Oxygen Therapy: How Can Oxygen Help Me?

Supplemental oxygen does not cure lung disease, but it is an important therapy that improves symptoms and organ function.

Four Benefits of Oxygen Therapy

  • Oxygen therapy can help you by decreasing your shortness of breath or breathlessness.
  • Oxygen won’t completely take away your shortness of breath, but it can help many lung disease patients feel less breathless during everyday activities.
  • Not everyone who has shortness of breath is a candidate for oxygen, so be sure to talk to your doctor about whether it is right for you.
  • When you are not getting enough oxygen, it can make you feel very fatigued.
  • Simple tasks, such as doing household chores, can be a struggle.
  • Oxygen therapy can circulate more oxygen I to your bloodstream which can improve your energy levels.
  • People with lung disease often have a hard time sleeping or don’t get very restful sleep.
  • There are many reasons for this, but one is that people with lung disease lose oxygen in their blood overnight, especially during REM sleep.
  • Using oxygen therapy at night allows your body to get more oxygen into the blood stream so that you may get a better night’s sleep.
  • Your doctor may recommend you do a sleep study to determine whether supplemental oxygen at night is right for you.
  • Oxygen therapy may help you become more active and get you back doing the activities you enjoy.
  • Many people with lung disease use oxygen during exercise, to run errands, to do chores, and even when flying.
  • There are ways to do just about everything you love while using oxygen.
  • When your body has enough oxygen, you will have more energy to be more active.
  • Staying active is a key part of staying as healthy as possible.

Page last updated: November 17, 2022

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