Side Effects of Meds?

[teko]

I am supposed to take advair 250/50 twice a day.  I have not been taking it because it is so expensive. I took it the last couple of days because I was having a hard time with fatigue.  I took it and man I felt great!  Now I got thrush again! Every time I use that stuff I get thrush even tho I rinse my mouth with saltwater!  I also noticed it makes me cough!  Anyone else have these problems?

[allmymarbles]

What I also forgot to mention is that I grew hair on my face and lost hair on my head. Being a woman that is not funny. Now that I am off that garbage, the hair on my face is lpretty well gone and I think (I hope) my head hair is getting fuller.

[teko]

Thank you both for responding to me. Actually Advair too is a steroid and that is bothersome to me for some reason.  I have not used anymore. I will call the doc and make him give me something different. No sense taking it if it is going to do that stuff right out of the gate so to speak!

[allmymarbles]

I was taking that dosage. As time went by I developed very serious adrenal fatigue, sometimes so bad that I couldn't walk. Cortisol levels were very high.  I was treated for it with only moderate success. But there was a more serious side effect that I was not aware of. For the last two years my lung health was declining seriously and I honestly did not think I would make it through the coming winter. I assumed that the COPD was progressing at an alarming rate. I developed unrelenting bronchitis and would have coughing fits as a regular thing and, most recently, choking. I weaned myself off Advair, having tried everything else. I am now years younger. Bronchitis is minimal and the coghing fits and coking are a thing of the past.

My COPD is now diagnosed as moderate and I expect to live a good long time.My pulmonologist never spotted the trouble. I had to discover it myself which I resent bitterly. There are deaths reported with the use of Advair, the prime culprit may be salmeterol. It is interesting that the death rate with or without Advair is the same. Be warned. This is a very dangerous medication.

Since I need something to help me because I am having to use the nebulizer more than I would like, I have turned to natural anti-inflammatories. So far I am using vitamin B5, MSM and mullein extract, and will probably add NAC. I am doing alright, no thanks to traditional medicine.

[rosco888]

I was using something called Combivent which made me cough every time I sprayed.  My pulmonologist asked if I were using a "spacer" attached to the inhaler.  Of course, neither she nor the pharmacy had offered one to me.  Instead, I switched to QVAR which is much more effective and lasts longer than 4 or 6 hours.  The down side is that QVAR is a steroid; however, I have yet to notice any negative side effects after about 3 years of use.