COPDGet help for COPD Living with COPD can be hard. You may have questions about your medications, fears about your future, or problems coping with your symptoms. But you're not alone.
Join a COPD program or support group. You can find a COPD support group, clinic, or education centre in your area using this online database. You can also call your provincial Lung Association office for more information about what's available near you.
Join a pulmonary rehabilitation program. Pulmonary rehabilitation programs teach people with COPD how to exercise, breathe easier and live better. Find a pulmonary rehabilitation program in your area.
Call the Lung Association's free BreathWorks COPD helpline: 1-866-717-COPD (2673).
The BreathWorks Helpline is a free, confidential COPD information service offered by The Lung Association. The line is staffed by healthcare professionals with special training in COPD. We'll answer your questions about COPD, including: - What do I do if my medication isn't working?
- How can I exercise with COPD?
- What are some good breathing techniques?
- How do I take care of a person with COPD?
- How do I quit smoking?
- How can I get rid of COPD triggers in my home?
We also offer advice and support to family members and caregivers of people with COPD. If you call between 8:30 am - 4:30 pm Monday to Friday, you can speak directly with our staff. You can also leave us a message 24 hours a day, and we'll call you back. Call the BreathWorks COPD Helpline: 1-866-717-COPD (2673).
Work with your healthcare team to manage your COPD
Your health care team can help you learn more about COPD and how to cope with it. People on your COPD healthcare team may include:
- your doctor - you may have a family doctor and a respirologist (breathing specialist doctor)
- your nurse
- your certified respiratory educator, a health professional with special training in COPD
- your pharmacist
- the respiratory therapist, nurse, or cardiopulmonary physiotherapist who leads your pulmonary rehabilitation program
- a certified respiratory educator from the Lung Association's free BreathWorks COPD helpline (call 1-866-717-2673)
What to discuss with your COPD healthcare team
- all your symptoms, especially if they are getting worse
- what chores and activities you find the hardest
- what you can do to keep healthy: how to eat, how to exercise, etc.
- what things trigger your COPD
- if you are using more of your rescue inhaler (blue puffer) than usual
- questions about your treatment
- concerns you may have about your medicines or their side effects
- what to expect in the future
Getting the most our of your doctor's visit- advice for better communication - Prepare a written list of the questions you want to ask. Put the most important questions at the top of your list.
- Take notes as the doctor is answering your questions. If you don't understand the doctor's answers, ask for more details.
- Show the doctor a written list of all your symptoms. Be honest - tell the doctor all your symptoms.
- Bring along all the medications you are taking - your COPD medications, and whatever other pills or herbs you take.
- If you're not sure you're taking your medications correctly, ask the doctor. Show the doctor how you take your medicine, and ask if it's the right way.
- Bring a friend or relative to your appointment. That person can help you understand and remember the details. They can also take notes for you.
- Ask the doctor about programs in your community that help people with COPD. Ask about joining a pulmonary rehabilitation program
- If you get home from your doctor's visit and realize you missed a question or don't understand something the doctor told you, phone the doctor's office right away. Ask the nurse or doctor to explain things again.
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