Newly Diagnosed with Bronchiectasis

Take These Important First Steps

• It is helpful to learn about bronchiectasis, what your treatment options are and how it is managed.
• Talk to your healthcare provider about your diagnosis to better understand how it will impact your life and what steps you can take to ensure you have the best quality of life.
• Bronchiectasis is a chronic condition without a cure, so starting the right treatment will help you have the best possible health outcomes.

Take Care of Yourself

Staying healthy when you are living with a chronic lung disease is important so that your condition does not get worse and you decrease the risk of damaging your lungs. You should talk to your healthcare provider to ensure you understand what your treatment plan is and how often you should see your provider to best manage your disease. Ask your provider to explain how any medications you are prescribed will help you and make sure you understand what side effects to expect so you can better manage them. If your provider is recommending airway clearance techniques, also called mucus clearing, make sure you understand what this means and how to do it.

 You can take these actions to following a healthy lifestyle:

• Quit smoking and avoid exposure to tobacco smoke.
• Avoid exposure to unhealthy air, both indoors and outdoors.
• Choose healthy foods.
• Drink plenty of fluids, especially water. Talk to your healthcare provider about how much fluid is right for you.
• Avoid respiratory infections through hand washing, staying away from others who are sick and getting vaccinations that are recommended by your healthcare provider.
• Stay active.  Talk to your healthcare provider about what activity is right for you.

 Connect with Others

No person facing a chronic lung disease should go through it alone.  There are online and in-person support groups available.  Finding a group early in your journey will provide you with more opportunities to get information about your disease, empower you to better manage your disease and give you the support you need.

• Living with Lung Disease Community (online support community)
• Better Breathers Clubs (in-person or virtual support groups)
• Patient & Caregivers Network