Welcome to AsthmaStory

This web site is the place for me to tell my Asthma Story and hopefully stimulate some thought and hope for those that are suffering with Asthma.

At the age of 30, I was diagnosed with severe Asthma. In 1995 I came close to dying from an asthma attack when a near fatal asthma attack put me into full respiratory and cardiac arrest!

A neighbor took the above picture while paramedics were performing CPR on me as I lay on our front porch.

After this close call, I decided I had to try and reclaim my life and fight this terrible disease. Even despite the false claims of medical professionals that asthma is incurable. My story is proof that extremely severe asthma can be cured.

A friend of ours who is a pharmacist then found fascinating new research by Dr. David Hahn in medical journals about the bacteria Chlamydia pneumoniae and mycoplasma and the interesting link they have to being a possible cause of asthma. These studies indicate this research may be of benefit to 50% or more of adults and children diagnosed with asthma.

I am not a doctor and do not offer medical advice here. I also don't sell anything on this website. This is only a place for me to share the steps I took to become completely cured of asthma. Now that my asthma is cured, I hiked hundreds of miles of rugged terrain on the Appalachian trail (AT) May of 2002 and May of 2005. And I hiked/waded/slogged through 40 miles of everglade swamps on the Florida Trail (FT).  

Most important.... I did these hikes with no inhalers, no medicines and best of all, no asthma.

Take time to browse the research posted here. Also check out the topics posted on the (now inactive) forum. Looking through the research and link sections you'll see there are dozens of researchers around the globe studying this important link between Chlamydia pneumoniae and asthma.

While it doesn't work for everyone, in many cases asthma can be cured in adults and children. I host this website out of graditude and to support the research of Dr. David Hahn (and others) in learning more about these life robbing bacteria.

Finally, after 10 years of running this website, I want to address the issue of relapses. Even though I never experienced a relapse, Dr. Hahn recommends retreatment if asthma symptoms return. Dr. Fred Wagshul of Miamisburg Ohio who claims to have successfully treated over 15,000 patients with long term antibiotics prescribes 250mg of azithromycin per day for up to a year. Dr. Wagshul says he has a 95% success rate for completely curing asthma in his patients. He occasionally will use several antibiotics depending on the patient. His reasons for using antibiotics as long as a year can be better understood watching the video by Dr. Webley (below) that explains how Chlamydia pneumoniae often protects itself using biofilms.

I wish there were more definite answers as to the best solution for everyone. That's why more research is needed in this area.

Jim Quinlan

Clearwater Florida

Fox News news segment with Dr. Hahn and Jim Quinlan
Spring 2011 - Hot Topics in Diagnostic Microbiology: Chlamydia and Asthma
Dr. Wilmore Webley on Chlamydia pneumoniae and Biofilms This explains why Chlamydia pneumoniae is so challenging to eradicate ... even with antibiotics. This is why long term antibiotic treatment is often prescribed to completely cure asthma in patients. Watch until the end. The last 3 minutes biofilms are explained

Notes from visitors to the asthmastory.com website

(11/2011)  Hi Jim,
I am also one of the people your posted information has helped and I just wanted to finally thank you.

I developed "adult onset asthma" in 2002. It just happened one day out of nowhere and took over my life. After 10 months of increasingly worse symptoms, I woke up one morning with a bladder infection. My husband had some doxycyline that he found he couldn't take because of an allergy so I thought I would use it to get rid of the bladder infection. However, after taking it for a couple days I noticed I wasn't having as many asthma attacks and within a week - no asthma attacks. I looked up doxycycline and asthma and found your sight immediately. I was surprised to see Dr. Hahn was from Madison as I only live a half hour away! I contacted him immediately and with his help took this research to my doctor and asked for an extended provision of antibiotics. My doctor was reluctant to jump on the bandwagon - in fact he told me I was just trying to get antibiotics. I was able to get my antibiotics but not without changing doctors and I have not had an asthma attack since.

I've told people my story; I've shared your website; and I'm shocked at how many people don't pursue learning more about this research - like they want to continue to be sick. I don't get it! How can anyone want to continue suffocating when there may be a permanent cure? Rhetorical question of course.

I know people want to blindly believe their doctors are trustworthy and have their best interests at heart - but I want to grab them and say "take care of yourselves! Know for yourselves! Teach your doctor a thing or two!"

Anyway, enough of my ranting. I just wanted to thank you for posting your story and for keeping it out there. I visit the site and post it to my facebook page from time to time...I'm just hoping it helps even just one person like your story did for me.

Thank you Jim,
    Trish

Hello Jim, Just thought of giving you an update. I am on 20 weeks on Zithromax now. Yes I am still on it. Here are the details:

Weeks 1 thru 12 (750 mg a week): Mild improvement with asthma symptoms. I was taking 1 puff on corticosteroid inhaler once every other day. However, I could not do cardio exercise for more than 10 to 15 mins without getting winded.

Weeks 13 thru 16 (750 mg a week): Further improvement. I was taking 1 puff of corticosteroid (Symbicort) once every week. Could run for 30 mins now before I would start wheezing.

Weeks 17 thru 18 (1000 mg a week): Little better. 1 puff of inhaler every week like before but now I can run for 45 mins before starting to wheeze.

Weeks 19 thru 20 (1000 mg a week): Completely OFF of all inhalers and asthma medications. Now I can run for 1 hour without stopping. I wish I never have to use any inhalers again.

I also took a lot of Vitamin C, Lemon Oranges (organic) and believe exercise has helped. Anyways I just thought of letting you know and many thanks once again,

Basab

We really think that our son, age 23, is virtually cured of asthma now thanks to you and Dr. Hahn. I tell everyone I can about your website. I really appreciate your updates and am waiting for the book Dr. Hahn is writing.

I always felt there was a cure - always searched the web and then three years ago typed in asthma cure and there was your website. I felt it was the miracle I had been searching for. I documented all information and sent a letter to my son's doctor. With persistence, he was given the antibiotic treatment .... I was not going to take no for an answer or I would have searched for another doctor. The sad thing was he knew of this treatment since 1995, but claimed he tried it a few times and it didn't work. My son was put on Biaxin at first, and when I emailed Dr. Hahn about this he was kind enough to reply and state that Wes should be put on Zithromax which our doctor complied with when he read Dr. Hahn's reply to me.

Sorry to ramble on, but I am very passionate about this which I am sure you understand. You give every piece of information anyone could ask for - thank you so much!

Sherri, Olathe, Kansas

Dear Mr. Quinlan, I won't take up too much of your time.

I just want to tell you that your website and your asthma story saved my husband's life. He was a runner in excellent condition and got the flu this past August - and didn't get better but worse. Two months in they diagnosed him with COPD and then asthma - he was on 3 daily asthma and cough medications - he was doing the neti pot 3 times a day and had to buy one for work! He had over $6000 worth of testing done - x-rays, breathing tests, etc.

I came across your article and info after dealing with this for 6 months - his life was so different and depressing from the life he was used to living and the prognosis was just inhalers for the rest of your life, which didn't really control the symptoms either.

I printed out your info and DR Hahn's, and my husband tried to speak to his DR about it. The doctor had never heard of it and told my husband NO. The next day the DR called my husband at work and said he had a change of mind and was willing to TRY this, but doubted there would be any results.

My husband has now completed his 3 months of antibiotics and he is a brand new person. He has been off ALL asthma medicine for 2 months now and is back to his normal running and exercise regime. It almost seems like it was just a bad nightmare that we lived through.

Mr. Quinlan, if it weren't for your willingness to write about your story, I don't know what would have happened to my husband! He was getting repeated infections, lung and sinus. I am sure that he would have eventually gotten pneumonia and who knows what from there - it's hard to think about!

He is 45 and has so much life ahead of him. I cannot thank you enough for sharing your story and treatment plan - it saved my husband's life.

From the bottom of my heart with so much thanks and gratitude, May God richly bless you!

A Happy Wife, Hudson, OH

We have great news I wanted to share. My 8 year old son Christian saw his doctor yesterday and he decided to take him off all steroids!!! Today was his first steroid free day in years...I'm so excited.

He told me and a resident that it was a good thing that I found the research, because it may have taken him a while to get to where we are today. It's taken years to get to this point so who knows if we would have ever reached this point if I hadn't run across asthmastory.com! I seriously doubt anyone would have bothered with the Zithromax regimen. I just thank God that I ran across it!

P.S. Christian is taking swimming lessons. Yesterday his group had a contest to see who could hold their breath the longest...guess who won ? Can you believe that !!! The kid with "serious asthma" is holding his breath the longest...IT'S A MIRACLE!!!

Anne, CA

I was diagnosed with "adult onset asthma" for more than 15 years. My regimen included 3 different inhalers, steroid injections every 6 weeks and at the end I was taking 20 mg of prednisone twice a day just to breathe. I was using my rescue inhalor 10 times a day. Through the years I tried all the inhaled steroids, Uni-phil, advair... the whole line up. My doctor had me on almost $600 worth of meds every month. Even so my asthma got worse every year.

Thanks to this forum and the encouragement of Maureen and several others, I stuck with it until I found someone willing to give me the prescription. My life has been changed dramatically and I owe it to those who continue to prove that this treatment works.

Bill, Dallas TX

Wow do I feel good, I lie in bed at night and just breath I have had this type of asthma for 65 years. Now 70, I can celebrate. It's really funny how doctors deny that a cure exists for this type of asthma.

Jim F. Wilmington, CA

I have witnessed a miracle. So many amazing things have happened but my 13 year old son Devin said it best last night “My asthma is cured, mom.” He never knew before what it feels like to breathe fully. Now he runs, laughs, sings, talks, walks, and plays without wheezing. I am so very grateful to the wonderful people who have made this possible.

Debbie, Illinois

I am writing to thank you for your help and support with my daughter last year. She finished three months of Zithromax in January 2005 and has had no asthma symptoms since. For a while after she finished, I was afraid every time she would get a sore throat that maybe she wasn't better.

Sore throats today are just that... sore throats and not a warning that "asthma" will follow. Whitney has been off of all her allergy medications for three months now and is doing great. She has her energy back and is just a normal kid. No more coughing, no more sickness that never really goes away, no more medicine, no more stuffy nose.....just a healthy, happy child.

I am so thankful to you for getting the word out. Thank you, Jim, from the bottom of my heart!

Diana, Indiana

Read what Dave Oshinsky has to say on his website about how he cured his asthma in 2003 after using Dr. Hahn's research.
(Click here to view Daves Website)

Dave Writes, "I'm still asthma-free and loving it !! No wheezing, no inhalers, even when I ride my bicycle for 60 miles. FANTASTIC. The big question remains: when will physicians offer this treatment to those patients who might benefit ????"

Dave, NJ

Hi Jim, Thought I would share AsthmaStory II with you. I convinced my doctor to give me the c.Pneumonia test. He sent me to a lab and his nurse called me with the results. You warned me. She said I was negative for c.pneumonia. I asked her what the titers were and she gave me a decimal. I told her its not usually a decimal and asked her to have the doctor call me.

He left a message for me and said I am totally negative and there was no point in going forward. I called back asking to speak to him but the nurse said what would be the point. I asked for a copy of the test and they sent it to me. I got tested for Chlamydia trachomatis, the sexually transmitted disease. I called the doctor and made an appointment.

When I showed him that I was tested for the wrong thing he said that was the proper test. He backed down the second I said he was wrong (I had proof) and called the lab to verify that in fact I was tested wrongly. Anyway, he ordered a new test and now I find out I have an IgG of >1:512 and an IgA of 1:64 both way out of wack. So the doctor called me and congratulated me on my persistence and is giving me the antibiotic therapy. Wish me luck.

Walter, AZ

I am thanking the universe every day for whoever invented macrolides. As well as Jim"Hotfoot" : ) Quinlan and his info on these bugs. If it wasn't for him I'd still be coughing up crap and doing the "Dying Swan" every afternoon.

Helene, Austrailia

Keep it up Jim - soon the research will prove we are on track here. It has happened this way before. But beware the vested interests - many groups want this asthma thing to continue. - Drug companies are making millions out of useless but expensive inhalants - Many specialists want it to be kept as a black art to perpetuate their jobs

John, UK

Upcoming Book

is a book being published by Dr. David Hahn

We will announce more details when this book is available.

Recent news ..

(June 2011) Good article from The Grand Rapids Allergy Examiner:

Asthma cure found in Zithromax: hope for the future

More News ..

(July 2010) Wilmore Webley PH.D. sent us some interesting research he was a part of:

Infectious Chlamydia pneumoniae is Associated With Elevated Interleukin-8 and Airway Neutrophilia in Children With Refractory Asthma

Occurrence of Chlamydia trachomatis and Chlamydia pneumoniae in paediatric respiratory infections

Science Daily News
(May 25, 2010)Scientists from the University of Massachusetts have developed an animal model that shows how an early childhood lung infection can cause asthma later in life.

What are Biofilms?

To educate yourself more on biofilms and why vitamin "D" may be bad when trying to eradicate Chlamydia pneumoniae or Mycoplasma, read this interesting article by Dr. Randall Wolcott, bacterial biofilm wound specialist
and also
The Marshall protocol for biofilms in wound treatment. Highly technical but somewhat related in that it addresses why eradicating bacteria like Chlamydia pneumoniae and mycoplasma can be so difficult.

Clinical Trials

The University of Wisconsin, American Academy of Family Physicians, Wisconsin Academy of Family Physicians (WAFP),The Dean Foundation for Health, Research and Education (Dean Foundation) and Pfizer corporationis sponsoring a study and recruiting volunteers for a study called AZMATICS to determine the effectiveness of Azithromycin as Adjunctive Treatment for Adult Asthma.

Important notice: At this time, the study is no longer recruiting subjects. However, the Principal Investigator, Dr. David Hahn, is willing to discuss other research opportunities that may be available for asthma suffers.

If you are interested in learning more, you may email Dr. Hahn at:

Dean Foundation

Follow this link to learn more about Dr. David Hahn and the Dean Foundation.

If you are interested in making a donation to The Dean Foundation you can specify that it be used towards infectious asthma research

Support forum

First off, I would like to apologize for abruptly shutting down the support forum several years ago. Besides dealing with hackers, trolls and rude people, I was going through an extremely stressful time in life that resulted in the loss of our youngest son.

It got to be too much to handle so one day I flipped the switch and shut it down.

I know this upset some people so I hope they can accept this apology

Archives for the support forum can be found here. Plenty of good information to research

Old News

The St. Petersburg times ran a story about AsthmaStory just before I started my Appalachian trail journey

In the beginning

Several newspaper articles about the near fatal asthma attack.

Article 1

Article 2

Serious Stuff !

Every year thousands of people die while experiencing a severe asthma attack.

Take your Asthma or the Asthma of a loved one very seriously !