A couple weeks ago I noticed that I
was wheezing again, similar to how I was before the bronchoscopy. I had a hunch
my airways were already narrowing and that I would need another bronchoscopy
sooner than later. On Wednesday my pulmonary function numbers were down 4% and
my doctor confirmed that the wheezing and constriction is all on the right
side, the same side they had to clean out the last 2 times. He wasn’t concerned
and said that this will settle down eventually as my lungs finish healing, and
that things already looked better during my last bronchoscopy. Nevertheless, we
need to keep on top of it, so that means another bronchoscopy in a couple weeks
to open up the airways and clean out any dead tissue. On the plus side, that
means another stuffed animal for the Bronchoscopy Collection!
My hips, meanwhile, continue to
misbehave. I’ve only seen slight improvement with physical therapy, so we’re
trying to get me an appointment with an orthopedic doctor to figure out the
next steps. I’ve also been having pain in other joints, including my fingers, shoulders,
and knees. I kinda feel like a creaky old lady! My doctor said it’s possible
this could be due to one of my medications, but it’s more likely from my body
adjusting to being on a lower dose of Prednisone after being on such high doses
of steroids for so long. Unfortunately it could take months for my body to
finish adjusting, so it looks like pain is just going to be part of my life for
now. What’s also unfortunate is that post-transplant I can’t take any drugs
that include ibuprofen due to drug interactions, so I’m stuck with Tylenol
instead. And before someone suggests medical marijuana, that’s out too, as that
also interacts with one of my anti-rejection meds. I never tried marijuana
before, and apparently now I never will. Alas!
Once again I have to remind myself
that transplant recovery is a long process, and allow my body to heal at its
own pace. Which is hard when I feel so much better and want to do all the
things! It also isn’t exactly fun being in varying degrees of pain most of the
time. But I’ll keep working on being patient, and hopefully things will settle
down soon!
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