Wednesday, April 17, 2013

No Buts Going To Be Bronchoscopy

Clinic day arrived and I got there early hoping to get home early, but to no avail :(
Since my last attendance last month my lungs hadn't massively improved. I had still been able to managed 150 lengths of the pool in the previous week , but I had found it harder to do.
I had also been told that my tacro levels (Anti-rejection) were still high at the last blood test and I had been unable to arrange another test so had left this till clinic!

Got the bloods done without too much trouble and the X ray looked okay, but it was my lung function that let me down it had gone down again.I knew that  this was not good and worried what was causing it.
When I saw the Doctor she felt the same and asked me to come into Harefield Hospital for a admission. I was booked for CT scan and  a Bronchoscopy the next day  I was disappointed but realized that I should find out what was causing this and get some treatment

I arrived back at Harefield with my wife and son at 2100 and was admitted into Fir Tree ward where I had waited for my transplant to go ahead. We talked about the parallels while we traveled, as it was a similar time of night when we were driving there the night of my transplant.My wife and son then left me quite quickly so they could get home

I could see that the process was worrying for both of them because rejection was one of the possible reasons for these problems to arise!! It bought up memories in all of us about how it was when I was ill.
Left on my own I started to consider what rejection would mean should it be found, although very treatable with present mediation it holds a great fear for all transplant recipients I decided to put these thoughts away till I needed to worry about such things.

Throughout the week I had been posting my support for my friend Kimberley Liane Kneil who's blog I follow  and who had been having a really hard admission after having a bug. I had joked that if my lung function was still poor I would join her. Prophetic words that proved correct, except she was on Rowan ward downstairs.I posted a message to her on FB and we arranged to meet up during my time on the ward.
I grabbed a couple of bags of crisps  to eat before I went Nill by mouth from midnight and settled down to watch a DVD to pass the time till my Bronchoscopy with some trepidation.
The Bronch and CT scan went well and it was all over by 11am but it left me worn out and sore. I hoped that I might get some results that day, but the Hospital had been busy and nothing came back that day.
I was able to visit Kimberley and spend a bit of time chatting with her:) She is about to celebrate one year transplanted in July and I remember hearing about her call and successful transplant while we were on holiday in Sussex last year.She has been having some problems with her Kidneys since her admission and i really hope that things improve very soon! I would urge you to read her Blog if you want to know more.
I spent the next day Looking out of my window to a great view
finally I got fed up and went for a walk to pass the time waiting for the results of the tests, eventually results turned up there was no evidence of rejection but they did find some inflammation and suspect acid reflux or viral infection.So I have been put on a couple of tablets and need to come back to clinic next week if things don't improve they will bronch me again and they want to repeat the impedance test I had done before to check if acid is coming up from my stomach to my lungs on 1st may what joy!! 
Never mind I am going home for the present so I am happy  :-)

Friday, April 5, 2013

Sad News - Sam Yates has lost her fight for a new life

Just a brief post to tell my readers that unfortunately one of the people who's blog I have been following on my Blog list has lost her fight for a new life
Sammie (Sam Yates) who wrote the Blog "The End of my Tether?" about her wait for new lungs and her struggles with Cystic Fibrosis
she wrote
The aim of this blog is to perhaps raise awareness of CF and also of life living on ‘the list’. I am a primary school teacher and taught for 2 and a half (ish) years before I had to be dragged away kicking and screaming to concentrate on keeping myself as healthy as possible, so that should a pair of lungs become available, I will be fit enough to undergo the transplant. 

She was just 28 years old when God called her to join him
(I will keep a link to sammie's blog on my site in memory of her)

All the more reason for people to sign the Organ donor register 

If you have not signed up yet please consider doing so you can do so online  HERE
or if you prefer you can ring 0300 123 23 23 and register 
Finally Text the word SAVE to 84118

Please help someone like sam to get a new chance at life