Tips

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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!

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 member