Rosie, I have a friend w/a very similar childhood to yours. He had terrible asthma as a child (his symptoms are still there but not as bad now), and when his grandparents would babysit him, his grandfather would yell at him to stop coughing so the family could get some sleep--as if the poor kid could help it! He says that back then, when asthma treatment was not as well understood, the main thing that helped was sleeping on his stomach--something my kid's drs. recommend during her coughing fits as well.
Lisa,
What IS it with the way these FL businesses overcool their offices? I live in NW florida now, but when I lived in the Tampa Bay area I worked in a place just like the one you're describing. There's a definite problem when it's 100+ degrees outside, I'd keep a jacket in my office, and STILL be freezing all day. It's like they're overcompensating for the heat outside.
A lot of people with allergies seem to have problems with office environments--"Sick Building Syndrome." Do you think it was the crazy temp. changes hurting your health or old ductwork/recirculated air? (Probably a combination!) My daughter's asthma was okay last winter, but she picked up more colds/viruses than she has in a LONG time. I think it's because she was in a different school than for first grade, and this one was very old. Now I've got a kindergartener in the same school (with no asthma, thankfully) who picks up strep very easily, so I'm wary of what this winter will bring.
