Happy Day!

The sun is shining, it is a balmy 40 degrees - and it fits my mood perfectly!
I had my second cancer treatment yesterday afternoon (no bad side effects to report - thank you very much) and my oncologist, Dr. Silverberg, gave me double the steroid drip he normally gives me (steroids help with side effects) to see if he could jump start some relief to my meager breathing. Within a half hour I could tell my sinuses and bronchial tubes were clearing, and I breathed much easier. Hurray!
I saw my cardiologist today due to my fun filled day yesterday of A-fib. She is putting me on her last resort drug to get my heart to stay in sinus rhythm. The reason she has been avoiding it is because it runs the risk of decreasing lung function, which we know I don't need a this time! If this doesn't work, her next choice is a pace maker - so PLEASE my dear Lord, either have the steroids or this new drug take away my rhythm problems . I still can only think that the lung inflammation (coupled with fluid in the lung itself and the air pocket) are what is causing the A-Fib. At least, that is my story, and I am sticking to it. I go in this Wednesday for a stress test of the heart, so again pray that my heart will not show any problems there.
My next stop this morning was to the pulmonologist, who didn't see any improvement with the air bubble or the fluid in the lungs (I assume the fluid got in the lung when my lung was nicked with the chest tube). He said it would just take time. The good news is the hole in the lung is healed so I can now......drum roll.......TALK!!!!!!!, get 15 minutes of light exercise a day, drive, and in general start returning to a normal life!!!!!!!! The really big news is I can start back to school, half days, as soon as I am feeling up to it. I had thought about trying Wednesday, but my mom-in-law, Carolyn, (who drove me to all of my appointments today and was a real trooper) reminded me I had the stress test that day - drat. So I am shooting for Thursday. Now I know returning will be dependent on how quickly I can regain my stamina, but the doc started me on oral steroids today, so I expect to be feeling better and better each day. He said the main problem with steroids is, they can give you a false sense of well being, so I need to keep this in mind and to not overdo. Hey, I am now the queen of not overdoing - hopefully I will remember what I have been through and truly NOT overdo.
I am again dreaming of a good nights sleep. My woes are now being caused by the heart monitor. I am grateful for the monitor. It keeps my rhythms and pulse in constant check - but the beeping and blooping are such an annoyance. This is what last night sounded like because I was in A-Fib. Transmitter 'BEEP' Monitor 'Bloop, Bloop Bloop', (pause), Transmitter 'BEEP, BEEP' Monitor 'Bloop, Bloop Bloop' (pause), repeat for three hours. My heart finally went back into rhythm around 1:00 a.m., so everything quieted and I could get some sleep. Mark was able to sleep through most of it, which amazed me since he is such a light sleeper. I am usually the one that can sleep through a marching band.
I had my first official, not doctor, outing today. On the way home from my appointments we stopped at HyVee to get prescriptions. I walked the entire store, picking up few items, and did quite well. It felt so good to be out doing normal things!
Things are looking up dear friends and family. I fear getting too excited as I know how quickly things can change, but I am allowing myself a little bit of hope. I am blessed with great family, friends, and coworkers and thank you for all your support, concern and prayers.