I'm 47, have had asthma all my life but it has gotten worse after I turned 40.  advair daily has made a difference but, once or twice a year I get this terrible flare up and I end up at the doctors with the chest pain and pain between my shoulders feels like someone is standing on my chest.    It is as you ll have described and once I get my predisone meds after about 2/3 days things get better, pain eases up, shoulder pain get better, the coughing takes a little longer but I have a nebulizer machine and use that as soon as the chest pain starts.    It used to take me a week or more to improve, I've got it down to 3/4 days.    I don't smoke, I have GERD, I don't drink, I'm over weight and I don't think much of that really matters when it comes to asthma, it just hurts and some doctor's don't want to admit that asthma is the culprit.  They look for something more complicated or brush it off as a simple cold.   Be insistent, get your prednisone.  You will feel better.