Seeing my CF team again & back to work

So this week has been quite a milestone (for me)... I had my CF annual review review.... and started back to work!

So I started the week with a trip up to Papworth for my CF Annual Review review- I had all the tests done about a month or so ago, and this was the session to go through all the tests and see what needed changing in my regime and make a plan of action for the following year. Now, due to my transplant and how good I've been feeling, I wasn't entirely certain what they could offer as a plan other than 'carry on'... So off I trouped back to my old Monday afternoon clinic spot. Generally in the past, the Monday clinics were busy and took forever... we generally found that we wasn't leaving till well after 6pm, so I wasn't being too optimistic about getting home sensibly- I was wrong!

The clinic waiting area was pretty empty and very quiet, there only seemed to be a couple of people waiting for the other clinic, but no CFers lurking around, and no sets of notes in the box behind the reception desk. I was shown into my room and after a few minutes the guy came in to do my lung function. He was a newbie and despite not having been to a CF clinic for about 8 months, I knew the routine of things, and how the computer programme worked better than he did. He hadn't grasped the timings of the system and kept telling me to wait, even though the onscreen prompt said to blow now... so I ignored him and read the screen and acted accordingly! I don't think he appreciated that, but the quicker I'm through my blows, the quicker the next member of the team can come in, and ultimately get me home quicker!

After he'd left we waited a few more minutes and the doctor (Nadia) and specialist nurse (Sam) came in. I was kind of expecting to have seen the physio or dietitian before Nadia came in, but it was deemed unnecessary. So we had a few minute catch up of all my goings-on post transplant (on a personal side, rather than medically) after this we got down to business. My lungs are now not dealt with by CF so we skimmed over that section (seems daft to make me do blows if they don't do anything with them now!) from a gastro point of view, everything is looking good- weight, vitamins, sugars etc etc all well within a normal range and nothing needs altering... same with pretty much everything else in my body! Ultimate conclusion, I'm doing well, to keep it up and to have a bone scan (Dexa) sometime after Oct 2015... and I'll see them again for my next annual review (unless I need them in the meantime!) Then we were out of there and back in the car before 5pm!

Thursday saw my return to work. I confused the dogs by getting up early and having a faster than normal morning routine... and really stirred them up when I headed out the door around 9am! So I got to work, had a bit of a chatty catch up with people on the team, then set about trying to get logged in. All in all, it took me about an hour and a half just to get logged in to all the systems I needed that day. Then the first spreadsheet hit my email and I needed to switch my brain into Patient Tracker mode again... a mode it hasn't had to run since February. It was always hard enough getting back into the routine after a few days off, let alone 7 months! I was pretty damn slow and had to keep asking questions- almost like I was completely new!- but bizarrely my hands knew the pattern of things for navigating the screens... so although my brain was thinking 'how do I get to that section?' my hands had already done it! Weird, but true! The PAS claw has returned.... I had to fight the urge of eating all my lunch pre midday, I got away with just the treat packet of sweeties I'd put in there... I did however find that my desk drawers had some Cadbury's Buttons so that made me happy... I know I have emergency choccie in there now, but I doubt it will last very long. I managed a total of 4 1/2 hours which I don't think is too bad for my first day back. Next week I'm going to attempt 2 full days of 6 1/2 hours... let's see how that goes!

So after work yesterday I took the dogs out for a stupidly long walk- I know I need to be walking longer distances in prep for the Fright Hike, but having been to work, I'd estimated doing about 45 minutes... practically double that we were out for. I decided to avoid the route that leads to Judy going paddling in yucky stream water, thinking that it'll just be a case of walking around those bits of tress, and coming out to another point... my thoughts were very wrong! It would have just been easier (and safer) to go the way I knew and clean the dog up when I got home... instead we walked an additional mile and a half, I fell down a hole and bashed Bella's head on the way down, making her not want to come near me for a while, The dog's thoroughly enjoyed exploring though, and we were all suitably knackered when we finally got home!

Today's agenda consists of housework, food shopping... and a nice meal out this evening with Glen's brother and his wife. We try to get together every now and then for a yummy meal - which only seems be of the Indian variety, 3 of 3 get together's have been in an Indian restaurant! Looking forward to it as we always have fun conversations and talk about lots of TV shows, swapping ones to watch/avoid as we seem to have a lot of the same tastes. A nice end to a big week.

Tomorrow Glen is off to a game's convention and so me and mum decided we should go out for the day too... so we're off to Madame Tussaud's and who knows what else we'll get up to?!!

Remember to pop along to my Fright Hike sponsorship page and donate/sponsor me to help spur me on through longer training walks. Thanks to Glen's fantastic work colleagues, our target is really close to being achieved already! Dig deep and help us to help Papworth & Clark's Farm :)
www.virginmoneygiving.com/teams/BeardedBodysnatchers