If you watch television in the evenings you probably see quite a few advertisements for COPD medicine. If you do not have the disease you may think it is similar to asthma because a person has difficulty breathing. It is actually much worse than asthma.
COPD generally hits adults over the age of 55 and its main cause is years of smoking. Smoking pot is just as dangerous as smoking tobacco. However, there are cases in which people have developed COPD from second-hand smoke (flight attendants, restaurant and bar workers, for example) and individuals who suffered too many rounds of pneumonia or chronic bronchitis during their younger years. Also, if you live in an area that has severe air pollution or if you working around certain chemicals, you may be at risk.
The acronym stands for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. In this illness the airways that bring oxygen into your lungs get inflamed and cause a lot of mucus to form. You’ve heard the term ‘smoker’s cough.’ Multiply that a few times. The other part of COPD is how air is expelled from the lungs. The tiny sacs that open and close in a healthy person have lost their elasticity, so air has trouble leaving the lungs. It gets you coming and going.
Short of a lung transplant, there is no current cure for COPD. However, every year more and more new drugs are introduced that make breathing easier. COPD never gets better. It only gets worse. But if you incorporate certain life changes, it can be manageable.
Just because you are diagnosed with COPD does not mean it is the end of your sex life. It may be different – even better in some ways. But the main key to optimal sex if you have the disease is to communicate the fact to your partner so they can understand and help work through obstacles.
People with COPD are often depressed. Their lives have been changed for good. Many of the things they enjoyed in an active lifestyle are lost. When a person is in a state of depression he or she is no longer interested in those things that made them happy or brought them pleasure previously. Sex does not have to fall into that category.
Doctors who specialize in respiration therapy have quite a few tips for sex with COPD. As mentioned earlier, discuss the issue with your partner or spouse. Let them in to understand what you are dealing with.
In the past if you have been a lover that goes to town with vigorous activity that leaves both of you breathless under normal conditions, you will need to learn patience and a little more finesse. Orgasms for both parties can be achieved with a slow and steady gait just as well as with the actions of the Energizer Bunny. Most times sex means different things to women than to men. For women, it is a conduit for intimacy. There are hundreds of ways to show intimacy with a woman. For men, it is generally a release of tension.
A person with COPD will have periods throughout the day and evening when they feel more energetic. Fatigue is common with the illness. One suggestion is to time yourself for a few days and note those actual times when you feel better and full of confidence. Make these hours your sex time. No, it is not going to add to the spontaneity, but you might find different areas in your home you had not considered previously. This in itself can be a turn-on.
Learn to let go and allow your partner to take a more active role. One position that is bad for both sexes is the traditional missionary position. This is because of the pressure of the top person putting on the chest of the bottom person. If you are a man, let your partner ride you from above without putting her hands on your chest for leverage. “Spooning” can be an excellent position because there is no pressure on the lungs and for the woman it can be more intimate.
Finally, if you are using an inhaler, take your puffs before you begin your foreplay. If you dislike the chemical taste in your mouth, use a minty mouthwash and both of you will be happy. After you have finished, there is no reason why you can’t lie there and let your breathing come back down to normal. That, too, is part of intimacy.
