Feeling like a moron! Use a spacer! (asthma)

[~clover~]

DD1 has been coughing for the past hour & a half. Dumb **** me thought she was old enough to stop using her spacer. (I knew better, don't worry! Thought I'd lost it again TBH)

Anyway, after her being quite dosed up on the ventilon over the last hour (not half the max though) I decide to use my brain & find the spacer.

Well we have a miracle... her coughing is slowing!

Why am I such a twit?? Feeling slightly guilty So just remember, even at 8 they are still better off with the spacer. I thought it'd be easier if she gets used to not using it, you know, not having to take it every where. We have the big balloon one.

I'm probably pointing out the obvious though, huh. Will be buying her the smaller one to carry around now

[Liz]

I would have thought the same thing TBH. I just looked up the different spacers. We have the small volume one with the mask on the end. I hadn't actually looked at their benefits before... but now I know! Thanks! I just figured it was coz DS was so young.

We had to use the puffer tonight too.. he had a sudden cold come on last night, and tonight I could hear 'that' cough developing. Hopefully he'll sleep ok.

Hope your DD is feeling better.

[~clover~]

She's getting there. Still coughing, probably needs another dose.

I was told that a spacer is better at any age, or I read it somewhere, but I figured she'd be old enough. But then I noticed some mist come out the top. Means she didn't get the full dose...for all 4 puffs. 3 with the spacer & it started to settle. I think another 4 now & she'll hopefully be able to sleep!

[KitFaerie]

I still use the spacer, lol. Taking the puffers ''straight'' (lol!) can cause throat irritation, especially seretide and becotide. If I've already got a cold, and my asthma's playing up then there's no way I can take puffers, cos then it turns into an incredibly painful sore throat. Spacers all the way!

[Tinks]

Don't beat yourself up. I would have done the same thing.

Yes spacers are better for everyone and better than the pump (the electric one) I was told by Dr's. You get more of the medication 'down' and in smaller particles using a spacer than using the puffer alone. I still use one when taking ventolin but use the round disk looking thing now for my preventer only because it tells me how many doses are left.

[*Beema*]

We love the Able Spacer

It is small and compact, the puffer fits nicely inside, it is generally marketed to older kids, but it was the one we got given when we were in the WCH. Before that we had this otherone that was a long round tube, can't think for the life of my what the name was but as we are still using masks the mask for the able is brilliant, but the other one was too flexible and quite crap to be honoest and the whole system was a lot bigger and not as much designed to be pulled appart all the time.

It is much trickier to time the inhalation without the spacer, I don't use one and never have, but DD wil be using one for quite some time