OHS
Does anyone have ohs ? I’m on o2 only 2.5. And need a by-pap at night to get as much of the co2 out of my system otherwise I pass out or get loopy. Need to know how others are doing to get better
I am not sure I can be of much help, but I will try. First off, there is no getting better with COPD, as it is a progressive disease that continuously gets worse. There is no cure. The only things we can do is to keep it at bay by doing all the things we can to control it. By that I mean taking meds on time all the time, daily exercise (no matter how little), proper diet, and doing breathing exercises daily. Also avoiding situations that cause flare ups. For example, staying indoors when it is too hot or cold, staying indoors when pollens and molds are high, avoiding anything that irritates your lungs. As far as CO2 is concerned, I use pursed lip breathing several times a day to get rid of CO2 in my lungs. Because COPD causes shallow breathing a lot, your lungs never fully expel all the CO2 left in them. This causes "ballooning" of the lungs and makes it hard to expel the CO2. Pursed lip breathing helps expel the leftover CO2 and helps breathing. You can also try blowing up an actual balloon to achieve the same effect. I would contact my health care provider and seek advice on how to work on expelling CO2 and follow their advice. I hope this helps a little. Take care and God Bless.
Hi
, and thanks for your post and question - it's a good one! While I'm hopeful others in the community will see your inquiry and respond by sharing their own personal anecdotal experiences, I have something to contribute too.
First, I see that our good community member,, has joined in the discussion and shared a straight-forward, honest depiction of how he manages COPD with you.
Next, I wanted to respond to your concern about OHS. For those who don't know, obesity hypoventilation syndrome (OHS), is a condition that results in a lung condition that is similar to what we all think of as COPD. Years ago, when I was a respiratory therapy student, we learned this syndrome was referred to as the Pickwickian Syndrome. For those who would like to read more about it, this link (from the Cleveland Clinic), will provide a good overview: https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/24393-obesity-hypoventilation-syndrome.
Have you had an opportunity to discuss this with your physician, Penguinqueen? Are you being followed by a physician?
Wishing you well,
Leon (site moderator COPD.net)Hi again, Penguin, and thanks for acknowledging my comment to you. I am glad to hear the article, regarding OHS, was helpful for you.
If there is anything we can do to assist you, please let me or any other moderator / team member know.
All the best,
Leon (site moderator COPD.net)
I hear you, losing weight can be so frustrating and takes a lot of effort! Have you talked to your doctor about your difficulty? I wonder if they would be willing to refer you to a nutritionist and/or to pulmonary rehab, which is a day program where they teach you how to breathe better while also improving your physical fitness. The other thing to remember is that you don't have to be super active ... even walking around your house or doing seated exercises in your living room from a YouTube video are great for your health. Do what you can, even if it's 5 minutes. It all helps. I hope that's an encouragement to you. We're here to cheer you on! -Melissa, copd.net team
