I am a 46 years old triathlete. I was diagnosed with asthma when I was in high school and had a cold and exercised. It wasn't a problem and I only used the inhaler a few times. I have been training for 1/2 ironman triathlon race and went to see an allergy doctor. I found out I am allergic to quite a few trees/bushes etc -- hayfever. While there the doctor tested my air flow a bunch of times. She said I was quite a bit lower than expected, especially for the amount of exercising I do. She gave me albuteral and symbicort (plus some hayfever meds) and asked me to use the peak flow meter. I generally have been at about 450 on the flow meter and for my size and weght (6' tall and 160 lbs) it says I should be about 650. I don't seem to see any real improvement when I use Albuteral. The Symbicort keeps me awake at night when I take the 2x spray/2x a day. The doctor mentioned I need to use Symbicort for a few weeks consistently before seeing the results.
Do I really have asthma if I don't really notice a difference using Albuteral? Should I reduce the dose of the Symbicort to 1 spray 2x a day? Are there other reasons why my peak flow would be so low? I will be calling my doctor about this tomorrow, but I would love a second opinion. Thank you.