Are there any Asthmatics on the board who claim IB or DLA?

alm71

I was ventilated on two occasions in intensive care due to my asthma in 1999. I successfully claimed DLA and IB between 1999 and 2005. It is worth putting in a claim. Good luck.

katholicos

SuziQ wrote: »

Katholicos,with Asthma as bad as that you deffinitely should be seeing a specialist at a hospital. It could well be that your condition would be helped massively by the new treatments for Asthma and your GP is doing you a disservice by not referring you. I believe your best course of action is firstly to persue proper treatment and monitoring rather than benefits,your quality of daily life would be so much better.
There has to be a GP you can change to-find out from your Primary health care trust which GP's locally are taking on patients. Alternatively go back to your GP. If there is a practice nurse she may be a better bet to get you sorted. If not,practice manager,if he is too small a practice for that (which seems unlikely if he is the only GP in the area!) then you need to go back and do some firm talking to him-ie my daily quality of life is rubbish I am too ill to work and I want to see an Asthma specialist so that I can get on with my life. If he refuses,tell him you are going to take the matter up with PALS (the patient liasion service.) If he does agree the refreall,ask him when he is likely to have it ready,and can he fax it or you would prefer to collect and deliver it. Then find the name of who he has referred to and make friends with his secretary-phone her up,ask her how quickly you are likely to be seen,be very pleasant and ask her to put you down for any cancellations she gets.

This worked for me getting my ex seen very quickly for what turned out to be a gall bladder problem.

Please do not post back why you can't do the above-in this situation only you can effect change.

ETS Also do you have a child still at school,and do you get child tax credits? You seem to be suggesting that without IS you will be getting no benefits at all,which means you are missing out.

Chronic headaches-if they have been investigated and everything else ruled out-are often due to a rebound effect from constantly using pain medication.

You really need a very good GP,the difference to you could be lifechanging and to just accept mediocre care is bad for you and your children.

Suzi,
I have seen specialists about my asthma. I am currently taking four asthma medications on a daily basis and to get to this level of management has taken a long time and for the last 12 months my asthma has been deteriating still further. In case there was any misunderstanding I reitterate that this is not about persuing benefits first and my health being a secondary matter.

I have been on long term pain meds for chronic headaches for years, I am aware of analgesic headaches, but have suffered with headaches and migraines for many years before seeking help/being prescribed pain meds. The daily headaches are more under control since i take meds for them but they happen no more or less than they did before, the pain of them is however, significantly diminshed by the meds, which ultimately means that the pain meds are treating the pain.

I am not currently working and have just lost a small job i had for 3 years, earning £20 pr week to top up my benefits. My daughters father died when she was a baby and i left my son's father 9 years ago (he does not work and gives us no financial support). After I got ill and became debilitated by the daily headaches and asthma i decided against applying for disability and instead, stayed on income support (so no tax credits).

So with things as they are I found this board and thought i'd ask for help.

You are quite right that i need to return to the doctor, i am not well controlled with my athma of late, a lot of that is stress related, but i am noticing significant differences in the extent of my breathing problems.

My Dad has 40 percent lung capacity and lung problems are prevalent in our family, i just wasn't expecting mine to start when i was 30/31 (ten years ago). I used to work as a professional portrait photographer, now i'm scratching out a life for me and my kids and am confused about the new changes that will be coming into place with the new benefits system and don't know what to do.

I can't walk up the stairs or up the incline on the street without clutching my chest and panting like a dog even when i've have my inhalers, so i'm definately going to see the asthma nurse/a doctor about where we go from here. The specialist put me on meds he thought would be able to keep my asthma consistant for a good few years, but within a year or two they had to be changed and doses increased, the same happend a couple of years after that and then again.

Now it looks like we're at that place again, but this also coincides with the benefit changes, so any help in assisting me to figure this all out is appreciated.

Thanks for taking the time to respond. Much appreciated.

katholicos

kianicky wrote: »

i applyed for DLA earlier this year as i suffer from severe asthma and have done for 22 years. they turned me down

I'm sorry you were turned down for DLA :-(

katholicos

alm71 wrote: »

I was ventilated on two occasions in intensive care due to my asthma in 1999. I successfully claimed DLA and IB between 1999 and 2005. It is worth putting in a claim. Good luck.

I'm sorry you were ventilated. I have had a couple of close calls but so far have managed to stay out of the Emergency Department with my asthma. Some nights though, I lie in bed and it is so bad that i pray to God my kids won't find me dead in my bed in the morning. It might sound melodramatic but i think my fellow asthmatics will know exactly where i'm coming from.

I'm pleased you were successful in your claims for DLA and IB.

bestpud

katholicos wrote: »

I'm sorry you were ventilated. I have had a couple of close calls but so far have managed to stay out of the Emergency Department with my asthma. Some nights though, I lie in bed and it is so bad that i pray to God my kids won't find me dead in my bed in the morning. It might sound melodramatic but i think my fellow asthmatics will know exactly where i'm coming from.

I'm pleased you were successful in your claims for DLA and IB.

A woman I went to college with has recently died of an asthma attack (I'm still reeling from the shock tbh) so I don't think you are being at all melodramatic! She was 31 and left three young children and actually died at work - she had recently trained to be a teacher.

She always played it down, as many asthmatics seem to do, but it is a serious disability and you should definitely apply for DLA if your life is affected by it. Don't be persuaded to accept less than adequate health care either!

Perhaps that is the 'wrong' thing to say on this thread. I hope you get the treatment and financial help you need. Don't take no for an answer is what I'd say.

ALIBOBSY

Sadly around 800 people a year die from asthma or asthma related problems.

Despite being a severe and ongoing health problem, the government still insist asthmatics don't need free prescriptions (although thats another issue).
I have been asthmatic since childhood and also get hayfever, excema and several allergies (of different degrees- but luckily non requireing an epi pen).

I would urge anyone with asthma who is suffering on a daily basis to see their GP urgently,asthma uk state with modern medicines and new drugs coming out all the time no asthmatic should suffer in silence.

After years on higher and higher levels of the standard ventolin and various steroids I complained to my GP. They referred me to an asthma clinic where they suggested I try one of the newer drugs. It was explained to me as instead of an instant "reliever" like ventolin it is a 12 hour reliever and a different type of long term dilator "like the steroids you used to take".
Can list the actual drugs if anyone wants but it may not be the best treatment for everyone, but the point is there are better treatments out there.
They are strong though, remember the first time you took ventolin and the shakes? Even more of that at first, and a bit "buzzy" if you know what I mean for the first few weeks.

This has changed my life, really.
I still have a ventolin just in case, but go weeks if not months without using it. One suck morning one at night and all done. For the first time in years able to breath right in all the way without even that little wheeze at the bottom.
Didn't even need an inhaler during my most recent childbirth. Amazing.:D

ali x

ALIBOBSY

btw know what you mean about lying in bed at night struggling for breath. How scary is it when you take a puff of ventolin and nothing happens, been there.
Hubby reckons he used to dream of zombies and ghosts and night cos of all the rattling and wheezing going on lol. Seriously tho my life has changed I sometimes go days without thinking about my asthma, I have been set free (well free ish).
Good luck
ali x

kerryallc71

thankyou for your support & help ..

ive never spoke to remploy before , never heard of them untill you said .

ive just had a look at there website though ..

see u from kerry ...

kerryallc71

to alibobsy ..

what medication are you on .. im on seritide - combination of ventolin & steroid .. i take 2 in the morning and 2 before bed .. i still take my ventolin as well ..

see u from kerry ..

katholicos

bestpud wrote: »

A woman I went to college with has recently died of an asthma attack (I'm still reeling from the shock tbh) so I don't think you are being at all melodramatic! She was 31 and left three young children and actually died at work - she had recently trained to be a teacher.

She always played it down, as many asthmatics seem to do, but it is a serious disability and you should definitely apply for DLA if your life is affected by it. Don't be persuaded to accept less than adequate health care either!

Perhaps that is the 'wrong' thing to say on this thread. I hope you get the treatment and financial help you need. Don't take no for an answer is what I'd say.

I'm so sorry for the loss of your freind. :-(

I think you are absolutely correct in saying that asthmatics tend to play down their asthma, sadly many non asthmatics tend to play down the seriousness of the asthmatics illness too :-(

Thanks so much for your contribution to this thread.