Hi
I'm new to this site and New to this COPD,
I'm 48 and smoked all my life, I've just been diagnosed with COPD and I'm a little scared, I stopped smoking strait away but my breathing has got a lot worse morning n night ok through the day I'm on spiriva plus couple of other inhalers can't remember the names 1 is purple n 1 is blue, sorry I'm rambling, I've just got loads of questions, will it get worse, I'm a delivery driver so can I still work can I exercise ?
Hi the answers to your questions are all yes. The last two are positive but copd is a progressive disease but by leading a healthy lifestyle you can hold your lung function level or only lose a bit of it for many years. Well done for giving up smoking.
A lot depends on what stage you are at and what your lung function is. Do you know these? Lung function is called FEV1.
Ask as many questions as you want and also look back on some of the other posts. Don't google indiscriminately as you will scare yourself silly and stick with all the info on this site and other recognised ones such as the NHS (if you are in the UK).
We are the ones who live with lung disease and this is a great informative place so ask away..
Hi
Thank you so much for the speedy reply, I don't know what stage I'm at or whats my lung function yet, I'm seeing my doc in about 3 weeks time for some more tests so I can ask him then, I'm just so scared of the future and how it's gonna affect me
Of course you are scared as we all are when first diagnosed. Haven't you had a spirometry test yet? This is where you blow into a machine as this is usually the first diagnostic tool used. I don't know how you can be diagnosed with copd without such a test. Unless you have had an x-ray or CT or MRI scan as they will pick it up as well.
3 weeks seems a long time to have to wait to see your doctor, can't you speed this up at all? Maybe ask for an emergency appointment?
Many are diagnosed at the early stages and hopefully you have been too. At those stages there is every chance that you will die with copd rather than from it. I was diagnosed mild when only a few years older than you and am still the same. I expect to die from old age unless I want to live to 120.
If you are diagnosed in the later stages then it can be more tricky but having said that there are many on here like that and have been there for a long time. None of them plan on going anywhere soon. They still have qualify of life even though they have some limitations. It's by no means a death sentence.
There are a lot worse lung diseases than copd (unless you are very severe) and I am grateful I don't have any of those instead.
You will find people on here with every lung disease under the sun and many have other health problems too but they manage them as you will learn to do in time. So have hope. .
Hi lilaclil
Sorry I may not have explained much, it all started back in October last year when I fell ill with a virus and I was getting chest infections after chest infections so they x-rayed my chest but then said nothing showed, lungs clear, then again after a few more chest infections n trips back to the docs, cut a long story short I ended up in hospital bout a month back on a nibuliser and corse of steroids, plus another chest x-ray, when getting out of hospital after 4 days I went to see my asthma nurse and she had a look at x-rays then put me on a breath test for COPD but because I had just finished yet another corse of steroids she couldn't get a real true reading so that's why I have to wait for another 3 weeks
Ah it all makes sense now. Fingers crossed it's a false alarm and you don't have anything. Good luck.
Thanks lilac but both x-rays showed inflamed airways which she said points more towards an obstruction of my airways, I hope it isn't but it's looking more towards COPD but thanks to all who have replied I know I have goid support thank you for that.
Lilac , such a wonderful response and very true.
if you dident have any breathing problems b for your test your probly only in stage one i am very young 60 diagnosed 5 years ago mild i am a tree surgeon i am working climing trees etc go the gym spar on the bag lift weights eat healty exercise stay away from derv fuels if you can and most of all you must think you can beat it
I am sure you will get a lot more replies tomorrow as it's late here now. But I hope I have put your mind at rest a bit.
Keep doing as much as you can I was diagnosed six years ago and also gave up smoking when diagnosed , i get a lot of chest infections but I still keep as active as possible. good luck and keep thinking positively.
Hi Yes you will be able to work another 10yrs at least. The inhalers will help you breathe. I wish I had stopped smoking upon my initial diagnosis. I am in the latter stage struggling to breathe all the time. Sometimes the oxygen helps sometimes it does not.Regards, Lungnorm
Hi Gazbaz , you sound a little upset and quite rightly so, but do not despair although COPD is progressive, I am sure you will be fine for a long time, giving up the fags has been a very positive step try to keep yourself fit and healthy, I was devastated when I was diagnosed at first but the good news is that there is life with COPD if managed well, I still go walking do excecises and find that tai chi helps with my breathing and considering I have other ailments I am doing fine, just have to pace myself. Stay in touch there is a lot of knowledge on this site and any questions you have someone here will have the answer.
T
Hi do you know what stage you are i was told last year i had c.o.p.d i have 3 inhaler ive got incruse slow realesing and that i take on a morning then i have a blue ventolin that i can have when needed and i have formoterol easyhaler that i take in morning and on a night it takes a while for your doc or c.o.p.d nerce to get you on the one thats best for you im stage 2 but there is 4 stages i think you should be able to work ask your doctor for advice he/she will give you all information about c.o.p.d we can live a normal life with the right medication dont spend all your time worry about it or you will never have a good life i wish you lots of look and ask dock for the advice you want everyone is different so different ways of treating it i hope this puts your mind at rest x
Hi Gaz I was going to reply but I think Lila Iilacil has given you a great reply I agree with everything she has said, I was diagnosed with copd over 20 years ago, you have to make adjustments to your life style as you go but I am still enjoying life. Keep positive don't be scared. One thing I did find helpful was going to pulmanory rehab which your dr can refer you, you meet a lot of people who have the same condition as you I highly recommend it. Hope you get all the support you need coming here is the best place.
Good luck keep in touch
Love Sue
Greetings 
So sorry you're "one of us": finding out you have COPD is a real kick in the guts. Still, you ARE in the right place. May I give you some good advice, please?
Don't consult "Dr Google": you will end up thinking you'll be dead in two weeks. Talk to us because we live with this disease.
Stay off the fags (that the the one most important thing), however hard it is, and DO exercise. That's the only real "treatment" for COPD. Everything else is palliative.
Try not to think about "stages"; your condition will get worse over time but if you look after yourself, it will be a _long_ time. I was first diagnosed in 1988 and I'm still here.
Tell your friends and family that, if they have a cold, they stay away from you. Their cold is your next exacerbation. Avoid colds, coughs and (if you can) polluted air.
Be happy -- you will live with COPD. It can take a bit of management, but it is possible; look at us!!!
Catnip
Well done for giving up smoking - I have nothing to add to the great advice above - just want to say hello and welcome. COPD is manageable with a good diet and exercise - definitely not a death sentence.
Hi yes of course you can still work, and exercise is really good for you. Eat healthy and exercise and you should be working for a long time to come. Take care 😊 xx Bernadette
Gazbaz2,
Hi, It's good you have given up the weed, keep off it. If you are working and able to exercise you must keep up both, the more you can do the better you will cope and the body will resist the infection better than just sitting around.
Keep active.
Keith
Only one thing to add to that - it's unlikely that you'll feel any immediate health benefit from stopping smoking. It usually takes some time for the lungs to clear our all the accumulated gunk so you'll 'probably' find yourself coughing more than usual - and becoming more breathless. It was approximately four months before I began 'feeling better', but I was 65 when I stopped so you have a head start on me. You will feel an immediate financial benefit in you pocket though and as an aid to help you stay off the cigs I recommend that you put the cash that you've stopped burning into a jar, where you can watch it mount up each day, or week - ready for your next holiday. Stick with it, and good luck!
Hi Gaz and welcome to the forum.
Most of us felt scared when first diagnosed. It's natural.
Well done for stopping smoking straight away. That's the best thing you could have done. As another poster stated, you won't feel the benefits so soon.
I know a lot of people felt that their morning fag helped them clear their chest. But, it's a double edged sword.
You'll soon learn that COPD is not the death sentence you imagine it is and that people have had it for decades and are still here to tell the story. xx
Well you guys really know how to make a grown man cry haha, I'm so overwhelmed with the response and the very kind support thank you all your all great I'm so glad I found this site, it's put some light on what was a very dark room I was sat in, was feeling sorry for myself, plans were just crashing down, getting married in June this year so then I was thinking what would she be getting in to, and it wouldn't be fare on her and so on, but thank god I found you guys, thank you so much for the support I did have tears in my eyes when reading all the replies because I was so overwhelmed thank you all again xxx
Get married and begin a smoke free, exercising life that will hold off the disease for years = good plan.
You know Gazbaz there is a catch to the replies you have had, we all want a slice of wedding cake😁😂😃😄👍👍
Keep positive my friend and any questions you have post them and I am sure someone will have an answer for you, good luck 👍👍
T
Look up COPD on Website i was housebound for 3 mths my breathing was so bad then I started going shopping on Town Rider & by pushing store trolley round shops my breathing improved plus started eating more. Even though it is hard you need to move more & eat at least 3,000 calories a day as we use up an awful lot of energy breathing. Also started inhaling Eucalyptus Oil which helped to clear my airways the Chest Clinic Nurse said the Oil is excellent for clearing airways also Fishermans Friends but they are too hot for me. I get spasms of coughing so always have Jakemans Cough Sweets as they help & I take a drink with me I believe out throats get dry which in turn starts coughing off. If breathing still bad with the Inhalers after a week or so go back to doc as they are not mind readers so we have to tell them if treatment not working XC
Dont freak out my friend, i know its scary and it should be taken seriously but if you make the right changes to your lifestyle then you can manage your condition. I was diagnosed in 2000 and eventually had to stop working but thats not always the case. Like me you made the most important change, you stopped smoking. Once you have COPD you will always have it but you can slow the progression with the appropriate adjustments.
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