The damage that has already occurred to the lungs cannot be repaired. Therefore, the treatment for COPD is to try to prevent a further deterioration in the lungs and improve other functions in the body. The earlier you seek help, the better treatment options you have.
Treatment for COPD
Self-care is the most important part of the treatment for COPD. Self-care is what you do yourself in daily life to feel as good as possible with the disease. In COPD, self-care is very important for health, so you have a great opportunity to influence how you feel.
Here are some tips on what you can do to feel better in everyday life:
- Avoid smoking.
- Learn more about the disease and get help from healthcare.
- Be physically active in everyday life.
- Contact a dietitian if you lose weight involuntarily.
- Facilitate breathing with the help of breathing techniques.
- You may need medication. Talk to your doctor.
- Get vaccinated against the flu every year.
- Get vaccinated against pneumococci.
COPD is a disease with varying degrees of severity. It can be a mild illness that does not affect daily life as much or a serious illness with a significant impact on everyday life. Lifestyle, habits, interests and expectations of life differ between different people. This means that the disease is experienced differently depending on who you ask.
For some, life with COPD is therefore not so different. For others, COPD means major changes and limitations in what you can do. If you have severe COPD, healthcare can help you find ways to make your everyday life work as well as possible.
Most important to quit smoking
The most common is that COPD is due to smoking and then the most important thing is to stop smoking and not to start again later. Smoking cessation is the only thing that can stop the development of the disease.
Most people tend to feel better when they have stopped smoking. There is good support to be had if you need help to be able to quit.
Help quit smoking
Healthcare has methods to help people quit smoking. If there are special smoking cessation clinics near you, you can contact them.
Nurses and doctors at a health center can help you and provide guidance when you should stop smoking. It may be easier to quit if you have the opportunity to talk to an experienced person about expectations and problems with smoking cessation.
You may also need to use some medicine to quit smoking. The drugs reduce the craving for nicotine or block the positive effects of nicotine.
Another help is the Stop Smoking Line.