Although you may sometimes feel like dealing with severe asthma creates a barrier between you and your family, friends or colleagues, it’s important to know that you never have to feel alone. Talk to your healthcare provider about creating a personalized plan.
A good asthma management plan can help you achieve success in managing your symptoms and help you establish positive habits that last a lifetime.
As you know, it is important to take your prescribed medication to stay ahead of your asthma, even on days when you are feeling good. Your asthma plan will help you cover the different ways you can optimize your asthma care and improve your success.
The best asthma management plan is tailored specifically to you. Whether it is a checklist or a worksheet, your Personalized Asthma Action Plan should be action-oriented and include things like:
- Your individual asthma triggers
- A daily journal to track your progress
- Emergency contact numbers of family, friends, and healthcare providers
- A personal “green/yellow/red” system to help you identify and track your symptoms
The more involved you are in creating your asthma plan, the more likely you are to stay on track.
Having an asthma plan also means planning ahead. Your asthma can be unpredictable, and you might feel like avoiding things because of the possibility of a serious attack. The following 3 steps can help you prepare and move ahead with your plans:
- What do you want to do? Identify the activity/event you are thinking about skipping because of concern about an asthma attack
- Why do you want to do it? Think about why you would like to participate in this activity
- What can you do to prepare? Write down any ideas you can think of that could help you plan for unexpected asthma symptoms during your activity