Prior to yesterday if you would have asked me if I am bothered by shortness of breath, I would have told you that I was not. As I listened to my fellow COPD patients discuss this topic I had to say, “Wait a minute, yes, I just ignore it unless it gets too bad and continue to try to keep on going.”  I also realized that I take frequent breaks while doing an activity so that I do not become too short of breath. I have been renewing my car registration online because I have a fear of all the steps up to the courthouse.

I have been in denial when it comes to fatigue as well. I have written about needing to sleep all day some days to recover from fatigue, but I have been in denial about the level of fatigue that I have on my good days. I know the feeling that your feet are encased in cement and that they are too heavy for you to lift. This keeps me from going downstairs some days. I lie to myself and say that I can do whatever I need to do on my laptop. Yes, but what about the cat’s litter box and the peacock feather blanket that I am working on down there or the ironing that needs to be done.

Thanks to the COPD Foundation (http://copdfoundation.org ) I was forced to face my denial to participate in today’s advocacy with our elected representatives.

#copdfoundation #Right2Breathe #oxygen360 #breathlessness #fatigue