Just told I have copd. I'm freaking out!!!!

Oh I forgot to add that it also says under dlco part and svc part "Caution Poor session quality. Interpret with care" which goes with the fact I wasn't feeling good and didn't give it my all. Now under the FVC part session quality just says "pre"

From what I was just told by another doc was that lower numbers you are suppose to then use a bronchodilator and do the test again to look for a huge jump in the numbers. If there is one then he said that's asthma.

Anyway since they don't really want to work with me on this I went ahead and scheduled a retest with a second opinion for next week. This time I know to give it your all and don't play around with this test.

Either way no matter what the numbers say I can say at least it got me to stop smoking.

Good for you it's stressful to quit for a while some get over it faster than others me it took 6 months to get cig out of my system.  As for the bronchodilator that is or should be a part of the test it does not confirm asthma you have to do another pulmonary function test, it's called a methocholine challenge test, the make breath in some so called harmless stuff to make your 02 drop by 20 percent.   They will repeat this up to 3 times if they don't get you to have a asthma attach.  This is done at the hospital, I have one coming up February 5th. I really want to pass it's bad enough to have copd but asthma is like icing on a cake.  You should ask your dr to schedule you a test and gets your meds in order.

Yeah Pam it is not fun quiting smoking. It is almost the hardest thing I have done. But it's much harder looking at my kids thinking I won't be there for them.

I am going to see how this retest does and quiting smoking does also. While I know I won't really feel the benefits from quiting physically wise for months I can get through it thinking of my kids.

You see I have been in a sedentary lifestyle for about 4 years since my accident. I still haven't went in for my other surgeries because I lost enough of my leg strength and range of motion in my back when I broke it and they did emergency surgeries.

But this has got me out walking also. I'm starting at a mile which doesn't sound like much but is a lot when you have legs that seem to have a mind of there own.

I do want to thank everyone here because it has really helped. And I hope will help as I go through all this. It's just nice to know your not in it alone.

A mile is a good place to start, and right now I'm not even back up to that after repeated exacerbations! Sometimes we're thrilled to make it a quarter of a mile.

Thank you for the comment. I am on day 4 going into day 5 completely smoke and nicotine free. While I wish I could say that after the 72hr mark things got easier like a lot of websites say it will. It really hasn't. I can say it's easier today then the first day but it's another day behind me. I have to take this quiting smoking one day at a time.

I have been trying to exercise as much as my legs will let me (due to the back damage) but I keep trying.

I have calmed down some after getting my actual numbers and some things point different then what the doc said. I'm still treating it like what the doc said because it can't hurt to quit smoking and be healthy.

Second opinion and testing is Tuesday if I don't catch the cold that my kids brought home this weekend at least.

Thanks again everyone because I really only have my wife to talk to and people on here. I tried to talk to my but she just got angry because I quit smoking. Sounds strange but she gets mad because docs blame everything on smoking. Don't mean to dump that on the forum but really don't have anyone to tell but really wanted to get that off my chest.

Again thanks everyone and I will keep informing as I find out more.

Sorry didn't proof read that. It was suppose to say "talked to my mom" She is who I got the negative reaction to quiting smoking and exercising.

My husband feels the same way. "Dr.s blame everything on smoking. It's just their excuse because they don't know what is really wrong!!!". My best trick was Chanticleer. Never thought a pill could take away the craving, but it works 😂

Hey LouAnne

My new pulmo says that here in the US, 25% of folks with COPD never smoked. I smoked & was surprised that this disease screws such a huge number of non-smokers. Just FYI

Hi Keith

Fantastic on the improved numbers. Whoever gave you the first test was not a pulmonologist and possibly was just a technician or perhaps a neurologist. Clearly the person wasn't really qualified. Stick with what the pulmo says.

They used to tell us that there were 2 kinds of COPD: emphysema and chronic bronchitis. My pulmo now says there are 6 kinds, and he includes bronchiectasis in that 6. I have chronic bronchitis & nowI have bronchiectasis too. I'll try to remember to ask him what the other kinds are next time I see him.

At any rate, any website which says you can't have COPD unless you .have both emphysema & chronic bronchitis is WRONG and should not be trusted for any medical info. Since you're in the States, stick with sites run by WebMD, the Mayo Clinic, Johns Hopkins, Harvard, or the American Lung Association - or just stick with this site, patient info. There's a ton of bad info out there so be as smart about what you read as you are about quitting smoking.

Congrats & keep up the good work on avoiding cigs/nicotine.

Th

Yeah the first test was just done by the nurse at that docs office. She just followed what it said on screen and that's about it. It was a lot different this time at the new docs. It was in a big room with a lot of machines hooked to her computer. Oxygen tanks everywhere and even had the me use a inhaler to see what difference. She was able to watch as I went through the tests and tell me what I was doing wrong and what I was doing right. It seems this is her only job is to run those tests. That's why I had to wait till today because she is only at that location certain days.

Anyways I was glad to see better numbers. They even had me do other tests also. Defiantly more information while it was all going on also.

As far as the smoking. I'm still free and still having cravings but they seem to get easier each time. I'm guessing it's gonna take awhile. Not really to break the nicotine but more like it's harder to break the habits of when to grab one. I caught myself today turning to my side table to grab one while I was doing something and went they weren't there, I remembered I don't smoke anymore lol. That's what I am going through now of that makes any sense.

That makes tons of sense, Keith, about situations. For many of us who spent too much time out drinking & dancing, or just drinking, it was automatic to light up at the table. That, I think, was hardest for me, having a beer or glass of wine without.cigarettes.

Some people crave forever but I hope you'll be like me: the only thing is watching tv or movies where characters smoke a lot of cigarettes. You are very self-aware so I think you'll be fine & learn what to avoid.