Well I hope everyone had a really Happy New Year though judging from our newspapers most of our young people were practically unconscious well before midnight. I still don't understand how drinking yourself into oblivion equates to having a good time, may be I'm getting old.
To be honest I only just got to see the new year in myself as I was absolutely exhausted after work and several times I dozed off before the big moment. I was in bed the moment the fireworks stopped.
For the last couple of days I've been contemplating possible resolutions. I'm pretty good at keeping New Year resolutions but have hit the buffers a bit this year. I don't drink, smoke, take drugs (except for prescribed), I can't go to the gym to get fit and I don't need to lose weight so what am I going to do?
Well I think number one is trying to get to the weight target I've been set. I've actually made a pretty good start over Christmas, gaining a whopping seven pounds. I'm actually 7 stone 11 pounds now ( no idea on kilos) which just pushed me into the BMI range of 19 -20 at 19.2. That should keep Papworth happy as they wanted me over nineteen to increase my chances of a good outcome from surgery. Of course I have been eating a lot of things I don't usually eat and thankfully I've manage to keep everything down. However I am already craving fruit and salads and healthy stuff so I think I'm going to have to factor in the odd chocolate bar and toasted cheese sandwich in order to keep the weight on.
I've also decided to take up painting again. I've thought about for a while now and the only thing really holding me back is the lack of materials. All my oils and acrylics dried up years ago so next time I'm out and about I'm going to pick up some paints, brushes and a canvass or two and have a go. I think both these goals should be achievable so fingers crossed.
The third one is not to have PH at Christmas but of course that one is a little bit out of my hands but at least every night now when I do my drugs i say to myself, 'this might be the last time I have to this.' And to be honest it is a nice feeling knowing that one day I will be right. I am turning into a bit of a Del Boy though as I've caught myself saying thing like 'this time next year...' I suppose I deserve a bit of optimism and hope this year though so I'll keep saying it, even though it makes my family fall about.
As a lovely start to the new year I had a Warfarin clinic to attend. Naively I though that being during the holidays it would be quiet and I'd be in and out. I was very much mistaken and people were queuing along the corridor. The clinic itself was bedlam and the receptionist flustered and bad tempered. She almost snatched my appointment book out of my hand and barked at me to 'find a seat'. Fortunately just as I was scanning the room for an elusive gap someone was called and vacated a seat in the aisle right next to me. I slipped in and settled down for a long wait. After a few minutes the elderly lady opposite me tapped me on the knee and leaned forward.
"I hope you will give that seat up, there are a lot of elderly people in here today."
I'm not usually rude to people especially the elderly but I'm fed up with people assuming I'm well just because the way of I look so I leaned back towards her and said the following.
"Yes there are a lot of elderly people here today but there are also a lot of very sick people here and I'm one of them so I will not be giving up my seat, I really wish I could."
She didn't say a word but spent the next half hour glaring at me. I was heartily grateful when she finally got called until I realised what had replaced her.
He was a pleasant well dressed man whom I judged to be not much older than myself. He was cheerful and started to chat about the weather, Christmas and generalities. Then the conversation turned to why everyone was there and then we got a detailed account of his recent pacemaker operation WITH pictures. Now I'm not squeamish by any standard but I really could have done with out that, however I nodded politely and made appropriate sounds at images of his bruises as it began to dawn on me that I'd stumbled upon a hypochondriac who was delighted to find he was really ill. In quick succession I got descriptions of his angiogram, following a heart attack, his ablation, which didn't work, and various other tests that I've had by the dozen but were obviously major events to him.
Half an hour in and I decided to take my jumper off as it was getting really hot and as I did so my line popped out from under my tee shirt silencing him in his tracks.
"Oh my God I am so sorry, here am I rattling on and all the time you have cancer."
"No I don't have cancer"
"My mate had cancer and he had one of those, it's where they do the chemo isn't it."
"It is similar but this isn't for cancer."
I then 'educated' him about PH and by the time I'd finished with 'waiting for a heart/lung transplant' he was shaking his head. I think I might just have put things into perspective for him as he put his phone away, which had the pictures on it, and instead he asked how I coped with the Warfarin and did I find any particular foods effected it. We got on quite well after that and happily chatted away until I was called, a full hour and forty minutes after I arrived.
Back home the promised dinner that Andrew had offered to cook had not materialised so I whipped up a quick pasta and then sat enjoying a cuppa while I caught up on my emails and wrote this blog. This afternoon we are nipping out briefly to get some of the fruit I feel so desperate for, and take Andrew and Svet into Milton Keynes so they can do some shopping. Then it is back home, an early night and work tomorrow.
My cold is better but my cough, though less frequent, is still deep and chesty so I might pay a visit to my GP next week, if it is still there, to see what he can recommend as I'm well and truly fed up with it now.
Oh well no peace for the wicked. I'm beginning to wish the holiday season over so I can have a rest. Next blog Saturday.
To be honest I only just got to see the new year in myself as I was absolutely exhausted after work and several times I dozed off before the big moment. I was in bed the moment the fireworks stopped.
For the last couple of days I've been contemplating possible resolutions. I'm pretty good at keeping New Year resolutions but have hit the buffers a bit this year. I don't drink, smoke, take drugs (except for prescribed), I can't go to the gym to get fit and I don't need to lose weight so what am I going to do?
Well I think number one is trying to get to the weight target I've been set. I've actually made a pretty good start over Christmas, gaining a whopping seven pounds. I'm actually 7 stone 11 pounds now ( no idea on kilos) which just pushed me into the BMI range of 19 -20 at 19.2. That should keep Papworth happy as they wanted me over nineteen to increase my chances of a good outcome from surgery. Of course I have been eating a lot of things I don't usually eat and thankfully I've manage to keep everything down. However I am already craving fruit and salads and healthy stuff so I think I'm going to have to factor in the odd chocolate bar and toasted cheese sandwich in order to keep the weight on.
I've also decided to take up painting again. I've thought about for a while now and the only thing really holding me back is the lack of materials. All my oils and acrylics dried up years ago so next time I'm out and about I'm going to pick up some paints, brushes and a canvass or two and have a go. I think both these goals should be achievable so fingers crossed.
The third one is not to have PH at Christmas but of course that one is a little bit out of my hands but at least every night now when I do my drugs i say to myself, 'this might be the last time I have to this.' And to be honest it is a nice feeling knowing that one day I will be right. I am turning into a bit of a Del Boy though as I've caught myself saying thing like 'this time next year...' I suppose I deserve a bit of optimism and hope this year though so I'll keep saying it, even though it makes my family fall about.
As a lovely start to the new year I had a Warfarin clinic to attend. Naively I though that being during the holidays it would be quiet and I'd be in and out. I was very much mistaken and people were queuing along the corridor. The clinic itself was bedlam and the receptionist flustered and bad tempered. She almost snatched my appointment book out of my hand and barked at me to 'find a seat'. Fortunately just as I was scanning the room for an elusive gap someone was called and vacated a seat in the aisle right next to me. I slipped in and settled down for a long wait. After a few minutes the elderly lady opposite me tapped me on the knee and leaned forward.
"I hope you will give that seat up, there are a lot of elderly people in here today."
I'm not usually rude to people especially the elderly but I'm fed up with people assuming I'm well just because the way of I look so I leaned back towards her and said the following.
"Yes there are a lot of elderly people here today but there are also a lot of very sick people here and I'm one of them so I will not be giving up my seat, I really wish I could."
She didn't say a word but spent the next half hour glaring at me. I was heartily grateful when she finally got called until I realised what had replaced her.
He was a pleasant well dressed man whom I judged to be not much older than myself. He was cheerful and started to chat about the weather, Christmas and generalities. Then the conversation turned to why everyone was there and then we got a detailed account of his recent pacemaker operation WITH pictures. Now I'm not squeamish by any standard but I really could have done with out that, however I nodded politely and made appropriate sounds at images of his bruises as it began to dawn on me that I'd stumbled upon a hypochondriac who was delighted to find he was really ill. In quick succession I got descriptions of his angiogram, following a heart attack, his ablation, which didn't work, and various other tests that I've had by the dozen but were obviously major events to him.
Half an hour in and I decided to take my jumper off as it was getting really hot and as I did so my line popped out from under my tee shirt silencing him in his tracks.
"Oh my God I am so sorry, here am I rattling on and all the time you have cancer."
"No I don't have cancer"
"My mate had cancer and he had one of those, it's where they do the chemo isn't it."
"It is similar but this isn't for cancer."
I then 'educated' him about PH and by the time I'd finished with 'waiting for a heart/lung transplant' he was shaking his head. I think I might just have put things into perspective for him as he put his phone away, which had the pictures on it, and instead he asked how I coped with the Warfarin and did I find any particular foods effected it. We got on quite well after that and happily chatted away until I was called, a full hour and forty minutes after I arrived.
Back home the promised dinner that Andrew had offered to cook had not materialised so I whipped up a quick pasta and then sat enjoying a cuppa while I caught up on my emails and wrote this blog. This afternoon we are nipping out briefly to get some of the fruit I feel so desperate for, and take Andrew and Svet into Milton Keynes so they can do some shopping. Then it is back home, an early night and work tomorrow.
My cold is better but my cough, though less frequent, is still deep and chesty so I might pay a visit to my GP next week, if it is still there, to see what he can recommend as I'm well and truly fed up with it now.
Oh well no peace for the wicked. I'm beginning to wish the holiday season over so I can have a rest. Next blog Saturday.
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