Hope for COPD

Stress Awareness Month #4 8 Items to relieve stress!  While I love movies, music, and games to help relieve stress... Sometimes, I am just not in the mood for them. Exercise, breathing, and humor, are things that work well too. But, what are some other things you can do? Well, here are MORE ideas on how you can reduce that terrible stress! Here are some of my favorite items! I am only suggesting one supplement, one I have used for many years. This B Complex can help provide energy, restful sleep, and is a immune system booster. Great for times of great stress, or as a general everyday supplement.  Nature Made Stress Complex Tablets My eldest daughter suffers from terrible anxiety and has found this first item to be something that really helps her. It is a great stress reliever too! And, I have to play with it when I visit her. LOVE this stuff! Kinetic Sand Because we have COPD, we must be careful of the air quality we are breathing into our fragile ...

When you are diagnosed with COPD, your Doctor will ask if you have any questions. If you are anything like me, I might have one or two. But, without a complete understanding of the illness, it is hard to know exactly what questions to ask. Of course, your doctor cannot spend the time to explain EVERYTHING to you. So there are many things you can do on your own to learn about this.  No, I don't expect you to understand everything you read. BUT, you will gain a much better understanding if you do some reading, and watch some videos. We are living in an amazing time, where information is out there and free for use to learn.  Plus, I am a strong believer that you have to be your own health advocate. Of course, I do not want you to barge into your physicians office acting like you know more than they do. Some general practitioners admit that they don't feel confident about their knowledge of COPD. I think it is best to learn all you can, so that if they are not admitting this,...

  Do you know what this image is?  THIS is  a cell nuclei that has been stained to reveal IL-33. It is a type of signaling molecule found in very high levels of COPD patients! It signifies the presence of a viral infection, past or present. I am really excited about this news! Since being diagnosed with COPD I have researched everything I could, to learn as much as I can about this disease.  My first Dr. Told me that I was getting sick because I smoke.  I thought, how does a cigarette put bacteria in my lungs? It is made of tobacco, not bacteria!  New research has shown that there is the viral infection.  This viral infection causes and overproduction of mucus. Which causes inflammation of the lung tissue. That process can cause what we know as an exacerbation. This news could mean new research into therapies that will help COPD patients manage their disease much better. Some of you may already know that I will be researching an...