I started my technical writing business four years ago. In that time, I have been given more than my share of advice on everything from accounting to writing. While some advice has been incredibly valuable, the majority has proven to be ridiculous, superfluous and especially useless. My husband's advice (or one of his many tips) was to "filter, filter, filter," no exceptions, not even advice from him. Ironic, don't you think?
When your comparing asthma stories with other asthmatics, talking with the school nurse, reading books on asthma or even reading my articles, the same rule applies: Filter, filter, filter.
What do I mean?
People love to offer helpful advice, even if they know nothing of your situation. Somehow, the minute someone learns where you are going on vacation, they are suddenly the world's greatest travel agents despite the fact that they have never left their hometown. "Well, so-and-so was there..." and so on. Or, "I was there 30 years ago, and..." Sound familiar? And for those parents out there, remember when you were expecting? Friends, family and complete strangers felt compelled to share horror stories about the delivery room or the adoption agency.
As for medical advice, well it is everywhere and suddenly everyone is an expert with all kinds of miracle cures and home remedies. Believe it or not, the medical profession is not immune and sometimes inadvertently perpetuates misinformation, especially when it comes to asthma. We had a school nurse who insisted that Matt sip water during an asthma attack instead of take is Ventolin. It took a note from his physician to put that practice to an end.
Here's another example that perhaps some of you can relate to: It took months to get Matt diagnosed because the doctor was convinced it was bronchitis, not asthma. My friend's son has asthma, she knows it, I know it, but the doctor calls it respiratory distress syndrome, or some bizarre thing. (Hey, the kids got asthma. Let's give it the right diagnosis so we can treat it properly!)
Anyway, the point is that any information you take in, whether from well-meaning friends, articles on the World Wide Web or from your doctor, needs to be filtered. That's not to say you should start arguing with or ignoring your doctor. Far from it. Rather, try to be a working partner with you doctor to find the right treatment plan.
Here are some guidelines to help you in the filtering process: (Oh, filter these, too!)
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