Does Emphysema Get Progressively Worse Even After You've Stopped Smoking? If So, What Is The Life Expectancy? | MyCOPDTeam

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Does Emphysema Get Progressively Worse Even After You've Stopped Smoking? If So, What Is The Life Expectancy?
A MyCOPDTeam Member asked a question 💭
posted April 13, 2021
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A MyCOPDTeam Member

Therese Gyure, if you have COPD, you have emphysema. COPD is an umbrella term that includes both emphysema and chronic bronchitis and most of us have both. I would suggest you find a health professional who is trained in smoking cessation. They will help you analyze your smoking habits and help you figure out which OTC and prescription meds will help you and under what circumstances. They also work with support groups and 24/7 help lines to be sure there's someone to talk with when you need them. They tend to have a good success rate; better than if you try to do it on your own.

To the original poster: here's the deal with the progressive part. Everyone, including people with no lung disease, start losing lung function somewhere between age 20 and 25. We know that a person who is 60 has less lung function than someone who is 30 and we know about how much lung function we lose each year. When you have a spirometry test or a PFT, they give you three values: the predicted, which is what someone with no lung disease who is your height, weight, age, sex and ethnicity would blow; the actual, which is what you blew (this is all measured in liters) and the percent predicted, which is how you did compared to the person with no lung disease.

So now you know the absolute value, which is what you actually blew, and you know the percentage. The absolute value is going to go down every year, but after you quit smoking, you will go back to losing only what normal people lose, it won't continue at the accelerated rate you had before you quit. So the answer is both yes and no. Yes, because the absolute value will continue to go down, but no because the relative value can remain stable. That's lung function and it usually is in relation to emphysema.

All that said, I wouldn't worry much about that. With a lot of hard work, exercise, diet, weight control, good meds, vaccines and doing everything possible to stay well, you could live a very long and satisfying life, even with emphysema. Sometimes it doesn't work, but we've got a lot of people trying to find the reasons why and it's worth spending the time and effort because most of the time it does work.

posted April 13, 2021
A MyCOPDTeam Member

Nicoderm patches worked for me.....And of course willpower. I smoked less last few years but still in total 60 years - sad really. Been smoke free for 9-1/2 months. The emphysema is considered mild but I still have it. Scared me but trying to remain positive - I do exercises every day, plan on cycling a lot this summer.. The staying calm part sometimes is the worse but getting there. Obviously when I get anxious the breathing gets worse. I am learning. Talking to a friend helps also - takes your mind off of it.

posted May 18, 2021 (edited)
A MyCOPDTeam Member

I smoked for 40 years & loved it. I started nicotine lozenges five years ago. I was able to stop. My pulmonologist says if I use them forever, ok!

posted May 6, 2021
A MyCOPDTeam Member

@A MyCOPDTeam Member
The man straight up lied to you. If you get the right kind of cbd oil it helps with pain. A lot of so called cbd oil out there is trash. The only thing that helped me I a vaping. Started with 24mg nicotine. Every time I wanted a cigarette I grabbed the vape. After 1 big bottle, I went to 21 for next big bottle. Each time you go down your body wants you to puff a little more often to make up the difference. But it's easy enough to tell yourself to wait. The next step I went to 18mg. Etc til I got down to zero mg.
There are some on here that will tell you not to vape. I will say it's not the way most people want to quit. But... when patches, gum, or pills don't work, then you need to do try something else.when you are desperate to quit, you will try anything that hints of working. It satisfies the part of holding something in your hand, it satisfies the part of putting something in your mouth, it satisfies your bodies craving for nicotine, it satisfies your need for comfort. It gives you some control over your life back. Just don't get the ones with the huge barrels. Small barrel. It's best if you can get round ones, but they are a pain to keep clean. Best thing to do is to use them as short a time as possible to get the job done. Best of luck to you. Hope it works for you IF you decide that's the way for you.

posted August 21, 2021
A MyCOPDTeam Member

Regarding life expectancy, you can check your BODE rating online to give you a general idea of the severity of your disease and survival rates. BUT if you exercise, take your meds, and avoid germy situations to stay healthy, you can increase the predicted odds of survival.

posted May 9, 2021

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