I have an oximeter, also bought from amazon. Works well and easy to use. Seems very accurate. My doctor actually compared it to his machine and the reading were the same.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00EVIKKUW?ref_=cm_cr-mr-title

When i was abroad and was getting treated for their version of COPD, i was hooked up to a large iron oxygen cylinder most of the day....In the end i became so paranoid about my dependence on this oxygen, that i used to panic if away from my safety zone...

Over the last 2 years i know the last thing i needed was more oxygen as my sats were always high 90's and the problem was not being able to expel/empty the co2 out of over-stretched lungs..

So the term ''retainer'' is what describes people like me and PLB is the best way to deal with it........it has become second nature now and i don't even realise im doing it constantly without even thinking about it..

Qwapo- Now i understand why you always had good 02 with such bad fev # (DUH)
I had never thought that retainers do that; retain!

My fev #'s (almost normal) are high, but I need 02 24/7 because I don't "diffuse" the 02 I breath. (my dlco is 38)

that's why pursed lip breathing makes me feel worse instead of better! it must be because I have PF too that is restricting my lungs like a girdle!
and why you have so much rib pain from the hyperinflation!

it was weird that my FEV # kept getting better over the years, and i couldn't understand how i can improve. Even regular DR's focus on the FEV---it wasn't until last year that i learned that COPD+PF (CPFE) changes the Fev--- but my I joined a PF board & was told about it.
Sure enough, i went to an ILD specialist Pulm & it was confirmed.
I'm kind of confused how my FEV went from low when i was 1st dx'x & raised to to almost normal as my PF got worse, but it does. ,,, go figure!
here's a really good chart on what PFT tests dx.;
https://www.inspire.com/usr_res/CatLady1951/img/photo/62757/
i thought it interesting how they dx what we have & i could compare my copy of PFT to it & it was right on!
so sorry you are a retainer, but it sure beats lugging tanks everywhere.

ps i hope the link works

We are all so dang different, even when we have very similar micro-pathologies (ie, whether retainer or ). One is practically required to experiment and not just take anyones word for it, or look for some definitive explanation from a competent authority, or even expect one. Chances are very good they will be as baffled as you. Smile.

Take me for example: CHF, emphysema, and a touch of bronchitis. For years, even with FEV1% in the low 20s and on O2 24x7, I could always pass a 6MWT without O2*. Sitting around my SpO2 numbers were always 97-98%. Even had a cardio therapist tell me my dependency on Oxygen was probably psychosomatic. LOL. Removing my oxygen and going out to the kitchen oxygen would drop to 94-95%, but I was still good to make coffee, breakfast, do a little cleaning etc. Slowly but surely Id become more and more SoB, PLB helped but it would tend to get worse. Suddenly (5- or 10 pulses) my SpO2 would drop from 94 to 88 84% and I would be in trouble if I didnt get on O2 right away. And when I did get back on I was down for the count for 30 minutes to an hour till I got around to feeling like doing anything but breathe. (Ha)

I dont even have to be active to cause this sudden fall. I can just sit and watch TV without O2, SpO2 stays around 94/95% - ten, 30 minutes, maybe an hour on occasion then suddenly SpO2 drops like a rock and Im down for the count till my stats build back up and my body feels like it can move again.

So Im not on O2 24x7 to keep stats up per se, Im on O2 therapy to simply avoid what can only be called exacerbations. Is CO2 retention involved almost a certainty but Im far from a classic example? The moral of my silly story learn what YOUR body needs, what works for YOU and stick to it. Dont be too concerned if you dont fit some profile few of us do. There is just too much that is unknown about COPD.

oops, did that link show?
here's another try;
http://www.everydayhealth.com/copd/copd-symptoms-that-need-attention.aspx

oops, did that link show?
here's another try;
its a U-tube I thought was so interesting because it has a chart that shows how we are diagnosed with a PFT.
it's long but if you scroll to about 8 minutes it shows the cart;
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j_oRQS2dnck

Thanks jarca..i watched it n will compare with current PFT results.....

You are dead right..excuse the dead..but we really should not compare or we end up totally confused.....It's all trial n error and what works and when and why....BUT being pro-active and chat alot with others on an on-going basis helps soooo much, understand this disease....

One reason i love the FB group we are in...its immediate, spontaneous and good company, rather than only info related, where forums are great...but i need to keep checking back n its disappointing after a day or so no one or not many reply.......

I get the same readings..at home im 97-98..even when I exercise aerobic stepper I avg 105 bpm drops to 94%..then when the HR lowers to say 75 its back at 97% you only need to be concerned when its below 90%..wow I've never see a person on here, age 41 having these issues..im 52 had copd 5 yrs.. Was on oxygen I dropped 20 pounds took me off Medicare did lol.

Hello, Let me throw in my 2 cents here. Oximeters are good if you are monitoring your O2 levels for a reason, but not to be used as an answer to a problem, These meters measure how much oxygen is in your BLOOD and has nothing to do with being SOB . The best reading with or without O2 therapy is 90 or above, because anything below your vital organs began suffering, become oxygen starved, and thats when the trouble starts, because your heart speeds up to get O2 to these organs, and if you have im proper lung function, it can cause your heart to over work causing an enlarged heart. THAT is what O2 therapy is for, to make sure at all times your organs get proper O2 and your heart can circulate it ok. You can still get SOB, but just stop and rest, your heart does not have to be overworked because you have O2 going in. Hope this makes sense. To get rid of CO2, do purse lip breathing every day.