I was released from the hospital on new years eve. That night Al did the last of our partying. We went to celebrate in town with the rest of our small town. I now took my oxygen tank on it's cart out to visit, as well. We left town around 2 AM and drove home through the the snow.
My husband suprised me with an online hookup to our local, and only ISP. I was on the net. It was easy to use. (I then had 3 computers in my house, 2 on the ground floor). Research was my name and I was/and am currently doing it for myself as well as other individuals who have no way or time to do it. I spend on average 320 Hours a month. (It is all I do now. I had to do something or I'd go crazy!) I've been asked what computer's we have: 
My husband's computer is my Old refurbished UMAX C600 PPC, 16 mb, with an internal 2 Gig Drive with an extra external 1 Gig Drive. My new one is now an Imac G3 350.
I've ordered my groceries on the net many times, they deliver the food directly to my kitchen. All my Christmas shopping is done online as well as all other shopping.
This is my story of how COPD has changed my life, and is changing my life daily. I was a real estate broker in a mountain town in Idaho. I discovered I could no longer go out and show homes or lots. My husband and I are now slowly closing down our business, and selling our Commercial lots in town, because without both of us it doesn't work. (We will still be in business until June 2000, when my licenses expire) Hopefully we can sell it soon, because the medical bills are astronomical. (Anyone want to buy an office?)
One of the medications I'm having to adjust to is Prednisone. It is the major medicine I take, beside the inhalers, and it has horrible side affects! It is a catabolic (muscle wasting) steriod that makes you loose muscle mass, gain fat, fluid and makes you crabby!!
My husband is very supportive, he watches like a hawk to make sure I take care of myself. When I married him I thought I would be taking care of him in our older years, but it has become turned around. He is in his 70's while I am in my early fiftys. He is the best thing to ever come into my life.
I hate to go to my doctor's office, the scent laden office gives me fits. I am guaranteed a gigantic headache following every visit. But It may become worse a new building is being built, as with most new buildings it will have toxic glue smells and paint smells along with the extra nasty stuff in new carpeting! I may end up passing out, as happened to get me to the hospital in the first place.
Last year our 1.5 acres had some diseased trees that had to be removed, the slash was burned last week and I was in misery! I still have the smell about the place but I know in time it will disapate and everything will be okay again!
I miss getting outside. I can't possible carry the metal oxygen bottle, it is both heavy and bulky for a person that is 5' and weighed 100 lbs before I got COPD. I am borrowing a walker to try out. I used it one day so far, it has rained every day since. I'll see if I can get out later this week....... It worked out even though it is rather large, the "seat area" is above my waist, I walked all the
way around the country block! I had to go on the county road (paved) on 2 portions but the drivers carefully stayed clear. I put my oxygen tank on it and I could even walk around our back yard. Now all I have to do is figure out how to get my mail, there is no rural delivery here!
Wow, last night the wind really blew off west mountain! The temperature dropped from the mid to upper 80's down to 30 in a very short time. Possibility of snow tonight. Of course when the wind blows, the power goes. Was out for over 5 hours, came back on and went out again. Used up over one tank of oxygen, hopefully my supplier will be out of the hospital, last time I needed something I had to have it sent from Boise and the shipping cost was a bit much, because it was a special order. Insurance doesn't really understand that sort of thing and a heavy discussion was had by all!
Since my last entry I have been in the Hospital at least once, not for lung problems, for fungi in my throat. (It comes with the steroids) I had a camera put down my throat and the pictures were, shall we say interesting. It didn't hurt. My throat didn't even get scratched. My only problem while at the hospital was the adhesive they used to put the electrodes on my skin. The rash lasted a full month afterwards. (Try to not scratch or rub an itch, It's like someone saying 'Don't think about elephants')
The summer has been hot and dry. No humidity, little rain and lots of sun. Avg temp 85 during the day and 69 at night. Very warm in my bedroom, we have one used room air conditioner in the living room, that makes the house somewhat comfortable. Got the boat in the lake behind our house, I don't think we'll use the community docks this year. If we didn't have all these medical bills we could lease the land between us and the creek. Then we could plant grass, eliminate the sagebrush, and I could get my walker back there for exercise in summer.
Winter is coming and my excercising will be restricted, no more walks outside. Al created a room in the garage 
ready to heat! Now he can do his Oil painting in the garage with a nice woodstove going, and not in the house. He loves the wood heat! Our furnace has been on every morning for the last week or two. Hopefully we won't have to use wood heat too much this winter, it all depends upon power outages, we have them every year.
In the hospital Friday for bloody nose (combination of our super dry air and the oxygen flow) , had it cauterized. Went to the doctors office. I have high blood pressure, polups in my nose and now take more Predinsone, Flovent, and Flonase plus Norvasc. Blood was taken for an alpha1 test as well. Al told the doctor I get dusky too much, I told the Doctor it was because I had my breathing restricted by swollen sinus problems.
Today I got an email from Dr Dave from .OWNSPEED.COM an Internet Radio show. I called him at the number he sent and all of a sudden I'm being interviewed. I'm not very good at talking, especially since I always seem to be out of breathe, everything just went out of my head. I couldn't even remember the names of the Hospitals. I just drew a giant blank, I tried to mention the other sites online but it couldn't be done. If I'm lucky maybe people will forget that, and just use the information available on my site and other's, many of which are better than mine in my opinion.
An oximeter is not warranted for COPD, that is the decision of both my Insurance Company and my Doctor. If it doesn't heal me or physically keep me breathing it is not necessary. Exercise without it, or don't exercise it will make no difference, nothing will change, you can't get better. Oh, don't I wish for a pulmonary doctor in this area!
I was doing well without the medication. That year I had spent most of my time in the house generally feeling down, not going anywhere. About a week after the gathering I got a letter from my mother with the comment that she hoped I had gotten the result I expected. I was in some respect a disgrace but I didn't know how or why she felt that way. I later learned from a doctor that for months my body and brain was oxygen starved and didn't always comprehend what was going on around me. It had taken affect very slowly and more pronounced daily, and no one that saw me every day like my husband noticed it happening.
I was sitting on the toilet and felt lightheaded, then passed out. It was because of the paint fumes which has caused me problems for years. Luckily, I hadn't closed the door fully. I pounded on the floor, and then crawled into our loft room (pants and panties at my feet) and banged on the floor until the dogs barked. Al, my husband, came up and was very upset. He asked what I needed and I tried to let him know I couldn't get any air in my lungs, he called the ambulance. The EMT's carried me in an ice cold ambulance, a fast way to get hypothermia. There was no heat in subzero temperatues. I shook and shivered all of the 15 miles of icy roads, both from cold and fear. When it was time to go home, I was told I had SEVERE COPD, and was retaining carbon dioxide. Nothing was said about what it was, or how it could affect my life. I went home with an oxygen condenser, some hose and my medications. (I was given the impression that this was a temporary thing, they called it oxygen therapy treatment) Maybe the doctor's philosophy was what I didn't know wouldn't hurt me or possibly they didn't know how or what to tell me. Following the hospitalization, the new doctor in the group practice took over my care.
