technique

Triggers – Asthma and COPD

Posted on by Michelle Fritsch, Pharm.D.

inhaler imageThere are so many things that can bring on an asthma attack making it hard to breath. Some examples are:

  • Perfume
  • Smoke
  • Dust
  • Weeds
  • Pollen
  • Foods
  • Pets
  • Exercise
  • Cool, damp air

People with asthma can go from feeling fine to struggling for breath in just a few minutes.

The same thing can happen to some people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (emphysema or chronic bronchitis). Not all people with COPD have an asthma-like component, but some do.

There are medications that can help PREVENT these sudden attacks.   There are also medications that can reopen the airways to TREAT these attacks.

The medications used most often are given by inhalers. This allows the medication to go to the lungs where it is needed without having such a big impact on the rest of the body. This cuts down on side effects.

If you are prescribed inhalers, it is important to take them regularly and as prescribed, especially the ones taken one to times per day.   They are intended to PREVENT these attacks. They will not be helpful if only taken once in awhile during attacks. They need to be taken every single day.

The ones you take as needed should be taken with careful technique. They won’t work if they aren’t used properly. This is harder than it sounds. Be sure your doctor or your pharmacist has shown you step by step how to use your inhalers. Then, show them how you use them to be sure your technique is correct.

One more thing, be sure to always rinse out your mouth and spit out the water after using a steroid inhaler. These inhalers are very effective at preventing attacks, but they can also make it easy to get an infection in your mouth that is painful. Rinsing your mouth after EACH use cuts way down on the risk of this mouth infection.

Inhalers save lives. But they must be taken at the right times and with the right technique.

For more information, contact us at www.medsmash.com.

BIBLICAL APPLICATION

Not only are there triggers for asthma attacks, we often have triggers that get us off track on our day and in our spiritual walk. These can be things that distract us, things that confuse us, and often things that make us angry.

What are those topics that you feel so strongly about you just have to chime in to conversations about them? Maybe you can ignore some things and let them slide on by. But, what are the things that you just have to participate in the discussion?

What are the things that make you really angry? What are your hot button triggers that send you into a rage?

We all have them. It’s the way we are ‘wired’. Just as there are medications that can prevent the sudden reaction to asthma triggers, there are steps we can take to reduce our reaction to our life triggers.

First, throughout the Bible we are reminded that anger should be contained.

Ephesians 4:26-27

Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and give no opportunity to the devil.

James 1:19-20 ESV

Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger; for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God.

Proverbs 29:11 ESV

A fool gives full vent to his spirit, but a wise man quietly holds it back.

Proverbs 19:11 ESV

Good sense makes one slow to anger, and it is his glory to overlook an offense.

Proverbs 15:1 ESV

A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.

Proverbs 15:18 ESV

A hot-tempered man stirs up strife, but he who is slow to anger quiets contention.

There are at least 60 verses in the Bible dealing with anger management. James sums up the instruction well:

James 4:1-2 NIV

What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you?  You want something but don’t get it. You kill and covet, but you cannot have what you want. You quarrel and fight. You do not have, because you do not ask God.

Take time to consider and identify your triggers. Again, we all have them. Then, take them to God to help you avoid them or handle them with grace rather than anger.

Blessings,

Michelle

Image credit: National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute; National Institutes of Health; U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

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Getting Better – It Takes More than a Prescription

Posted on by Michelle Fritsch, Pharm.D.

ID-10093880Do you have a health issue? If so, you just need a prescription, and you’ll be all better, right?

Huey Lewis sang that he ‘wanted a new drug’. His proposed ‘new drug’ had no side effects and made him feel like he felt when falling in love.

Does that describe the prescriptions that you take?

Unfortunately it’s just not that easy.

All medications have side effects. Many medications have very specific instructions to use them in a way that leads to the best possible outcome.

But, we are all busy. Who has time for those pesky details? Does it REALLY matter if you take it with food or first thing in the morning when you brush your teeth? If you take two when you remember them vs one in the morning and one at night, that’s ok, right? Do you really have to breathe in some special way when you use an inhaler? You just squirt it in, right?

To get the most benefit from your medications – and – to minimize your side effects, these details are very important. Let’s explore some of the types of important details.

Timing – If your medication is to be taken more than one time per day that means it doesn’t last a full 24 hours. To keep the medication active in your body, you need to take it more than once. If you take it too close together, you will get more than a full dose while the two doses overlap. This can increase your side effects or even be dangerous because you have too much medication. If you miss a dose, you will have time with little or no medication in your system to treat your condition.

Food – Some medications will bind to medication in the stomach and not be absorbed. So, you will get no medication in your body if you take it with food. Other medications will make you sick to your stomach if you don’t take them with food. Food will decrease or prevent that side effect of feeling nauseous.

Finishing early – Some conditions require that the whole bottle/set of medications be taken. Often we think once we feel better we’ll just stop taking the medication. Sometimes we even keep the extra in case we need them another time. Some medications, like antibiotics, need to be taken until all are gone. You start feeling better when the bacteria is made weak, but it is not gone yet. If you stop the antibiotic when you feel better, the bacteria can get strong again. Often that same antibiotic won’t weaken the bacteria the next time, so you will need to be on an even stronger antibiotic.

Finishing too quickly – Other medications need to be gradually taken away rather than stopped all at once. Your body can’t take back over all at once if you have been taking these medications. Examples are beta blockers for high blood pressure and prednisone for inflammatory reactions. The gradual taper of these medications is essential to avoid severe side effects. (Note, this DOES NOT mean you are addicted.)

Technique – Inhalers, eye drops, ear drops, injections, patches, suppositories, and other medication forms can be difficult to use correctly. If you don’t use them just right, you won’t get the full benefit of the medication. This is a waste of money, and more importantly, won’t help you feel better. For some of these medications, correct use can even be the difference between getting better and calling 911.

So, I highly encourage you to pay attention to these details about your medications. If you see instructions you don’t understand or know their purpose, ask your pharmacist. Pharmacists are there to explain, demonstrate, and help you get the most from your medications.

For more information, contact us at www.medsmash.com

BIBLICAL APPLICATION

What are the quick fixes to Heaven? What is the way to assure entry then get on with the busy-ness of life?

First, God’s every desire for you to live eternally in Heaven is clear in the Bible. The basics of the path to God are below.

John 3:16 ESV

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

John 14:6 ESV

Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

Ephesians 2:8-9 ESV

For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.

Once you have had the amazing experience of finding God, and you have welcomed Him in to your life, what next?

Do you then work hard to earn God’s love? No, God loves you no matter what. His grace covers anything you do or do not do.

Do you then go on about your business now that this task is done?

Timing – Filling your life with God is an all-of-the-time, every day, all times of day opportunity. I don’t think any of us take advantage of this fully. Not a single one of us is perfect. But, God’s grace is always there for you!

Food – The Bible, the word of God, is your nourishment. This is not a one-time read that then goes on the shelf. Each time you read it, you will learn new things. God has so much to share with you!

Finishing early – It can be tempting to make this life-altering, life-filling decision to dedicate yourself to God. It can then be easy to move on to other things. God wants to be in close contact with you all of the time, good times and bad, busy times and leisure. I highly encourage you to experience this close daily walk with your God!

Jesus states there are two main rules for life for us.

Mark 12:30-31 ESV

And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’  The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”

This prescription to walk with God is a daily, sometimes even minute-to-minute, dose that is always available. And the side effects are wonderful!

Blessings,

Michelle

Image courtesy of rakratchada torsap at FreeDigitalPhotos.net