Oxygen and me

I was coming home the other night. I dutifully put my oxygen on and got on I-15 to go home. In about 3 minutes my nose started to ache and I felt like there was a hurricane of air going up my nose. LOL.

I guess the knob that controls the amount of oxygen got bumped in the car. I think it went to 5 (liters per hour.) I'm at 1 - 1.5 liters per hour during the day. And of course I can't get off the freeway to adjust it. So I fiddled with the knob and got it down to 2.5, which worked until I got home. Sigh.

The medical supply company also delivered oxygen to me on Tuesday. I usually have 2 tanks, but he gave me two more tanks. That means either I don't have to get the oxygen as often and/or they don't have to deliver to me so often.

Just for fun, I took a picture of all the tanks I have. I call it my oxygen farm. To the right in the picture is the oxygen concentrator that I use during the day. The tanks are for when I get out of the house. I'd really like to get a smaller unit for both.

Pictures!

Here are some pictures of the finished baby hat. I am giving it to my great-niece Lily because it is too big for a newborn. Lily is 18 months old and adorable. I'm going to try the same pattern with 60 stitches cast on to make it smaller. The pattern calls for size 2-3 needles, I used size 6. Oops. Always makes sense to read the directions before starting to knit. :)

I don't like the top of the hat. There's supposed to be a little knot there, but I couldn't figure it out from the directions. So I'm off to Martha's to get instructions on how to make a tassle or pom-pom for the top.

I really enjoyed knitting this pattern. It's a keeper.

Second hat completed

Wow, I am on a roll. I finished the second baby hat last night. It is very cute, knit with a Bernat Jacquards yarn called "Spearmint Candy." The colors are pink, white, yellow, and green. It is an odd looking hat with a pink & white rolled brim and then yellow, green, and white the rest of the way. The baby hats measure about about 4 1/2 to 5 inches from the brim to the top, so the pattern of the jacquard yarn doesn't really have a chance to truly show its thing.

I have started another baby hat, this time using Bernat Jacquard yarn called "I'm a big boy". The yarn is blue, white, and green. Here is the pattern I am using (found on ravelry.com). The pattern is by Lisa Giacco and is to be used for charity or personal use only.



My hat will probably be mostly green because that is where the yarn started. I may knit two of these so one can be mostly blue. Fun.

I went to the dentist today to have a small cavity filled. Back molar right side. Done in 45 minutes. I was a tad nervous since I can't have the gas right now. My dentist is so good though that I didn't feel a thing. The tooth next to it (a crown) aches a bit, but I am hoping it is nothing. I'd really like to get my dental bill paid off next month. In six months I will go for a checkup and have the crown put on my implant. And then I will have a molar on the left top side of my mouth (just 2 molars there right now.)

First project finished 2010!

I finished a baby hat this evening. We're knitting baby hats/beanies for babies in an orphanage in Jordan. I'll find my camera and take a picture tomorrow. It turned out really cute. Woo hoo!

Bummer part 2

Well, I'm still on medical leave of absence. There is little change in my lung x-rays. I also didn't wear my oxygen for an hour this morning and my blood oxygen level as 83 at the doctors. At that point I put the oxygen back on and it popped right back up to 92.

Since I still have little stamina, we decided that I would wait another 2 weeks to go back to work. I probably will have to go back with oxygen. The silver lining is maybe I can get one of the cute portable oxygen concentrators. The doctor even said the bad word "permanent", which did NOT make me happy.

I lost 3 more pounds. Woo hoo! Now I need to increase my walking to a daily event.

I am going to stitching group tonight. My brother will drop me off in Draper and Pat B will pick me up. Dinner is at Paradise Cafe (yum and nutritious). Don will bring me home.

Now I have to decide what project to take. I have a Jim Shore Santa on perforated paper that I may take. It is a Mill Hill and is way cute. And very portable. And small.

I could take some tatting too. Or knitting. Decisions, decisions. Here is a picture of the Santa.


I called my boss to inform him that it would be at least 2 more weeks before I would be able to come back to work. He then said he had something to tell me. I thought "oh crap". There has been a reorganization at work. The product I have been working on has been dropped. Uh oh. There is still the legacy product to work on, and other projects that need more bodies. So my job is safe. I will have a new boss. However I have worked with her before, so that will be great.

Adventures with a CPAP machine

Last Tuesday, the guy from the home medical supply place brought me my very own CPAP machine and humidifier. It is a ResMed and much smaller than I expected. The guy went through the whole spiel about hooking up the CPAP, the humidifier, etc. It took about an hour. He fitted the mask to my face and told me how to quick release the mask if I needed to get up during the night.




Of course, the first night was an adventure. My brother even took a picture and my mom giggled.

So my routine at night is fill the humidifier water reservoir with distilled water and click it into the CPAP, being very careful not to spill anywhere. Shut the lid firmly so the CPAP starts properly.

Attach the hose to the humidifier. Attach the other end of the hose to the mask. Plug the CPAP machine in. I hit the Warm Humidifier while I am going through the rest of the process.

I also need oxygen at night. So the tube from the oxygen concentrator is attached to the hose end that is attached to the humidifier. I turn the oxygen concentrator on.

Then I brush my teeth, get my jammies on, take my meds, and turn down the covers. And turn out the light (I usually have the TV on.) I put the mask on. It's pretty cool because the CPAP machine is automatically programmed to start as soon as I put the mask on. And it will stop when I take the mask off.

There is also a ramping feature. It starts the air pressure at 4 and ramps up to 10 (which is my air pressure setting. It can go up to 20.) The air pressure is what keeps my airways open so I can breathe properly when I sleep. The technician set the ramping feature for 20 minutes initially, I have it at 5 minutes now.

I'm sleeping better now, I think and resting. I'm still sleep during the day at times, but I can't tell if that is my lungs or if the CPAP isn't working as it should. I have a doctor's appointment on Tuesday, so I'll wear the mask until then. and beyond. I haven't had many problems with the mask.

A sleep study and a new toy

I had the sleep study done on Wednesday, Jan 6. On Monday, Jan 11 the home medical supply place called me and said that the neurologist at the sleep clinic had ordered a CPAP machine for me. Oh goody, a new toy.

The sleep study wasn't bad. I had to be at the clinic at 9:15 pm and we were about 5 minutes early. There are 3 rooms at this clinic, and the other two patients were already there. They showed me the room, it was very nice. It had a double bed with a very nice warm comforter.

My niece Amy had a sleep study done a couple of months ago. She told me to take an extra throw or blanket since the room was cold. So I took a down throw along with me. And a sweater. The ironic thing is that I don't get cold at night. In fact I am like a furnace and usually throw the covers off during the night. Anyway...

George and Kim, the two sleep technicians came in to put all the leads on me. There are about 20 leads. 2 go on each leg, 1 goes on each side of the collarbone, 1 behind each ear, 2 on the neck, a few in your hair and on the forehead. The wires go back to this little box for monitoring of the patient. A very soft belt goes around the chest and waist. Here is a picture of someone all hooked up. It took about 30 minutes to attach everything.



I then climbed into bed and George attached a lead to the chest belt and the waist belt. He then checked all of the leads to make sure they were still stuck on me, then put a probe in my nose. The probe is just like a nasal canula, except much smaller. This probe lets the technicians know if the patient breathes through their mouth or nose. I then had the pulse oximeter put on my finger.

I got comfortable, George turned out the light, and I tried to fall asleep. I have no idea how long it took for me to fall asleep, but it seemed just a few minutes later that Kim came in with a nasal canula. Apparently my oxygen was too low, and so she put the nasal canula in my nose, along with the probe. There was actually room in my nostrils for both. And it didn't hurt. I fell asleep.

I tried to turn over, but the oxygen tubing was too short. Kim was watching me and came in the room and held the tubing so I could turn on my right side. I fell asleep.

In a few minutes, Kim came in with a CPAP mask had hooked it up. I didn't realize that the study was a Split Night PSG with CPAP Titration.

Split Night PSG is conducted when moderate or severe Sleep Apnea has been discovered or strongly suspected during the first part of the nights study. The second half of the night is used for CPAP Titration.

The mask went on. It was a different kind of mask than the one I wore in the hospital. It just covered my nose, not my nose and mouth. I fell asleep.

In a few minutes, George came in and asked me if I was hot. No, I was sleeping under the sheet and had thrown the comforter off. Apparently I was sweating and a few of the leads had fallen off. So George cleaned the spots and reattached the leads behind my ears, neck, and forehead. I got comfortable again and he turned the fan on over my head so I wouldn't sweat. I fell sleep and had a weird dream.

I dreamed the test was over and we were having a party to celebrate. There were even celebrities and famous people there. They all congratulated us and then we had breakfast together. I woke up rather disoriented because I thought the study was over and I was still in bed. I fell asleep again, and a few minutes later George woke me up and said the study was over.

I did sleep because I can sleep anywhere. It just seemed like a short time every time they woke me up. I got dressed, went home, had breakfast, and slept most of the day.

I tried to get information on how I did, but George and Kim weren't too talkative. I guess I will get the results when I see my doctor on Tuesday.

The overall experience was really good. I'm glad I had the study done, maybe now I can get some good rest.

Bummer

I went to the pulmonologist today. Actually I saw the nurse practitioner because the office is booked solid. She did consult with my pulmonologist.

They want to wait 2 weeks and take another x-ray and perform some other breathing tests. I'm not released to go to work. I called my boss and he said the work would always be there. I told him I would much rather be there working.

I can drive, but probably won't do much of it.

So I am going to wallow in pity tonight, and then wake up with a new attitude. Tomorrow is the dentist and a sleep study.

And it is my parents 54th wedding anniversary. And they still like each other, love each other lots. Thanks for being my parents Mom & Dad!

Today

I changed the background. It makes me smile and is seasonal.

Let's see, good news first. I went to the doctor today and I have lost 13 more pounds. That is 23 pounds since Thanksgiving. Woo hoo! I wouldn't recommend the hospital to get started, but it was a good kick starter.

Bad news is that my lungs aren't much better. Boo, hiss. I had a chest x-ray today and the lungs are a little clearer, but not much since the first x-ray on Dec 3. I'm a bit discouraged. The doctor also ran a spirometry test. That is where the patient blows into a tube. Take a deep breath and exhale as hard and fast as you can, then hold that breath. For as long as you can. I'm not very good at it. The results are that something is at 44%, and I didn't reach a level for long enough on a graph. (I'm not technical.) Bottom line is I am seeing a pulmonologist tomorrow.

So I am rather discouraged. I'm not cleared for work and I still can't drive.

My nice brother Scott took me on a field trip today because I have cabin fever. I went to the dentist to have a suture removed. I also made an appointment for Wednesday to replace a crown. Ka-ching. We picked up my x-rays and filled some prescriptions. I found a red pajama top to match my pink/white/red pajama bottoms. I also bought some new pink fluffy booties. I have a sleep study Wednesday night, so needed something to wear during the sleep study.

And hopefully that means my c-pap will be on the way soon.

The other good news is that I finally feel like being crafty. Here are the booties I am knitting. I'm going to try and tat the edging. Actually I'm still trying to decide.


Then I am going to finish this stocking. I finally found some good directions on how to turn the heel with a different color of yarn. I'm not happy with the stocking the way it is, so I am going to knit it again, with a different yarn and smaller needles. But not for awhile. This picture is a picture of the stocking that someone else knitted. I'll post a picture as soon as I finish it.


And the medical bills are pouring in. Thank goodness I have great insurance. And a medical savings account. I have a $2500 maximum out of pocket, and will easily meet that. The amount for the bills so far is about $53,000.00. Gulp. And I still haven't received many of the doctors bills.

OK, I'm done for the day. Wish me luck tomorrow at the pulmonologist. I feel pretty good. Good night.