COPD & Emphysema Support Group
COPD is a progressive disease characterized by airflow obstruction or limitation. Emphysema is characterized by loss of elasticity of the lung tissue, destruction of structures supporting the alveoli and of capillaries feeding the alveoli. Both have symptoms that include shortness of breath, among other respiratory troubles. If you are a COPD or Emphysema sufferer, join...
First, hello all. I'm Ken from Canada and I'm just diagnosed 2 days ago and am very worried. I know the post is long but if you have the time please read and give your thoughts on it.
I was just diagnosed yesterday and I'm horrified and terrified. At work about 2 weeks ago I got a pain in my chest up around where the heart is. I didn't think it was the heart or angina but considering where it was went to hospital to get checked anyways. After an electrocardiogram, chest xray, and blood test got to see the doc. When I saw the doc, since I've worked with asbestos in the past and am a smoker I asked if my lungs were clear, he said yes. He figured I had a strain of some type as the pain mainly happened when I bent over turned the steering wheel or picked something heavy up. Said if it persists a few weeks or gets worse to come back. It did subside mostly but I called my doc a week or so later to look deeper, when I told the secretary my name she said they'd been trying to get ahold of me. Anyways, the upshot was the radiologist spotted signs of copd in the xray and I've been freaking out ever since, 2 days now. Next to no sleep, every gurgle and twinge from my midsection makes me shudder with fear and I'm obsessed and generally miserable.
Now I'm aware that every ones disease takes it's own course in it's own time but there are generalities. I'm not asking for prognosis but just opinions until more testing is done.
I had no idea I had this illness, it was found looking for something else. I just thought I had a bit of asthma and unless I tried to jog for a few minutes, like half a block or more never really got out of breath and my work is quite physical. I am 48 started smoking at 27 (crazy I know) and smoke 1 1/2 packs a day. I am physically muscular and stronger than average. I've always had allergies, hay fever, and childhood asthma and this is along with smoking is what I assumed was causing smokers cough, and a bit of morning phlegm. I do, now that I'm looking for symptoms notice a feeling like a slight pressure in my chest and the occasional feeling like there is something I'd like to cough up but there isn't much there. I'm about normal in cold and flue I get about 1 a year, last one about a year ago,a ripper of a chest cold but it didn't last longer than anyone else who had it. I'm pretty active at work, as a warehouse hand and walk several miles a day on the job and sling boxes of 30 lbs or so quite regularly, never noticably out of breath. Only new thing may be this minor chest pain.
So please help me. Does this sound like stage 1 or early copd? I have cut the smoking just about off and will have done with it in another day or two. Is there any chance for some years of a mainly normal life?
Thanks so much for your help.
I was just diagnosed yesterday and I'm horrified and terrified. At work about 2 weeks ago I got a pain in my chest up around where the heart is. I didn't think it was the heart or angina but considering where it was went to hospital to get checked anyways. After an electrocardiogram, chest xray, and blood test got to see the doc. When I saw the doc, since I've worked with asbestos in the past and am a smoker I asked if my lungs were clear, he said yes. He figured I had a strain of some type as the pain mainly happened when I bent over turned the steering wheel or picked something heavy up. Said if it persists a few weeks or gets worse to come back. It did subside mostly but I called my doc a week or so later to look deeper, when I told the secretary my name she said they'd been trying to get ahold of me. Anyways, the upshot was the radiologist spotted signs of copd in the xray and I've been freaking out ever since, 2 days now. Next to no sleep, every gurgle and twinge from my midsection makes me shudder with fear and I'm obsessed and generally miserable.
Now I'm aware that every ones disease takes it's own course in it's own time but there are generalities. I'm not asking for prognosis but just opinions until more testing is done.
I had no idea I had this illness, it was found looking for something else. I just thought I had a bit of asthma and unless I tried to jog for a few minutes, like half a block or more never really got out of breath and my work is quite physical. I am 48 started smoking at 27 (crazy I know) and smoke 1 1/2 packs a day. I am physically muscular and stronger than average. I've always had allergies, hay fever, and childhood asthma and this is along with smoking is what I assumed was causing smokers cough, and a bit of morning phlegm. I do, now that I'm looking for symptoms notice a feeling like a slight pressure in my chest and the occasional feeling like there is something I'd like to cough up but there isn't much there. I'm about normal in cold and flue I get about 1 a year, last one about a year ago,a ripper of a chest cold but it didn't last longer than anyone else who had it. I'm pretty active at work, as a warehouse hand and walk several miles a day on the job and sling boxes of 30 lbs or so quite regularly, never noticably out of breath. Only new thing may be this minor chest pain.
So please help me. Does this sound like stage 1 or early copd? I have cut the smoking just about off and will have done with it in another day or two. Is there any chance for some years of a mainly normal life?
Thanks so much for your help.
I've found that staying away for smoke/pollutants and people that are sick is the best thing you can do for yourself. What would be a simple cold for anyone else is usually a lung damaging infection for me. So I'm a lot more careful around people.
Sorry you ended up here but Glad to meet you. I think that you'll find a lot of great people here...
Hugs,
Dennis
The #1 treatment for copd is to quit smoking for good. Smoking aggravates copd and has you on the fast track for the progression of the disease. Quit smoking for good and you can slow down the progression and improve the quality of your life both now and in the future.
I urge you to check out quitnet.com. Quitnet is an online support forum for people who have quit or are quitting smoking. It is a great place for information and support. It is an active, very large worldwide community of quitters. There is always someone online 24/7.
As Denny said, eat healthy, maintain a healthy weight, exercise regularly and avoid pollutants and disease.
Maintenance medications for copd also make a positive difference in managing copd.
As you can see, there are things you can do to improve the quality of your life.
Best wishes,
Susan
Hang in there.
I noticed that you are 48 years old. I am 76 and if I may say, even though I was diagnosed only 6 years ago, It started probably in my late 20's. My symptoms just did not manifest in a big way until 6 years ago.
Stop smoking today in the interest of not putting any more pollutants in your lungs.
Try to be aware of the environmental factors that you may be around such as a roomful of smokers. That is the same or worse than smoking yourself.
Develop a diet that is healthy to you overall body. It is quiet common for people with respiratory problems to also have digestive problems such as acid reflux.
Remember your esophagus that transports your food to the stomach must first pass thru an opening in the Diaphragm. Stomach problems cause bloating, etc which interferes with the natural function of the diaphragm muscle that works hard to make the lungs function as they should.
Do exercises that maintain the upper and lower muscles. Not talking about "weightlifting", over the top workouts but just the type that you will want to take you through your later years. Walking is excellent and it works the respiratory muscles.
The information that I am hoping that I am giving is just plain common sense that everyone should do as they age. We do have COPD but others have other disease such as diabetes, arthritis, etc, that have to be managed.
And that is what the treatment for COPD is all about. There is no cure (yet) but you manage your daily life in a way that encompasses some meds later. I take meds for my acid reflux and my inhalers for COPD.
If you have a family and want to continue to work and support them, do so in an environment that is least harmful to your lungs and just relax and stay proactive about your COPD.
My best wishes to you and I hope I haven't bored you by the length .
Stopping smoking, as we can all tell you, is the most critical step to take if you want to slow the progression. I stopped ten years ago but still was prone to respiratory disorders so the diagnosis was not a huge surprise but still upsetting at the time. I was a caregiver for my husband while he was progressing with pancreatic cancer so I didn't let COPD define me as much as a few might do. There are worse things to have, I think, but the ball is in your court when you make choices for taking care of your health in the future. I now eat healthier than ever; get moderate exercise almost every day; use my spiriva inhaler and supplements for other conditions that I also have. I also do a lot of research on this topic and you have very fine resources here in seeing late findings on the disease also.
You have the advantages of being strong, younger and living at a time when lots of trials are going on to find a cure for COPD.
Sleep is important and I still struggle with that but have seen improvements. Stress and anxiety make things worse so I take an anti-depressant for that and it helps.
I am 75 now but still feel like I live a basically normal life and have lots to look forward to as long as I use common sense and make good choices.
Please stay in touch and I'm glad you found this wonderful group of people who understand what you are going through.
Hugs, Cindy
Thanks for the hug DennyGene, I really needed that.
Jackie, Susan, CaitsMom, thanks for taking the time to comfort a fearful soul.....I had no idea that such a big chicken lived deep down in me. You watch movies about people in bad positions and imagine how terribly brave you would be if it were you but then it happens and you wobble like dang jelly. Lol...... Well, here is going my bravery re-asserts itself.
LilEllie....I saved your thanks for last because you said exactly what I needed to hear.....I assure you no boredom to be had there at all. 6 years since your diagnosis. It's good to know there can be 6 years. I have a quit smoking plan in place. Cut down the last 2 days 4 smokes for today then quit.
Were you all smokers? Did you all quit right away? And did it slow the progression noticably?
I mentioned that my father had emphysema and what did she think my chances were. "You already have emphysema" Nothing in the way of tests to back that up but experience was her teacher but I wasn't a great listener as young as I was.
I should have been. So yes I smoked, should have stopped sooner that I did at 70 but I also attribute a lot to other environmental factors.
That was the reason for the common sense approach. Just always be aware what you may be breathing in that could facilitate the damage.
So my feelings are that I have lived a long time with COPD (emphysema) but only had the official diagnosis when the symptoms became overt and I was then put on the appropriate meds and oxygen for my status.
A little tip for you: If you get really stressed about this or any other matter, you may find it more difficult to get your breath. Our airways seem to feel the stress and close off a bit and all you need to do is breath deeply and relax.
My late husband, Don and I, gave up smoking together in one day ten years ago. We groaned about it being nasty, expensive and bad for our health. I'm still amazed that we just threw out the cigarettes and never went back!! As a result, I am a big believer in the Buddy System. We always supported each other when needed and that turned out to be one of the best things we did.
You are doing well with that so congratulations!
Hugs, Cindy
Walk with us....
Hugs
BJ
Dust is going to be a tough one to avoid I tell you, I inherited 3 cats when my mom passed 3 years ago and they do make dust. My house is also a bit damp. I've been considering a move for some time now, go from a house which is a lot of work, to a town house which is half the price and would let me put a good chunk of cash away for my unknown future in case I retire early and it now seems likely I will.
Thanks for the advice Bj, and the hug, and to you Cindy, you posted just as I posted my reply so I did not get to thank you for your reply. They all mean alot to me.
PS: I do most of this posting from my phone so if you see any words that don't seem to fit the way I use them in a sentance...well it's the phones fault and it's autocomplete function.
Thanks so much everyone.
I was going to put this all aside and try to enjoy my evening but it's harder than I thought it would be. I think what I'm having trouble with....always had trouble with is living in the here and now and not enjoying the fact that apart from tiredness from a lack of sleep and a slight asthmatic feeling I'm quite physically comfortable. I'd rather not ruin these good days by thinking of the possibility of bad future ones but unfortunately it is I guess part of my nature and part of my training since it was my mothers way and her being the most important person in my life I picked up on it myself. I must somehow retrain my thinking.
Again a big thank you for those who have taken the time to answer my questions and be comforting. I don't know if any of you believe in God and if philosophy goes against that for you but if you get on youtube and Check out Alan Watts - "the real you" there are some comforting ideas there. Watts, quite famous for his lectures, has several on youtube.
Were any of you able to remain working for any length of time after your diagnosis? Was your ability to sleep a factor?
Take care,
Lauren