Before Apria began treating Sandra’s COPD with non-invasive ventilation, she says she was in the hospital more than she was at home.
“They would put me in a coma and keep me for a month,” Sandra says. “The best thing that ever happened was to get the machine. I have had no hospitalizations in two and a half years.”
Sandra describes COPD as “nasty” and “a very harsh disease.”
“It makes you who you do not want to be. I worked hard all my life and then I just had to sit around,” she says.
Like other COPD patients, she would become exhausted easily because her body was not getting the oxygen it needed to perform daily functions. And she couldn’t sleep well at night because she couldn’t breathe well.
Hear Sandra describe the freedom she now feels with NIV therapy.
Apria worked with Sandra’s physician to provide a non-invasive ventilation machine, along with the clinical support to keep Sandra adherent to her therapy and, most importantly, at home.
Learn more about how Apria helps with COPD >
Now, she’s feeling better and she’s able to do the things she enjoys.
“I go out almost every day. I do my own shopping, go to the department stores. I can go to visit my family. It’s freedom,” Sandra says.
When she feels short of breath, Sandra uses her machine.
“It’s like those electric cars,” she says. “You can only go so far and then you’ve got to plug in!”
Healthcare professionals: Here's how to tell which of your COPD patients could benefit from NIV >