Update: 6 week Lung a versary

I, Trish, wrote this yesterday.. on the 6 week Anniversary of my new Birthday, June 14th, when I received the miracle of new lungs and the gift of life!
 

Walking to the mailbox! HOT!

Things are progressing right along, I think... I had clinic last Wednesday and the doctor said I was doing extremely well. There are still minor glitches along the way, but I have a feeling that will always be a factor with lung transplantation. It's a scary thing. I can't thank the donor family enough each morning when I take the first concious breath of life in the morning like a new baby from sleeping the 9 hours of non interrupted sleep from coughing the night before. Thank you!

I had a bronchoscopy on Thursday and haven't received the results back from that yet. They take a biospy when they are in there to check for certain  viruses, bacterial infections and rejection. Hopefully, no news is good news!

I still haven't had the swallow test yet, so no food or drink.. going on Day 10,000, it seems. I know.. have patience.. All in due time... but... this is getting ridiculous. (Yes, I can have GUM now... I guess think this clumsy girl/Gardiner woman won't swallow that?!!) (of course, I have a feeding tube in 24/7

It's already been 6 weeks and I can't wait to go home and start really living again. A normal life.  (At three months, I am shooting for). I know it's all a journey that is that is just the destination, but when it's tearing you from the the dogs and people I love, it's hard.  I couldn't do this alone, or with anyone else, though, than my dear cousin Caroline.  We have so much fun together. I keep her in stitches and she me.. yet we have become so much better acquainted now in life than ever before.. besides when we were growing up and saw each other practically every day. I love her so much.  She thinks I am strong, but I couldn't have done this without her. Really! 

From this, in ICU, this... to being all silly
in the following one at clinic visit! 
I have comeso far and simply say that
I AM more amazing than I thought I 
would be...but don't you go asking
Caroline and Kev..They'd tell you I had
a meltdown or TWO!

I am still doing speech therapy from the hemorrhagic stroke I had in surgery and that is coming along, but not as fast as I like. I, at least, see a little progress everyday and didn't have any residual, physical disabilities. That's good. I gotta keep exercising my tongue and cheeks for the muscles you normally use for speech. There are still tight and sore. Overusing them, too, is a detriment, so I know when enough is enough. It's tough to stop blabber talking when you're on prednisone, though.

I am doing a 20 minute mile already and usually do two miles at a time which, I guess, is good. Some people post-transplant for two or three years can't even do that, I've heard. They could.. they just don't push themselves or are motivated as much as I am. I have motivated some folks already!! YAY! 

Caroline, look!  A staple remover, come
on, remove them for me NOW!!

I got all of my staples out (42 total) 21, last clinic which was great! There still sutures in there, though, that I think were poking me, and the culprit all along, but I don't know if they will dissolve on their own or not. Otherwise, they will cut them out.They're mostly in the side. Any cut or wound, though, is prone to major infection and will not heal like most people, since I am so immune suppressed/compromised right now. Gotta be careful with EVERYTHING! Even poking my finger with a nib.. and some may know how easy that is with those pointed ones. LOL!

I have gained a little weight so far. 88.6 today... up from 82. Getting up there. I would like to be back at my fighting weight of 96. I hope to grow my Bertha Butt back. HEE HEE!

Before my bronchoscopy on Thursday, 24th

So, that's it for me, I think.

Love you lots
Trish

The attached pictures are pretty graphic:

Don’t look at the ones at the end if you don’t want to see my incision, old lungs and staples.  I'll warn you.

 

Wires on the right to hold my sternam together after surgery.

Don't look at these if you can't handle looking all stapled up and with chest tubes in.

This shows the size of the chest tubes (drain) from either side. I had 4 originally in

there and then two came out in ICU, one five days later and then the last one right

before I came home.. about at the 15 day mark. WHEW! Those were the Pitts.

Chest Tube

Stomach feeding tube with 42 staples. They opened me like a
a clamshell to insert my new lungs.  In the meantime, they had
to break my sternam. That is the side view of the xray on the
right side.

TRANSPLANT: it ain't for wimps, y'all. Caroline's son , Matt, calls me the Trishinator 3000. I think I’m only the version short of that.. the Trishinator 2014. 

And, last, but not least the bloodiness of my old lungs which I pay homage to for getting me this far in life.  Now, I have to rely on my gracious, donor's lungs for the rest of my life. A miracle, I wake up to everyday!  Don't go don't further if you can't handle bloody!

DON'T LOOK IF DON'T LIKE GORRY and BLOODY! 

 

This this is the right lung.  The left is below.
What I want to know is "Is this a coffee cup sized
container" or a "Big, bathing tub like they use to
wash a baby"  LOL!

These lungs were so super inflated that I didn't
have an ounce of space in my tight, little compact
body and ribs for these lungs to expand. AND, they had so
much air trapped inside as well as infection that it
was good that they took them as soon as they did.
The reason why they look so "healthy" is that there is
still blood flowing, rather draining in them.. right after
they took them out.  "No, I don't have a picture of my
donor's lungs like this"... but it's up there, at the top in the
X-ray!

Update...from Kevin at post 23 days after transplant

This is what Kevin wrote on Facebook on July 7th

JUST BREATHE UPDATE (23 days post – Trish Taylor – double lung – June 14th 2014 TrishKev Team - Home Base Austin, Texas).

My Smaller Miracle.

Since Trish is getting into the 'recover and exercise' phase, it would be very boring to update you folks every day with trivial stuff like "Trish walked around the block again", or "Trish swallowed some Greek Honey Strawberry yogurt with her meds, then walked around the block again". If I did, you guys would be dropping off of my wall like Humpty Dumpty....

The photojournalism job will lie solely with Caroline as I do not have a strong enough telephoto lens to capture the speedy Trish from 200 miles away. If we encounter anything that we think is out of the ordinary, interesting or changes in health, either Caroline or I will post and update you . Otherwise, silence is a good thing. I remember not getting an update out until well after 1:00 one night and I was getting texts asking if Trish was OK since they had not heard from me! 

Don't worry folks, we will keep you informed about our small miracle as she progresses and dances in the street.

About this time, you are probably asking "Why did you title this 'Smaller Miracle'?"
Well, Trish has been losing weight and our coordinator looked into it and found the smoking gun. Turns out Trish was only getting 800 calories a day through the feeding tube and she is supposed to get 2500!!!!

Are you screaming "WHAT?" at the top of your lungs?

Just a lesson in hospitaleeze.... While I think hospitals in the USA have the best technology and tools for healthcare in the world today, they are still run by people. And anywhere in the world, people always make mistakes. So ya gotta watch everything that goes on in there with an eagle eye. Your life could depend on it!

So my smaller Miracle is smaller (or lighter) than she was last week, but soon they will put steak and potatoes in her feed bag and she will be back to just my "Small Miracle". I love her whatever size she is anyway!

Breathe Easy my friends,  Kev

http://www.youcaring.com/medical-fundraiser/operation-deep-breathe/150515

Help support this cause if you will and can!