Overcoming Mental COPD Challenges

There are many challenges faced in dealing with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD). This is a condition that primarily affects your lungs and is mainly characterized by breathlessness as a result of blockage and inflammation in the lungs. However, beyond the physical limitations and the fatigue, one challenge many struggle with is their frame of mind. COPD can create emotional challenges limiting your zeal for life and the activities that you enjoy doing.

A study conducted by researchers at the National Jewish Medical and Research Center in Denver showed that people diagnosed with COPD are more likely to suffer depression than people with other chronic diseases. An estimated 40 percent of people with COPD are more likely to be affected by depression compared to just 15 percent of the rest of the population. You are also more likely to have problems with anxiety if you have COPD.

Having COPD can change the way you feel about yourself and the mental challenges could take a toll on you if you do not know to detect and handle the signs and symptoms. You could turn this around by understanding the possible effects COPD has on your mental health and then getting getting the support that you need.

COPD and Depression

Being diagnosed with a chronic disease like COPD can cause one to feel hopeless and depressed. Some of the symptoms such as sleeplessness and fatigue are related to depression. Other effects that come with the condition such as needing supplemental oxygen and having eating problems can leave you feeling very low. You may also feel weak and this may lead to you not being able to participate in activities that you prefer doing and isolating yourself from others since you are uncomfortable carrying around an oxygen tank. These are all possible reasons which increase the risk of depression among people with COPD.

The importance of getting help with the emotional stress caused by COPD cannot be emphasized enough. This is because anxiety and depression only worsen the condition. According to National Jewish Health, people with COPD who are also suffering from depression are less likely to follow their treatment plans. This poor management of COPD can lead to more flares, visits to the emergency as well as hospital admissions.

COPD and Anxiety 

Your brain subconsciously monitors your system analyzing your blood to ensure you are getting the oxygen  that is required and breathing healthy air. If anything is to interfere with your breathing or the air quality that you are inhaling, your brain then alerts your body that you are suffocating. This warning can really scare you causing a wave of panic or distress. Your heart beats faster, you get lightheaded, hands start trembling and you start feeling on edge.

Nothing provokes your anxiety more than not being able to breathe, when diagnosed with COPD, you may be constantly on toes, waiting for the next episode of shortness of breath. 

Vijai Sharma, PHD, a clinical psychologist in Cleveland, Tenn, working with people with COPD and who was actually diagnosed with COPD himself almost 20 years ago says that a viscous cycle usually develops. Difficulty in breathing creates anxiety, and in turn, the anxiety causes more breathlessness. This can lead to a very active ‘suffocation alarm’ system, and even more anxiety from the false alarms. In some unique cases, very strong odors such as perfumes can trigger an alarm.

“Untreated anxiety can be a full-time affair, keeping you constantly worried, fearful, and even sad,” Dr. Sharma says. “It can affect your family and relationships, and your participation in social life.” You may lose interest and joy in relating to others as a result of feeling isolated from your family and partner. Anxiety can also exhaust what little physical energy you may have.

You should first acknowledge that what you are feeling or going through is a normal reaction to the changes that you have made in your lifestyle because of your COPD. “Anxiety and depression only show that you are human,” Sharma says. “If you experience depression or anxiety, it does not mean that you are weak or going crazy.” You may be unable to do all the things you once did before but there is a lot you can do to improve your outlook on things. Here are some tips to help you overcome mental COPD challenges;

1. Challenge anxious or depressing thoughts. To do this, use the self-talk method to disapprove negative thoughts and feelings. Take for example, if your thoughts are along the lines of “I will never feel good again, all my days are bad” respond with “ That is untrue, I have good days too.” What you tell yourself matters. You can either be your biggest critic or your own best supporter.

2. When you feel depressed, engage in an activity like humming for a few minutes or perform a physical exercise like stretching. This will help ease the feeling.

3. Use self-affirmations to build your confidence and feeling of self-worth. Repeat these to yourself over and over again. This is a positive cycle that can build on itself, creating a critical mass of positivity as you couple more successes with greater confidence and self esteem. An example of one phrase you can use is “ I am competent, smart and able” or “I am a doer, not a worrier.”

4. When you feel anxious, exhale slowly and think to yourself, “Relax”. Tell yourself, “If I calm down, the anxious feeling will subside in a few minutes.” This will help manage the anxiety.

5. Learn breathing techniques to help you control your breathing and also just to help you when you need to calm down. Examples of some breathing techniques that you can learn include pursed-lip breathing and diaphragmatic breathing. You can learn this techniques from a psychologist, respiratory therapist or physical therapist preferably in a pulmonary rehabilitation setting.

6. Join a COPD support group. This will not only give you the chance to make new friends but also to meet people that are facing the same challenges that you are facing. This will help you realize that you are not battling this condition alone. You will also get to learn a lot from the experiences of other COPD patients as well as get valuable advise from the group.

7. Do light exercises and gradually increase the time duration of the exercises. Do this under the guidance of your doctor, so that they tell you what you can and cannot attempt while exercising. Exercising will give you mood boosts from time to time and limit the muscle loss associated with COPD.

8. Break up your goals into manageable sections that you can deal with mentally and physically. This is an approach that is applicable to everyday life  and can be very useful with the management of COPD. Complete the tasks in manageable stages one at a time, day in, day out, and build a consistent routine that aims to increase your activity.

9. Seeing a mental health specialist helps those suffering with mental challenges to find relief. Individual therapy can help you learn how to cope with COPD and adapt to the new lifestyle changes. You can get a reference from your doctor or your pulmonogist.

10. Follow the action plan given to you by your doctor when symptoms increase. 

Following these simple tips outlined above can make a significant change in overcoming the mental challenges you are facing with COPD. One of the most destructive psychological challenges that people with chronic illnesses battle with is the “poor me” syndrome. People feeling like they will never get better, so why should they even bother to improve their life quality. It can be quite terrifying to have to deal with the symptoms of COPD, but in life, there are two types of people. There are those that are proactive about their health and those that are inactive. This comes down to the mindset one has and how they choose to take on challenges. It is better to work on something that you are not happy about and try to make it better, than to do nothing and complain about it.

Try your best to get the help that you need as soon as you note some changes in your condition. Some of the things you can look out for to know whether you are facing mental challenges include;

• Being irritable or angry with the people surrounding you.
• Lack of interest in people or activities that you once liked or enjoyed.
• Feeling overwhelmingly sad for weeks at a time or crying a lot.
• Lack of motivation.
• Feeling suicidal or hopeless.
• Increase or decrease in appetite.
• Feeling guilty or worthless.
• Inability to enjoy yourself or find humor in things.
• Having trouble falling asleep or staying asleep.
• Trouble concentrating or making decisions.

If you have more than 5 of this symptoms on a frequent basis, it is important for you to talk to your doctor about it so that they can advise you on what to do. As you work through your stressful emotions and mental challenges, it is good to remember that staying in touch with family and friends will give you the moral support needed to manage COPD. If you see growing signs of anxiety and depression, talk to your doctor about it to find more ways to manage these symptoms and get them under control.