Newly diagnosed former Firefighter
I am a 57 year old man and was diagnosed with COPD/EMPHYSEMA over 2 years ago and since then my breathing has been short and I get out of breath very easy and weak. I am a retired Firefighter of 32 years and that's when I was diagnosed and that caused me to retire. My breathing seems to be getting slowly worse and it has me worried, I have an appointment with a pulminologist in November and I'm worried what they are going to find. I still vape as well as having several other conditions mental and physical. I am noticing that it is effecting other things as wall. I know I need to quit vaping but it's a little hard right now. I don't know if anyone else has been down this road but I'm just wondering how to work with it.
Hi
. Please know that you are not alone. Vaping/smoking is a powerful addiction. Many people struggle with quitting long after getting a COPD diagnosis, but please don't give up. It might take a bunch of tries. It might even take a few years. But it will be worth it. Here is an article about quitting that you might find helpful: https://copd.net/pulmonary-rehab/lifestyle/quitting-smoking. The article focuses on cigarettes, but the approaches are basically the same. I hope you have an pulmonologist who understands and doesn't judge. Please keep us posted, if you don't mind. I will be thinking of you. Hopefully, others will chime in here to share their experiences. - Lori (Team Member)
