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The disease attacks your lungs and air ways.
Mike_T says:
I know exactly how you feel, I was in a very similar situation. I remember that I was so nervous at that time and I took it out on everyone around me. I didnt know what could I do until, thanks god, I found Smoke Deter. Now I can look back and laugh on myself and in the same time I remember how helpless I was. I hope that I'll never be in the same situation again
Yes I have it It is the term or illness COPD That covers basically chronic bronchitis and emphysema..The lungs are damaged and only perform to a certain amount of normal.. Mine was caused by smoking, which I have given up now for about a year/ My lung capacity was only about 40% of normal,, I could hardly walk across the lounge to my kitche,n crawled up the stairs. Could’.nt hardly do a thing.. OK spent 3 days in hospital told stop smoking or you are dead,, that’s it.. I am much much better now. Never ever will be back to normal, but can lead a life, go out shopping etc. OK can’t walk far, or carry anything heavy but am now enjoying life a bit more.. Have 3 different inhalers.. Have had two scares, you tend to get lung infections easily, and they really affect you.. Could hardly breathe at all, but a week of antibiotic and steroids seems to put me right,,, I know it will get worse in time but its all to live for at the moment.. Don’t despair .. Although serious it’s not the end of the world…
Which COPD illness do you have?
What is the progression and outlook of COPD?
Symptoms usually begin in people aged over 40 who have smoked for 20 years or more. A ’smokers cough’ tends to develop at first. Once symptoms start, if you continue to smoke, there is usually a gradual decline over several years. You tend to become more and more breathless. Chest infections tend to become more frequent as time goes by. A flare-up of of symptoms (exacerbation) occurs from time to time, typically during a chest infection.
As the disease becomes more severe, not enough oxygen may get into the lungs through the narrowed airways. As a result, the amount of oxygen that gets into the bloodstream is less than normal. This can cause heart failure as the heart needs a good oxygen supply.
At least 25,000 people die each year in the UK from the end stages of COPD. Many of these people have several years of ill health and poor quality of life before they die. Chronic ill health and death due to COPD is preventable in most cases (see below).
How can the course of the COPD be altered?
Stop smoking. This cannot be stressed enough. If you stop smoking at an early stage of the disease, it will make a huge difference. Any damage already done to your airways cannot be reversed, but stopping smoking prevents the disease from getting much worse. It is never too late to stop at any stage of the disease. Even if you have fairly advanced COPD, you are likely to benefit and prevent further progression of the disease.
Cough may become worse for a while when you give up smoking. This often happens as the lining of the airways ‘come back to life’. Resist the temptation to start smoking again to ease the cough. An increase in cough after you stop smoking usually settles in a few weeks.