I have been feeling good great since my blood transfusion on Friday-- now I've really been able to work these new lungs! In fact, I felt SO good today that I was able to go home for a few hours on a pass (and home is literally up the street for me, so it was completely feasible). It was nice to sit on my own couch, lay in my own bed and rummage through my own fridge-- it's really all the small comforts you miss, and quickly become luxuries when you've been separated from them.

The only thing missing was my foster dog Penny, who has been staying at Chateau McCarthy with my cousins and being spoiled to death. I honestly don't think she even misses us... she has her green ball, and that's all a determined little Jack Russell could really ask for?

Meanwhile, back at TGH, I've been given permission to stop my night feeds-- which I've received for years through my G-tube, about 750 calories a night. The reason for this discontinuation is my nightly heartburn, which before transplant was an annoyance, but now is important to avoid since it can aspirate into the lungs and trigger rejection (life is fragile, eh?). The feeds seem to have been triggering some wicked nightly heartburn for me, despite me being on three different types of antacids, so we're going to put a hold on it and see if I can keep my weight on the natural way. I will keep a food diary to prove my appetite is acceptable and we'll go from there.


Since lung transplant surgery can be hard on the stomach (due to the drugs involved in the surgery itself, the actual stomach being touched during the surgery, and the crazy hard drugs and antibiotics required AFTER the surgery) I was expecting all of the GI problems I had before to be super sized after. Therefore, I'm not overly concerned at this point, we're all aware what to look out for and what the next steps are. And hopefully some of those next steps involve getting me OUT of here!