I'd hit the inhaler if it was me. I guess I don't understand why you think the Albuterol wouldn't help. That's what it's for.

Sit and rest. Rescue inhaler or nebulizer. Pursed lip breathing. Also, I take generic Xanax for BAD panic attacks. Sorry you are going through this.

All good suggestions. You should always have albuterol (in some form) on hand.

Try this next time. Sit down, and lean forward with your hands on your knees (or a table). You want to be able to expand the abdomen. Then slowly and consciously do Pursed Lip Breathing (PLB). Inhale through your nose for a count of 2, exhale through pursed lips for a count of 4. Do this slowly, and keep your shoulders down and relaxed. Your oxygen levels should stabilize, and any bronchospasm should relax. Do this until you feel more comfortable.

When your climbing stairs, it's very important to remember to breathe while you're climbing. Some people hold their breath without knowing it.

Hope this helps.
Hugs, Sue

I suggest you watch the following video:

http://www.youtube.com/user/lungexercise#p/c/1526604DDA1D82AD/2/eBZPxp32Nmw

The other 4 videos in the series are also very good.

Hope this helps.
Susan

Albuterol has not seemed to help me. How can you do an inhaler if you can't breathe in? It also doesn't take away my wheezing. I've tried nebulizers and inhalers. I think that when I can't breathe, it turns into a panic attack. It doesn't seem to last long enough for me to take a Xanax or Ativan. When it happens, I have to be careful not to exert more. I've made that mistake a lot. I've got to get still ASAP.

As for posturing, I gravitate toward getting on my hands and knees and pulling my back upward. It is a yoga position possibly. I have done it many times since my first attack. Should have seen me at the animal shelter doing it in a puppy play room. No joke.

If I can only get a fan to blow in my face when I am down on the floor on all fours. Wishing my four year old would quit saying what's wrong Moma? .......

I use and Inhaler, and yes the Duoneb does help. What I think is important is that you say you ... Wheeze? You may want to check that out with your Doctor, unless you already know you have Asthma. Maybe that is why you can't inhale. Just a suggestion.

I should have been clearer. I wheeze when I lie down at night or when I'm sick. I have had about 10 instances where I couldn't breathe usually as a result of exertion of some sort. That is what happened last night. The first time my husband called 911 and I thought I was dying. I knew that if they didn't intubate me I was going to die. I now tell myself that I will not die. My body will pass out in order to get what it needs. This has been happening since last Sept.I do not have Asthma, but it does run in my family.

Really!

Lots of very good advice here...

Susan Boldprint, those videos are fantastic, I hope very one checks them out and does the exercises, extreamly helpful.

It's terrible to get in these messes, I do that too often because I walk too fast and if I do any stairs I'm in trouble fast. I have a lot of stairs at my house.

1. Tell yourself to slow your breathing down (you need to get air out not in - (short of breathe is the brain telling the body it has too much CO2 (it doesn't seem to care about the oxygen, lol). Gasping for air is the opposite of HELP.
2. Think to breathe from your diaphragm (this muscle is huge and goes completely across our front, it will push the air out quicker than anything else). Practice using this muscle daily to get used to using it. Those of us with COPD are suppose to be breathing from our diaphragm.
3. PLB
4. Tell youself to relax ALL YOU MUSCLES. We tense up and that uses more oxygen.
5. Through your shoulders back, that opens up your chest, so does lifting your arms up.
6. If I can find a wall or a post I will lean my hands against it. I like a post because I can set my hands on it which helps open the chest. It's like leaning on a counter with your hands on it.
7. I squat sometimes so I can put my shoulders back to open my chest.

These are the things I do when I push myself to far and panic. You've got all lot of great tips here from these folks, hope you find a formula that will work for you.

I have COPD with the asthma component (runs in the family with lots of allergies). You might want to ask your doctor if it's worth trying a combination of Combivent and Symbicort. I got this combination from a doctor at one of the top lung/pulmonary hospitals in the U.S. and it has worked very well.
I went from the Combivent (albuterol) every 4-5 hours and sometimes watching the clock until I could take it to every 12 hours (which amazed my PA) and the Symbicort (specifically for asthma) twice a day. I've seen others on COPD forums comment positively on this combination.
For my moderate/severe allergies I take OTC Zyrtec and prescription nasal spray Flonase.
Good Luck. Panic attacks and SOB are horrible - I've had them both, but have lived to tell about them and you will too!!!!

Softflower said:

[quote]Susan Boldprint, those videos are fantastic, I hope very one checks them out and does the exercises, extreamly helpful.[/quote]

I'm glad you liked the videos. I also think they are very good. I can't remember how I found out about them, but I'm pretty sure someone in this forum posted them a while back.

Susan

I can relate to the fan scenario, the only time I can really breathe unassisted is when I'm on my motorcycle and the wind is rushing down my lung's....I am in a 24 hr a day pursed lip breathing jag and it's sickening, I hate having to do it, prednisone is my only salvation at this point

The dog doesn't bother your breathing ladybug? It would kill me.

I was lifting weights in my basement this afternoon and I got plugged up and couldn't clear it out. My O2 went down to 79% and it was very scary. I have a bottle of O2 that I use when biking so I jammed it on and set it to 2lpm. Purse breathing and a couple shots of Albuterol eventually got my stats up and I finished.

The good news is after I coughed it all I was breathing better the rest of the day.

tom