MY STORY

Hi everyone, my name is Allan and I’m the creator of the COPD Lifestyle project, and like many of you, my story of health begins with losing it.

Eleven years ago, at just 39, I was diagnosed with emphysema a year after finally quitting cigarettes. My doctor offered little hope, blankly stating there was no way to improve my health. For days, I watered my plants with tears, feeling utterly defeated. I grieved not just my health, but the life I thought I lost. But after a few days, a rebellious spark ignited in me, and I refused to believe this was the end of my story. I knew I had two choices: accept this fate or challenge it.

Armed with a healthy dose of skepticism and a determination to seek my own answers, I began exploring how I could improve my health. I joined COPD groups on Facebook, hoping to find meaningful discussions about managing the condition naturally. Instead, I was met with resistance. Conversations about improving one’s health through nutrition, movement, and lifestyle changes were not just dismissed, they were actively discouraged. I heard things like: “Food can’t affect your breathing,” or “COPD symptoms can’t be reversed,” and “Kung-fu is good for fighting or movies but has no place in respiratory health.”

There were small pockets of people who believed in taking an active role in their health, but they were drowned out by negativity. It was frustrating. How could so many people resign themselves to decline when there were still so many options to explore? The more I debated with people who rejected the idea of personal health responsibility, the more determined I became to learn. I left those groups and started my own page to collect all the useful information I was finding that was having real, positive impacts on my health. With each new insight, a new hope began to crystallize: I can still live a long, meaningful life with a COPD diagnosis.

My first mission was to closely examine my entire life. I overhauled my kitchen, tossing out processed foods and replacing them with whole, nutrient-dense ingredients. I changed how I ate using a Japanese technique called hara hachi bu, eating to only 80% fullness rather than the overeating style I had often succumbed to. Then, I turned my attention to my home. I scrutinized every product I used from cleaning agents to scented candles and air fresheners, anything that might be subtly harming my lungs. Almost everything had to go. It wasn’t part of my new life, and as I learned, it was potentially an obstruction to breathing, full of unnecessary additives that only served to irritate my lungs.

When it came to exercise, I had an advantage. Having trained in martial arts for over 20 years, I already had a strong understanding of breath control and movement. I knew that breath was power and that I could use what I had learned to fight against my condition. Meditation, breathing techniques, and mindful movement became part of my daily routine. The results were undeniable. Within six weeks, my symptoms reversed. I went from long, sleepless nights struggling with air hunger to having full, restful sleep. My energy returned. I continued nurturing the COPD Lifestyle page, and over time, my contributions became less frequent because I was healthier than I had ever been even before my diagnosis. It’s an odd thing, how losing your health can often lead to a better, more intentional life.

Over the years, life happened. My habits slipped. Poor food and lifestyle choices opened the door for COPD symptoms to creep back in. I knew what I had to do, but this time, I wanted something bigger than just a Facebook page. I wanted to create a permanent, independent space where people could find real, practical strategies for improving their health, without the noise and resistance of social media. I also needed to remind myself what matters most when aiming for a healthy life, and to solidify my understanding of this holistic path that has always helped me when I needed it most. And that’s why I built this website.

This site is focused around three core pillars of health: Nutrition, Exercise, and Lifestyle. There is no one single cure for COPD, but when you combine small, meaningful changes, they add up to something powerful: better health. People look for that one magic solution, and when they don’t find it, because it doesn’t exist, they give up. But health isn’t something someone gives to you. Health is something you do for yourself. It’s a gift that you give yourself, one choice at a time.