Last week I was diagnosed with "asthma-like symptoms" by my primary care provider. I knew I was already suffering with seasonal allergies because my eyes were itchy and my throat was drippy. But when I asked about tightness in my chest, I was treated to a "spirometry" test to measure how much air I could move. Apparently, I did not do particularly well on this test. I am now enjoying the benefits of an albuterol inhaler and some new allergy meds. It's amazing to me what a difference it makes!
Many years ago, while visiting a friend in Miami Beach, I learned that my eyesight was not as sharp as I thought it was. While we stood on the beach and waited for an airplane banner to pass by, I was surprised when my friend, Chris, could read the banner long before I could--especially since she wears glasses and I didn't! My reaction was to ask her, "You can read that from here?" Her reply was, "You can't?" I was stunned to realize that I didn't even know what I had been missing.
I remember the day I got my first pair of glasses. As I drove home on a beautiful early spring day, I was amazed to find that I could actually see the details of individual leaves on the trees along the roadside. It was a truly moving experience for which I was, and still am, eternally grateful. I felt I had been given a tremendous gift that allowed me to see all that had been blurry or missing in life. How exciting!
When I realized last week that I really had not been breathing fully for quite some time, I felt a little scared and a bit sad. While I am well aware that many people suffer far worse breathing ailments than I, it was still very disconcerting to me to think that my lungs were not working as well as they should have been. Given that I grew up in a family where every adult was an unrelenting and unrepentant smoker, it should not be a big surprise that my lungs now might be less than perfectly healthy. But since I've tried to lead a healthy life as an adult I guess that I was (wishfully) thinking that I could avoid all the health problems that plagued my elders. Maybe I will, maybe I won't.
But what I do know is that I am so grateful to be able to breath so much better now! When I took my new medicine then went for my usual four-mile run, I couldn't get over how much improved my breathing was. The next day, when I went to my favorite yoga class, I couldn't believe how much more deeply I could breath. It was just as exciting as that day I got my new glasses. Once again I feel like I got a tremendous gift that allows me to appreciate life even more. How exciting!
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Caroline had a similar experience when she put on her new glasses for the first time...she was astounded that she could read the store signs from across the street. I'm sorry to hear that your lungs aren't 100%, but very, very glad to know that medication helps, and that you're already enjoying your new lung capacity! You have a great attitude, my friend. Love you!
ReplyDeleteIt's an interesting notion: so many of us are diagnosed with ailments or weaknesses that are corrected early on that we don't remember our own experiences where our eyes are open to our bodies being set free of their former limitations. I don't remember a time before I wore glasses (I was 18 months old when I wore my first pair), but my parents would often tell me that I finally became excited about seeing letters and shapes once I wore them. Similarly, Avi share a similar experience once he started wearing them, although he likely doesn't remember it, either.
ReplyDeleteI was hoping for something identical to happen with you when my doctor prescribed me a CPAP machine to help combat sleep apnea. My sleep study had made me far from enthusiastic about the notion of putting an uncomfortable mask on my face before I went to bed each night. But I was told that many people had this new clarity that first night with the machine on: that it would be the best night of sleep I would have had in such a long time since it would help my body become oxygenated in a more efficient fashion. It was something I was slightly looking forward to as I put it on that first night?
And? Nothing. It remained uncomfortable, and I never noticed a difference. Oh well... I'm glad that you've been able to feel a positive difference in your breathing. Enjoy it. :)