Mom has been in the hospital for three days now...yesterday I recieved a phone call from her care doctor...he explained to me that her lungs are down to half their power...she has been told for years that she has copd...but I don't think either of us grasped the situation until now. She is at the point now where if she gets a little cough, the weather changes, a cold,...etc..that unless she gets to the doctor rite away, she will be in the hospital. First, this will probably throw her into a panic..so then I am left with deciding if she needs the doctor, or she is just scared, second, this just put my life on a bigger edge!! I don't know anymore then what he told me yesterday...and he was pretty good at explaining..but how long does a person live with just half of their lungs working...is this something we can cope with for a long time, or are they telling me her time is extremely limited...these are hard questions and I am not sure anyone has any answers...but I am hoping to hear from anyone who has dealt with this perticular problem. Do I keep her isolated? Do I just let life take its course and let her decide how to deal with it..I guess I am just in a bit of a panic mode. I just want to understand the personnal aspects of this thing. I am on edge more if I don't know, then if I do know..we both smoke and yes I want to quit but my nerves are on edge now so I am scared of what I will go through if I quit and what I will go through if I don't quit. I don't have a doctor so don't suggest any fancy magic pill to help, I can't afford it, but I am looking for prayer to get me over the quitting part. I did it once for 17 years, but picked it back up after my husband died and believe me when I tell you..it is harder to quit now then before. For her to quit is her decission...she is 83, the damage cannot be reversed and I don't know if she can go through the withdrawal...that one I am leaving up to her and yes I can just quit buying the cigarettes for her, but I am not sure the fight is worth her mental state at this point. I have turned to you guys many times now and you have not lead me wrong, yet...so here I am again...thanx to the responses I recieve ahead of time...ever one of you have been a blessing... April
But individuals vary, so I would pose this question to her pulmonologist, who may only be able to cite statistics. Jot down questions you want to ask, do some COPD research, then meet with him to develop guidelines for care, especially for emergency care and what constitutes an emergency. At least then you'll have a game plan.
You might also want to ask about the use of a spirometer to strengthen her lungs, as well as whether or not your hospital (or other medical facility) has a pulmonary rehab program. Ours does; patients can go 3x weekly and participate in medically supervised pulmonary exercises.
The fact that Mom would be with others with similar conditions, seeing how they're taking as much control of their lives as possible, might help buoy both of you as you deal with this diagnosis.
While I don't know if this would help with smoking cessation, you might want to find out if the hospital or any cancer treatment facility with which it's associated has an art and/or healing therapy program. I went to art therapy after my sister died of cancer and found it very beneficial, very calming and soothing. Music and pet therapy might also be helpful.
Obviously they don't change the condition and won't necessarily make quitting smoking easier, but they do help control the anxiety of dealing with medical issues.
Good luck!
Stav