Life Tethered to a Concentrator — Caroline Gainer

Note: This column describes the author’s own experiences with guaifenesin. Not everyone will have the same response to treatment. Consult your doctor before starting or stopping a therapy. We always hear that we should “hydrate, hydrate, hydrate,” but I want to talk about why it’s especially crucial for those…

Those of us with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) are encouraged to eat an anti-inflammatory diet. I like to think that I harvest my health from a raised bed. I sit on the timbers of my garden bed with my legs tucked to the side and begin to…

Arthritis often occurs with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). For me, each moment of pain in my hips is another ding to my oxygen saturation, or at least that’s how it seems. I’ve been in a one-step-forward, two-steps-backward grind since a bout of pneumonia last year. Living with osteoarthritis…

Shortly after I begin to stir in the morning, I stir some nutrients into my morning coffee. I have shared my “magic coffee” recipe with many of my friends with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and I thought I’d share the benefits of the brew with you, too. Magic…

I recently read an article on my newsfeed that said Arnold Schwarzenegger, bodybuilder, actor, and onetime California governor, had a four-word mantra: “Stay busy. Be useful.” I thought this was a wonderful guide for people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). As I pursue the idea of…

I have a few tips, tricks, and gadgets that help me live a good life with my chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). They come during my morning and evening routines, which help us do what’s important for our health. They can become habits that spur us to remember…

While watching coverage of a landslide on my news feed, I was reminded of a time when I had a close brush with one. A carpool I was in just missed it, but the carpool of friends behind us wasn’t so lucky. We were concerned they’d be killed in the…

Growing up in rural central West Virginia, I can remember the doctor coming to the house with his black bag full of medicine and instruments. Now I have two providers that I consult with over Zoom, and I wonder if this is the new “home visit.” For those of us…

Maybe it’s just me, but it seems that coordinating my healthcare is getting harder. It’s important for those of us with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) to coordinate medications and other treatments so that we get optimum results. When I was diagnosed with COPD, all but one of…

Now that I have treatment for my depression and inability to sleep, I look a little differently than I used to at the occasions when I feel fatigued. I think it’s important for those of us with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) to understand what type of fatigue we…

For several years now, a doe has hidden her fawns in the middle flower bed in my front lawn. I gain so much pleasure watching her deposit her children for me to babysit each day as she goes about finding food. There’s also a calming effect in watching the little…

Note: This column describes the author’s own experiences with the sleep aid and antidepressant trazodone. Not everyone will have the same response to treatment. Consult your doctor before starting or stopping a therapy. I’ve struggled for two years to find my optimal times to go to sleep and wake…