Before I started working on the A Life in A Day asthma experience, I, like so many others, held a very simplistic view of asthma.
To me, it was the classic childhood condition. I pictured a school kid wheezing a little after running around, taking a quick puff of their inhaler, and then bouncing right back.
I thought asthma was inconvenient but manageable. Not life-changing, not terrifying and definitely not life-threatening.
I couldn’t have been more wrong.
As with all A Life in A Day experiences, our goal is to create something meaningful, something that would reflect the realities of people living with asthma. But to do that, I had to listen. I had to hear real stories from real patients. And that’s where everything changed for me.
There was one conversation that will stay with me forever. A woman told me how she collapsed in the hallway of her home, gasping for air, while her 12-year-old son was on the phone with emergency services, his voice shaking as he begged them to come quickly.
She said she could see the panic in his eyes while she struggled for every breath, and all she could think was: Please don’t let my child watch me die.
This is more than just a harrowing story. It highlights a crucial point: asthma is far more than intermittent symptoms. It’s a life lived in constant negotiation with invisible risks. It’s trying to fall asleep while wondering if you’ll wake up gasping. It’s being afraid to go for a walk on a cold morning or take a deep breath when the air smells like smoke. It’s the exhausting vigilance required to avoid the next trigger – something crucial for developing effective and preventative therapies.
And what stunned me most? How many different things can trigger it.
Pollen, pollution, pets, mould, cleaning products, stress, exercise, even changes in the weather; things most of us barely notice can send someone with asthma spiralling into a full-blown attack.
And once it starts, it’s not always easy, or even possible, to stop.
Asthma is also incredibly isolating because it’s an invisible condition until it isn’t.
As professionals, we need to remember that with asthma, you don’t wear a cast, you don’t have stitches, you don’t “look sick.” But you might be calculating every move you make; choosing the bus over a walk, skipping the meeting because someone just lit a scented candle, hiding in the bathroom at work while waiting for your breathing to settle. You are in a constant state of negotiation with your environment. An experience often unnoticed or unacknowledged by those around you.
It’s also not a one-size-fits-all condition. Asthma varies wildly from person to person, from day to day, even hour to hour.
Some people live relatively symptom-free with minimal treatment. Others end up in the ICU multiple times a year. Some outgrow it; some develop it as adults. And yet the public still treats it as this minor childhood nuisance.
I discovered that lack of understanding has real consequences. It leaves people feeling alone, misunderstood, and scared.
Creating the A Life in A Day asthma experience opened my eyes and my heart to a truth I can’t unsee now: Asthma is serious. It’s complex.
So, on this World Asthma Day 2025, I’m thinking of the people who have shared their stories with me, those living with asthma, and those who care for them – You’ve changed the way I see the world. You’ve made me more thoughtful about the air we breathe, the assumptions we make, and the invisible battles so many people are quietly fighting every single day.
I also urge pharma professionals, on this day and all others, to consider the holistic impact of asthma, beyond the physical symptoms. It has already proven eye-opening not just for me, but for hundreds of participants who have taken part in our asthma experience, helping us all to understand the patient experience and drive better outcomes.
