S O B

[whit]

Does any one else have my problem it started a week ago,, i had a pnemothorax 3 or4 weeks ago , i get up for the toilet through the night ,when i lay back down i cannot breathe at all (very scary) ,i have to sit on the side of the bed doing pursed lip breathing for a couple of mins before i can lay down, also when i get up of a morning i am extremely sob for about 3 hours before i get back to my usual sob. tried phoning my docs this morning ,but as usual cannot get through.

[sassy59]

That sounds scary whit. Keep trying your doctor as you need to speak to him. I hope you can get through. Best wishes. Xxx

[whit in reply to sassy59]

THANKS

[Bevvy]

I think you should ring 111 for advice. If nothing else they can get you an appointment with your gp. I think you need to be examined sooner rather than later.

[whit in reply to Bevvy]

THANKS

[Patk1]

Do u sleep propped up? Also perhaps sit on bed for minute b4 going to loo,walk slower thn u normally do and use yr controlled pursed lips breathing. Do keep trying dr too or 111 xxx

[whit in reply to Patk1]

THANKS

[CDPO16]

I haven't had a pneumothorax but have very severe COPD. I too get very, very breathless if I get up to the toilet during the night and have to sit on the side of the bed for a while before it eases. It is very scary. I sleep with the head of the bed raised and this helps a bit. If you sleep lying flat try to raise yourself up with extra pillows or possibly raise the bed head with blocks if you can. I was fortunate to be supplied with an electric bed on loan from the NHS which enables me to adjust the angle of the top of the bed. Not sure if this might be an option for you. As sassy said, a chat with your doctor may not go amiss to get checked so keep trying to phone your surgery. Best wishes.

[whit in reply to CDPO16]

I BOUGHT AN ADJUSTABLE BED A FEW YEARS AGO, IT CERTAINLY HELPS

[CDPO16 in reply to whit]

That's good to know Whit, they certainly do help and I'm sorry that you are struggling in spite of it at the moment. Hope you manage to get hold of your doctor in case you have an infection or something affecting your breathing at the moment. Failing that, I once rang 111 for advice (it was outside of my surgery hours) and they got me a doctor's appointment within a couple of hours with an on call GP. Good luck and hope you soon improve xx

[whit in reply to CDPO16]

Managed to see a nurse clinician yesterday, back on the dreaded prednisolone again,

[CDPO16 in reply to whit]

Worth it if it helps whit. Wishing you well xx

[garshe]

I agree with patk1 .sit down and breathe slowly thro pursed lips. Always slow down. xxSheila 💕💕

[whit in reply to garshe]

Thanks

[tavymaid]

Hi, i,v had 2 pneumothorax and i have to sleep with 3 thick pillows and pretty much sitting up rather then laying down, laying down is when i go chesty and puffed out. Hope your feeling better soon. People don,t realise just how horrible and scary it is just trying to do a normal thing like breath easily.

[whit in reply to tavymaid]

Yep. this was my second pneumo , first was about five years ago ,i don't want them any more frequently than that.

[tavymaid in reply to whit]

They,re not nice at all and certainly not good on the lungs. My 1st was end Nov 2016 which i had to have an op for as my lung wouldn,t inflate and that operatin failed and my 2nd was about 6 weeks later so had to have another operation and had to have a pleurectomy. The constant battle to catch your breath isn,t nice, having so many pillows has helped ,laying down and even laying down on a sofa makes it worse for me ,so now it,s always sitting upright.

[whit in reply to tavymaid]

That sounds a lot worse than mine, they drained mine which was bad enough.

[tavymaid in reply to whit]

The chest drains are nearly as bad and painful as the collapsed lung. During my 2nd pneumothorax my chest drain became blocked and my chest filled with blood and air and was rushed to another hospital . Also getting the drains out at the end isn,t pleasant neither. You should ask your G.P to book you in for a chest xray to see if anything is going on

[ugotme]

Hi, I also had a neumothorx, 5 years ago. I got up in the Hospital to go to the bathroom and my heart went nuts, there were Dr's in the room and I could tell it was not good. Anyway, they got me through it. I have been on oxygen ever since. Maybe you need oxygen because it sounds like your lung may collapse again, which does happen. I am not trying to scare you even more, but better safe than sorry. See if you can get oxygen. All the best.

[whit in reply to ugotme]

Thanks.

[Caspiana]

That is very scary Whit.

Have you had a pneumothorax before? It can take longer to recover from if you've experienced it before. Also if you had a large pnuemothorax and then a subsequent one. This is something you need to discuss with your doctor as soon as possible. I'm sorry it's so hard to get to talk to them. 😔 It shouldn't be that way.

Sending you warm wishes hoping you feel better very soon.

Cas xx 🌿🍀🌿

[whit in reply to Caspiana]

i had a large one about 5 years ago.

[Jaybird19]

I cannot lie down straight away when I go to bed . Have to sit and read for a time . Do you find pursed lips works for you. I don't and I have been told that it works for COPD but not necessarily for others who have other lung problems .I wonder if that is true.

[whit in reply to Jaybird19]

Pursed lip breathing works for me , silly question, but are you doing it correctly?

[Jaybird19]

Yes and i do not have copd . There is a lot of varied info on lung problems and even my gp nurse insists that everything is treated the same as if COPD. Wrong

[tallmama]

I am like that most mornings when I wake up , it's a judgement call , can I sit long enough to use all my inhalers and morphine be

[tallmama in reply to tallmama]

Sorry cut myself off . Morphine before I have to try and make it to the toilet. Had an episode last night , quite scary had a message typed out asking my daughter to come round asap just ready to press send , but it calmed down and eventually I fell asleep . Will need to speak to doc.