Cats + pregnancy + asthma - HELP!

iVillage Member
Registered: 12-07-2003
Cats + pregnancy + asthma - HELP!
5
Fri, 01-14-2005 - 9:41pm

Hi everyone - I'm new to this board. I usually post on the May Expecting Club board, but I was hoping maybe someone here might have some suggestions for me. Here is my post:

I am at my wit's end here and hoping maybe you brilliant gals have some insight! I am so frustrated right now because this pregnancy seems to have worsened my asthma and I'm tired of not being able to breathe. I had horrible asthma as a child and was deathly allergic to cats. I seemed to outgrow most of that, and as an adult I would only have flare ups every few years when I got a bad viral infection. DH adopted a cat about six years ago, and we took in another cat about three years ago. They are inside/outside cats and have not given me any trouble before. We also have two dogs (I know, it's like a friggin petting zoo at our house!) Well, the last few weeks my asthma has gotten really bad. I am on prednisone and albuterol, though my doctor wants me to use my albuterol sparingly. I'm on day three of prednisone, and in the past I have always felt 100% better by this point. Well, right now it doesn't seem to be doing anything and I am having to use my albuterol daily! I can tell that I am having a bad reaction to dust, because when I cleaned off the bookshelves in the baby's room and dusted I had a bad attack. Well, altough I dust pretty religiously, I suddenly feel like there's dust and animal dander EVERYWHERE and I can't breathe! Of course whenever I try to get rid of it by dusting or vacuuming I feel even worse. DH is so overworked right now I can't really ask him to dust and vacuum the house every day. I just don't know what to do! I wish I could get rid of just the cats until after the baby is born, to see if it helps - but that's not really feasible. It's not like there are people out there who want loaner cats for five months! I can't possibly get rid of them, especially not DH's cat. On the other hand it worries me that I might be hurting the baby with my asthma attacks and albuterol use - not to mention how frustrating it is to walk accross the room and start wheezing like an old lady. Everytime I turn around there's animal hair on my pillow or a layer of dust on the dresser! I'm actually sitting here bawling because I'm so frustrated. What am I supposed to do???

Thanks for listening. If anyone has ANY suggestion I am MORE than open to them!!

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iVillage Member
Registered: 03-19-2003
Sat, 01-15-2005 - 7:54am

*WELCOME* to the board Veraschick!

Cat =^..^=
iVillage Member
Registered: 12-07-2003
Sat, 01-15-2005 - 1:23pm

Thank you! I feel a lot better this morning - it's crazy how I sometimes can't seem to handle life anymore :)

I did seal off my bedroom last night - washed the sheets and all, had DH dust and vacuum, and locked the animals out. I felt WAY better, so I think you're right about keeping that way at least until the baby is born. I've read that bathing animals - including cats - weekly can help. Do you know anything about this? We bathe our dogs about every other week, but we usually don't bathe our cats unless they get into something and really need it (it's NOT a fun chore!) I would be worried about drying out their skin, but maybe if I use a really mild kitten shampoo? Just wondering if anyone knows about this bathing thing.

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iVillage Member
Registered: 03-19-2003
Sat, 01-15-2005 - 4:03pm
That will help if they let you do it.
Cat =^..^=
Avatar for spejf
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-30-2003
Sat, 01-15-2005 - 4:04pm

Hi and congratulations on your baby!


I am so glad that you feel better after having kept kitties out of the bedroom...that can really make everything so much better!

Avatar for cl_lcni
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-19-2003
Sat, 01-15-2005 - 4:55pm

Hi Versachick.


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