REALLY BAD TIMING....

Well, I've just spent the last three days in hospital. As I stated in my previous post, I've been struggling with what I initially thought was a lousy summer cold. Not so!
As the doctor stated today, that would have been the best case scenario. No, it appears a whole sequence of events now has me dealing with what will become a perpetual problem. I was told today that I've suffered a COPD Flare! You ask, what in the world is that? Well, I sure did! It can be life threatening apparently as it can cause respiratory failure.

Apparently, in my case, it's consecutive events that led my body to 'attack'. I will tell you it's one of the most scary feelings ever! I really felt like I was suffocating.

It started with my throat surgery, then being exposed to pertussis(whooping cough), then a booster I got for tetanus and diptheria, whooping cough etc, then the extreme heat and humidity we have at the moment and the pace I was trying to run at. Yep, it caught up with me big time. The other mitigating factor that added (not caused) to this equation was the fact that I smoke.

Well, three days in hospital, over two hundred dollars in medications (some of which I'll be on forever apparently) has dictated some life changes. I can no longer spend time in the heat and/or humidity, I must take inhalers 4 - 6 times a day, and I must quit smoking. Oh yeah, the other factor that plays a big part in this, I was told, is to eliminate stressors from your life. Hah! ...can someone give the secret for that, please! Oh yeah, finally, I've been told that I can't go into my husband's workshop anymore because of the wood dust and because of the spray finishing.

I have a photography show coming up this weekend. Fortunately, I do not need to be in attendance (although I wanted to be). So, tomorrow, I'll start my car and get the air conditioning going before I leave the driveway, pick up my framed art, and drive back home to my central air conditioned house. Wednesday, once again, I'll get my car air conditioning going and then head to Cobourg to submit my photography pieces and back home.

So, whether I like it or not, my life is heading in a new direction. One positive in all of this is I'll also quit drinking. For me, the drink was just the social appendage. I always enjoyed the smoking far more than I've ever liked to have a drink. I've always thought drinking created as many social and health issues as smoking.

I will tell everyone, they are lucky not to be near. I've tried to quit smoking about six times in my life and I turn into an absolute B----t-----ch!!!

I know now what it would be like to die from suffocation now....and it's not pleasant. For me, however, there's no one with their hands around my throat trying to kill me. I guess I've done that to myself!

Added to all of this, I'm now the heaviest I've ever been in my life. The steroids I now have to take cause major weight gain for me. I've already gained four and half pounds since Friday. So much for my weight training etc and my goal for year end. Hmm, guess my new goal is just to keep myself alive.