Living with breathlessness can be difficult
Many medical conditions, like lung or heart diseases, can make people feel breathless day to day.
Chronic breathlessness makes it harder to do things which can be frustrating, while for others it can feel frightening.
What can be done about it?
Treat the condition
It’s important the condition causing breathlessness is treated as well as possible. Check with the doctors who usually look after you.
1.
Take back control
If you’re still experiencing breathlessness, you can make changes that help you feel more in control and able to get on with your daily life.
2.
Understanding breathlessness with the BTF model
The BTF (Breathing Thinking Functioning) model can help make sense of things. What’s making the breathing get worse? What can we do about it? Every person is different. This approach will support you to understand and manage your breathing in the way that’s best for you.
Choose the one of these that feels most relevant to you
Do you sometimes take quick, shallow breaths (panting)? Are your neck and shoulders sometimes tense or tight?
Do your thoughts about your breathing make you feel frightened, stressed or low?
Functioning
Are you less active because it’s hard to move around when you’re feeling breathless?
This website describes some practical ways to help you manage day-to-day long-term breathlessness. It has useful information for people with lung conditions, their carers, and the health professionals supporting them.
If your breathing is getting rapidly worse or you have new symptoms, it is important to seek prompt medical review or call 000. This website is not designed for people who have a new undiagnosed breathing problem or a sudden deterioration. It is not a substitute for medical assessment.