
When you have asthma, it's important to know how to notice asthma symptoms quickly, then deal with them. Getting control of your asthma also means tracking your symptoms over time.
Asthma symptoms are a popular topic, so a quick review should help as you learn how to manage athma effectively.
Asthma is a chronic disease involving airway inflammation. When people with asthma are exposed to asthma triggers, airway inflammation may worsen. That causes airways to narrow, mucus to increase, and breathing to be more difficult.
Early Warning Signs: This is a list of some of the earliest asthma symptoms that tell you problems with breathing may be starting:
Feeling tired
Itchy throat
Runny nose
Headache
Chest tightness
Change in the color, amount, or thickness of mucus
Symptoms of Asthma Attack: Early warning asthma symptoms are bothersome, but they become really problematic when they develop into a full-blown asthma attack. With an asthma attack, you may notice:
Wheezing
Coughing
Shortness of breath
Tightness in the chest
Life Threatening Symptoms:
When an asthma attack becomes life-threatening, the symptoms you may notice include:
Trouble focusing or talking
Trouble catching your breath
Nasal flaring, which means that your nostril size increases with each breath, a sign that you're working harder to take each breath
Cyanosis, which is the medical term for a gray or bluish tint to your skin, beginning around the mouth.