just new
yeah so last month I went to the emergency room for high BP 217/119 to be exact. Hey ran a ECG and other tests for lungs and results came back with Emphysema. It is interesting how people think this is no big deal hacking up phlegm for 3 hours straight in the morning. And yes I am talking about doctors, anyway this is not about the doctors I am just happy I found out what's been wrong with me the last 10-15 years since every doctor and at least 10 in my lifetime called it Heartburn my problems with mucus , I also found out I have Bificicular Block in my heart as well , yes i really out did myself trying to find out what's been wrong with me all this time and i well got my wish, better late than ever right? i am not here for Pity , i am here to discuss with other people what is it that works for you , i am talking about people that have the Phlegm type disease not the breathing , my problem is the Phlegm part and well as i am not working and trying todo all i can do / disability with SSI trying to connect with a H.O.P.E. application to help me because i am poor and do not have any resources to get health insurance nor have i ever had health insurance , i go to a free clinic , any i have a long road ahead of me and i am trying to take the right path todo this or better yet to try and stop it from getting any worse and even trying to find some kind of Trial or something that will help me clear my phlegm, my lifestyle change has start since the day i went to the emergency room , i have lost 50 pounds so far and well i have about 50 pounds more toga , as i feel great after hacking up a lung for 3 hours in the morning, it just gets worse and worse , it is like everyone says on any COPD disease your slowly getting suffocated and eventually you wont be able to handle it and well i don't even like to say it . so i spoke to a person after making a million phone calls and ended up speaking to her for about an hour in a half , she was like a traveling type doctor that works for a hospital , anyway she gave me a lot of information , as i am not relying on SSI because i have heard very negative things about it and plus i cannot wait 10 months and hope i get accepted to pay my bills and mortgage , so i will end up getting a job and ruining that , anyway i only have like a month to try and at least establish some kind of something so my workplace does not get interrupted from my copd , i really dont know what i am asking but , that wonderful doctor talked about Antrypsin Cystic Fobrsis gene and mucinexhow that works great for my problem but she says you have to get the Mucinex original / meaning none that say like Mucinex DR and stuff like that just Mucinex, anyway i just am babbling because idk i feel like my life is at a halt and it is driving me crazy that i cannot figure out how to manage this better. I am currently taking a couple of things for it Annoro Ellipta and Albuteral , i was told Lemon would really help , but i seem to enjoy hot water with just a little honey ,i just don't think i can control it i am trying and i will never stop of course and i will keep trying , i just i don't know , I'm confused , scared , and well it just sucks.I fight i will never give up , i run and ignore the issues and focus on running I don't run a long time but i go for about 20 to 30 minutes at a time sometimes once maybe twice a day .my lifestyle change is very good unless someone tells me different ,salmon , chicken boiled ,fruit, eggs boiled , i never use oil or butter nothing everything is boiled, or in the oven with water, lettuce with vinegar, i use yellow mustard not a lot sometimes on my chicken , i drink only water , been doing that for about 2 years since these coughing episodes have been progressing while not having a clue what it was, no dairy /causes phlegm. anyway i am trying and if anyone has suggestions , I am talking people that have been fighting this for years now or what have you , I am still spanking new to this and i am just trying to get myself in a safe place to just get my life moving again without freaking out and being scared to-do anything. I don't know I am all over the place , I'm strong as heck then I'm weak as heck and scared there is no in between for me . Anyway ty for having me in your forums i glad it is here and i hope to meet wonderful good people on here that are willing to share and help others which i want to-do in the future , I am hesitating on the Mucinex just because i am scared it will just make me cough even more but I have read on it and it is suppose to think your mucus which i am in dire need of that cause boy it is thick !. anyway thank you an thank you for reading my post .I hope everyone is doing great and thank you, Dean
Hi
, welcome to our community! Thank you for sharing your story so openly with us. You are definitely dealing with a lot but our community understands and are here to offer you any support we can! Please let us know if you have any questions or are looking for some specific information. All the best, Sam S. (COPD team). ty and hello
Hi there Dean777...
Wow, you covered a lot of ground there, lol! First things first; since I'm NOT a doctor, I won't recommend any specific medical advice, other than to say "see a doctor" (you may have an infection and need an antibiotic), and if you're not happy or comfortable with him/her, don't be shy about trying a different one. You need someone who will take your situation seriously and do everything possible to bring you the relief you need and are entitled to.For a lot of your questions (like the rest of us, you'll have to educate yourself!), a good place to start is with Google. You can literally type in any question (like: "How to get rid of phlegm"😉 and instantly get a whole host of appropriate websites dedicated to that specific question. Here's an example: Just copy & paste it in the Google bar.
https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/321134As for SSI (Supplemental Security Income) or SSDI (Social Security Disability Insurance), again Google can be a beginning to understanding which is what and how to apply. Here's another example:
https://ncoa.org/article/ssi-vs-ssdi-what-are-these-benefits-how-they-differAs for busting loose that phlegm, try using a humidifier in your room as you sleep, and breathing through a steamy, hot washcloth first thing in the morning to help loosen it up, as well a steaming, hot shower.
I hope these ideas help and that you find the relief you need. Best of luck, buddy! Steve R.
ty yeah i use google , i still rather hear a real person tell me that has experienced it or have tried it , but yeah but ty i appreciate your input .
Yes ty well not having insurance being alone through this is not fun , i have a million question problem is the questions seem to never end , my COPD is all about the Phlegm nothing more , the problem that might be the bigger problem is my heart , i might be also getting phlegm from that as well , i do have a question , i spoke to a very high level knowledgable Doctor that also has COPD , hers is more of the cant breathe type COPD but she recommended Mucinex and i have well a hole lot of them coming ..anyway question is has anyone used mucinex for there COPD ? And if so does it work pretty good , i literally spit all the time , you know hard it is to try and work at a Restaurant as a bartender or server with that? I am trying for medicaid , food stamps applied for SSI but ssi expects you to sit around for 10 to 12 months and work under 20 hours a week? And then you will probley get denied , my spirometry came back normal , another question , why is my Spirometry coming back normal ? It is probley my heart for sure .unfortunately i wont find out for awile . Anyway either way i will get a pacemaker asap , problem is with the heart problem it takes alot of things away from me to work on my COPD , next question is ,food , it is getting to a point that i dont even enjoy eating food anymore knowing all it is going to do is make me cough even more after eating , and somehow accumulate more Phlegm .i dont even eat dairy nothing , just All boiled food salmon chicken. Salad fruit .thanks sorry i am a noob with these diseases and well i know its a lifetime of this and i refuse to sit back and ket this poop win , i will win but i must have every piece of detail i can muster to get through this successfully.Breaking down every night over this is not fun , i feel like i am Bipolar at this point obe minute i b am happy dancing with my cats next minute i am crying because i just watched a video about this disgusting gross will never have a life with a female anymore because i would be a disgusting person , what a conversation that would be on a first date! Anyway sorry i go on rants alot , just very uoset that this COPD really never went into effect where anyone cared about since 2002 ? I think ? Dont quote me though.21 YEARS we have achieved alot / imagine if we did something about it when my dad had COPD in 1987, they did not even know how important it is to fix a deviated septum back then , they did not even know that Hemorroids are not okay to have for your hole life , sorry im just the more i study up on detail of these terrible diseases i get very upset how it gets handled . But i am gratful for the great doctors and these trials / the doctors that actually care . I have been coughing like a crazy person for 15 years , everyday when i cough i am just waiting to start seeing blood , i actually cannot believe i have not been spitting up blood yet .knock on wood ,k ima stop talking so sorry and thank you..
... Since you expressed a specific desire to meet personally with folks who can guide and help you, the American Lung Association has a website where you can find group meetings like Better Breathers Clubs (like AA, but for lung issues) so maybe that would be a good option for you.
You didn't mention where you live, but this website covers the whole nation. Good luck.
https://www.lung.org/lung-health-diseases/lung-disease-lookup/copd/finding-support
Well you have a lot going on and finding out about it all at once is overwhelming I am sure. I too am a sufferer of multiple medical issues as many on here are. For me it's the following issues; Stage 4 COPD, Heart Disease, Rheumatoid Arthritis and Lung Cancer now. It's hard, but sounds like you are ready to do what is needed to get things done! You asked about Mucinex, I personally do not use it unless needed for my allergies but if you search this forum via the search bar on top of the page, you will see many people reference Mucinex, would suggest reading through them to you, including the responses, that might be helpful to rather it works for some or not. As for your heart disease it is probably best to get that looked at and taken care of as soon as you can of course. Those that are working with you for SSI and such are trying to help, they might have more information on how to get medical insurance, food stamps etc.. that could possible help you out, especially the medical right now. Have you checked with the free clinic that you have been using to see if they can get you in to a Pulmonologist and / or a Cardiologist Vascular Surgeon ? It is hard not to wonder what the future might bring, aka blood while coughing (your worries), but probably best to work one day at a time on what is currently going on, try not to stress on what might be, that will just cause more crazy thoughts in your head, well it does mine anyway LOL . As you mentioned the medical world has come a long way, still more room to go, but wow we are so lucky compared to the generations before us. Hope you will be able to get the help you need and fixed up as good as possible really soon! You got this and we (the forum) is here if needed of course!
Thank you so much for your story , it really helps to see that it can be done , no matter what for me because i cannot speak for others but i am really scared of all of this , now that i am aware of my diseases i keep track of my breathing and the wheezing and it can drive you crazy , i guess it takes time and knowledge . Unfortunately the Free Clinic does not have Pulmonologists, crazy right ? But am seeing a cardiologist threw them on the 25th or 26th , but yeah it is strange , but the doctors at the free clinic can refer to do certain tests for your lungs , i just read alot and i ask them for specific tests / like a Spirometry which i think im sure i am wrong but i just get a strange feeling that test it is just not that reliable.he tested my breathing after feeding me Abuterol before taking the test? Why? Now i am thinking about it ,that is not okay oh man lol , now i can flip out about that yay , you breath normal from the test they say lol. i breathe normal after using a inhaler ? Hmm ?and i truly thank you and everyone that can feed info just in case ya never know i might even know something thats amazing , at the moment when i feel like my cough might be coming instead of grabbing arbuterol i put a drop of honey on my tongue and i just let it stay on my tongue to let slowley go down my throat it is very relieving.then right after i swallow the honey i just take just a sip of water and its just so soothing .But ty and well met ...
