

‘I vaped for one year and almost died'
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Pennsylvania woman’s lungs collapsed due to the habit: ‘Severe trauma’
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 By  

Published March 1, 2025 4:30am EST

     

[](https://www.foxnews.com/video/6369466984112)

Petrea Mckeithen, 26, only vaped for one year when she nearly died due to both lungs collapsing. She shared the traumatic ordeal in an interview with Fox News Digital.

A Pennsylvania woman, 26, says she only vaped for one year before her .



Mckeithen quickly became , primarily due to the flavor.

"It’s really, seriously addicting," she said. "You get addicted to the vape clouds and the flavors — it's themed, it's cool. It's like a rebel type of thing, I guess you could say."



In September 2022, about a year later, she suddenly found that she couldn’t breathe.

"I had no prior ," she said. "The only thing that was going on with me in the months leading up to my lungs collapsing was that I was having breathing issues and thought maybe I was developing asthma."

But it wasn’t asthma, her doctor said — it was her lungs giving out.

> "Everybody warned me about it, but I didn't listen."

The condition, called pneumothorax, occurs when air gets inside the chest cavity and creates pressure against the lung, causing it to collapse partially or fully, according to Cleveland Clinic.



Among vapers, the condition can be caused by "deep and forceful inhalations" that can stress the lungs, chemical irritants, or vaping with pre-existing lung conditions, according to the expert.

Johns Hopkins reports that they are seeing a rash of collapsed lungs in younger people, Campbell said — "and they report ."



Signs of collapsed lungs include sharp chest or shoulder pain, shortness of breath and difficulty breathing, according to Campbell.

Lung issues are just one of the many  linked to vaping, he warned. The habit can also increase the risk of heart disease and stroke, as well as exposure to harmful heavy metals.

**Beating the odds**
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Mckeithen was life-flighted to the hospital, where she was put in a medically induced coma and placed on extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), which helps support .

During her 10-day coma, Mckeithen said she experienced intense nightmares that stick with her to this day.



"They don't feel like dreams or nightmares — they feel like memories," she told Fox News Digital. "Those nightmares were 10 days of me dying over and over in the most excruciating, painful ways."

Doctors told Mckeithen’s family that she had just a 3% chance of survival — but against the odds, she pulled through.



After getting out of ICU, Mckeithen underwent physical therapy and gradually improved — although she now lives with  and "vaper’s lung," a respiratory condition also known as EVALI (e-cigarette or vaping product use-associated lung injury).



"I take medicine daily," she said. "I have to be really careful about the environment — I check the air quality every day before I leave, and if it is below where I am comfortable with, I will not leave my home."

Mckeithen’s lungs are particularly vulnerable to any type of .

"I have to be really careful about who I interact with, because you never know who is carrying a sickness," she said.



When someone vapes, they are ingesting a liquid, Mckeithen said.

"People think that because you're blowing out clouds, it's just going in and out," she said. "But that liquid actually sits on your lungs and actually drowns them."

> "Seeing teenagers vaping breaks my heart."

Recently, Mckeithen said she approached a group of young teenagers when she saw them vaping in a store, sharing her experience as a cautionary tale.

"I showed them my pictures, and I was like, don't do that," she said. "I know it’s probably not my place, but they were really young and I just wanted to protect them. Seeing teenagers vaping breaks my heart."

 

Overall, Mckeithen said, vaping is simply "not worth it."

"It's not cool, it’s not fun. At the end of the day, when I look back on it, my family has severe trauma from watching me fight for my life."



Today, Mckeithen has an 18-month-old son, who she describes as "my whole world."

"My doctors were really concerned because I wasn't supposed to get pregnant," she said.

"We gave me options for abortion … but I wanted to  because I had always wanted to be a mother. It's always been my dream."

**‘Not worth it’**
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After her near-death experience, Mckeithen’s mission is to raise awareness about the dangers of vaping, especially for .

"It doesn't matter if you're underage, you can still get them — and it's really terrifying," she said.

"People think they're safer for you than cigarettes. I thought that, and I was so wrong. It's really scary."



When someone vapes, they are ingesting a liquid, Mckeithen said.

"People think that because you're blowing out clouds, it's just going in and out," she said. "But that liquid actually sits on your lungs and actually drowns them."

> "Seeing teenagers vaping breaks my heart."

Recently, Mckeithen said she approached a group of young teenagers when she saw them vaping in a store, sharing her experience as a cautionary tale.

"I showed them my pictures, and I was like, don't do that," she said. "I know it’s probably not my place, but they were really young and I just wanted to protect them. Seeing teenagers vaping breaks my heart."


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