Turning 25...

....and still not necessarily grown up!!

On Friday I turned 25 (I can't wait until next year when I can say I turn 26 on the 26th!). I was stopping at my parents house as still on IVs.

I woke up to found a birthday banner had been put up in my bedroom. This shows just how deeply I sleep as I am aware when my mum comes into do my IVs at about 5.30am enough to get my line out, apart from that I have no idea when she leaves after connecting the eclipse device or when she comes back into remove it and flush the line! On Friday she also put a birthday banner up and I really did not know she had done it.

I then went downstairs to find a small pile of presents awaiting me:

Sat in my long awaited for camp chair:


I knew I had this chair for my birthday as I picked it out. Some of my fellow scout leaders have got similar chairs and it is amazing how much more comfier they are than the cheap folding chairs you can get (the ones that are normally like 2 for £10 or similar!). This is not a cheap chair but one of the leaders has had hers for 7years and you cant tell its that old based on its condition so they are well wearing and hardy. I look forward to my next beaver sleepover/ scout camp where I can take my chair with me!! After opening this present I then proceeded to sit in it whilst opening all my birthday cards and for most of the morning.This is a picture of all the presents that I had waiting for me when I woke up that morning! During the day I also received the zumba game on the Wii and a Sharky and George (Crimebusters of the sea!) hoody.

In the afternoon I had a buffet style party tea with some of my family and then some lovely cake:

I was pretty impressed when I saw it!!

All in all despite the IVs it was a good day!

IVs and some thoughts

Ok, so I am now a week into my IVs. I feel better in myself, my cough is reduced generally and its becoming more of a dry cough than a productive one. Yet if you look at the clinical numbers I am actually slightly worse off than when I started last week. I will be going with how I actually feel rather than the numbers though.

Last wednesday was a very long and emotional day. I still didn't get all the answers I need and still face more tests before anything can be truly determined. My x-ray showed radiological changes in comparison to my previous years on the left hand side. This by itsself isnt necessarily anything to worry about as it could just be a patch of infection. However when placed with somethings it could also be a sign of Aspergillus becoming a problem and having to treat. One of the blood tests that would also confirm Aspergillus hadn't come back. So depending on that result and another x-ray in September could be a start of some new treatment. However this treatment can only take place if they are 100% confident it will help as the side effects can be potentially quite damaging due to my diabetes. It's a tough balance to strike, but ultimately may improve my lung function.

My vitamin levels were low. They are always low when they are tested so I wasn't surprised to hear that. However to hear that my dietician possibly wanted to come in and talk to me about it after the doctor left I was not so impressed with. I had been sat in clinic for an hour with noone coming into see me and I had heard the dietician say she had seen everyone she needed to. So she had another thing coming if she thought I was going to stick around for her to talk me after the doctor left me!! As it was I got to the hospital at 10am wednesday morning and did not leave until 4.30pm. This meant I did not get home until gone 5.30pm!!

I also expressed what I thought is pure stupidity on the Ultrasound department for allowing diabetics to have scans in the afternoon. I had not been able to eat since 8am and then they were slightly delayed in doing my scan. I was starting to feel hypo and had a bad headache for the rest of the day. I feel there should be a question on their forms when the scans are booked asking if the patient is diabetic and therefore giving them an appointment as early as possible in the day.

Annual assessments are just stressful days and its possibly more irritating that it was a month after the tests were done supposedly so all the results will be in and then they arent so you still cant discuss everything you want or need to.

Havent blogged in awhile

Ok, so I haven't blogged in awhile. There is no reason for it, just not really had anything to say.

I've been on reward camp which was nice and chilled which is what I wanted it to be and so was good. The not so good part of the 2days is when I got stung by a wasp on my eyelid!! It flew into my face and got trapped behind my glasses and panicked resulting in the sting. That was very painful but luckily an anti-histamine tablet took down the slight swelling and my eyesight was not affected so I did not have to visit a&e (which I was threatened with if my eyesight went blurry!!). So glad I'm not allergic to wasp stings!

My parents have been away on holiday for the last 2weeks and its felt weird not seeing my mum. Normally I see her most days or every other day for a cup of tea, so to not see her for almost a fortnight was weird. It wasnt so weird not seeing my dad as I dont normally see him as he works and so unless I go round for my evening meal I dont see him except on sundays (when I always go for sunday dinner!). Its been abit of a stressful 2weeks with my mum away as well as I've had to deal with a couple of things that she would of sorted out normally (mainly a very early 6.20am wake up call because my niece woke up covered in chicken pox and her mum panicked slightly as she didnt have the car and had my other niece to get to holiday club and other things. Also my brother and partner had a major argument and I ended up with my brother for a day and night at my house basically just sat in my armchair refusing to budge from his stubbornness and she refused to budge from her stubbornness either! They are pretty much sorted again now though). Both of those things I did because I love my family but boy does it make me appreciate my mum lots! If my parents had been at home my brother would of stayed with them and his partner would of rung my mum for advice on the chicken pox and for lifts at such an early time in the morning.

I've got a busy week coming up, it should go to plan like this:
Monday- visit to see a niece and nephew I rarely see (they are my sister's husbands kids so they are adopted niece and nephew and they are staying with their grandparents which is why we can see them as they dont really live close by for us to see regularly. Only if my sister and husband are home from Cyprus (where he is posted in the RAF) or if they are with his parents).
In the evening I am going to see Smurfs 3d - very excited!

Tuesday- It is my grandmas birthday so she is coming round to my parents in the afternoon for a birthday tea which I am also invited to. My IVs are also being delivered sometime on tuesday. There is a leaders meeting at 7.30pm to discuss the programmes and other scout group stuff and I also have to squish in a visit from the best friend who comes back off holiday and wants to pick up her guinea pigs that I have been looking after.

Wednesday- Is a whole day at the hospital! I have to be there for 10.30am to start my IVs (which for those who know me may realise that means I will be on IVs for my birthday this year). Then I have clinic in the afternoon which is my Annual Assessment Review afternoon. So is the clinic where they discuss all of the results from the tests they did last month to see if any changes need to be made to my medication and plans for the year ahead to keep me as well as possible. I'm expecting upto 5 new medications based on what was discussed at the first part of the review. I am also not allowed anything to eat from 8am on wednesday until after my ultrasound scan at 2pm in the afternoon. I am also only allowed water to drink until after my scan, this is going to make for a very long day and means I have to be up early to have breakfast and a cup of tea to get me through the day. As I wont really be able to eat straight after the scan as I will be straight into clinic with the doctors!!

Thursday- is a pretty quiet daytime and in the evening I will be going to pizza hut with the same friend I am going to the cinema with on monday. I put a status on facebook last week wondering if I could convince anyone to go to pizza hut with me as I love the BBQ pizza they do. She replied saying I was thinking the exact same thing and she loves the same pizza I do as well so we organised to go. We will probably end up ordering a large cheesy bites BBQ pizza between us.

Friday- Is food shopping with my grandma and that takes all morning by the time we have had to have a cup of tea with her afterwards. As much as I love my grandma I always find friday mornings a long time! When I food shop by myself depending on when I go I can have done my shopping and be home again within an hour, sometimes within half an hour. On a friday I leave my house at about 8.15am and usually don't enter it again until 11.30am! Thats a long time for food shopping.

My weekend is currently empty of plans which is probably a good thing seeing as I will be on IVs and should really rest abit. The week after is also empty of plans apart from my birthday.