My parents were very disturbed by having a delicate son on their hands. She swaddled him in singlets and made him sleep on a hard, hair mattress. The boy clung to her and fended her off.
Asthmatic children have a certain power over their parents.
Asthma can be wielded as a weapon, often as not in self-defence. Paddy began to tangle with his mother. A contest of wills developed in which they exercised a shared Withycombe temper. If I half-realised that my languor and breathlessness were causing a serious situation, I was not worried by it.