Introduction -- About this book -- Conventions used in this book -- What you're not to read -- Foolish assumptions -- How this book is organized -- Part 1: Every Breath You Take: The Who, What, And Why Of COPD -- Part 2: Catching Your Breath: Treating COPD -- Part 3: In The Next Breath: Managing Your Overall Health -- Part 4: Breathing Easier: Living With COPD -- Part 5: Part Of Tens -- Glossary -- Icons used in this book -- Where to go from here -- Part 1: Every Breath You Take: The Who, What, And Why Of COPD -- Understanding COPD -- What COPD is and isn't -- What COPD is: the deadly combo -- What COPD isn't: other lung ailments -- How COPD affects your body -- Loss of energy -- Loss of muscle strength -- Working harder for fewer results -- How COPD affects your life -- Missing work -- Skipping social activities -- Doing less at home -- Losing it emotionally -- How you lungs work -- Your breathing system -- What happens when you breathe -- Your body's air filtration system -- Healthy lungs versus damaged lungs -- Healthy lungs -- Damaged lungs -- Factors that influence your lung function -- Age -- Environmental factors -- Lifestyle factors -- COPD risk factors -- Risky behaviors -- Smoking: the number-one risk -- On-the-job risks -- Air quality -- Gender age, and economic status -- Why women are more susceptible to COPD -- Why COPD generally strikes after age 40 -- Why low-income patients are at risk -- Looking back: heredity and medical history -- Genetic link to COPD -- What your family history says about your COPD risk -- What your own medical history says about your COPD risk -- Other possible risk factors -- Assessing your risk -- Part 2: Catching Your Breath: Treating COPD -- Diagnosis and what it means -- Knowing which tests your doctor may run -- Spirometry testing -- Bronchodilator reversibility -- Diffusion capacity -- Oximetry -- Lung volume tests -- Chest X-rays -- Arterial blood gas tests -- Ruling out other lung diseases -- Asthma -- Lung cancer -- Tuberculosis -- Pleurisy -- Assessing the severity of your COPD -- At-risk classification -- Mild COPD -- Moderate COPD -- Severe COPD -- Recognizing that there's no cure, only care -- Things you can do to feel better -- Things your doctor can do to help you feel better -- Emotional impact of COPD -- Now what do I do? -- Identifying your limitations -- Facing your fears -- Grieving for your life as it used to be -- Getting adjusted to your new life -- Letting in your loved ones -- Dealing with emotions -- Understanding resentment-on both sides -- Figuring it out together -- Managing stress -- Relaxing the body and mind -- Cutting back on stress inducers -- Taking care of yourself -- Finding other support -- People like you: COPD groups -- Talking it out: what therapy can do -- Considering antidepressants -- Developing coping strategies -- Building your healthcare team -- Finding a doctor -- What kind of doctor do you want? -- Where to look -- What to look for -- Comfort factor -- First stop: your primary-care physician -- Assessing your general health -- Tracking vital functions -- Getting referrals to specialists -- Answering your questions -- Pulmonologist -- What a pulmonologist looks for -- How a pulmonologist can help -- Dietitian or nutritionist -- Improved nutrition equals better health -- Assessing your eating habits -- Setting nutritional goals -- Creating a regimen that works for you -- Occupational therapist -- Helping your achieve your daily goals -- Targeted exercise for your goals -- Counselor -- Dealing with depression -- Keeping up your mental energy -- Balancing wild hopes and realistic expectations -- Pulmonary rehabilitation -- Rehab goals -- Who needs rehab -- COPD treatment goals -- Controlling progression and symptoms -- Changing your lifestyle to ease symptoms -- Prescribing medicines to treat symptoms -- Minimizing side effects -- Preventing and treating complications -- COPD's cohorts -- Sudden onset of severe symptoms -- Optimizing lung function -- Increasing your tolerance for physical exercise -- Trying breathing exercises -- Keeping your airways clear -- Drug treatments -- Bronchodilators -- Short-acting bronchodilators -- Long-acting bronchodilators -- Common side effects -- Steroids -- Forms of steroids -- Side effects of steroids -- Withdrawal effects -- Combination drugs -- Mucolytic agents -- Using inhalers properly -- Using an inhaler without a spacer -- Using an inhaler with a spacer -- Using dry-powder inhalers -- Caring for your inhalers -- Using a nebulizer -- Oxygen therapy -- When it's needed -- Home oxygen equipment -- Oxygen delivery systems -- Taking your meds properly -- Surgery and alternative treatments -- Surgical options -- Bullectomy -- Lung volume reduction surgery -- Lung transplant -- Alternative treatments -- Acupuncture -- Nutritional supplements -- Herbal treatments -- Part 3: In the next breath: managing your overall health -- First, best thing you can do: quit smoking -- Dying for a cigarette -- Biomechanics of nicotine addiction -- Toxic chemicals in cigarette smoke -- Recognizing smoke's effects on your body -- Immediate effects of smoking -- Long-term effects of smoking -- What happens when you quit -- How quitting helps your body -- Temporary downside: withdrawal -- Why you should quit, even if you have COPD -- Trying a variety of cessation techniques -- Cold turkey -- Hypnosis -- Antidepressants -- Nicotine replacement -- Chantix -- Behavioral changes --
Nutrition and weight management
Being aware of which foods can hurt
Risks of being overweight
Risks of being underweight
Adding more, smaller meals
What a healthy diet looks like
Vital vitamins and minerals
Getting motivated to move
How movement affects your body
Help for your circulatory system
Help for your respiratory system
Help for your sense of well-being
Setting goals for your quality of life
Thinking about what you'd like to do
Increasing your tolerance for exertion
Designing your exercise regimen
Breathing easier: living with COPD
Day in your life with COPD
Starting from the foundations
Choosing the right clothes and accessories
Fans and air-conditioning
Knowing when you shouldn't work
Planning for a time when you can't work
Making your home you-friendly
Reorganizing things you use often
Tools to help you get around
Tools to help you move your stuff around
Minimize trips up and down stairs
When you have to stretch and bend
Calling on family and friends
When it's time for a home aide
Types of indoor air pollution
Using fresheners, filters, and purifiers
Preparing for emergencies
Preventing sudden attacks
In the ambulance, emergency room, or hospital
Creating an emergency plan
Knowing your warning signs
When to call for an ambulance
Discussing whether you want life-sustaining treatments
Considering resuscitation: CPR
Helping a loved one with COPD
How COPD affects your loved one
How your loved one's COPD affects you
Understanding the treatment
Commonly prescribed drugs
Recommended lifestyle changes
Looking at other ways you can help
Helping with household chores
Helping find new interests
Keeping your loved one comfortable
Paying attention to emotional health
Getting involved in medical care
Talking with the medical team
Understanding the instructions
What medical personnel need to know
Ten things to avoid if you have COPD
Quitting smoking can cure COPD
When you have COPD, there's no reason to quit smoking
COPD is only a problem when symptoms are severe
When you go on oxygen, you have to be on it forever
People with COPD can't live normal lives
Ten strategies for coping with COPD
See your doctor regularly
Set goals for your daily activity level
Establish an exercise regimen
Ten (or so) health factors linked with COPD
Hardening of the arteries
C-reactive protein levels
