"It took me 10 years to get a correct diagnosis of COPD"

<p class = "canvas-atom-canvas-text Mb (1.0em) Mb (0) – sm Mt (0.8em) – sm" type = "text" content = "When you talk to your doctor Unusual symptoms, you expect to be taken seriously. However, Ken Benson said he complained to several doctors of being out of breath for nine years – and that little has been done about it. "Data-reactid =" 22 "> When you talk to your doctor about unusual symptoms, you expect Ken Benson to say that he's complained to several doctors about being out of breath for nine years – and nothing has been done to fix it.

"At first, I was getting short of breath when I came back from my morning jog in the neighborhood, which I had always done to wake up," he told Yahoo Lifestyle. "Instead of coming back and feeling ready for the day, I found myself out of breath."

Benson says that for almost a decade, he talked to his family doctor and felt like he had been swept away. "I kept changing doctors in the hope of finding an answer," he says. "I've gone through four." Benson says some would refer him to an allergist, who would find no reason for his breathing problems and apparently give up. Nobody ever sent him to a pulmonologist, a doctor who specializes in lung diseases.

So, Benson has received several inhalers without too much instruction. "Nobody even showed me how to use them," he says. "After a while, I had a full drawer of each inhaler. I also discovered that I was allergic to nothing other than mites. "

<p class = "canvas-atom web-text Mb (1.0em) Mb (0) – sm Mt (0.8em) – sm" type = "text" content = "After 10 years without answer, Benson finally found A doctor who referred him to a pulmonologist, where he had several tests before a logical diagnosis: he had asthma in adults and severe emphysema – a form of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Benson, then 53, explains that his new medical team explained how to properly use an inhaler, the diet adapted to his condition and how to take care of himself. He ended up using this doctor for 20 years. "Data-reactid =" 26 "> After 10 years of no response, Benson finally found a doctor who referred him to a pulmonologist.Here he passed several tests Finally, his diagnosis made sense : he was suffering from adult asthma and severe emphysema – a form of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), for his health and how to take care of himself, he has been using this doctor for 20 years .

"My first thought about the diagnosis was:" I finally have an answer: it's really good, "said Benson." But things have become more and more difficult for me. "

<p class = "canvas-atom-canvas-text Mb (1.0em) Mb (0) – sm Mt (0.8em) – sm" type = "text" content = "The years spent searching for the cause of his symptoms had caught up, and Benson said he was fighting anger and depression. "My mental state was really disrupted," he says. Benson turned to self help books and group therapy, and said that he finally started taking a turn. "Everything started to take place," he admits. "I started taking care of myself and decided to do everything I could to improve my health from now on. Until then, I thought the medical profession had hurt me. But then, I thought, "Okay, well, I can do it. "The years spent trying to find the cause of his symptoms had caught up with him and Benson said he was struggling with anger." Benson said turned to self-help books and group therapy and said that he was finally beginning to take a turn. "" It all started to take place, "he admits." I started taking care of me and decided to do everything I could to improve my health from that moment until then, I thought that the medical profession had hurt me.But then, I thought : "Okay, well, I can do it."

However, COPD has a strong influence on Benson's life. Now aged 75, he consumes extra oxygen during his sleep, when he flies and during his chair exercise classes at the gym. "I learned that I needed a rolling cart when I did my shopping because I can not carry a bag very far without being out of breath," he says. He also needs to eat more often, smaller meals, because larger meals can put excessive pressure on his diaphragm and make breathing difficult.

Benson can only ride a bike with the wind in his back. "When the wind is in front of me, I work so hard that I'm out of breath," he says. "It's a real eye opener for me." He learned to take frequent breaks during the day, even between breakfast and clothing. "I have a constant reminder of COPD," he notes. "Some days, it seems that this naughty little puppet is sitting on my shoulder and says that I can not do things. Some days you listen to it and other days, you say, "Yes, I can."

Benson points out that other people must insist on getting answers if they know that their health is a problem for them and that their doctors can not find a solution. "If you do not agree with your doctor, tell him that you want to keep looking for an answer," he says. "It drives me crazy when people do not act in the best interest of the patient."

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