Tuesday, January 16, 2018

Saw the doctor today and he is still puzzled.  Can't figure out what is causing the bronchitis.  Nothing significant has shown up from the bronchoscopy but he said he was surprised at how much he cleaned out of my lungs.  I'm on another antibiotic, an addition to the albuterol and another steroid.  He wants to see me again in 4 weeks.  I'm disappointed but he said, "We will get to the bottom of this."  He also suggested we get our air vents cleaned.  So guess that is next on the list.
I purchased this dollhouse yesterday.  It was already put together so I get to decorate the inside.  Some of the porch railing is missing and so are the doors but I think I can get replacement parts.  I thought it might be something I can do with Piper when she gets older and then I'll give the dollhouse to her when it is finished.

It is very large........3 feet wide and over 3 feet tall.  I told Ron we either have to build on to our house or move just to accommodate the dollhouse.  I want to wallpaper the inside rooms and add electric lights.  I don't know if I have the necessary skills but I'll try!
 

Friday, January 12, 2018

Bronchoscopy

I had the bronchoscopy Wednesday and it went smoothly.  I was awake but there was about 3 minutes that I can't really remember.  Weird kind of conscious sedation but it works.  It was the few minutes it took to pass the camera through my nose and down my throat that I have no memory of.  I was aware of everything else.  

The doctor showed me what he cleaned out of my lungs but it didn't look shocking or anything like what I cough up.  It was just white in color.  He told us he didn't see anything "scary" like cancer.  He didn't do a biopsy because he didn't see anything to biopsy.  Everything was sent to the pathologist.  Afterward I was told to expect to be coughing a lot and I didn't cough even once.  I felt fine. 

Thursday I didn't cough or wheeze when I got up but by night time I was wheezing pretty bad and coughing.  Today I haven't coughed much or wheezed.  My doctor called me today and said he was ordering another antibiotic.  He said he didn't find anything that would require IV antibiotics.  He found what I thought he said was oily bacteria.... or at least some kind of bacteria.  He is still waiting for additional reports.  I take the antibiotic 7 days and go see him again on the 16th.

So my hopes that they would just identify something and then give me the cure are kind of deflated.  I'm not sure where we go from here.

Saturday, January 6, 2018

Update

I saw the doctor the last Monday after running a fever and having chills on Sunday night.  He just looked puzzled and told me he can't give me anymore oral antibiotics as an outpatient.  He then ordered the bronchoscopy for yesterday but it was canceled because my doctor got sick.  Now it is scheduled for next Wednesday.  He will also be doing a lung washing.  Then it goes to pathology and he won't get the results for two weeks.  In the meantime I'm still running a temp of about 102.  I'm now taking Tylenol every 6 hours just to keep from running a temp.

So that's where I stand with all this.  Tomorrow my daughters are coming over to learn how to prepare Mike's meals.  Just in case I'm not up to it next week.  

Yesterday Ron and I went to a little town just South of us where a new business has opened.  It is called Peaceful Portions.  They are a meal delivery service and specialize in healthy meals.  They even calculate the Weight Watcher Points on all their meals.  When I was reading their website I noticed that they accommodate special diets.  Soooo I went there to see if they could accommodate Mike's dietary needs and they said YES!  They will prepare 5 days of meals AND deliver!  Almost too good to be true.  Now they haven't seen the list of his food allergies yet but I told them about his chicken phobia and they said they could substitute another meat.  So it sounds promising.  I brought home one of their breakfasts (the spinach tortilla egg wrap) and one dinner (eggplant parmesan) and they were both delicious.  I'm going to share my (no tomato) tomato sauce recipe with them.  Anyway it gives me an option to try.  And the pricing was very reasonable as well.  In fact it's cheaper than what I spend a week at the grocery store.

By the time we got back home from our outing I had fever and chills.  Not the best way to end a really good day!

Today I have kept my temp down by taking Tylenol every 6 hours.  I'm scared if I'm running a temp on Wednesday they might not do the procedure. I also went over to Mike's and cleaned his condo.  Then I came home and made about 8 servings of his spaghetti sauce to put in the freezer.  It's been a busy day!  I also sent 4 huge boxes of clothes to Goodwill.  They were all 5 sizes too big and I finally have enough confidence in myself to let them go.  I went from a size 22 to a 12.  I can't believe it!  I still have another 11 pounds to lose so I don't know where I'll end up on clothing size but I'm determined I'll never be a size 22 again.  I actually weight less than my daughters!  I gave my size 14 clothes to my daughters but they are both doing Weight Watchers now and I'm sure they will pass me very soon.

Oh Ron also saw the neurologist this week.  Ron tried his best to get him to say he could drive but nope....it's a state law.  Can't drive for 6 months following a seizure as long as you don't have another one.  The doctor did tell him (wish he hadn't) that his office doesn't report patients to the state but just let's them be on the honor system.  In other words drive at your own risk.  Now it will be twice as hard for me to keep Ron from behind the wheel!  He also changed Ron's seizure med to one that isn't supposed to cause agitation.  

So that's it in a nutshell!  We are still plodding along!  I thank everyone for their insight and best wishes.  It really helps keep the spirits up!  So thank you!