Update time

I'm a bad blogger leaving it so long before updating! So, what have a got to share that is worth writing about.....

I had another appointment at the SBAU in Heartlands. Whilst there I was able to meet the lovely Emma which was great! I'm sure she was glad when I left though as I have a tendency to get excited and talk non stop!
I had to have my lung function tests redone as they weren't done properly on my previous visit. My lung function tests showed a 30% increase after a neb, no surprise there but it's always good to get these things confirmed properly. I also had my exhaled nitric oxide levels measured for the first time which was rather exciting! We don't have such exotic machines in my local hospital.
The appointment was with a registrar and I left feeling that it was a complete waste of time :(

Since then I've had yet another chest infection, it seems to have completely knocked my lungs from that little stable period back into uncontrolled and unpredictable :( Things aren't too bad yet, but I am concerned about not being able to get on top of this.

I'm moving house this week! It's very exciting but probably isn't helping the stupid lung situation. I don't feel stressed (well, I am starting to feel a little stressed today as I still have so much left to pack) but I think moving everything around and dust is upsetting my lungs a little.

I received the clinic letter from my appointment at the SBAU. It was far more helpful than I left the appointment feeling. The letter recommended that I have a home nebuliser. Finally!! I have been fighting and begging for a home nebuliser for years. My local consultant is very against asthmatics having home nebulisers, which I've found incredibly frustrating. Every time I brought it up, his answer was that 'if I needed a neb, I needed to be in hospital'. Last time I saw him, he said if Heartlands agreed to me having a home neb, he'd be happy with it. So yesterday I went to my local hospital and got myself a little nebuliser - yay!! Seriously, it's amazing how happy this little bit of medical equipment has made me! I'm not under any illusions that it's going to cure me or anything, but I think it's going to massively help in the middle of the night when I wake up struggling to breath, and in the morning when it takes me ages to do anything because I'm so breathless and wheezy.

Heartlands have been keen to push Bronchial Thermoplasty with me. I haven't been too keen on the idea as I feel there are other options we could try before going for such a drastic treatment. I thought we left it as something we could look at in the future. However, today I had a phone call from one of the respiratory nurses to screen me for BT. I was a little surprised but went along with it. It turns out that I'm not eligible because I've had more than 3 chest infections in the past 12 months. Even though I wasn't overly keen on having the procedure, I feel a little upset that this treatment isn't available to me. Meh I'll get over it, I guess I just don't like being told I can't have something!!

Next time you hear from me, I should be in my new home :)