Cate's Diary

Oh, do read this. I just re-read it & it has made my day. I love it. I don't think I have Steve or Tru's patience.
https://weight-loss.fitness.com/threads/a-rant-about-basic-concepts-i.11548/

I have received 2 phone calls today from friends checking up on me. That is nice. I have been cleaning the cupboards in my bedroom & ensuite & thrown out so much stuff that has never bothered me before, but sure does now. It was a drastic clean but felt good to do.
 
I don't enjoy cleaning either LaMa, especially vacuuming & mopping, but de-clutter as a stress-relief. Unfortunately, my de-cluttering has taken its toll on my lungs. I tried not to raise dust, but I did find stuff that affected me adversely & threw it away, but in the process obviously inhaled a lot of the fumes. I'm talking about medicine, creams & personal care stuff, that had never bothered me before. Most of my stuff I have been discarding over the last few years, but this is a whole new ballgame. My bathroom cupboard is looking startingly stark, quite bare & very, very tidy.

I'm having a lot of trouble working out how to cope from day to day, but while I'm home & no-one visits I can work that out. R, our younger son, is coming up for a couple of days with a friend & arriving tomorrow. G & I were going to Les Miserables tomorrow, but he is now meeting the other 2 there & they are going with him.

D & the kids were coming up for tea to catch up with R, but now I'm trying to work out how that can happen. D's clothes are so strong from the cheap washing powder he uses, so, until everything is washed in the new stuff I have ordered for him, I really can't have them in our house. I spent half the night worrying about it & trying to get my head around it. He often works now when he has them at weekends, which he didn't use to do & I often go & pick them up & take them to a park or up here & feed them. He expected me to do the same this Saturday. I thought I would be OK with it until I reacted strongly to him last night outside the house. My lungs are seriously compromised. I don't think he understands what's going on with me. It's hard for G to understand as well, but he is trying.

I have been racking my brain trying to work out how R can see his nephews & niece & his brother. Maybe if I drive down to their house & take the kids some lunch & sit outside with them for a while & then R could go visit them at their Dad's house. My head spins trying to work it out. I may need to buy an air purifier I think. They are very expensive. A smaller one for our bedroom with one replacement filter is just under a thousand dollars, but I think it would be worth it. I wish I could see how much noise they make, before getting one. It is so quiet up here & that is one of the many things I love about our home. A bigger one for our living room would be double that price. I can get air flow through most parts of our home, but I think sleeping with an air purifier in the bedroom would help our quality of sleep. I haven't even mentioned it to G yet. I wish I hadn't bought the motorised golf buggy. How could I have known this was going to happen? :(

I will have to bring my focus back to the things I can control & what I eat is one of those things. I haven't been stuffing myself or eating unhealthy, but if I'm not going to be getting much exercise I will need to be more careful with what I eat. Because I haven't been able to shop I have not bought us any Easter eggs at least.
 
People don´t always have to understand. Folks who love you believe you and respect your wishes even if they don´t fully understand.
 
Very true, LaMa. I have worked out a solution, in conjunction with R, our younger son. I'm going to try to enjoy my life as much as I can, without compromising my health, as much as I can. Our house is going to get very tidy!
 
Had a decent day today & managed to drive down to see the kids. I took them a picnic & stayed outside, but even then I reacted badly to the chemical vapours coming off their clothing. I won't be driving the ute anytime soon as I really struggled with the gears. 2 weeks ago I had no trouble, but my brain is not functioning as it should or once did. We went for a walk on their land & that was good. I think they got a bit of a shock at how I am though. I was struggling for breath after a short walk. Driving home was not good.
G called home after seeing Les Mis & R, our younger son & H, his friend should be back soon after visiting the kids. I had a big platter ready for G to take down. I could have gone, but there was no point as I would have had to stay outside & it's getting cold.

I'm looking forward to the company. I am such a sociable person & that may be the hardest thing for me to get used to if this is permanent.
 
Socializing is harder in winter but it´s hardest at first, when you´re most unsure what to expect. It does get better, simply because you get used to stuff. Humans are surprisingly adaptable creatures for how fragile we are.
 
Thanks, LaMa. I'm adapting already & if this is a permanent thing I will have to change my life to fit in with it. We had a lovely night last night. R made sure that he & his friend were fairly fragrance-free, & when our grandson, A, decided to come up for dinner as well R checked his clothes to make sure he chose ones that did not smell. Something did, either on him or on H, but it was manageable & just gave me a headache, rather than total headspins. They have headed off on a touristy drive after picking up A & are going to call in at some of the local, artisan eateries & will end up touring the local caves. They will have their own family guide. Meanwhile, my G has been kicking up a storm. :)
 
I'm looking forward to the company. I am such a sociable person & that may be the hardest thing for me to get used to if this is permanent.

Hey Cate, I'm sure it's not permanent. Don't be resigning yourself to the life of a hermit just yet.
 
I need to catch up on your diary, but just wanted to pop in and say hi since I haven't been as active the last couple weeks.
 
Hey Cate, I'm sure it's not permanent. Don't be resigning yourself to the life of a hermit just yet.
I'm not so sure Em, but thanks. I hope it's not permanent too. I went for a 5 minute walk with G yesterday & struggled for breath. I'm trying not to dwell on it.
I need to catch up on your diary, but just wanted to pop in and say hi since I haven't been as active the last couple weeks.
Hi, to you too Cory. I haven't been focussing on my diet for ages, but haven't been eating badly anyway. It will be easier for me not to over-indulge if I am no longer doing the shopping. I am attempting an online grocery shop for the first time, but it's a clunky system. I think this may become a good option for me permanently, regardless of whether my lungs recover or not.

I really did have a lovely Easter with some quality family time. If G does the shopping he buys ONLY what is on the list, so no Easter eggs were bought. That's a good thing as they are usually inferior quality. R & his friend/housemate went back yesterday & I missed them. It was such a nice visit. G is off to his Vets golf today & has to do my work as well, plus pick up a couple of things for me. I hope my Vogmask arrives soon as I'll tackle doing stuff when I get it. I hope the valve on it does not let fragrance in. Fingers crossed.

I have ordered a room purifier for our bedroom. I thought I would start with that size as I can then take it with us when we go away. We have 2 nights booked in 2 weeks time & I have said I needed it sent urgently. This is the one I ordered. https://inovaairpurifiers.com.au/home-air-purifiers/airclean-e8/ My sister has the E20 which is twice the price but does her whole house. The way our house is set up I would still need a 2nd one for our bedroom. She lives in a suburban area & needs to keep her doors & windows shut, whereas I can usually get airflow through my house. In Winter wood smoke is an issue, so the room purifier should help us both sleep better. We are waiting for our Lopi wood heater to be given a thorough service, before lighting it & it will have new parts put in. The lever that ensures no smoke comes out into the room has warped over time & he is going to replace it. I'm hoping that I do OK with the heater when it's functioning well. I will have to try to make sure that no smoke seeps back into the house from outside, which is difficult when the air hangs heavy in Winter. I might have to get someone up to go around & use some sealer around the windows, especially the really high ones.

I really must weigh myself soon. I am being so sedentary at the moment that I will have to concentrate on limiting my calories a little I think. I'm not counting them, but weighing in is a necessity. Maybe before I get dressed today. Anyhow I had better get out of my diary!
 
I'm afraid I don't have the mental capacity to dig through eleven years worth of diary entries, but I can see you've come a long way since you first began, and the sheer dedication to keeping this journal going for so long is inspirational all on its own! I'm sorry to read you're having some sort of lung issue, and I'm crossing my fingers the purifier you ordered will help. I'm not sure how far back this issue spans, but is it something you've spoken to your doctor about? Either way, I hope you find some resolve to the problem.

Thank you for stopping by my diary as I start my own journey. It's wonderful to have your support, and you seem like a very lovely lady!
 
I'm afraid I don't have the mental capacity to dig through eleven years worth of diary entries, but I can see you've come a long way since you first began, and the sheer dedication to keeping this journal going for so long is inspirational all on its own! I'm sorry to read you're having some sort of lung issue, and I'm crossing my fingers the purifier you ordered will help. I'm not sure how far back this issue spans but is it something you've spoken to your doctor about? Either way, I hope you find some resolve to the problem.

Thank you for stopping by my diary as I start my own journey. It's wonderful to have your support, and you seem like a very lovely lady!
That is very sweet of you. Thank you. My allergies go back a long way, but I had never had such a strong reaction as this one. I was actually at the doctor's when it happened. I'm going back on Friday (masked up) to give them a letter & a USB with loads of info on it, in the hope that in future my allergy to fragrance & other chemicals will be taken seriously. I have to try to get it through to them & there should be a red flag. Staff should not be wearing strong perfume to work in a medical centre.
Re: my 11-year-old diary. I have decided to go back over it myself & give my sister the link if I think there's nothing there to offend her. EEK!

Thanks, LaMa
Thanks, Cory
I'm glad you're still planning on your weekend getaway. I hope your mask arrives soon.
Thanks, Em. Me too :)
Hope the new air scrubber helps u out.
I think it will help in Winter when some smoke seems to seep back into our bedroom & I'm sure it will help in Summer even just circulating fresh air around the bedroom.

I'm feeling that little bit better each day that I stay at home, breathing fresh air. Friday will be a test as I'm going back to the doctor's surgery to give her the letter & the USB. G is going to go with me. Hopefully, the mask will arrive today or tomorrow!
 
I´m sure you´ve given this a lot of thought but don´t you think G could drop of the letter for you so you can give your body another week to calm down?
 
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