It sounds like a promotional video or an after-school special, but it's true. After a conversation with a colleague today, discussing asthma and her daughters troubles, I was reminded of my childhood, and how absolutely terrible it is to be a kid with asthma. A few years ago one of the many clinic doctors I was rotating between (I had just moved to Toronto, and didn't have a doctor at that point) suggested I try Advair, instead of my trusty sidekick, the Blue Puffer (Ventolin, Salbutemol, Novo-Salmol, etc)It took some getting used to, as Advair is a Diskus-type delivery system that crushes a pellet into an inhalable powder, but once I got the hang of it (and trust me, those stickers that say "Wash your mouth after use" are totally valid in this case) I was off to the races. I started playing squash. I attempted running (though quit when I discovered it sucks even if you CAN breathe) and not I do things like workout, or even go up a flight of stairs without wheezing...
Anyway, just wanted to give a shout-out to my new trusty sidekick. I literally take this drug once a day in the AM, and I'm fine all day. I used to be a twice daily with the orange (corticosteroid) and then lots of the blue whenever I needed 'rescuing' but now I don't even carry the blue rescue around. It's that good.
Finally an advance in medical science that actually affects me, and it's for the better. If you are on the old stuff, (blue and/or beige/orange) check out the purple Advair. I have a plan, but I expect it's not cheap, but trust me it's worth it. Plus, every 60 days, I get a cool purple diskus that I can make into stuff like this person...