24Jul
The sky was incredible last night, as thunder rumbled and heat lightening flashed for about half an hour and then, finally...the rain came down...in 1/4 cup drops, for 6.5 minutes! Not nearly enough rain for what we need, but here is a small taste of what I saw...
The Roc Voisine ..."Un Trou dans les nuages"
Voldemort's Tail
The Golden Fleece
Gandalf's Beard
the cotton candy that got away
and Batman Returns
Johnny was planning to come to see us today on his way home from the cottage, but alas, had to cut that trip short and head home for meds! GI tract infection - nasty...thanks for staying away Buddy and GET WELL SOON!
Good news on our Jess...possible release end of this week! yeah!...complete with new purple accessory...a PICC line for future needs. Now while Jess is no shrinking violet, her veins shrink up and head underground at the mention of anything inserted thru the skin...poor dear had to endure 5 tries before they found a vein and were successful! OUCH
The high humidity has been hard on all our breathless friends the past few weeks. Physio was a real grind for Carman yesterday, so our PT had him switch to a different bike today, one with lower tension settings. He was not only able to finish his full 20 minutes, but got caught talking to Mike while biking, so had to put some money in the “Toonies for Talking” tin! I think he made Shilpa’s day, he waited until she was there and then made a big show of dropping the money in! When our PT asked him about the bike later on, he said it was too easy, he wanted to switch back to the tougher bike next time.
However, when he did the stairs, (a set of two steps up and back down is one rep) he was baffed half way thru. Wasn’t smart enough to stop and take a break though, kept right on going and dropped his O2 down to 72%. Our PT gave him what for about that, so now he has been instructed to do only 5, take a break and then do another 5...or she’ll have to get her hammer out!
Last night after his shower, he dropped to 62%, so he was forced into true confession with the PT about that as well (thanks to yours truly); and again she kindly gave him some suggestions (backed by the hammer and high flow tubing to try) on changes to make to his shower routine and oxygen therapy while doing that. Carman still believes that the prescribed “VM @ 50% for activity” is only for activity while in the Treadmill Room. One way or another, we hope to convince him otherwise, before he gives himself a stroke!
Our PT asked Carman how he felt at the end of his workout and after his 5 minutes of rest and recovery. He said, "Great, I finished everything" no to be outdone, she replied, "Yeah, that's probably because you were slacking off on the biking today!"
Carman = 0
 |
| Maria (21Yrs post transplant) & Carman (pre-transplant) |
PT = 1 (thanks D) :o)
The bright light at physio today was a visit by Maria...this powerhouse of a woman walked into the room and said “Hello everybody, my name is Maria, I had my double lung transplant 21 years ago. I’m here to tell you it is worth it and to listen to your doctors!” She then visited with each pre-op person who had any questions, sharing her time generously and even agreeing to pose for a picture with Carman. She was also diagnosed with IPF and was on oxygen therapy and down to 90 lbs pre-surgery - you would never know it today! Maria has great colour; the best attitude and more energy than the Pickering Hydro project! Her visit was just the boost everyone needed after a couple of rough weeks!
Thank you and bless you Maria!
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