ORLANDO, Fla. — Jocelyn Carino rescued a cat from underneath a car in Orlando one cold day in November. Two months later, she was intubated in the ICU after an asthma attack sent her into cardiac arrest.
“Shortness of breath, the wheezing, the coughing, I started to feel lightheaded, my lungs were so closed that the oxygen level wasn’t getting there, dizzy, and weakness,” Carino said of her symptoms that day.
She thought she had outgrown her allergy. She also thought she had her asthma under control.
Though on January 25th it all took a turn for the worst when her 17-year-old son found her unresponsive in their kitchen.
“It feels like you’re being suffocated,” Carino said. “It’s not a good experience when you can’t breathe. You feel like you’re going to die.”
According to Florida’s Asthma Program (2024-2028-Florida-Asthma-Plan.pdf), roughly one in 11 adults lives with asthma.
According to its latest data from 2023, Orange and Seminole counties are two of the three counties leading the state in asthma-related hospitalizations. It shows that between 54 and 87 people per 100,000 were hospitalized in those counties due to asthma.
Doctors are urging patients to listen to their bodies.
Healthcare leaders said to carry an inhaler, take prescribed medicine and treatments, and watch out for difficulty talking or blue colored lips.
While Carino has given up her active lifestyle for now, she said her main goal is to educate those around her about the dangers of this condition.
“My youngest son does have the same condition I do,” Carino said. “I’m trying to make him more aware of being alert of the condition and to not take it as a joke. It can change at any point. “
Doctors said key takeaways from this are to know your asthma triggers, have an action plan in place, and never ignore your breathing symptoms.
GoFundMe to help support Carino: Donate to Aid for Jocelyn’s Healing and Monica’s Support, organized by Kim Scott
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