Thanks to all replies

[fenty]

thanks to all who replied,i realise that being newly diagnosed with emphysema is only the start but I think managing and coping every day is a necessity to living and enjoying life alongside this form of lung disease and with communities like this and other people having the same difficulties as myself gives me comfort that there are answers and advice im going to need,ill take any advice,suggestions etc given to me with immense thanks,it’s a good job we have health forums like this as we’d really struggle to get help and advice without them,I don’t want to be constantly going up to my g.p surgery every time I need advice as they just don’t have the time to do this,I’d rather ask for help and advice from sufferers like myself who live every day with emphysema and have learned along the way the good and not so good things to help and give good quality of life for us all,I’ve just contacted the British lung foundation who are sending me help and information sheets etc as i feel i need to know as much as i possibly can about emphysema,lung disease and all that goes with this disease,at the end of the day i want to be able to breath to live and i want to live long enough to see my grandchildren grow up and remember who i am/was,any help and advice from all sources will be immensely appreciated,once again thanks to all who replied to my post,it really means a lot to me and even though I might not visit the forum/communitie every day i most certainly look forward to any suggestions anyone may have,hopefully in the near future I might be able to give help and information to someone else regarding living and coping with lung disease,please feel free to pass on any help,advice etc to me,im all ears and will most definitely take seriously any advice,suggestions in all areas regarding how i need to live alongside emphysema,lung disease.many thanks...fenty.

[stone-UK]

Hi

Not mentioned, ask your GP for referral to pulmonary rehabilitation. One hour exercise one hour education twice a week for six weeks. Invaluable in learning how to understand and manage your condition.

[sassy59]

Wishing you well fenty. Take one day at a time and enjoy being part of the forum. Xxxx

[hypercat54]

Hi Fenty nice to meet you. You are in inspiration to all of us and feel free to ask anything you like. Between us all we have a vast store of knowledge and all help and support the site. x

[Hidden]

Hi Fenty. I was only diagnosed with copd in January this year and completely fell to bits. Decided I had a death sentence hanging over me and now suffer from really bad panic/anxiety attacks as a result. Like u I wast to have more time to see my grandchildren grow up and have a quality of life and the good people on this site have been the best support I have. BLF have been a rock and sent me out lots of stuff too. U take good care of you Mx

[flicky1]

I also panicked at first and believed emphysema was a death sentence. I didn't find the BLF booklet helpful, as there seemed to be no hope - just progression of the condition until death. However, I remembered that I friend of mine who has been HIV positive for many many years, once told me that she is not her condition. I think this is also relevant to us. I have made some changes to my life, in order to enjoy as full a life as I can. With some adaptations, I am living a full and normal life, albeit with breathlessness, which I mostly try and ignore, and work through it. I swim, I dance, I sing, I exercise, I do gardening, I cycle in the summer etc. For me it's a case of do it while you can, and I have been relatively well for a couple of years now, although last year's spirometry showed that my lungs had aged 7 years in one year. But that's only numbers.