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Coping and support
By Mayo Clinic staffIt can be stressful to help your child manage his or her asthma. Keep these tips in mind to make life as normal as possible:
- Use a written asthma action plan. Work with your child's doctor to develop your child's action plan, and give a copy of it to all of your child's caregivers, such as child care providers, teachers, coaches, and the parents of your child's friends. Following a written plan can help you and your child identify symptoms early, providing important information on how to treat your child's asthma from day to day and how to deal with an asthma attack.
- Be encouraging. Focus attention on the things your child can do, not on the things he or she can't. Involve teachers, school nurses, coaches, relatives and friends in helping your child manage asthma. Encourage normal play and activity. Don't limit your child's activities out of fear of an asthma attack — work with your child's doctor to control exercise-induced symptoms.
- Be calm and in control when facing asthma symptoms. Don't get rattled if you see asthma symptoms getting worse. Focus on your child's asthma action plan and involve your child in each step so that he or she understands what's happening.
- Talk to other parents of children with asthma. Chat rooms and message boards on the Internet or a local support group can connect you with parents facing similar challenges and let you know that you and your child are not alone in dealing with asthma.
- Help your child connect with others who have asthma. Send your child to "asthma camp" or find other organized activities for children with asthma. This can help your child feel less isolated and help him or her gain a better understanding of asthma and its treatment.
References
- Robinson PD, et al. Asthma in childhood. Pediatric Clinics of North America. 2009;56:191.
- Liu AH. Childhood Asthma. In: Kliegman RM, et al. Nelson Textbook of Pediatrics. 18th ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Saunders; 2007. http://www.mdconsult.com/das/book/body/10te0024376-12/727446153/1608/440.html#4-u1.0-B978-1-4160-2450-7..50145-6--cesec11_3422. Accessed July 18, 2010.
- Stewart LJ. Pediatric asthma. Primary Care Clinics in Office Practice. 2008;35:25.
- Expert panel report 3 (EPR-3): Guidelines for the diagnosis and management of asthma. Bethesda, Md.: National Institutes of Health. http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/guidelines/asthma/06_sec3_comp3.pdf. Accessed July 13, 2010.
- Updated information on leukotriene inhibitors: Montelukast (marketed as Singulair), zafirlukast (marketed as Accolate), and zileuton (marketed as Zyflo and Zyflo CR). U.S. Food and Drug Administration. http://www.fda.gov/Drugs/DrugSafety/PostmarketDrugSafetyInformationforPatientsandProviders/DrugSafetyInformationforHeathcareProfessionals/ucm165489.htm. Accessed July 13, 2010.
- FDA drug safety communication: New safety requirements for long-acting inhaled asthma medications called long-acting beta-agonists (LABAs). U.S. Food and Drug Administration. http://www.fda.gov/Drugs/DrugSafety/PostmarketDrugSafetyInformationforPatientsandProviders/ucm200776.htm. Accessed March 8, 2010.
- Bukutu C, et al. Asthma: A review of complementary and alternative therapies. Pediatrics in Review. 2008;29:e44.
- Mark JD. Integrative medicine and asthma. Pediatric Clinics of North America. 2007;54:1007.
- Lands LC. Nutrition in pediatric lung disease. Paediatric Respiratory Reviews. 2007;8:305.
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