Meet two of the winners: Liam Dulver & Taumata O Te Ra Lowe

Hutt student Liam Dulver was the winner of the Child Asthma category at the Foundation’s Respiratory Achievers’ Awards.

Liam Dulver (11) has been very ill with asthma, leading to lots of time off school and on hospital wards. Despite this, Liam never lets his asthma define him and he throws himself in to everything he does. The extensive list of clubs and sports teams Liam has been involved in includes touch rugby, cricket, hockey, basketball, swimming and enviro club.

The fact Liam is able to live such an active life and participate in so many sports is a testament to his attitude and how well Liam manages and controls his asthma: “I try not to let asthma stop me from doing anything. If I start to feel asthma symptoms when I run, I just take my reliever,” Liam explains.

Liam’s Dad, Karl, can vouch for Liam’s discipline with his asthma: “He took responsibility for his asthma from quite an early age. He’s quick to use his reliever when needed and religious with using his preventer”.

Liam knows the importance of exercising if you have asthma and wanted to let other people know. For World Asthma Day in 2020, when Liam was just 9, he participated in a public interview encouraging other kids with asthma to do sport and exercise.

Karl, has always been supportive of Liam’s sporting endeavours: “Sport has been helpful for Liam and his asthma. I’ve always been encouraging whenever Liam said he wanted to try something,” Karl says. “We know that the advice for kids with asthma is to do sport and exercise, use your lungs and strengthen the muscles which help you breathe normally."

Aside from sport, Liam has also been com mended on his leadership skills. “I’m really proud of my leadership award, which I was given in my year six awards ceremony. I was given it for helping to set up the school breakfast club and coming second in the year six speech contest,” Liam explains. Karl also mentions that “Liam does a good job of looking out for his friends and anyone else in his school who has asthma”.

The COVID-19 pandemic was concerning for everyone, but people with respiratory illnesses were particularly at risk. The announcement of the children’s vaccine was good news for Liam and his family, Karl explains: “It was great when they announced the children’s vaccine. Lian got COVID-19 after being vaccinated and thankfully he was fine".

"Just after the vaccine was released, The Dominion Post came to interview Liam about the importance of getting the vaccine. We got great feedback from other families who have children with asthma; it helped them to decide to go and get the vaccine, after hearing the benefits of it," says Karl.

2023 Winner: Taumata O Te Rā Motu Lowe

Taumata o Te Rā Nga Hau e Wha o Te Motu Lowe, was a winner of the Adult Asthma Category at the 2023 New Zealand Respiratory Achievers’ Awards.

21-year-old Taumata (Ngati Raukawa, Ngai Tuhoe, and Ngapuhi) has lived with severe asthma since childhood but has not let this be a barrier to achieving his goals. Taumata has a serious form of asthma, known as brittle asthma, and suffered a near fatal attack as a 7-year-old.

He recalls beginning to feel breathless while in a school assembly and then later waking to find himself being resuscitated in an ambulance. This experience was filmed for a reality TV programme, and looking back, Taumata was happy it was televised: “It showed people just how serious asthma can get”.

Taumata’s asthma was worse when he was a child, his symptoms came and went during his teen years and have improved markedly with adulthood. “As I’ve got older and fitter, my asthma has got better. I also don’t panic when I feel breathless or wheezy. When you’re a kid it’s easy to feel like you’re going to die when you feel asthma symptoms coming on; it’s harder to stay calm”.

Taumata tries not to let asthma slow him down: “My asthma can still play up and I often feel wheezy in spring. I try to do as much as I can but I’m also realistic about what I can achieve on a given day. "I don’t like making a big deal about my asthma, but I’ve found that letting my friends and family know about it and being able to tell them when I need an extra minute to catch my breath, is really helpful.”

An often-overlooked aspect of living with asthma is the toll it can take on your mental health. “After my big asthma attack when I was young, I couldn’t participate in games and sport without worrying about my asthma. I now knew that I was at risk of a big asthma attack and didn’t want to go through that again,” Taumata explains.

Of course, living with asthma can be difficult and often worrying, but Taumata attributes his determined attitude to the condition, “My big asthma attack when I was young gave me an early lesson in the importance of making the most of your life. I’m motivated to be busy, successful and keep moving forward”.