Cheryl, now 58, has lived with COPD for many years, having started smoking at just 11 years old. This lifelong addiction eventually took its toll on her health. When she developed a serious chest infection, her breathing worsened significantly and she was admitted to hospital, where she stayed for two weeks. During this time, Cheryl needed to be connected to machine for eight hours a day to support her breathing. The experience was frightening and exhausting, and it forced her to confront the real impact that smoking had had on her body.
After being discharged from hospital, Cheryl fully engaged with the Yorkshire Smokefree Wakefield Stop Smoking Service where she received monthly face-to-face home visits with Julia to check her carbon monoxide readings as well as weekly telephone appointments that provided ongoing encouragement and reassurance. To manage the withdrawal symptoms, Cheryl was prescribed nicotine patches and an inhalator which helped reduce the cravings and making quitting more manageable. She particularly enjoyed the carbon monoxide readings as this gave her proof of her progress.
This hospital admission became a turning point for Cheryl, and she vowed that she would never smoke again. Since leaving the hospital, Cheryl still struggles to walk any distance and becomes breathless easily, but her walking is improving each week and has reinforced her determination to remain smoke free.
