Christmas is a humble Holiday where we spend time with our families, tell stories, teach virtues, and create memories. While the traditions of Christmas have evolved over the years, the challenge for asthmatics has not.
Back in the 19th Century kids would sit in front of a crackling fire looking up at grandpa as he spun the tale of Scrooge, or as grandma read passages from the Bible about the first Christmas, or as dad would play the violin, or as Aunt Dolly played Christmas tunes on the piano.
Those kinds of traditions have been replaced by hours sitting in front of a television waving our arms up and down and to and fro and cheering to the motions of a game on the Wii. Or perhaps the children spend time alone in the corner moving a stylus over a DSI, and occasionally getting up to use the restroom or grab one of mom's cookies.
Christmas in a sense is not the same. Trying to teach kids the true meaning of Christmas, that giving is more important than getting, that spending time with family is more important than playing frivolous games, is a challenge in today's fast paced technological world.
That same technology has made life better for us asthmatics in many ways too, as we have medicine now that was not available back in the "good ole days." Yet in a way, many things are unchanged in regards to asthma and allergies.
For instance:
1. Christmas trees: We still find this to be a common family tradition. Yet what caused allergies back in the 19th century still causes allergies. Molds and fungus still grow on spruce trees, and still cause grief for many asthmatics.
Technology, however, allows for people who are allergic to real trees to splurge on a fake tree. Now this works great for year #1 as the tree is unpackaged fresh out of the box. Yet on year two the tree is taken out of storage with a plume of dust. So the traditional Christmas tree may not be so great for asthmatics.
2. Stress: As moms and dads we want everything to work out just perfect. Yet the stress involved here can be overwhelming. In the 19th century a child would be tickled pink just to get a piece of chocolate or a rag doll or a home made dress. Yet it took lots of hard work, time and money to make and obtain these humble gifts.
Today the gifts our children want have changed. Simply spending time with them, or telling a story, are nerdy and boring. And peeling kids away from their toys to teach virtues is an arduous task. So what kids expect has changed, yet stress is still a common cause of asthma during the rush to perfect this holiday for the kids.
And despite conflicting arguments, stress is still considered to be an asthma trigger for many of us asthmatics.
3. Smoke and incense: Cigarette smoking wasn't so popular in the 19th century, but an occasional pipe was. Yet that wasn't so big of a deal (right?) because back then smoking was actually recommended for asthmatics (Honestly! It was!)
