There’s nothing like being woken up by your lung/back spasming at 5am.  Luckily I had a few pain meds left from my kidney fiasco a few weeks ago.  They took the edge off of the pain.  I wasn’t able to take a deep breath without my lungs freaking out and spasming.  I had to take short little breaths as to not expand my lung very much.  It just takes your breath away when there is pain when you breathe.  I emailed my nurse and they had me go for an x-ray to rule out a collapsed lung (small or big).  It takes great talent taking in a deep breath for an x-ray when it hurts.  Add that to my list of super powers…haha.  The x-ray was fine.  So that means that it is just good ol pleuritic pain.  Here is the Web MD definition of pleurisy… Pleurisy, also called pleuritis, is an inflammation of the pleura, which is the moist, double-layered membrane that surrounds the lungs and lines the rib cage. The condition can make breathing extremely painful.

The double-layered pleura protects and lubricates the surface of the lungs as they inflate and deflate within the rib cage. Normally, a thin, fluid-filled gap — the pleural space — allows the two layers of the pleural membrane to slide gently past each other. But when these layers become inflamed, with every breath, sneeze, or cough, their roughened surfaces rub painfully together like two pieces of sandpaper.

Sounds fun huh?!  haha NOT!  I have had this many times as well as fractured ribs from coughing.  I guess you could say that it is a “job hazard.”  Ya know…my job of coughing and breathing.

Hopefully it will only last a few days.  While I was at the hospital getting my x-ray I got a script for more pain medicine since I used my last dose this morning.  I didn’t notice that it was for the wrong kind until I picked it up from the pharmacy.  I then texted my nurse to figure out what we can do.  Of course everyone was gone and there was no one to sign a new script.  So I am powering through the weekend with the pain med that doesn’t really work for me and cough medicine with codeine.  No I am not supposed to take that kind of cough syrup that suppresses my cough but when it means being able to sleep and not cough in pain then it’s ok.  The doctor ok’d it so it’s ok.  I will not use it unless I really need it.

Now onto the allergy portion of my messed up body.  We are doing all that we really can do for the allergies.  I am taking Zyrtec in the morning and Singulair in the evening to help combat the allergens.  I’m also taking Symbicort, QVAR and DuoNeb for the asthma part of the equation.  I am also doing an antibiotic/steroid sinus rinse.  Although, I don’t have many sinus issues like runny nose.  If anything it drains down my throat.  With all that said, I just have to keep pushing on and hope that it will rain and that it will wash out the pollens in the air.

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Until next time…