I agree with @A MyCOPDTeam Member. Also you can be short of breath but not need oxygen. It sounds like if you are short of breath that you would need oxygen and most times you do but if your oxygen level is above 88 then insurance will not pay for oxygen. My doctor does not want my oxygen level to drop below 90 but I have been on oxygen for several years now. We can be very short of breath but our oxygen levels be above 88. You do need to keep a record of your oxygen level so you can take it with you when you see your pulmonary doctor. Make sure you record what you are doing when your oxygen level drops below 88 or even if it drops below 90 so your doctor can have a better idea of what causes your level to drop. I hope this helps you.

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A MyCOPDT...

My pulmonary dr.has me walk a couple of minutes with oxygen and then the same without. I did this and I still need oxy. My Level drops when I walk without it.

Unless you have the proper equipment and learn how to use it appropriately you may not. What you need is called an oximeter and you can purchase cheap ones from Walmart and Walgreens and better, medically calibrated ones from Amazon and other places on the internet. I recommend the Nonin Achieve 2 Go which you can get from Amazon and other internet sellers. It's medically calibrated, accurate, responds quickly and works even when you're exercising or other wise doing something active.

You need to monitor your O2 saturation levels (SpO2 reading) doing various activities, especially those things that make you short of breath, like climbing stairs or bringing in groceries, as well as when you're preparing dinner and sitting watching TV. That will give you an idea of how you respond to all these activities. Normal readings would be between 95 and 99 for someone without lung disease. Yours will probably be lower than that. If your readings dip below 88 into the lower 80s or upper 70s with any activity, you need supplementary O2 for that activity.

What you should ask your doc for is a walk to see if you qualify for supplementary O2. If they do it right, they will walk you at your pace (and I suggest you start off at your regular quick pace) with the oximeter on and see if you dip below 88 at any point in the walk. If you do, they will put the O2 on and you'll complete the walk with the O2. You should walk for six minutes before they stop to do the test correctly.

@ Lorna woods You will know Lorna. Especially after the stop & go starts. If you have been diagnosed with copd then it's best to do co2 therapy even if at a low dose rather than blow out the right side of the heart. Sounds cruel but that can happen to some . Others not so quickly. Good luck

@ Lorna Woods . The short way to remedy suspected breathing shortages is to see a doctor . Then all of the meters and exercising and things you may not know about yet will be filled in as you go along . All the things people are throwing at you can only cloud your judgement. See a pulmonary doctor to cut to the chase