breathing issues for a long time scared I'm going to die please respond asap

[Jtreyo89]

hi im 30 years old and I have smoked a pack a day for at least 15 years. and since about September of last year I have been coughing up phlegm of all colors everyday and its been hard to breath . I had a chest X-ray twice now and they said it was all normal. I had a pft test a breathing test and it suggested I had mild copd. but the doctor said that he thinks I'm just out of shape and a smoker and he thinks if I quit and started exercising and eating better that my test would be different. but the test said I had very mild copd . so if I have mild copd does this mean I'm going to die soon?? and with this corona virus if I catch it will I die cuz I have mild copd..

and can anxiety cause breathing problems every single day cuz now I focus on my breathing so much that I am short of breath alllllll day long but my symptoms are just like copd and empozema I'm freaking out I'm convinced that I'm dying and any day now I will be hospitalized I am 30 years old I have two kids and I'm freaking out so much I can't focus and I also am convinced I have colon cancer to I'm always constipated and I have acid reflux everyday . but the major thing is this lung thing I cough up phlegm every single day now for 7 months it won't go away I'm short of breath allll day long I can't even finish sentences without taking deep breath is its all I think about  please help me please

[Paxiled]

Smoking ravaged not only my family but the entire post-WWII generation (many of whom got hooked by the free cigarettes given out by the carton to everyone involved in that war, not only those in uniform but also those who provided support to them.  Combined with the extreme pollution we face in our water, air and food from our industrial society, while it's unusual to get this from smoking so young I'd consider myself lucky.  My Dad spent the last ten years of his life unable to walk more than a block.  My Mom died of cancer at age 55.  My sister died of a blood clot at age 48.  All chain smokers, and my sister was also obese.  So if you're overweight (you said out of shape), smoke that much starting at an age when your body hadn't fully developed yet, and you're already getting these kinds of problems, it's time to quit smoking now.  Trust me, this isn't the way you want to go.  It's long, slow and really painful.  I don't mean to scare you, but there's so much you really can't control in life, such as Covid, but smoking you can.  It's not easy, but you can.  So if that's the cause, you can fix it.  As for the copd, I'm not sure that the doctors really know you have that.  If it's a mild case, I'm not sure how they would differentiate that from so many other things that could affect the lungs, such as allergies et.  It could be food allergies or intolerances catching up to you as well, such as to dairy.  But anything you get in that area combined with the smoking is more than you want to handle.  My brother never smoked, but he got ashthma because of our parents' smoking and now that he's over 70 he has copd.  I've had allergies all my life, and learned they were caused by my parents' smoking when I moved out of the house at age 17 and a lot of my problems stopped, but not all of them.  Quitting isn't easy, but it's easier when you have a real scary reason to, and now you do, and you're young enough to do it.  Peace.

[AnxiousNoMore]

"It's long, slow and really painful. " You make an important point, because many smokers are under the misunderstanding that they will die of a painless heart attack instead of what you witnessed.

[Paxiled]

Well, they very well might die of a heart attack, although painless it is we can't know because the person died and can't tell us that.  My sister died very quickly of a  blood clot that traveled from her leg to her heart.  That wasn't painless, but it was quick.  But she only lived 48 years.  My Dad died of a heart attack, again, he was alone so who knows if it was painless or not?  But that followed ten years of emphysema.  My Mom started to death, basically, after 7 years spent in a wheel chair.  It is indeed a long, slow, and painful way to go for most people.  Not my choice.

[Paxiled]

Sorry, not started to death, starved to death in the hospital in a morphine stupor.  Only time she came out of it once she decided to give up and die she weight about 70 pounds, all bone, and asked my Dad for a cigarette.  Again, not my choice.

[auntiejessi]

If your lungs sound great, that's awesome.

Is anxiety new for you?

It's stressful now. We are all worried. I'm worried. I'm worried for myself and my family, and there is still a lot of unknown things out there.

You've been diagnosed with mild COPD. Since you can't control covid19, focus on what you can control, which is quitting smoking. It's HARD, but it's possible. Find the way that works best for you. It might be cold turkey, it might be weaning off them, it might be with aids like nicotine gum or something.

You can do that. :)

[Sara_MHModerator]

Hello, welcome.  I'm sure others will help soon but we do want to let you know that if you can't breath, you should seek immediate emergency care.  With regards to the corona virus, our members will share information with you, however, we want you to be safe first.  

[Jtreyo89]

I have been to the doctor they told me it’s not corona virus related and it’s just from smoking and I need to quit they listened to my lungs and said they sound great

[AnxiousNoMore]

Well you're in good shape so far according to what you posted, which mainly makes your future in your hands if you quit now, other than the risk of latent lung cancer. I'm not sure about current studies but I read once that it can stay dormant for 30 years, so the smoke you have today has the potential to give you cancer when you are 60. Obviously your risks go down every week after you stop and people feel better as well. A woman told me her husband kept ignoring his doctor's advice by continuing to smoke until he got COPD which limited his life so much that he couldn't even mow the lawn. He then went into a depression.
https://www.medhelp.org/forums/Smoking-Addiction/show/159
Here is a forum you might be interested in.  https://www.medhelp.org/forums/Smoking-Addiction/show/159

[AnxiousNoMore]

I meant the smoke you have today can give you cancer at any time up to 30 years, if current research shows that is still valid.