just another vague update on my plight with medical exploits, look you see. so, if you aren't particularly interested in such, or are (understandably) disappointed that such has not quite finished me off yet, well, likely best you move one.
so yes, still going. yay me. it has been, more or less (give or take), one calendar year since it all kicked off, as it were. as for what "kicked off", well, here is the start of it all, and you are welcome to search the blog for further updates if your interest is sufficiently piqued.
even if one is not inclined to care for my usual proclivity for a sense of the theatrical it is not overly dramatic to say that the year which has just concluded after the incident is a year i, at the time, really did not think i would be getting. not sure i have done all that much of importance (or interest) with this "bonus time", except kept on living. perhaps that is enough.
to ensure that i have remained a going concern, and yes (mostly) the primary reason for such is that it would be a massive inconvenience for some if i was not i have done (and complied with) almost all of the stuff what my incumbent medical team have said i needed to do. as in yes, no, i have not quite managed to reduce or quit smoking as such as yet (sorry). mostly i have little idea what i would do to replace it, but also i do rather enjoy it.
recently, as in my appointment just prior to the one i shall document here, i was given a prescription for a device. no, there was no comment or instruction with this, at least not beyond a reminder to bring it with me to the next appointment. oh. so, with little other (practical) option, i picked up the prescription, noted (or observed) it was quite big, and just left it in the bag it came in until the appointment where i had to remember to take it.
it turned out what i was going to be doing was a "breathing test". no particular clarification was given as to why, exactly, i needed this. perhaps it is for (somewhat) obvious reasons, pertaining to the consequences one can (reasonably) expect from smoking. the air of mystery emanating from my medical team is far from a new phenomenon. it wasn't all that long ago, after all, that i got some development news in the form of a brief call - "nothing to worry about, we just think your heart might fail, we have sent a new prescription through, please start taking the tablets immediately".
once upon a time i did, famously, have someone who(m) i considered my personal physician. he tended to give any prognosis news with a degree (or two) more sensitivity. also, and this was truly tremendous, he soon learned not to discuss health matters which might relate to smoking, for he soon discovered that it wasn't all that great to be hit quite hard. anyway, if for some reason you wish to explore more of the days of my personal physician, at random click here, here and indeed here. that last one is particular interesting as it also features my personal photographer.
yes, i remembered to take the prescribed device, and certainly i attended my appointment on time. with not too much of a wait for it to start, or commence. for those wanting to know the results without having to plough through whatever i write here, surprisingly my breathing, as in my lungs, are "not bad". no, i am not hiding something there. well, yes, my breathing and lungs would be classed as excellent if i happened to be nineteen (19) years older than i actually am. but, with where i am, there's no blockages, although i was not expecting them, and my breathing is functional. which i take as serviceable rather than being optimal.
pills, then, for a slight detour, lots and lots of pills. i remain somewhat ambivalent (or indifferent) to taking them in the sense that it does not cause me any distress. there are some, perhaps many, who(m) loathe and detest the idea of taking medication, either in the short term or, as would seem to be the case with me, until the end. i can only take it as they feel it carries a sense of failing, or weakness, or maybe there is just the fear of dependency. this is something i can respect, and don't really think i am in any sort of position to suggest a way to change perception.
be warned, for yes, a selfie is coming up in the next picture. during these breathing test things, which i may well actually write about just now, i was required to take a break. some ten to fifteen minutes or so, during which i returned to the waiting room. yes, i did indeed (and of course) ask if it was all right if i just nipped out for a cigarette during the break and the (quite) short version of the answer was no, it was not, so i passed some of the boredom with this selfie.
so, anyway, the tests. a lot of breathing in and out, to be honest, and into multiple devices. well, two (2) for those that like specifics; one that was provided there and the one i needed to bring with me. first round, as it were, was all with the one they had set up. i needed to take a massive deep breath in, and then breathe it out as hard as i could into the device. quite exhausting and draining, to be honest, or at least (considerably) more so than i had anticipated.
at first my main issue with doing these tests was taking them seriously, or trying not to have a fit of giggles. yes, this is very much down to my mind (or thoughts) considering what an excellent bong each of them would make. hence the title of this post. whereas i would suggest, or speculate, that i am now beyond an age where making use of a bong would be appropriate i am delighted that my mind is not yet all that old that such ideas still roam freely.
once the tests were all done, and the doctor had a resigned look of deflation that they had not provided any solid evidence that i must quit smoking right now, i asked what, exactly, i was to do with the one bong like breathing test that i was prescribed. also the pump thing that came with it, which to my eyes looks rather like one of them asthma inhaler things. the answer was that i should keep it, and "make use of it" if i felt i needed to. no clarity was given on how, when or why i would know (or feel) that tis was the case. so i guess it is sitting in its box in the cupboard. unless, of course any of my (admittedly limited) social circle have a compelling need for a new bong.
further medical updates are (alas) likely over the next few weeks, or month or so. coming up next are yet more blood tests. probably "spend a penny" wee wees ones too, since a consequence of the medication i am on is to tamper with what my kidneys are supposed to do. also that thing where they blind me with light to check my eyes are not f****d, and also ram a pointed stick into my feet so to ask me what i feel about it. so yes, sometimes it is interesting to be me.
be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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