Tips
Need feedback on what the group does when you can't catch your breath
,
I hate when that happens. First thing I do is sit down (if I am not already sitting down), and I immediately start pursed lip breathing to calm myself down and not go into a panic mode. Pursed lip breathing helps make sure the lungs are emptied out of CO2 before your next breathe and prevent bloated lungs. When I am calmed down, I use my Albuterol inhaler. Referred to as the "emergency inhaler". Within a few minutes, I usually can catch my breathe, and my breathing returns to what I consider normal for me. If none of that works, I will contact my medical team through their internet portal. I usually get an answer quickly. I will follow their advice. As a last resort, the ER is the answer. My medical team always tells me they would rather treat me in their office than in the hospital. But that is not always possible (maybe a weekend or holiday). I also have a prescription for prednisone to help inflammation when I need it. The best thing you can do is talk to your medical team about what to do when you can't catch your breathe and follow their advice. Hope this helps. I am sure others will chime in with what they do to help themselves in the same situation. Take care and God Bless!I have the exact same symptoms of COPD but unconfirmed.
When I cant seem to get any oxygen ,I dont breathe out normally ,I blow as if I am blowing up a baloon, every time I exhale....I find this helpful and I do it for 4 to 5 minutes ,then my brrathing slows down to normal.
What I also find ,is that once I have breathing issues, my lungs get into shallow breathing mode...and the lungs dont fill with oxygen.
Then I have to consciously deep breathe ...breathing exercise and then my lungs will 'reset'.
Normal brrathing has a gap of 2 to 3 seconds between breaths, when relaxed.
If you don't have a gap between breaths ,I suggest you do some deep breathing exercises to 'reset' your breathing habit.
Our amazing patient leader Barbara wrote my favorite article on this topic.
https://copd.net/living/anxiety-and-breathing
You'll notice there are a lot of similarities to Dminor's process. Hopefully you can benefit from them. We're here to listen whenever you need us! -Melissa, team memberNeeding to calm yourself along with pursed lip breathing is key. I’ve found if I can’t focus, I close my eyes. It helps with calming. Mentally, telling yourself slow easy breaths can help too. If you can’t calm try gently rubbing a circle with one hand on the other.
They told me to do that when I was in pain in the hospital while it was pretty bad. Fortunately they eventually gave me meds but it was not for lack of trying not to! Glad to hear that you found something that does help, though! Thanks for sharing. Keep on keepin' on, DPM
