Hi Kiri!First of all, congratulations for quitting smoking. That is a difficult task to do. By now, you have seen your doctor, and I believe you might have been diagnosed with asthma, but there could be other circumstances too. In the meantime, here is some general information for you. You can read a good overview about Asthma here. If your doctor diagnosed you with asthma, you might be prescribed a medication. You can read about many medications commonly prescribed for asthmatics here in the drugs database. Managing your treatment is something that you and your doctor work together on. You can get information about some of the treatments available here in the treatments database.   An asthma attack usually looks like this: You wheeze when you exhale (or breathe out). Your breath is short. Shortness of breath is a major source of distress in patients with asthma. Some patients are not even aware that they are experiencing shortness of breath. Such patients are at particular risk for very serious and even life-threatening asthma attacks, since they are less conscious of symptoms. Those at highest risk for this effect tend to be older, female, and to have had the disease for a longer period of time. You cough. In some people, the first symptom of asthma is a nonproductive cough (nonproductive means there's no phlegm or muscus). Your chest may feel tight or painful. Your neck muscles may tighten, and talking may become difficult or impossible. Your heart might race. You may sweat a lot. I hope this helps. Take care and let us know how you are doing!Vicki M