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Admit it: The 70’s have a certain appeal, right?

This picture's for you, Mom. 🙂

 I have a special love for the 70’s too.. But I’m talking about something totally different from the decade. Yesterday I had a routine visit with my cystic fibrosis specialist in Ann Arbor, which happens at least once every three months. When I go, I take a breathing test (pulmonary function test- PFT) which measures lots of things about my lung capacity. The key data that is used to get a picture of my overall lung health is the FEV1- the forced expiratory volume of the first second.

The FEV1 is measured in percentages out of 100 and most “normal” people taking the test would score between 80-100%. I am happiest when I can get into the low 70’s, which for me says that I’m feeling great and don’t have extra congestion/lung infections that I’m fighting.

The 70’s and I have an on-again/off-again relationship. It’s been years since I have been able to consistently test over 70%, because part of having CF means periodic infections in my lungs. However, 2 weeks before my surgery this past July, I took a breathing test and the FEV1 came back solidly in the 70’s. It was beyond encouraging to know that I was feeling my absolute best before I headed into the great unknown.

After my surgery I thought it was fully reasonable to expect a setback in my lung function and maybe do some antibiotics/IV therapy. To my surprise it wasn’t necessary! By October, when I needed a pick-me-up, I was prescribed a new medication that was just released this past year. It’s an aerosolized antibiotic called Cayston.

After a month on this new medication, both Mark (my brother, also has CF) and I have felt a definite increase in lung health. Yay! So yesterday, when I was a week into a congested messy head cold, I still was able to score a 70% on my breathing test.

YESSSSSS!

Six months ago I had a major surgery. My FEV1 scored in the 70’s before it, and now after! If you would have asked me in June if this was possible, I would have said, “Umm.. Maybe, could you pray for that?”

The best part is, I am hopeful that this new medication is going to help me maintain a higher level of health. This is the first year in probably 5 years that I haven’t had any sort of oral or IV antibiotics by this point in the winter. *high fives all around*

So.. yesterday was a good day! *I love love love having good news to share* We took our celebrating selves to the road and headed over to Ikea to blow off some steam (and some cash). Molly was along for the whole adventure yesterday too, and here she is sharing the love.

In honor of the day and of course the decade I am apparently celebrating right now, here’s my purchase: a faux sheepskin!