just been diagnosed with C O D P need info

[terry68]

I recently been diagnosed with C O D P .last year i had a hip operation and was asked if i wanted to take part in a study and they took a ct scan of my chest then 6 months later i got a call from an internalist specialist at the hospital and said they wanted to see me.

So i go to the appointment which took about 4 months so i go and they did a few other tests on me and all this time i still did not know what was going on so finally they sat me down and told me that i have C O D P and there is no cure for it  i was shocked and did not know what to think this was found bye accident the gave me a prescription for an inhaler and told me to see a doctor closer to my area and my regular doctor  i am waiting for the appointments there are 2 weeks away.

Is this a serious disease ? what can i do to help myself. they did not tell me much but that i had it ,

i am going crazy waiting until my doctor appointment does anyone have any info or advice ,i do not have a computer right now i just used my friends for now but mine is getting fixed so i have not been able to research this at all.

should i be worried about this please help any advice or info would be greatly appreciated

I have so many other health issues and seems like they keep finding more.

anyways thanks in advance

Terry68

[sk8flo]

There are a many informative sites for learning about copd.  Since your doc does not know much about copd, then ask him for a referral to a pulmonologist.  You should also get all your records from the Study people, all the tests, the CT scan, etc.  What kind of study was this that you agreed to participate in???

Denial is not uncommon when people are first told they have copd.  Go to your local library and ask for books to learn about copd.

[terry68]

well i worde it wrong because they have done the tests already and i have been diagnosed already with COPD i just meant i need to see my regular doctor to discuss my options  but my doctor does not know much about COPD so i still have not been told much and its driving me crazy  not knowing what to  so anyADVICE OR INFO WILL BE GREATLY APPRECIATED

[sstitanic2]

I too would not worry too much about it until you see your doctors. Make sure you are seeing a lung specialist.
The most single important thing you can do is quit smoking if you smoke. That is not the only reason for copd however.
copd is the 4th leading cause of death in the US.
There are many inhalers out there. Did they say what stage you are? That makes a difference in life expectancy and treatments too. There are rehab places and you will get a wealth of information on this illness.
There are people out there who have lived a long time with this and have even gotten better. I am one of those people.
Another thing that I feel is important is to learn all you can about it. That takes away the fear. Education is power.  Do not believe everything you hear about cures or meds or the illness itself. There is no cure. There are a lot of good meds.  There are a lot of good people out there working on this.
I hope this helps. Keeping calm is the best thing you can do for the moment. Conserve your energy. I hope your hip is getting better. God Bless

[meg321]

Hi, there doesnt seem to be much action on here, so I didn't want let this go.  I finally had a confirmation of COPD today.  I had been diagnosed in the past but none of the DRs really bothered to explain anything to me.

I have had breathing issues for a long time so I am not surprised, but I was still in denial because nothing seemed to help so I just stopped taking my inhalers.

So now I too have a lot of questions also on how to live with this.  I already have another incurable disease, i didnt need another either.

Since you have not seen your Dr. yet for any testing, I would not worry until then.  The inhalers slow down the progression so If you caught it early, it should help a lot.

So stay positive, that can only help you.

Hugs,meg