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.

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.