David, on the Main Page click "forum" and you will then see several sections - "Chatterbox" is one of them.

Thank you, Audrey, I appreciate the good wishes. There has been nasty stuff going around California, including a cough that has laid people up for weeks. I don't think mine was that bad a case and I'm grateful for that, not adding to my COPD. I still have a touch of it but it's so much better! And I even have a bit of energy, YaaaaY! I hope you all are surviving and who knows, maybe even thriving!

Good to hear that you are feeling better David.

Sorry, I'm feeling mych better after a course of azithromycin, very little cough (not completely gone). I have been busy with work, but I haven't gotten emails from Dunn or Sandylei. My email is mistrike@gmail.com. I just sent myself a test email FROM that address TO that address and it went right through. Please try again. Thanks!

I did not get a rely on the E-mail either figured you might not be feeling up to par.....

Hmm...I'm not sure what that means? What's chatter? You can email me at mistrike@gmail.com if you wish.

David I am going to post my other question on chatter since this is the medical site

I had never heard of that daily strength site , but also when I looked for things I began them with COPD and did not even think to begin with Emphysema saw some other things I may go back to and look around , you have to have a site or blog or something to post messages I guess or everyone would be doing it.

I had posted that link on Daily Strength with the hopes of finding some of our lost members.

Sandy, I looked back in my history and here's what I found. I had googled "emphysema forum" and that led me to https://www.dailystrength.org/group/copd-emphysema/discussion/good-bye-1

This was another copd group that apparently got "infected" by bickering and conflict, and lots of peeps dropped out. One of them wrote: "Here is a link for another COPD forum you may want to try. No bickering just a friendly group sharing the COPD life. It even has a chatwee for instant conversations. It is secure. https://copdonline.wixsite.com/copd-online"

Sister Petra, I'm not using any meds now. Last winter was when this all began, with a severe couigh which lasted until April when it went away, even tho I was still smoking my one hit of weed per day (for depression;. it has saved my life, I'm sure of that!). The cough was mostly gone through spring and summer, occasional bouts, and my health was good enough that I did some hill climbing on a vacation to Denmark that made me think all was normal (this was all pre~dignosis of emphysema). But the cough returned this winter, and I'm in California so the winters are mild compared to a lot of you. Of course I'm hopng that when winter's over again, so will the cough. But this season, in addition to the devastating flu that many have, and the usual colds, there is "The Cough" that is mostly just a cough, but it has laid people out for 2~3~4 weeks, just a horrible racking cough with no apparent cure. I think I had a touch of the latter, not bad tho. I was prescribed for Azithromycin, don't know if it helped, just a maybe. My strength is somewhat lowered and my stamina definitely is. By 4 pm I'm whupped. Last night I finally got off my feet and began resting, which was nice and restorative except for the 2.5 hours between 12:30 and 3 when my lungs decided they wanted me to clear them out, so I was awake and doing my "yoga breathing exercises" (AKA coughing!) for a couple of hours. Not pleasant by any stretch, but I do breathe better afterwards, and that's a good thing. I'm just hoping that either tomorrow or Monday my lungs will allow me to get out and take a bit of a hike, I need to see some nature~I live in a wonderfully beautiful part of the CA coast where there are many trails and beaches to walk on.

Thanks, y'all...

David, if and when you get into a regimen for your meds, be sure to let us know what they are. There is a specific timing schedule that most docs don't tell patients about because most of them don't know it.

Hi Sandy, I think I had googled "copd forum" or something like that. I can't find it in my history and when I just searched that specific term, this site didn't show up. Sorry I can't be more help. If I look further and find an answer, I'll be sure and tell you.

Feeling better today, more energy. Still have some crap in my lungs but not as bad.

David this has nothing to do with medical but I was wondering how you found this site , have a girl that was on our other site that did not have an E-mail , that probably has not figured out how to find any of us , well we had over a 100 at the last site and 32 here right now .

Thank you very much for this, Don. Many people around here, Northern California, are sick with flu, a cough (other than weakness, it's the primary symptom) or common cold, 3 separate illnesses. I think I've had a light version of The Cough, on top of my COPD cough, so it's been pretty intense at times. Still, I know two people who've been laid out by their cough for up to two weeks. I'm on and off with it. The doc gave me antibiotics and I think (hope!) they're helping. I def. felt better yesterday, better enough that I opted to go out to dinner and a movie with friends. Made it through dinner just fine but as soon as the movie started, I began coughing. Decided to go out to the lobby so as not to annoy the other viewers. I missed some of the movie on and off as the cough came and went and came back. Not pleasant. I came home more tired than I thought I would be and my temp was 100.4, a little dismaying. So we'll see...a couple more days on the antibiotics and hopefully...it would be lovely to have some energy and enthusiasm again.

Good wishes to all.

David: I waited to hear more from you concerning your diagnosis which now I know is a fact. The coughing part could be from any of a myriad of causes. I found some helpful stuff which I will paste here:

What causes a cough?

A cough can be caused by several conditions, both temporary and permanent.

Clearing the throat

A cough is a standard way of clearing the throat. When your airways become clogged with mucus or foreign particles such as smoke or dust, a cough is a reflex reaction that attempts to clear the particles and make breathing easier.

Usually, this type of coughing is relatively infrequent, but coughing will increase with exposure to irritants such as smoke.

Viruses and bacteria

The most common cause of a cough is a respiratory tract infection, such as a cold or flu. Respiratory tract infections are usually caused by a virus and may last from a few days to a week. Infections caused by the flu may take a little longer to clear up and may sometimes require antibiotics.

Smoking

Smoking is another common cause of coughing. A cough caused by smoking is almost always a chronic cough with a distinctive sound. It’s often known as “smoker’s cough.”

Asthma

A common cause of coughing in young children is asthma. Typically, asthmatic coughing involves wheezing, making it easy to identify. Asthma exacerbations should receive treatment using an inhaler. It’s possible for children to grow out of asthma as they get older.

Medicines

Some medications will cause coughing, although this is generally a rare side effect. Angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors, commonly used to treat high blood pressure and heart conditions, can cause coughing. Two of the more common brands are Zestril (lisinopril) and Vasotec (enalapril). The coughing stops when the medication is discontinued.

Other conditions

Other conditions that may cause a cough include:

• damage to the vocal cords

• postnasal drip

• bacterial infections such as pneumonia, whooping cough, and croup

• serious conditions such as pulmonary embolism and heart failure 

Another common condition that can cause a chronic cough is gastroesophageal reflux disease(GERD). In this condition, stomach contents flow back into the esophagus. This backflow stimulates a reflex in the trachea, causing the person to cough.

Hope you find some usefulness in this info. Stay away from irritants; anything and everything affects our breathing. I too use ADC for my meds but allow time as they have to go through customs and India ain't around the corner. 10 days to 2 weeks is a safe bet.

Once again: Welcome!

I assume you are on Medicare, so try to get any inhaled meds prescribed as nebulized meds. Then Part B Medicare and your supplemental insurance will pay for them. I use Pulmicort, which is a nebulized type of Symbicort or Advair. Also I use budesonide, which is the nebulized form of Pulmicort, the inhaled corticosteroid. You have to be very compliant with these meds or they won't work.. Occasionally I need a snort from my albuterol inhaler,, but that is rare

Watch the color of the sputum carefully. Clear is OK; yellowish indicates possible complications and green means a definite infection.

Thanks to you both, Audrey and Dunn. I have an appointment with my GP tomorrow and hoping to get some antibiotics. I'm scared that I might have pneumonia again. But having pneumonia the first time was what got me to see how serious this was, so in a way it was a gift. But I don't want no mo' pneumo!

Audrey and Dunn, thanks for the tip on Alldaychemist, I'll check them out when I need meds.

When I went to the pulmonologist, he prescribed a full~on breathing test, which at the time (late summer) was quite normal~YaaaY, but there was one number he didn't like, the DLCO, Which stands for diffusion lung capacity for carbon monoxide, how I handle oxygen, 64 percent of normal, which is pretty low. He said it often indicates emphysema so he ordered a CAT scan, which clearly showed emphysema damage. No telling when it became emphysema but it could have been years ago after my years of smoking tobacco. I've also been soldering silver and gold for 50 years, I'm sure I inhaled some nasty stuff, although I did it in a big open room. Ya never know!

Thanks for tellling your story, Dunn. Yes, very different experiences. I'd love to hear others' stories, they are good to share and know about.

You probably should check back with your doctor on the cough/infection. You might need another type of antibiotic. He may also prescribe a daily maintenance inhaler. I haven't ordered drugs from a Canadian pharmacy but many of us use Alldaychemist, they are located in India. They are much cheaper and offer generic versions of many of our inhalers.