PPR 1 Flashcards
(126 cards)
Five common concerns of people with COPD:
1.Breathlessness
2.Sputum/Phlegm Clearance
3. Continence
4. How to relax
5. Staying Active
Many people with COPD can feel breathless, even
when doing simple daily tasks. This can be frightening and debilitating, however there is a checklist of
simple things that you can do to help you deal with breathlessness and improve your quality of life.
Breathlessness
Muscle relaxation
- Find a comfortable lying or sitting position. Think
about how your feeling - Close your eyes and practice a few minutes of
breathing control - Starting at the bottom and working up tense the
muscles of your feet, lower legs, thighs, buttocks,
tummy, back, shoulders, arms, hands, neck and face
for 4-5 seconds before relaxing each. Only Tense one
area at a time - Notice how much more relaxed your muscles feel.
Stay in this position for a few minutes - When you’re ready, open your eyes and take a few
deep breaths. Let yourself become more aware of
your surroundings and sit up slowly.
Visualization
- Find a quiet safe place
2.Sit or lie down and close your eyes - Imagine that you are in your favorite place
4.Imagine how it sounds, smells and feels - Feel the joy you normally feel when you are there.
- It is important for people with COPD to remain as active as
possible. Staying active helps maintain lung health, clear
lung secretions and phlegm, whilst improving fitness and
health.
Staying active
Being active also helps you feel less breathless when
performing your normal daily activities and improves your
sense of well-being.
* If you are thinking of increasing your exercise level you
should check with your doctor first, as they can advise you
on appropriate activities.
*Try to build up your exercise level slowly and don’t make
too dramatic a change in one go.
Staying active
Coughing fits and being short of breath can be very stressful, in turn stress and anxiety make you feel more short of breath.
Relaxation strategies
This can be a downward spiral. Because of this many people with COPD find it useful to practice relaxation techniques.
Relaxation strategies
There are many different relaxation techniques you
can use, two of which are now explained.
Relaxation strategies
one of the main breathing muscles.
Diaphragm
1.Putting yourself in certain positions makes the diaphragm work more efficiently, makes it easier to breathe and helps reduce breathlessness.
2.The following are some positions that you might like to try when feeling short of breath.
3. Use the positions that work best for you.
Positions to relieve breathlessness
The coughing associated with COPD puts stress on
the pelvic floor.
Continence
the muscles that help
you control your bladder and bowel.
pelvic floor muscles
Over time this repeated stress can cause leakage of urine, wind or feces.
Continence
help you to keep your pelvic floor strong and enable you to perform
“The Knack”, therefore reducing incontinence issues.
Pelvic floor exercises
Contract your pelvic floor and hold it for as long as you can, up to ten seconds. Build up to doing 10 repetitions of this.
Slow exercise
Quickly contract and relax your pelvic floor,
up to 10 times.
Fast exercise
This means contracting and holding your pelvic
should floor muscle prior to and during anything strenous.
The Knack
If you suffer with
incontinence you may want to ask your doctor to refer you
to a “_______”
‘continence specialist’
Many people with COPD have trouble clearing sputum or phlegm.
Airway Clearance
Many people with COPD have trouble clearing sputum or phlegm. There are simple things you can do to make this easier.
1.Stay as mobile as possible
2.Keep hydrated
3.Perform sputum clearance exercise such as The Active Cycle of Breathing Technique (ACBT).
a group of exercises that are repeated in sequence to help clear phlegm and lung secretions.
The active cycle of breathing
This is a way of calming your breathing when feeling short of breath and breathing rapidly. Try not to panic.
Breathing control
This helps you breathe out more easily and in turn helps make you feel less breathless.
Pursed lip breathing