do you happen to be "rushing" when you feel SOB?
i have found that if i rush i get SOB

also, i find that i unknowingly "hold my breath" when doing certain things, then i find i am SOB.

I can't help you with the Ox%. I know I can get sob THINKing about doing something which I'm anxious about because it MIGHT result in sob.

How about adding to your routine? - pursed lip breathing, glass of water, couple of push ups - just something that changes your expectations and gives you a little boost.

Oops I see you're from MN. I lived many years in Minneapolis. I know that the cold early morning air can strongly affect your breathing. A scarf covering your mouth could help. There are also masks - just to get to the car and get settled with the heat moving air around.

I copied this from WebMD. This all make perfect sense to me.

Anxiety and COPD

Anxiety can be a sign that someone is not getting enough oxygen, says Laurence Smolley, MD, in the book Breathe Right Now. But anxiety is not particularly helpful. Smolley is the chairman of the department of pulmonary medicine and the medical director of the Sleep Disorders Center at Cleveland Clinic in Florida. He explains that because anxiety tightens muscles, it makes it even harder to breathe.

When a person is fearful, respiration quickens. Yet taking a deep, slow breath can have a calming effect and reduce this stress.

Its like cutting your finger. You may not feel pain until you look at the finger and see blood. Then the anxiety caused by seeing the blood can help trigger a response of pain.

With COPD, the fear of breathlessness -- even if breathing is not currently a problem -- can cause an increase in a persons heart rate and quicken breathing. The added stress can make the respiratory system work harder. And the harder it has to work, the more difficult it becomes to breathe and the more likely it is someone will experience breathlessness.

Worry, Airway Constriction, and the Need to Relax

Still, who doesnt panic when its hard to breathe? Studies show that emotion or worry causes the body to produce the chemical acetylcholine, which is a neurotransmitter. One effect of acetylcholine is to cause the airways to constrict even more. Smolley says that just worrying about breathlessness may actually trigger shortness of breath. The power of suggestion is that strong.

During our pulmonary rehab we we told to avoid hyperventilation at all cost. If it happens try to slow cut down on the number of breaths-breathe in slowly through your nose and breathe out through your mouth twice as long. Your SOB should go away in a few minutes.

Anxiety and worrying about it happening will definitely cause an increase in your SOB. Just be conscious of what you are doing and pace yourself. I have been dealing with it for years and still have those times I get a little scared and anxious and it makes it twice as bad. Just don't rush!

Scott

I'm betting it's your COPD. Long before I was dx I used to be SOB in the morning. Sometimes it would take me a few hours before I could breath normaly. Please take good care of yourself.

Good Morning buickoreo,

I too live in St. Paul and feel pretty much the same as you do. I anticipate feeling SOB, because I know that I will feel SOB. I have to lug a very heavy oxygen concentrator and even on 6L of oxygen, my oxygen can drop to the 80"s. In the cold that we are having - way too early! - I focus a lot of mental energy on how I will feel getting out of the house and going about my day. Add to that my worry about falling - I now have osteoporosis from all the prednisone I have taken - my anxiety level gets quite high.

My best advise to you is cover your mouth and allow yourself plenty of time. I also find that a couple of puffs of my rescue inhaler a few minutes before I go outside helps, and I always practice pursed lipped breathing.

In the process of going to your car you are exerting energy and the muscles need oxygen. You many not be breathing out as much as you should and too much air left in the lungs decreases the amount of room the lungs have to breath.

In other words you are retaining carbon dioxide and there has to be an equal exchange between oxygen and co2 in order not to hyperventilate.

Remember to breathe out longer (this expels the co2) than it takes to breath in and you should do well.

Anxiety disallows you to control your breathing and the is really a challenge sometimes.

Anxiety seems to have a life of its 'own and is one of our big problems.

Anna

buickoreo; it's been a few days since you posted; i do hope you are okay & that SOB wasnt' a flare up starting.
check in when you get a chance so we know how you are.

these weird days of switching warm to cold is always a hard time for me. i hope all is well.