Clinic...

So I'm going to clinic today.  Pray everything turns out well.  I haven't been exercising like I should be and only recently started so I hope that doesn't have a negative effect.  My girlfriend is coming with me and this will be her first real CF-related experience.  She's scared the report is going to be bad and I'll have to miss school and be in Chicago for a couple weeks.  Pray for her. :)  After, we're going to possibly go to the zoo! :D

Please Vote...

Hey guys!  We didn't get there in September so we have another shot for October!  The CFF is again in the running for $250,000 to help fund a clinical study to help fight CF from early on in babies.  We are currently ranked 6th and we need to be ranked in the top 2 spots to get funding.  Vote every day!!!! :D

Vote for CF...

Hey all!!!  Please vote for this!  It's a project Pepsi is doing.  By the time everything is done, if the CFF is ranked 2nd (they are currently third) they will receive $250,000!!!  Vote now!


Help babies with CF breathe easier!!

Sickness...

So please pray for me.  I'm sick.  I've been sick for a few days now.  I'm slowly getting better, but I don't want this cold to do anything to my lungs especially since I'm at school.  On top of me being sick, my girlfriend is sick as well.  Pray she starts feeling better.  This sickness is going around all over campus so while you're praying for us, pray for everyone that they get better, or stay healthy.  Thanks!!!

Commercial...

I stumbled across this on the CFF's website.  Talk about an tear-wrenching commercial, but it really gets the point across!

One More Thing...

I remembered one more thing that I forgot to add in the last post. Our doctor likes to do blood glucose tests once a year, as diabetes is a complication that can come with CF. I've had little problems with my blood sugar ever since I was little. I had my glucose test done in May, and when I went to clinic in June, they told me that, well in layman's terms, I'm pre-diabetic. So basically, the way I understand it, I am going to get diabetes and there's nothing I can do to stop it. I just have to wait for it to come. My girlfriend is going to help me make sure I eat right while I'm at school. She's a huge blessing in my life! :) (I just had to talk about her.)

Moving on...

Sorry it has been so long since I last posted. I have been quite busy. I will leave my past at that, and if you have any questions beyond what I have posted, please ask. On to my life today.

A couple of weeks ago, I went to CF clinic. The report was only ok. Back in March, my sister and I had bone density tests (our doctor does them every 5 years if I remember correctly). On June 25th, we received the report. My sister seemed ok, but they said it wouldn't hurt at all to take more calcium. They raised our Vitamin D levels as they are doing with many patients. But my report was slightly more concerning. I have what the doctor called osteopenia in my spine. She said it's basically half way between having normal healthy bones and osteoporosis. So my vitamin D levels were raised and I have to take extra calcium. I was kind of surprised because I drink a crazy amount of milk every day.

My FEV1 numbers were at 96%. In March, they were 97%, but I blamed that (as they were near 107%) on the fact that I accidentally inhaled a Cadbury chocolate egg on the trip to the hospital. But they were down this time despite not eating anything this time (on purpose I might add). The plus was that my lungs sounded clear.

My doctor decided to put me on an antibiotic, just to be aggressive. She also told me to get more rest and exercise, the first I'm doing a little better at, and the second....well I'm at least thinking about it more. It's just hard to do when you're so busy. I go back at the end of July (on the 23rd I believe) to see if my numbers went up. If so, hooray!! If not, hospital...here I come! I will have to go in for a clean-out. If I have to go in, it will be my 3rd hospitalization. The first occurred when I was 15. I am becoming more familiar with the respiratory therapists at my hospital (Fletcher Allen Health Care). I love my hospital. I don't mind being there, which helps when I have to stay for two weeks. The adult inpatient floor that they admit CF patients to is on the 6th floor. So for exercise, I run up and down the stairs.

But that visit is still a while away. Let's pray and hope that my numbers go up and that I don't have to go in. But if I do have to go in, I will be thankful that it is during the summer and not while I'm at school.

Josh