Emphysema question?

2 months ago i was diagnosid with emphysema, i have been prescbed symbicor inhala twice a day and combvent inhala to use as necessary .I have also been getting reacuring pleurisy ive had it 6 times in 17 months the first time i caught pleurisy it put me in hospital for 5 days.
and on each subsacent plural infection i have been prescribed antbiotics a weeks course usal but sometimes an 8 day course
I have had this pain in my chest for weeks now proberley due to 2 infections of pleurisy in sept & october this year almost back to back due to caching a cold from somewhere.
my docter has checked me out and says i will get over it?
however i am a selfemployed garderner and have had no sickness benifits, so i have to try and do some work to pay the bills ect!
I now find that i can only do about 4 hours work a day before i am exhausted and out of breath and have to call it a day.
Will it get better than this or is this the best it will get is my question to you.
any tips thanks.

thanks all for your post i have been enlightend by what you have all said.
just wanted to add that i gave up smoking over 5 years ago now.

You need to have the Doctor make a written Diagnosis. Ask him if you are considered to be disabled medically, if so; then go to your Social Security office and apply for disability you can work part time with this if you are able. But at least it would give you the status necessary to receive State health care through Medicaide. You need help now because emphysema may not get worse, but it does not improve enough to feel normal either. So you need to learn to live with certain constraints. Good Luck! I forgot to tell you-- You must go to a Pulmonologist!! They are the only ones qualified to diagnose this! I feel for you, I went in for an inhaler prescription cause I was abusing the over the counter Bronk-aid, like every 2 hrs. I needed it, well- instead I was diagnosed end stage. I use oxygen at night, supposed to 24/7--I take it to the park, started walking, cause you need to keep exercising, I used to exercise obsessively, but last year I couldn't even go to the mail box without being out of breath and it progressed very bad after that, with combivent and albuterol I manage- I am allergic to Advair and Spireva, get hives and breathing gets worse! Dr's. want you to take all this! It's not their body getting the side effects and still the same prognosis! So I do what I can. Hang in! God Bless.

It's a tough fight.
However you may qualify for Social Security disability.
Find a attorney that specializes in that field and file.
He gets paid only if you get SSI.

It won't get any better. Emphysema is a progressive disease and only gets worse.
Being self employed sucks when it comes to health insurance.
You will have to apply for ssi benifits. You are disabled and can no longer be a gardener.
My dad had it. He went on welfare waiting for the ssi to be approved. He didn't live long enough to get it. he lasted four years. He smoked all his life and wouldn't quit when he got emphysema.

emphysema is a chronic illness and will only gradually get worse unfortunately there is not very much they can do..so my advise would be to stop smoking if u can and also ask about any chance of having a lung transplant or if its at its very early stages ask if they can cut that section of the lung out it all depends on your local nhs authority though the drs only given u the two inhalers as a way of easing your chest pains and to open the narrow airway passages so u can breathe.

you will also get alot more chest infections than usual and may even have to take both steroids and strong antibiotics

Emphysema is an irreversible degenerative condition. The most important measure that can be taken to slow the progression of emphysema is for the patient to stop smoking and avoid all exposure to cigarette smoke and lung irritants. Pulmonary rehabilitation can be very helpful to optimize the patient's quality of life and teach the patient how to actively manage his or her care. Emphysema is also treated by supporting the breathing with anticholinergics, bronchodilators and (inhaled or oral) steroid medication, and supplemental oxygen as required. Treating the patient's other conditions including gastric reflux and allergies may also improve lung function. Supplemental oxygen used as prescribed (20+ hours/day) is the only non-surgical treatment which has been shown to prolong life in emphysema patients. Other medications are being researched. There are lightweight portable oxygen systems which allow patients increased mobility. Patients fly, cruise, and work while using supplemental oxygen.

Lung volume reduction surgery (LVRS) can improve the quality of life for carefully selected patients. It can be done by several different methods, some of which are minimally invasive. In July of 2006 a new treatment, placing tiny valves in passages leading to diseased lung areas, was announced with good results but 7% of patients suffered from partial lung collapse. The only known "cure" for emphysema is a lung transplant, although not many patients are strong enough physically to survive the surgery. The combination of a patient's age, oxygen deprivation and the side-effects of the medications used to treat emphysema cause damage to the kidneys, heart and other organs. Transplants also require the patient to take an anti-rejection drug regimen which suppresses immunity and creates new medical issues.

A study published by the European Respiratory Journal suggests that retinoic acid (commercially available as Accutane, an anti-acne drug) derived from vitamin A can reverse the effects of emphysema in mice by returning elasticity (and regenerating lung tissue through gene mediation) to the alveoli. [1] While vitamin A consumption is not known to be an effective treatment or prevention for the disease, this research could in future lead to a cure.

well both pluracy and emphacemia will drain you please tell me you dont smoke any more you must do everything possible now to build up you immune system now with minerals and vitamins x you know if you love your life take all precautions for this to be your main concern you dont want anything stronger sweetheart so please look after yourself ask for a specialist in chest complaints and try and get as much phlegm off your chest as possible x