"Please Don't Die Today" - A Mother's Fight Against Asthma
That's what Jade Steven's five-year-old son whispered to her one morning before school.
For Jade, a mother-of-three from Wellington, those words captured the fear that comes with living - and parenting - while battling asthma.
This World Asthma Day (on Tuesday 6 May), Jade, 37, is sharing her story to raise awareness of those living with asthma.
Jade was diagnosed in her late 20s with brittle asthma - a rare and severe form of the disease, more commonly referred to now as severe or difficult-to-control asthma.
At the time, she was being admitted to hospital nearly every month, with long stays in intensive care and repeated courses of oral steroids. All this while raising three young boys.
"I wanted to be the kind of mum who could be there for everything - every school pickup, every bedtime story - but instead, hospital beds replaced family dinners.
"I'll never forget the moment I dropped my youngest off at school one day. He was just five. He kissed me goodbye, paused, and whispered, 'I love you, Mummy. Please don't die today.'
"I reassured him, but inside I was breaking. That fear - his and mine - was all too real."
Today, thanks to a biological treatment, Jade's condition is under control and her symptoms are manageable.
"The treatment gave me my life back.
"The hospital visits have become rare, and I've finally been able to stop taking steroids."
Her children are now teenagers and she's able to be the mum she always wanted to be at the beginning, she says.
"I can go to my eldest son's band Intercite gigs, school events, quad bike adventures, or just sit on the couch and watch a movie without them having to worry that Mum might be going to hospital again."
Asthma and Respiratory Foundation NZ Chief Executive Ms Letitia Harding says Jade's story shows the reality of asthma that many New Zealanders are still unaware of.
"Jade's experience is a reminder that asthma can affect people in very different ways, and for some, it's far more serious than many realise.
That's why World Asthma Day is so important in raising awareness, Ms Harding says.
"We need to lift the stigma, increase awareness, and ensure everyone understands just how serious this condition can be."
This year, the Foundation is marking World Asthma Day by launching its first-ever Blue Shirt Day campaign.
Blue Shirt Day calls on all Kiwis to wear blue, share stories like Jade's, and support better research, education, and access to life-saving treatments.
In New Zealand, asthma affects 1 in 8 adults and children, kills an average of 96 people each year, and is responsible for the hospitalisations of thousands of children - many of whom will have had a potentially life-threatening asthma attack.
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