Lessons from my pet robin on living with COPD

Once upon a time, before chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) took my breath away, I had a pet robin named Oscar. He had a damaged wing, which might have been caused by the way he came into my life.

Oscar arrived one evening in the mouth of my big gray cat, Smokey. I put the bird in a cloth handbag and stuffed him in the closet in case Smokey decided he might eat him. I searched and searched for a nest but found none, so I read an article about how to raise a baby bird. I found that I could feed it dry dog food soaked in water.

Oscar soon delivered my first life lesson. Though his wing was deformed, he could still fly. However, his flight did not look like that of other birds. Oscar was telling those of us with COPD that we can still do things, but we may have an altered way of doing them. An example might be climbing steps. We may need to go slower or take it one step at a time, but we can still get the job done.

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The second lesson Oscar taught me was about dependence and independence. My late husband would take Oscar out to the garage and let him fly and try to learn to perch. Oscar had difficulty grasping the edge of the shelving and the chains that helped open the garage door. We didn’t know how to help him because he was very good at perching on our fingers as he ate.

We decided the best approach was to let him keep trying. It worked; soon he could land anywhere and grasp anything he wanted. This was an excellent lesson for me as I became a caregiver to my husband, who had lung cancer. Though it was difficult to watch him struggle, I realized that the struggle was making him stronger, and I needed to let that happen. Once he was cancer-free, he told me he thought that if everyone had a caregiver like me, they’d be much better off.

Today, I live alone and do not have a caregiver. I’ve had to learn to do many things in different ways because of the breathlessness of COPD. My mother always told me that what didn’t kill me made me stronger, and I believe Oscar reinforced that lesson.

Note: COPD News Today is strictly a news and information website about the disease. It does not provide medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. This content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read on this website. The opinions expressed in this column are not those of COPD News Today or its parent company, Bionews, and are intended to spark discussion about issues pertaining to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.