Another Happy Dance

Sundays were once supposed to be a day of relaxation, eh?

Well...not in this house! Not with these new chunkers!

I knew before getting the gift of life that I would not be blessed with this miracle to sit around and let time pass by. I want to take advantage of each and every minute and really live. 

It's crucial that I invest in exercise to keep these beautiful windbags in optimal condition. I know there are other factors that are completely out of my control (cue big scary monster: rejection) however, exercise and living a healthy life IS.

I hauled on my workout gear (think hawt sloppy sweats), laced up my red kicks and was all ready to head to the gym when I noticed that June had her sexy sweats on too. Holy mother - she went with me!

We hauled our bodies all the way there and I was super pumped to go at it, but felt short of breath. I started to get a bit concerned, and sat on the floor beside the treadmill to calm down, before realizing that it was actually low blood sugar (the meds are really hard on diabetics).

Where the heck are the skittles when you need them - a little taste of the rainbow action?

After cruising back, and shoving lunch down my throat, we tried again. This time we got somewhere:

I was so impressed with us. We both did 20 minutes and it seemed like nothing. My mouth was flapping the whole time...and I didn't get out of breath!

Keep this in mind:

1.5 babeeeeee

BUT my muscles are still pretty weak from surgery and lying in bed for a month -  you know, being lazy and stuff. The physiotherapist assures me that I will get stronger and I will be able to walk those 3 5k's, and when my body is ready, she will help me start conditioning for jogging/running.

In the meantime, I felt like a freaking warrior:

I couldn't imagine that things could get any sweeter.

Well, they did.

Monday, January 14th I had my first full day of post-transplant tests. I peeled my eyelids off my eyeballs at 6:30 AM; I don't remember the last time that happened. I showered and again marvelled at the fact that I could shower tube-free and full of air. I can even sing and stuff. Could probably dance in there too, but my mom told me that's not really safe.

We arrived at the hospital at 8AM for blood work. I love needles.

Guess who's face I saw??? Mark and his wife Diane. Remember? Squat buddy Mark!!!

We spent about 45 minutes swapping lies while waiting to have needles driven into our skin. Immediately after blood work we went for breakfast.

My new way of life: I will never, ever, ever again sleep in past 9AM.

Anti-rejection meds are a lifetime commitment, as without...well, your body will reject those beautiful new blowers that were shoved inside.

It's extremely important to have a consistent level of the meds in your body so mine are taken at 9AM and 9PM. Clockwork. I have a really cool alarm set on my phone; it actually sounds like I'm getting geared up for a good time.

I have about a bizillion pills to take in the morning so I have to throw back some food with them to avoid a date with Ralph. We've all been on a date with Ralph...he's not so nice, eh?

After breakfast was x-ray. You all know how good I am at those; plus the whole radiation superhero name thing. After x-ray came PFT's.

Let me explain PFT's (pulmonary function test). PFT's measure how well your blowers work. They can measure how much air you can take in, how much air you can blow out and how fast, how well your lungs deliver oxygen to your blood and the strength of your breathing muscles.

Due to having Cystic Fibrosis, I've been doing PFT's my entire life. As a kid they were pretty cool, but as an adult they became a bit less so, as I watched my lung function go down like a bad joke.

On November 29, 2012, exactly 14 days pre-transplant, my lung function was 23%.

You've all met my happy dance

On January 14, 2013, exactly 1 month, 1 day post-transplant, my lung function was 78%!

I was expecting maybe 40%, maybe.

Doctor: "That's unheard of."

Perhaps these new lungs really are as beautiful as the docs say....or perhaps Kelly was right there with me, helping them work hard.

I'm going to go with both.

No word of a lie - as soon as I saw the screen with the results, and verified that the technologist wasn't "messing with me" I shot out of my chair and preceeded to do........

my happy dance!!!

Watch out world, Squeegee's here!