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3. Know Your Audience
When you are thinking of communicating any information, you have to consider your audience. If you are telling your wife about your diagnosis, you will state the information in a different way than if you were talking to your granddaughter. Because COPD usually touches people over the age of 40, you have multiple generations to consider and variations within each group. You will need special considerations when talking to your parents, your siblings, your children and your grandchildren.
Some groups can handle complex medical terms while others will need very simple information. Some groups will respond better to direct, face-to-face communication while others will respond better to some style of electronic communication. Resist the urge to take the easy way out by sending a mass email about your condition. The best communication usually takes time.
When symptoms flare up it can be difficult to breathe. In such instances it may be helpful to use BiPAP for COPD, a machine that assists with breathing.
