Sherry, If you are not comfortable with what your doctors are telling you then get a 3rd opinion from one that is not a colleague. If you are going downhill that fast then there is definitely an issue.
For the morning cough I have found that humidity helps. I sometimes sleep with my mouth open and I get dried out and wake up with the morning coughs. I also keep a cup of water by my bed, just in case. I have been diagnosed since 1989 and have been on O2 these past 2 years.

i'm also an asthmaic, and coughing can be due to that, i used to cough, before my dr put me on qvar inhaler (steroid) plus my advair inhaler and spiriva. he tells me because the pollen and all has been so bad, it attacks my asthma and makes it bad, other then that i do not cough, allergy season, is pretty mild right now, so i don't have to use the qvar anymore, and yes plz go get another opinion

I would go back to the doc and start using an inhaler again, to see if that settles the cough down. If you do have Copd we have what they call "flare ups " where you can go along, no symptoms, then bang, back again. I always go by my gut instinct. Also question the doc as to why he gave that answer etc.

But get on with it in which way? Carrying on inhaling steroids which are doing us no good? Over the years I have been prescribed omeprazole and various other drugs in a random way because if they cured my symptoms then that would give a diagnosis. It seems a lazy and dangerous way to find out what's wrong with a patient imo. Anyway, since I am currently in a high pollen count area I decided to try anti histamine tablets and whether it's placebo effect or not, after two days my coughing and chest tightness do seem to have eased.

I feel the same. But what can we do. Anyone who has felt the same please let us know, but all we can do is get on with it as the drs say