Welcome to the Asthma site at About.com. Maybe you’re new here & this is your first visit… and maybe not. Maybe you’re a regular reader of my blog or my Twitter feed, but you’ve never really explored the Asthma site as a whole. Did you even know there was a site? If not, don’t worry — you’re not alone!

Throughout this site, I try to connect with you and help you understand all there is to know about asthma, though that is, of course, a challenging task, as there is SO much to know. Because I’m both a nurse and an asthma sufferer, I hope I have a unique perspective with which to help you.

So, I invite you to explore the Asthma site. There are many ways to do so:

• If you like moving sequentially, then look to the left if you’re on the Home Page of the site, and you’ll see the “Must Reads” links. These are probably the most important articles on the site. If you read all 5, you’ll have a great handle on asthma and how to manage it effectively.
• Or, if you prefer, you can scroll a bit further down and look for the categories (topics) menu, where you can pick & choose your topics of interest.
• Another option is to use the Search box, which you’ll find at the upper right corner of nearly every page on the site.
• One final path through the site is to use the tabs at the top. See them? They’re labeled “Asthma” (that’s the home page), “Symptoms / Diagnosis”, “Treatment”, and “Coping”. Each tabl contains a number of different links to asthma information.

If you enjoy meeting other people with asthma, you can also become a part of a larger asthma community through the Asthma Forums. We’re looking for new, active members. Try it out – discuss what asthma means to you. If you’re interested in exchanging ideas on subjects that are important to you with others who are going through similar issues, I highly recommend the Asthma Forum.

You may not be aware that this site is just one of over 770 sites grouped under the umbrella of About.com, which, in turn, is under the umbrella of the New York Times Company. Plus, the Asthma site is one of the 70 sites of the About.com Health Channel. I think you’ll find there are many sites that will be of interest, covering topics such as Patient Empowerment, Nutrition, Pediatrics, Alternative Medicine, and a whole lot more. The sites are all staffed by experts too — Many of the Health Guides are medical professionals — Some are M.D.’s, others like me are R.N.’s, and yet others are full time therapists, patient advocates, and authors.

Our Health Channel has been awarded an HonCode certification, which means that all the articles written for the sites have been appropriately researched and sourced, and every article is reviewed and approved by a medical professional. It’s only on this blog that you’ll see me expressing my own opinion, reporting on the news and research studies, asking for reader input, and posting polls and reader questions.

I want to urge readers interested in learning about asthma to go beyond this blog – and to explore the articles on this site on subjects ranging from general information about asthma to articles on asthma treatments, occupational asthma, and much more. Just as importantly, I urge readers to take a look at some of the other guides’ sites, both on the Health Channel and beyond.

If you enjoy this particular site, and want updates on what’s new – or a quick way to get particular information sent to your mailbox – you can subscribe to the free weekly Asthma Newsletter.

So, once again, welcome to an amazing wealth of resources at About.com. I hope you’ll take advantage of some of the ideas and information available here. And please feel free to share your comments on any of the blog posts you see here. I’d be happy to hear from you.