Hi Ann and welcome to this group! I feel for you...having to go through quitting smoking, but we've all been there, done that and you can too! I didn't do any tracking. I guess because I wanted to hurry up and get quit. It sounds like you have emphysema which is what my diagnosis was, so I didn't want to wait. The disease progresses if you keep smoking. It does progress some if you do quit, but not near as fast. There's even a possibility of getting some better. That's why I walk hard and fast every day to get my lungs expanded and get oxygen into my body. A lot of people don't even know what emphysema is. They think cigarettes only cause lung and other forms of cancer, but emphysema is a progressive scarring of your lungs which makes you lose the elasticity in them, so they just don't work eventually and then you know the rest of the story. I don't mean to scare you, but this is a life and death matter. Either you quit and live or keep smoking and die an early, fighting to breathe death. I would recommend that you ask your doctor for a pulmonary function test. It will show you how much of your lungs still work. Believe me, the fear of dying will really help with your determination to be a non-smoker! I smoked for 51 years and if I could do it, anyone can if they really care about living. With this website and the Lord for my support, I made it and have remained smoke free for one year and almost 2 months.
