SMOOTHER THAN SILK...

                  Now I'm not entirely sure why, but my transplant recovery has been a piece of cake for me! It went smoother than I could've ever asked for. My pain was very well managed, I started gaining weight, and a lot of my anxiety just disappeard. Part of it, I know for a fact, was my family and fiance.  I had so many great helpers and such a great support system. Im a very lucky girl!! Thanks guys:)! I also didn't know how strong of a person I had to be. But I'm just very thankful for how everything has turned out so far.  
                 I also found out about my donar,( which I originally wasn't supposed to but a certain RT at St. Joes has a biiiig mouth lol). He was an 18 yeard old guy that ran marathons and loved to play the guitar.  He was a smaller guy cuz his lungs actually fit me pretty well. He died running in a marathon here in Phoenix when he got hit by a car. (Arizona drivers are awesome..) He died at the same hospital where I had my transplant, and that just made our process so much smoother because no one had to deliver the lungs from out of town.  My heart continues to go out to his family because they were so generous at a time when so much was being taken from them. I can't imagine how difficult that must have been.  I've actually wrote them a letter, which I will prob share in another blog.  But they are always in my thoughts and prayers..and always will be.
                I basically got a SWEET pair of lungs. They were used to being worked out in their previous home and they are still young and strong! I couldn't have been more blessed with a better set of breathers. Right before transplant my PFT's (Pulmonary Function Test) had gotten down to 19%...very low. But my first PFT since my sugery I hit 96%! They only continued to climb week after week. I was at the doc's office about twice a week for the first 2 months because they like to keep a close watch on your healing process.  Each visit I had a Pft test and each one was even better than the next! The highest test results I've had so far is 130%!! That's better than most "normal" peeps! So I definetely had something to celebrate. I really can't wait to see how high they will actually climb!
              I only had one small glitch in the road to recovery so far--and that was a little bit of ACUTE rejection. AHHHH! I really hate the word rejection. It honestly scares me a lot. But what I've learned is that just because you're rejecting it doesn't mean it's the end of the world.  It's all about how you feel. If you feel great..then your PFT numbers don't mean squat. I also learned that almost every person who has gone thru a transplant has faced some sort of rejection. It's extremely common in the process. There are different stages of rejection, but ACUTE can be very easily treated by 3 days of IV steroids. That's it! I was basically freaking out over a little thing that wasn't the end of the world.  It can be scary tho, rejection is nothing you want to mess with. I started to think about rejection a lot there for a while, but I had to put that on the back burner. It's just no way to enjoy life..always worrying about what "could" happen. I still think about it from time to time but it does NOT rule my existance.
               After that one episode, I haven't had any more rejection since then and Im hoping that it continue that way! Fingers crossed!!;) 

          That's all for now :) <3