New and Concerned

[soup1955]

Good Morning all. I'm new here. I'm from Michigan in the U.S.

I've been reading post here and other copd forums for some time and have never post anything myself, I like the answers and the attitude of the people on this site so

I feel it's time for me to jump in.

I've had copd for years. For the last couple years approx. it's been classified as severe,

Up in-till recently I've been able to not let it destroy my quality of life.

In the last 2 months however my shortness of breath has become terrible.

I get winded walking 30 ft. now.

I was going to a gym and walking 30 min. on treadmill almost daily,

but since summer kicked in it's been down hill. I take advair, spiriva, montelukast, daily.

I even went to the hospital one day last month and they kept me overnight for observation

they found no infection and no heart problems, and released me.

My lung doctor has blamed it on the extremely wet summer (mold) especially.

Does anyone know if we build up a tolerance to the medication or resistance to our medications, should I have the doctor try something new.

I'm at a loss.

I'm 62 not on oxygen, and other than my lungs and about 10 pounds overweight I'm in pretty good health,

any suggestions would be appreciated.

Sorry for such a long first post

[stone-UK]

Hi

Welcome , i'am the next stage up, stage 4. What I found although the condition worsens you don't get an increase in medication. Once your on the three inhaler therapy that's your lot. Of course there is extra for excess mucus or anxiety.

I did change one my inhalers Seretide to Fostair NEXTHaler that shown a slight improvement. Here in the U.K. it is relatively easy to ask for a change or to see what's new and available. I believe in the US a lot is controlled by insurance. Never the less I would inquire with your respitory nurse as any new treatments that are available.

I also take Oramorph low dosage which helps with breathing.

Mould/Mold can have a adverse effect on your breathing but you would be able to see it, as it is the spores that cause the problem. I don't think generalising and blaming the weather was a good answer.

[soup1955 in reply to stone-UK]

Hi stone I've read many of your replies to other post you sir are very knowledgeable and I appreciate you answering. I have had trouble with anxiety lately because of this and I'm certain what to do for that either. thanks

[judg69 in reply to soup1955]

Hi Soup, anxiety and depression are par for the course for many with COPD. Two ways to deal with these issues are discussion/talk groups ( similar to this site ) and medication. Suggest you talk with your Doctor regarding your anxiety and it is possible that you will be prescribed an anti-anxiety medication like sertraline( Zoloft ). Best Wishes, judg69

[soup1955 in reply to judg69]

Hi judg69 I agree anxiety and depression come with copd I sure hate them though, I hate to say it but I may have to talk to my doc about some medication. Thank you for replying

[2greys]

Hi soup1955,

I'm sorry to hear that you are experiencing a decline. I do not have medical training nor know your full history so I may be wrong. It sounds to me like your body conditioning has slid backwards, you must keep up exercising. If I stop exercising for just a week I can really feel the difference it makes, my breathing and my stamina get worse. You should also be aware that walking on a treadmill is a lot easier than walking on a pavement (sidewalk) or even harder, on rough terrain. If you have stopped exercising for 2 or 3 months you will have to start all over again from the beginning, building your tolerance to being breathless back up.

"Does anyone know if we build up a tolerance to the medication or resistance to our medications, should I have the doctor try something new?" ........ From personal experience I had to change my Ventolin to Bricanyl because Ventolin stopped working for me, I also use Spiriva and (like stone) Fostair, although mine is the MDI version. Fostair is the "star of the show" for me, really effective and fast acting and should be available in the US as the manufacturer Chiesi has offices in the US, well worth a try if you can get it.

[soup1955 in reply to 2greys]

Hi 2greys Your so right about my body conditioning sliding backwards. Ive been kicking myself for that very thing. Before this I seldom missed more than 3 days on the treadmill at the gym. I have lung Dr. app. in less than a week and I do plan on asking to try something new as far as the medication goes then I'm going to get myself back to the gym. even if I only walk in there rest and come home it'll be a start. I'll keep you informed as I do plan on improving. Thank you so much for the reply

[mrsmummy]

Hello and welcome to the forum.

[Nikki_223_blondie]

Hi there my dear mum was diagnosed with COPD about ten yes ago about 2 yrs ago mum got the shakes from the inhalers and steroids meds , a yr later she was on a oxygen machine at night, and her walking suffered , because of the shakes she burnt of some much calories that wen she ate it got burned of, she had a chest infection that had gone to far and she was rushed to hospital she died the next night of sepsis , she passed weighing 5 stones in weight age 69 yrs , that was 18months ago , please this copd is a killer , wen we went hospital they had given her 12 hours to live and then that was it, me and my family miss her so much , cheers Nikki from England

[casper99]

I agree with 2greys, it does sound like deconditioning, rather than you getting worse, especially since you know when the increased breathlessness started.

Maybe, like Stone said, there are lots of different inhalers out there, which your Docter could try you on.

I guess the more severe we are, the quicker the decline in fitness and only exercise can 'get it back.' xx

[soup1955 in reply to casper99]

Hello casper99.. thank you for the response.. this has been my first post and I can see how valuable it is to get your problems out there. I think you and 2greys have most likely hit the nail on the head. Time to get back at it.. slowly but surely,

Thanks again have a good evening

[kernowdame]

If you need to build up my suggestion is to get a pedometer [Amazon] and count steps. I got a real sense of achievement by checking I did a few more steps each day. Not allowed myself to go to bed until 3000 now and feel better for it. I am COPD very severe.

[katieoxo60]

Welcome to the site, sorry to hear you are experiencing an increase in breathing difficulties. Usual advice , as I get regularly is to try and reduce weight but that's not easy if you are not too mobile due to illness. Speak again soon

[Hidden]

welcome from across the pond

[phil777]

Hi

I think that COPD, from my experience, is a disease that is likely to be quite varied in the severity of symptoms. I too have severe COPD and like you I exercise as much as I can. However, there are times when I am knocked sideways by the smallest of colds or changes in air quality. I actually find that rainy conditions is the best time for me to feel well. My sensitivity to air pollution has increased and I guess that I will just have to live with this. Ventolin, relief inhalers seem to work and help me to relax. My suggestion would be to keep going, expect problems and get the doctor to prescribe ventolin for relief of symptoms.

Good luck

Phil

[Caspiana]

Hello soup1955 . Welcome to the forum. It's lovely to have you. I'm sorry it's been difficult for you. I know that the summer humidity that we have here in Japan has made my breathing very much more difficult. I am hoping the drier weather will help.

I try to keep up exercise daily. But on the really bad days I know it's unwise to push it.

If your hospital can't seem to find anything to investigate further, it may really be just the really humid climate. Take it easy and see how you feel in autumn.

As for resistance to medicine, I know with some drugs it is possible to build up a resistance. I was on Seabree inhaler but it seemed to stop working, so my doctor switched me to Spiriva.

I hope you are doing better now.

Take care,

Cas xx 🌿

[Hacienda]

Hi Welcome Soup, By Now you will have had lots of Good Advice from Members on here, I too, am quite new here, so I'm Reading everything. I agree with the Exercise regime, it is vital to keep the Body , Limbs and Lungs as functional as possible. I am hoping to get my New Lungs soon, been waiting 15 months on the Transplant List...But Hey, I woke up this Morning, and have done some home Exercises already. My mate Oxy always by my side. Keeping Positive Soup, and with the right Meds, Exercise, we can hope to live a bit longer. Best wishes..Carolina. xxxx

[jackdup]

I had a similar situation last summer and was very concerned. Doctor gave me steroid and antibiotic for 5 days and I started to get back to normal but it took a couple of weeks after the medication. I had no signs of an infection just an increase in shortness of breath. It is my understanding that you can get an inflammation in the airways for various reasons and without an infection and the steroid reduces the inflammation and improves breathing.

[mellyme]

Hey friend.

Glad you're with us. Great group here. You a Lion's fan? Panthers for me.