David Lynch provides health update as emphysema worsens: “It’s tough”
Legendary American film director David Lynch has provided an update on his health after being diagnosed with emphysema back in 2020. Since then, the 78-year-old filmmaker has been largely homebound, with the respiratory disease making it difficult for Lynch to walk any substantial distance without becoming out of breath.
Emphysema is a disease which primarily affects the lungs. Damage caused to the alveoli in the lungs causes large pockets of air to form, making it difficult for an affected person to breathe properly or do anything strenuous without becoming short of breath. Usually – but not always – emphysema is caused by extensive smoking, which certainly seems to be the case for Lynch, who reportedly began smoking at the age of eight.
Although the director quit smoking back in 2022, the damage to his respiratory and immune systems had already been done. Now, in a new interview with People Magazine, Lynch has reflected on how the disease has affected him, as well as providing an update on his health for fans. “I have a positive attitude focused on the body healing itself,” the Mulholland Drive director said, “It’s tough living with emphysema. I can hardly walk across a room. It’s like you’re walking around with a plastic bag around your head.”
Smoking might have led Lynch to contract this debilitating disease of the lungs, but seemingly, he does not regret his decision to smoke. “I don’t regret it. It was important to me,” he shared. “I wish what every addict wishes for: that what we love is good for us. I never thought about it as glamorising it. It was a part of life. Some characters would be smokers, just like in real life.”
Nonetheless, Lynch also shared a message to current smokers, asking them to think more carefully about what they are doing to their bodies. “I really wanted to get this across: Think about it,” he said, “You can quit these things that are going to end up killing you. I owe it to them — and to myself — to say that.”
As you might expect, given the fact that Lynch is largely resigned to his Hollywood home, the director’s work has taken a backseat as of late, though he has repeatedly claimed he will “never retire”. The filmmaker has not directed a full-length feature film since Inland Empire in 2006, though he has created multiple short films since then, the most recent being 2020’s The Mystery of the Seeing Hand.
Outside of film, Lynch unveiled the album Cellophane Memories earlier this year, one of three collaborative albums created by the director alongside American vocalist Chrystabell. Therefore, it would appear that suffering from emphysema has not completely prevented Lynch from continuing to create.
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