First weigh in minus 5 pounds this week

Last night Britt and Layla came over for dinner.  I ate Fish!!!!  let me say that again.......... I ATE FISH!!!  I hadn't eaten fish (besides the really good heavily breaded kind) since I was a little kid.  It didn't kill me!  It actually was pretty good. 

Of course, with every meal I am eating a ton of veggies.  So we also had broccoli and peppers and onions.  Notice that every meal has peppers and onions in it?  It is a great tasteful healthy filler!  I am all for healthy fillers. 

Britt and I went to Weight Watchers this morning.  Our first weeks weigh in. I lost 5 pounds.  I am happy with that.  I know there will be weeks that the weight won't come off and there will be plateau's that I reach occasionally, but I am determined to lose as much weight as quickly and healthily as I can. 

When I have my first exam with the transplant center, I want to show them that I am serious about following rules, and taking care of myself.

I started slowly exercising.  It's difficult when you are not supposed to get your heart rated up to find something you can do.  I bought one of those Shake weight things.  I am using it to try and tone up my upper arms and back and shoulder muscles.  It does give you a work out.  Then I bought a 5 lb work out ball.  Also to work my upper body, but also to use while I do little tiny curls on the floor. 

I am going walking this afternoon.  I found a oximizer cannula for my oxygen.  What it does is trap some of the O2 in a bladder like thing and when you are breathing heavily it gives you a boost of O2.  I am going to try it today on a 2 1/2 mile walk on the nature trail and see how it helps.  Walking and breathing isn't the issue as much as when I do anything that exerts energy my O2 levels drop quickly, and that is dangerous.  I am hoping this works.  I am so determined and focused on getting my body in transplant shape that I do not want my own set backs. 

I understand there will be setbacks, if nothing else this last year has taught me that.  I just want to be able to take control of one aspect of my health and life. 

The last couple days have been difficult air wise.  My lungs have been burning, especially my right one.  It gets so painful that they have woke me up the last 2 nights. 

I have noticed and Bill has noticed that I am having incidents of memory issues.  Short term and words.  Bill can tell me something and the next day or even hours later I would swear he never told me.  When I am writing sometimes I have a really hard time coming up with a word.  I can describe it, but can't find the word.  In this area... Bill has been an ANGEL.  I don't know if this is a menopausal thing, or a Oxygen to the brain thing, but at moments it is embarrassing.  I will be in the middle of a conversation with someone and just go blank. 

I belong to a group on face book that is a Transplant group.  People who are waiting for new organs, people who have already had them, family member of transplant patients.  When I joined I introduced myself and asked if there were anyone who had been through the process of a lung transplant who wouldn't mind talking to me.  I had several reach out to me.  I met a very gracious woman named Judy Russell who will be calling my Thursday.  She had a double transplant from a living donor then had to have another single transplant.  So, if anyone... she should be the one to ease my mind about these survival statistics I keep seeing.  I am making a list of questions for her.

Bill tells me to just wait and not worry until the time comes.  Just knowing what could be in my future is scary.  I have confidence that I am strong and can fight when backed into a corner, I just am afraid of the months and short years following the surgery.  I can't not think about it.  It is always in the back of my head.

We are going to dinner tonight with friends.  So I need to get going if I am going to walk and come home and get showered and ready.  TahTah