Latest treatment option, maybe

 

A very weird appointment Monday morning at the pulmonologist. No other patients waiting at 9:30 am. And there also were no nurses checking in patients, weighing them, taking their temps, reviewing their meds, doing a BP and Pulse Ox test. Nada.

I heard my doctor's walk through the wall behind me, which has preceded his entering the exam room for years. He called my name and we went into an exam room and discussed my frustration with chronic coughing which tires me out - thus ever bronchiectasis is.  He put me on a short term antibiotic, and said it was time to start using the vest.

I got it from a friend who has since died. She got it from an organization which funded her, but she'd never used it (they are quite expensive, and used for Cystic Fibrosis patients also.)

So I dug it out of all it's cute suitcases and figured out what went where. It actually included a owners manual in English. But I didn't tackle the actual wearing of it and looking seriously at the different settings on the machine itself (which must weigh 40 pounds easily!) Fortunately it lit up when I plugged it in, and started blowing. I unplugged it till I figured out how to stop and start the mechanism (that button I'm pointing at).

At first I thought it would be too small, but it's all velcrowed together, shoulders and around the chest. So I finally got into it.

And put the hose to the intake of the vest, and turned it on. Loud, I shook everywhere. No reading here. Maybe can watch TV. Instead of my doctor's recommended 30 min. per session, I just did 5 to start. It worked...helped me cough up the stuff that's stuck down in the furthest recesses of my lungs. 

But the next day I didn't like how it felt to have my entire body shake so much, so I'm wanting to make sure it won't cause damage to my inner organs besides my lungs. Heart is highest on the list. I tried to call the pulmonologist's office, but they were having phone troubles. I want some verification that it won't cause problems to other parts of me before I use it again. You'd think the Dr. knew that, but he just asked me if I had questions...and I hadn't thought of this at the time.

Today's quote:

"I didn't have any idea we were poor. Back then, nobody had any money. We were so poor, and everybody around us was so poor, that it was the '40s before any of us knew there had been a Depression." Chet Atkins, musician

NOTE: as of 10:30 am I spoke with two people at the manufacturer of the vest...their phone number is on the tag inside the vest. They of course said since I didn't have a prescription for that, they couldn't help me. But the second woman, also very nice, said she understood my hesitations about my other conditions. Then I asked her what settings she might use if she were wanting a bit of relief. That was clever of me, I must say. She said since she was 50 and didn't have any conditions, she would probably just use the frequency around 8-9 htz. And then my other brainstorm of the day was to just put it behind me in a chair and lean back on it. Believe me that still vibrated me plenty! I still want feedback as to how the vibrations will affect the rest of my innards! But things are progressing!

And the cardiologist that is on call while mine is on vacation said there's no reason I can't do the "Smart Vest"!