‘Proud' mum who switched to vaping after smoking 20 years ‘left on deathbed' year later – and will die if she lies down
A MUM who was "proud" to quit smoking after 20 years has been "left on her deathbed" and will die if she lies down - after taking up vaping for a year.
Loyda Cordero Faliero, 39, says she made the switch from smoking cigarettes to vaping around 18 months ago because she "thought it would be the healthier option".
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But at the start of March 2025 - after vaping "24/7" for "little over a year" - she was rushed to the emergency department after her oesophagus "closed-up" and she choked on a sip of her drink.
Loyda was diagnosed with pulmonary bullae [large air spaces] in her lungs and a collapsed lung, which doctors told her was a result of a build-up of fluid from vaping.
The 39-year-old says doctors told her it could "kill her at any moment" if the sacs were to rupture and has to sleep sat up as she could choke to death if she lies down.
Loyda was advised to avoid any physical activity and claims she was told that even lifting a gallon of milk (eight pints) would be too strenuous as it could increase the risk of one of the air-filled sacs rupturing.
The mum-of-two was forced quit vaping in order to be eligible for surgery to remove the sacs from her lungs - and was warned that if she continued the habit then she might not be alive in five years' time.
Loyda, who is now recovering from the potentially life-saving surgery in hospital, says she wants to warn others of the dangers of vaping.
Speaking before the surgery, Loyda, from Franklinville, New York, US, said: "My doctor said that my lung collapsed because they were building up with the liquid from my vape and one of the pulmonary bullae ended up rupturing.
"My oesophagus is out of place to where the pulmonary bullae sac is putting pressure onto that and if that ruptures, it could cause a bleed on the brain or internal bleeding which could kill me instantly.
"It's causing a lot of problems. If I lay down when sleeping instead of sitting up I can choke to death on my own spit or I can suffocate and die.
"I literally have to sit up in bed or on a recliner when I sleep because I'm no longer allowed to sleep lying down until after the surgery - it's pretty much a life or death situation.
What happens to your body when you stop smoking
"It's made me very emotional. I quit something thinking that it was going to be healthier but unfortunately it destroyed me more than it benefited me.
"I was so proud of myself for quitting cigarettes and going to something which I thought was healthier.
"I have two grown kids and even if they're grown, I'm still a mum. I still have responsibilities and I still want to be here for my grandkids.
"Basically I'm on my deathbed and it's a ticking time bomb waiting to go off."
Loyda says she experienced breathlessness, nausea, dizziness and pain in the weeks before her hospital admission - but had put it down to her poor overall health.
After receiving the diagnosis, she says she was ordered by doctors to stop all physical activity in order to reduce the risk of one of the pulmonary sacs rupturing and killing her.
Loyda continued: "I'm not allowed to be active at all as in cleaning, washing dishes or going up and down the stairs.
"They say that even lifting a gallon of my milk is overdoing it for my body because the way that my lung has collapsed, it flares me up really bad.
"I can't even cook dinner or stand up to do dishes because by the time I'm done with dishes I'm literally crying in pain and gasping for air.
"It really has taken over my life more than I ever thought it would.
"I was told my doctors that I had to quit vaping in order to be accepted for surgery.
"And I can't go back to smoking after the surgery because this is just going to happen to me again.
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"I'm going to be stuck with this health issue for the rest of my life.
"The doctors said that if I carried on vaping then within the next five years I would end up on life support and I wouldn't make it because of how badly this damaged my lungs and how badly the liquid has built up in my lungs."
After giving up vaping completely, Loyda underwent surgery to have the pulmonary sacs removed from her lungs on April 30.
She is now recovering in hospital and wants to help raise awareness and warn others of the potential health problems vaping can cause - and says she believes that it is both more dangerous and harder to quit than smoking cigarettes.
Loyda said: "With a cigarette, you can put it out and do what you've got to do but with a vape it's like a cell phone - it's literally stuck in your hand 24/7 and you're hitting it even when you don't want to hit it just because it's there.
"It's horrible. Vaping is 100 per cent more dangerous than cigarettes."
Smoking vs. vaping
VAPING has been touted as an effective tool to help people quit smoking.
Though vaping is substantially less harmful than smoking, the habit isn't completely harmless and comes with its own set of risks.
The NHS only recommends it for adult smokers, to support quitting smoking.
GP and author Dr Philippa Kaye explained to The Sun that the differences between vaping and smoking - and whether one is better than the other - is "complicated".
"In a nutshell, vaping is better than smoking, but breathing air is better than vaping at all."
Vaping exposes users to far fewer toxins - and at lower levels - than smoking cigarettes.
Switching to vaping significantly reduces your exposure to toxins that can cause cancer, lung disease, and diseases of the heart and circulation like heart attack and stroke.
These diseases are not caused by nicotine, which is relatively harmless to health. But research has still linked vaping to a higher risk of failure and lung disease.
Health risks of cigarettes
Smokers are more likely than nonsmokers to develop heart disease, stroke, and lung cancer
Smokers are at greater risk for diseases that affect the heart and blood vessels
Smoking can cause lung disease by damaging your airways and the small air sacs
Smoking can cause cancer almost anywhere in your body
It affects overall health too, such as your mouth, eyes, immune system and fertility
Health risks of vaping
They can cause side effects such as throat and mouth irritation, headache, cough and feeling sick
They could lead to tooth decay
They could damage heart health
They could cause lung disease
They could slow brain development
Read more on how vaping can affect your health here.
Sources: NHS, CDC
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