Personnaly i feel this is on a case by case. I have illness induced episodes or if i get real cold and winded i start to weeze and may need an inhaler, but this has never affected me diving even in springs since i am relaxed and not heavy breathing. How ever, i would respect the wishes of the one who is teaching me and if your not comfortable, maybe there are instructors who are and would be willing... Good luck with this and i look forward to seeing some other posts on this topic.