Breathe, My Pulmo Rehab Journey

Breathing well whether asleep or awake has worked wonders for me. I started pulmo rehab last September. I'm expected to finish my first set by next week. I should have been done in November, but I got sick and missed 2 months of rehab. I resumed last week. 

My lungs are scarred due to various illnesses I had in the past. It started in 2008 when I had pneumonia. Five years later my doctor said after OHS my lungs looked like it had gone through surgery. It got worse after I had two PEs. I was lucky because my former physiotherapist who was working on my back is also an expert on pulmo rehab. She had to work on my breathing before we could do any exercise for my back. Even though it wasn't the focus of our sessions, the exercises for my lungs helped me a lot. 

I've been advising friends who had COVID to get their lungs checked. I send them the post-PE exercise video which I followed before. Exercising your lungs will help prevent scars. Scars in your lungs cannot be removed. The best way is to save and strengthen the healthy part of your lungs. That's what our focus is on right now for me. 

My stamina dwindled since mid-2022. My body went through a lot and it was frustrating because I could barely do anything. I can't cook. Can't clean. Can't do any gardening. Going out is a huge challenge. So I asked my doctors what should I do to improve my stamina. They prescribed pulmo rehab, had me do a sleep test, and work on my nutrition. 

It's been a lot of work, but I'm seeing the fruits of our labor. Sweetie and Miggy play a big role in my health activities. They take turns to spot me while I do my pulmo rehab sessions. Make sure I eat well and on time. Miggy has been strict about getting us to the bedroom earlier (he has to because Sweetie and I tend to hang out downstairs past midnight). 

What changed my game was when I started using a CPAP machine. Pulmo rehab + better nutrition helps, but I needed better sleep. My doctor explained that breathing well in your sleep is important to restore your body. Good sleep + my daily gardening exercise has so far kept me stable and I've become more active at home again. Maybe this year I'll finally be able to organize our home better (together with my boys of course). 

 "Even as little as 10 to 15 minutes a day to deep breathing can help reduce stress and tension, lower blood pressure." - Harefuah Medical Journal#BeKind #StaySafe