I finished Occupational & Physical Therapy back in December. Hooray! But, I still need to keep up with it at home which is easier said than done. So, I’m falling flat on that. Shame on me. Last couple of months I had a good excuse. I hurt my ankle somehow. Honestly, I have NO IDEA how it happened but I think the dogs were involved in the middle of the night. *sigh*
My doctor ordered my home health company to come out that night to do an x-ray of my ankle. It didn’t SHOW a break but it hurt! It hurt for 2 months. I’ve never broken a bone before and I want to keep that awesome streak alive! So, we’ll just say I sprained it. It’s feeling better now but it still aches every so often.
I’ve been using my Trilogy ventilator 24/7 for 14 months now. I’m doing well. I have good days and a few bad days mixed in. Today, I got my Trilogy swapped out with another Trilogy because it came with a modem that will send reports, from the machine, directly to my doctor who prescribed it. It runs on bluetooth. Isn’t technology great? Now, no one has to come to my house to pull a report from the Trilogy via USB and email it to my doctor. I’m usually seeing that doctor via Telehealth and only rarely do I need to show up in her office. I really like Telehealth doctor appointments. I also got a different mask to use and it’s making eating easier. I still have to use a straw to drink beverages though. I did buy a couple of straws that can be reused. One of them is steel and the other is hard plastic. I don’t use disposable ones because they would just end up in the landfill. Boo! But I do miss those flexi straws. =o)
It’s getting to be a pain to lug my trilogy and 2 oxygen portables every time I leave the house. It was funny (after the fact) when K and I were about to leave for an appointment, that we pretty much fumbled through getting me out the door. It is so crazy! I have switch my source of oxygen to use 2 portables with a splitter, change the Trilogy hose to a 6ft one (instead of a 10ft one) and then detach my Trilogy from the base to leave the house. K carries it all as we walk to our vehicle. The first time we did it, I knocked over my tumbler of ice water all over the floor because the hose caught onto it when K was lifting the machine. My dog, Willow, loved all the free ice that scattered all over the floor. We were in a rush. So, we grabbed whatever was close to mop it up. Never a dull moment. We are finally getting a routine down for when we have to go somewhere. YAY! K says that it looks like we actually know what we’re doing now. =o)
I’m pretty much a homebody though. I honestly look forward to days where K gets me out of the house. I feel like I live in a bubble within my home. I stay busy with crocheting, reading, playing Elvenar on the computer and watching our favorite tv show called Tournament of Champions (5th season!). If you like cooking, that show is a MUST see! It’s on Food Network!
I’m also learning something new. We are going SOLAR! I am very excited about this. We will never be without power again which is a relief because, you know…. life support equipment! There are so many details with getting Solar panels and a battery backup. It’s been a huge learning process… There are so many things involved such as homeowners insurance, power company changes, solar tax credit, and so much more. We’re still in the planning stages but it’s going to happen!
I hope you are doing well. *hugs*
Living On O2 for Life 
Hello Christine
I appreciate your update and hearing that the ventilator routine is coming along. It’s hard and complicated. The cool thing is that you are a survivor. You find solutions and keep moving forward. I’ve been following your stories since I went on O2 in 2012 or close to there. You were the only one sharing real life on oxygen and you’re still kicking it!
I wish you well and hope to see some of your crochet work. Hugs
Thank you so much for your kind words. I wished someone would’ve written about this sort of thing back when I first went on oxygen but they didn’t have blogs back then. So I’m happy to write about my experiences for anyone who wants to know about it. I would post a picture of my current crochet project but it’s a gift for someone and it’s a secret. I’ll post it after it’s received. But I have others I could post.
Hi Christine, I really enjoy your writing.
I just subscribed with my new email address: mcullen@sonic.net mailto:mcullen@sonic.net. So, I’ll unsubscribe from my old email: mcullen-at-comcast.net Best wishes, Marlene
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So glad you are feeling better! That’s a blessing! I really only get out a handful of times a month. I’m thankful in a way, I have fewer appointments than I used too. A very good thing.
Have an awesome March!
It’s kinda interesting you share about finishing physical and occupational therapy and keeping up with it now…. Guilty as charged when it comes to exercise. I struggle with the good and bad but have had a talk with the pulmonary nurse practitioner about trying for many reasons. I just watched some videos today about menopause and exercise for our bone health from our 20s on up. Let’s add more crazy symptoms! This is screaming at me to do something! Hope you’re having more good days on your ankle and find balance with trying to incorporate the exercises you’ve learned. Awesome for backup power, especially in Texas! We live out in the country where it all goes nuts having a septic pump and well pump to worry about when the power goes out! But you already know because your life depends on it!
Oh I struggle. Boy do I struggle. In fact, I may be restarting at least the Physical Therapy again because I’ve noticed another decline in my breathing even on the Trilogy machine. My ankle seems improved but it still aches often. It’s a really strange feeling. Getting old sucks. lol!
The exercises I do for therapy are very basic and I use resistance bands to improve my strength. I can do 20 of each exercise for upper body. The lower body was 20 each exercise but I had to stop because of my ankle. I’m frail I’ll need to work myself back up to 20 again. Challenge accepted. 😁