is playing with her kid's life. Yes, asthma can go into remission and then flare up again. I guess her kid is in remission and may well not see another asthma attack for a long while. However, it can flare up again when he's sick, when his body is under stress, or for unknown reasons. I just hope the kid will have access to an inhaler for emergencies. There's no substitute for modern medicine during emergencies.

He could be in remission, but it will likely flare up again when he's older, into his late teens/early 20s. It's not uncommon for that to happen. Not to mention if there are more wildfires, stifling heat/humidity, pollen, etc....

That kid needs legitimate medical attention, not a bunch of nettles and licorice. Maybe they do help him most of the time but any number of things cause asthma attacks regardless. Get that kid a fucking inhaler. Stat.

Because buying a bunch of fucking nettles time and time again is so much more 'frugal' than an emergency inhaler...

[fundiefan]

I had the same issues. I started having asthma symptoms when I was 11-12, took a few different meds for a couple of years to control it, then it more or less went away when I was 14-15. A couple of years ago I got really bad spring allergies and the asthma came back (I was 23-24). So angry. Even with insurance the medicine is almost $170 per refill. My symptoms are not that bad, so I can stretch out how often I take it even if that is not exactly as prescribed. I have the "luxury" of that because I am an adult and responsible for my own health and safety; I can monitor and respond to my symptoms and have the medicine on hand when I need it. That mother has no right to put her child through that when he has no way of taking care of the problem himself.

Natural remedies are fine to work with, but if they are not working, try something else! It seems like a lot of people start using natural/herbal medicines because they are not happy with how the traditional meds work, so why can't it work the other way? Start treatments in the way you feel comfortable, but if it's not working, move on :roll:

I have a friend who is a natural remedy, natural food fanatic. I have no idea what she eats because everything on the planet is cancer waiting to happen.

When my back went out last summer, she inundated me with chiropractic information and suggestions for natural healing. The muscle relaxers, anti-inflammatories and pain killers I was taking to cope were all bad for me and did nothing and I was causing more damage and, I can't even remember all the evils she said I was causing and doing to myself. Never mind she doesn't know the cause or history of my back issues. Never mind that after years of back issues I choose to treat the pain so I can function; that I've made my choices based on my experiences. She claimed she 'cured' her back issues with a chiropractor and herbs and vitamins and I was being foolish to fall for big pharma. Not long after that, her back 'went out' and she was laid up for over a month. (When mine acts up, meds allow me to not be laid up at all). She then praised natural healing because that and 'only' 7 visits to the chiropractor cured her and isn't it awesome that she didn't have to go to a medical doctor! Just a month ago, she ended up having back surgery.

I fail to see where the 'cure' is. She had back surgery for pete's sake! Before that, her 'cured' back laid her up for a full month and she went to the chiropractor 7 times in that month!

I love her, I do. But she is so steeped in her choices that she is incapable of changing course even if it's in her best interest. She says modern medicine fails so she goes natural. Yet, when natural fails and she has freaking surgery - totally modern medical intervention - she can't see the disconnect. She can't acknowledge that she was never 'cured'.

It messes with my mind. I don't get it.

[jenny_islander]

I think it's something like this: X is bad, all the time 100 percent bad. Y is good, all the time 100 percent good. If I admit that I associate with X, I will be admitting that I myself partake of bad things and therefore am a bad person. So I will insist to my last breath that I am a 100 percent Y follower and only Y will help me. See also, "GOVERNMENT OUT OF MY MEDICARE."

My middle child had just enough breathing episodes in the right amount of time--kicked off by a terrifying visit to the ER--to qualify as technically asthmatic. So we got an inhaler and a nebulizer. We also began to experiment with natural methods for easing her breathing. BUT WE PROMPTLY AND THOROUGHLY RESPONDED TO ALL EPISODES WITH ACTUAL MEDICINE.

We have discovered that a bowl of steaming water by her bed will head off the first signs of difficulty 99 percent of the time: retractions smooth out, breathing slows and deepens. (Except for two ER visits when she was already ill with something else, the episodes have all happened at night.) The other 1 percent get medicated. We are also doing an elimination diet in case something is inflaming her mucous membranes. The breathing issues have completely disappeared since we began the diet, but we haven't challenged with all of the suspect foods yet, so we can't be sure which one it is. And in the meantime, we keep her medication close at hand.

If we can defeat her problem without forcing her to depend on medication, that's the best solution. Medication is expensive, it can have unpleasant side effects, and it may create physical dependency. But if medication is what it takes to improve her overall quality of life, bring on Big Pharma.

Black and white thinking. Always with the black and white thinking.

[Jessica]

Medication is expensive, it can have unpleasant side effects, and it may create physical dependency. But if medication is what it takes to improve her overall quality of life, bring on Big Pharma.

Exactly. I'd rather wipe out all my gut flora for a day or so with antibiotics and build it up again with probiotics than deal with tonsilitis or the flu for 2 weeks straight...

[higgledypiggledy]

This makes me angry. A friend of mine was left an orphan because her mother died from asthma. Her mom was on one side of the football field at elementary game day and her inhaler was at the other. By the time people realized what was happening and starting running for the inhaler and found it, she was gone. My friend was left to grow up in the foster care system. Yeah, just have some nettles and licorice. Someone is going to read this and make stupid choices that could affect the survival of their family.