We All Have A Choice

Three more days before real food. Just sayin'.

We have another new person in the pulmonary rehab class. She apparently was telling the head of the program that it was hard for her to join our class because everyone knows each other and...apparently, she is shy. I chatted with her and invited her come early to join us in the lobby. Fun. She joined us for the first time yesterday.

I learned more about her throughout the day: we were married in the same year, she has three children, she is divorced from her husband but still living together (something to do with IRS problems) and that she is looking for a job. Kind of a mess. I also learned that she never had a pulmonary function tests before being given the diagnosis of COPD. I gave her a pep talk about asking for a full run of PFTs, that she should follow her numbers, she should be checked for sleep apnea, she should be checked for GERD. She seemed overwhelmed.

It was later when I talked with the head RN to tell her what I had learned: she never had PFTs. The RN paused and said, "I am surprised that she was sent to rehab without them." She was going to check her charts then talk with her directly. Her doctor is one of the best. Did she not remember having PFTs? I guess I get frustrated with people who just accept a diagnosis without proof, who are not in charge of their treatment and kind of feel like a victim. That is the trifecta of what will kill them.

So, who seems to survive longer with a bad diagnosis? The people who educated themselves, faced the bad stuff, appreciated all the goodness that life has to offer, stayed positive, exercised daily, watched what they ate and carried on. Lived life everyday.

We have a choice.