I wish I wasn't FORCED to do treatments.

I remember the good old days as if they were yesterday. Those were the days I was able to do treatments on my own schedule, whenever I wanted, and work cystic fibrosis around my life. Those were the days when my doctors recommended 2 treatment sets a day and 3 if I wasn't feeling quite up to snuff. Those were the days I was running around like crazy and it felt like I barely had enough time to get in even the 2 recommended treatment sets a day.

In those days my treatment sets consisted of albuterol, Pulmozyme and the Vest. I only did TOBI when I was in the hospital, or when my docs convinced me that I needed a month or 2 at home. If I could go back to the good old days, I would. (If only to correct the mistakes I made concerning my health)

If I took better care of myself when I was younger and actually had less responsibility and no one truly dependent on me, there is no doubt that I'd be a better version of myself today. I firmly believe that I'd be a better husband, father and friend.

It's funny, because now I have real responsibility in my life and I do truly have less time for treatments and exercise.  Back in the day I was filling up my time doing many things that didn't have any real impact on the world nor did I have a family that I was required to put first. I often think back on the “good old days” and wonder what in the heck was I doing?

[SIDE NOTE: They wanted me to do at most 90 minutes of treatments and 30 minutes of exercise a day back in the "good old days". Today, I often do 90 minutes of treatments in one sitting. It's not uncommon for me to put in 240 to 300 minutes of treatments and exercise each day.]

Back in the "good old days" doing my treatments was a choice, a choice that I wish I would have made more often. I would have been much better served to have treated my body well when I was healthier than to take my health for granted, as I did, and end up at a place that I wish I never experienced.

For those that are new to this blog I'll give a very brief summary of what really changed my CF journey:

When I was younger I was very active and I never missed any treatments. I was very active and I didn't miss any treatments because those were the rules that I had to abide by to live with my parents. When I moved out I started making my own choices with regards to treatments and exercise. I didn't always make the best choices. I saw my lung function steadily decline from 97% in 2000 (the year I moved out of my parent's house), to a baseline of 70% in 2007 (I was in the hospital for 30 days every 3 months),  to an all-time low of somewhere in the 20's in 2009 (I was too sick to blow in the ICU and blew a 31%, 10 days into a 52 day stay). I decided during that hospital stay that I could no longer exercise only “when I had the time” and that 2 treatment sets a day (which I was actually doing consistently at this point) just simply wasn't going to cut it anymore. I wanted to live.  

After leaving the hospital in March of 2009 I made a dramatic change. I started exercising and/or working out every single day. I started doing 4 treatment sets a day, no matter what. I added any additional medication that I could take. I added an inhaled antibiotic every month. I decided that if I was going to take care of myself, the way that I should, I was going to go all in. If I wanted the results I was aiming for (an FEV1 of 75% after they told me to be happy if I got it up to 55%), I knew that my health was no longer a choice, but a "have-to". 

Through hard work, dedication, and the grace of God, I was able to regain and surpass all of the lung function that I had lost in the previous 10 years. 

I sit here today writing this blog feeling better than I have in a long, long time. The cool thing is that I'm able to say on most days that I feel better than the day before. I recently had an FVC of 92% and that's something I haven't done since 2001. My FEV1 baseline is 75% now, and I haven't seen that baseline since 2003. My life is fuller and more enjoyable than at any time in those years I was making my own decisions concerning my health care.

It's not all good news though - I am FORCED to do treatments. I am forced to exercise. I am forced to put my health first.

If I don't put my health first, even for a day, I feel it. I can no longer miss a treatment here and workout there and not feel a negative impact from that decision. If I want to be at my best, I have to do all my treatments; I have to get to the gym; I have to put my health first.

Back in the “good old days” I could miss a few treatments without consequence. Back in the “good old days” I could sit on the couch for days on end and still have the lung function of most of my peers. Back in the “good old days”, health could be more than a few notches down on my priority totem pole and I'd still be able to live a full and active life.

Not today.

If I miss treatments today, my lungs feel tight, my breathing is suppressed, and my lungs are junky. If I don't move around for an extended period of time, I feel incredibly lethargic, I get very achy, and taking a full breath is nearly impossible. If I don't put my health first and at the top of my totem pole, I wouldn't be able to take Mckenna to the park every morning; I wouldn't be able to tackle life with Mandi; I wouldn't  be writing in this here blog.

When I look back on the “good old days” I realize that though they were good, they weren't great. In all honesty, they were pretty pointless.

The love I had for life back then pales in comparison to the love I have for my wife today. The fulfillment I got from the "good old days" isn't even in the same universe as the fulfillment I get from being a daddy.  I'm able to write about the "good old days" with a new purpose, a purpose that wouldn't have been discovered if I continued to live in the "good old days".

Things would be a lot different today if I would have taken better care of myself in the "good old days". If I would have put my health first when I had the choice, maybe I wouldn't be forced to put it first today. Choices in life are a great luxury to have. When I had that luxury, I made really poor choices. Today, with that luxury gone, my only choice is to live a life full of treatments and exercise if I want to be the best version of myself each and every day.

I don't have many regrets in this life, but I do wish that I would have listened when they tried to tell me that the "good old days" pale in comparison to what God had in store for me.

I can promise you this - I would have made better choices.

This Weekend: News and Notes

Just a collection of the happenings from this past weekend, the last of such in August 2012....

You probably noticed that there was no Mandi Monday yesterday. Mandi was knee deep in travel and didn't get in until yesterday from her trip to Lancaster, PA. Her grandpa was admitted to the hospital for a pretty gnarly case of pneumonia. The admit was sudden, and grandpa was unprepared. With no family close by, he was alone with his thoughts and a hospital gown. That of course didn't sit well with the family, so Mandi and her brother Josh were able to fly out there on Friday and keep grandpa company. It definitely lifted his spirits and we're so thankful that he is on the up and up!

With Mandi gone, that left me alone on daddy duty this weekend. Fortunately, I did have some helping hands as my step-dad and little brother came up from Tucson. We all had a blast just relaxing together and I was so happy that Mark (step-dad) got to spend some quality time with Mckenna.

We also did some major gardening this weekend. By we, I mean mostly Andrew, Grant and Mark of course. While I was busy with Mckenna, treatments, making meals and working out, they were busy tending to the garden. They turned all of the raised beds and fixed-up some of the square-foot garden portion. After making a run to Lowes on Saturday, we all got up nice and early to "beat the heat" Sunday morning and finish before church.

This fall we're going for - spinach, lettuce, cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, bush beans, radishes, carrots, summer squash, tomatoes, green onion and kohlrabi. We'll see how it all turns out :)

Our pastor delivered an excellent message on Sunday. He challenged the men of our church to take it upon ourselves and raise a Christ-centered home. It sounds easy enough, but not so much when you start to look where you're priorities lay. The bottom line is that our family becomes centered around what we spend the most time with, or what takes priority over all else - wether that's work, money, sports, working out, school, etc. I felt really convicted and was so thankful to be reminded about the importance of always working my life around Christ; not Christ around my life.

Welp, I thin that just about does it. Hope you liked the update!!

The Importance of Water

One thing I can tell you for sure from working with many in the CF community on better health plans - as a whole, we don't drink enough water. This doesn't come as a big surprise as most Americans, by a super large majority, don't drink enough water either.

I can't tell you how much better I feel on the days that I get my water needs met. And until you make the commitment to drink the amount of water you need, you'll have no clue what I'm taking about. Every single person that I have convinced to drink more water has never regretted it and in fact, ended up embracing the lifestyle change.

I ran across this article about the importance of water and I wanted to share it with you guys.

Getting enough water is the single most important thing you can do to live a healthier life.
But are you getting enough? And are you drinking the right kinds, at the right times? It is estimated that over 99% of Americans do not get the proper amount of water their body needs. Did you know that water contributes to everything from a healthy glow to your skin, to transporting oxygen and nutrients to your body’s cells?
Many health problems we treat by simply popping pills, can be solved by getting enough water in your system daily. This article aims to tell you everything you need to know about water, so read on and feel healthier!
The FormulaThe age old “eight glasses of water a day” works great for some people, but not all of us. Instead, we have supplied something a little bit more customized to your body type. Simply take your weight (in pounds) and divide it by two:

__ lbs. / 2 = ___ ounces a day.

So for example take a 120 lb female. Divide her weight by two, and you have 60 ounces of water a day. Keep in mind that this is total water intake, and there are many foods with a high water concentration. To be safe, you should drink eighty percent of this in pure water. So using our female example again, 80 percent of 60 ounces is 48 ounces, or six eight ounce glasses of water per day.Your Body, and WaterWater is vital in our body, and a lack of it certainly has its consequences. Your body is roughly 70 percent water. The build of your muscles are about 75 percent water, blood 82 percent, brain cells 85 percent, and even your bones are 25 percent water. Your body looses approximately two quarters (64 ounces) of water per day through urination, perspiration, and even exhalation. The average adult can last as much as seven weeks without food, but not much more than five days without water.
F. Batmanghelidj, MD, highlights some main benefits of keeping your body well hydrated in his book titled “Water for Health, for Healing, for Life”:Water being the main lubricant in joints, helps prevent arthritis and back pain.
Water increases efficiency of the immune system
Water prevents the clogging of arteries in the heart and brain, thus reducing the risk of heart attack and stroke.
Water is needed to efficiently manufacture neurotransmitters in the brain, including serotonin and melatonin (for hormones). It also improves are attention span, and can prevent attention deficit disorder (ADD).
Water prevents memory loss as we age, reducing the risk of degenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s.
Water reduces the effects of aging, making our skin smoother and giving is a sparkling luster.

Health Complications Caused by DehydrationWhen your body is not getting enough water, it will ration what it has. There are five primary organs your body hydrates above all else, and they are your brain, heart, lungs, liver, and kidneys. Thus your non-vital organs will often suffer from a lack of water. Signs tend to manifest first in your skin, joints, and gastrointestinal tract.
Arthritis and joint pains are common signs of not getting enough water. The cartilage in your joints provides a nice smooth surface for your joints to glide across during movement. Cartilage itself is eighty percent water, and is five times slicker than ice. Well, that is a well hydrated joint. When your body is not getting enough water, one of the first places it puts on a rations list is your joints. Less lubrication equals greater friction. And over time that friction causes your joints to degenerate quicker, eventually leading to arthritis.High blood pressure is another sign. Instead of spending money on medication, why not try drinking some good old fashion water? Think of a garden hose, when you constrict it at any point, the pressure flowing increases. Your body does the same thing. When dehydrated, it restricts blood flow to less important organ, which may cause an increase in pressure.Digestion problems. Do you suffer from heartburn, indigestion, or constipation? Do you constantly intake medications such as Pepcid or Tums? Your stomach has a lining on it that should be 98 percent water. This lining contains bicarbonate, which protects against stomach acid. Drinking enough water ensures a thick layer to protect our stomach lining from damage. However, not getting enough water will cause it to thin out, causing many of these problems.Water Keeps you YoungYes you read that right. Getting the proper amount of water each day will keep you looking and feeling young. For one, drinking water helps you loose weight. Not many people know this, but hunger pains and thirst pains are nearly identical, so many people eat when they should be drinking. Assuming that you are dehydrated, you body will carry extra “water weight” because it is unsure when it will get some next, and it wants to be sure it has enough to survive. This is caused by the hormone aldosterone, and its main job is water retention. However keeping your body well hydrated dramatically decreases this emergency storage, so you are not carrying around extra weight. Emerging research shows that dehydration also contributes to a low metabolism, which in turn causes your body to store up more fat.Water revives your cells, and keeps them alive. Roughly two-thirds of your body’s fluids are on the inside of cells, and the other third are on the outside of them. The first sign of failing health is when the fluids shift from the inside to the outside. After this happens, cells do not have enough energy to maintain the membrane pumps inside them, causing the cells to die. Likewise, when there is more water on the outside of cells than there should be, your blood vessels compress, causing less nutrients and oxygen to be delivered to them. Everything from your cells to the largest organ in your body, your skin, suffers.Did you know a lack of water contributes to memory loss? Your brain cells are eighty-five percent water, and your brain itself is the only organ that never rests. It is safe to say that your brain is the single most important organ to be sure is well hydrated. Ensuring it has enough water guarantees the production of new brain cells to replace damaged ones, as well as being sure the brain is working to its full potential. Many doctors today believe that long term dehydration contributes to Alzheimer’s disease.When is it best to drink water?There are two big mistakes many people make here. One is drinking when your thirst, and the second is drinking with a meal. A dry mouth is actually one of the last signs of dehydration, and when you experience it, you are already mildly dehydrated. When you drink with a meal, you are washing down all the hydrochloric acid in your saliva, and enzymes in your stomach. What results is a poor digestion process. Don’t get us wrong, you need to drink some liquid during a meal, but no more than six – eight ounces.
Here is a good schedule to follow, adopted from Don Colbert, MD’s book ‘The Seven Pillars of Health”:Start by drinking eight – sixteen ounces of water before breakfast (There is no need to replace the juice, tea, or coffee you may drink in the morning. Instead, enjoy the water with your choice beverage.)A couple hours after breakfast, drink another eight – sixteen ounce glass of water.Again, a few hours after lunch, drink another eight – sixteen ounce glass.Thirty minutes before dinner, drink sixteen – twenty-four ounces of water.About an hour before bed, have another eight ounce glass.

So what do you think? Are you ready to go and pound the water?? You won't regret it if you do, just be prepared for many more potty breaks :)

Fill to be Filled

Have you ever noticed how fulfilled you feel when giving your time to someone or something less fortunate? There was a time when I wondered what in the heck I was going to do for the rest of my life (like I'm sure most of us do) and generally it would end with something sports related or in a field that made a bunch of money. Problem was, I was looking at careers that would fill me and make me happy (so I thought). I wish I would have realized sooner that the only way to feel full in this life is to live a life that is filling to others.

My word of advice to anyone who feels empty or like "something is missing" is to volunteer and give of your time with no expectation of a return. The greatest times of my life are in service to others. Don't know where to start? Opportunities won't always fall right into your lap, but there are people all around you that need help. You just have to be willing to keep an open eye out for that person or situation and be ready to join and fulfill that need at a moments notice. If you're anything like me, your opportunity may come out of nowhere.

I used to have a hardened heart for the homeless. I would say "life is choices" when I saw someone begging on the street. It wasn't until God softened my heart and called me to serve at a homeless shelter that I started to see things a different way. Yeah, life is still made up of choices, and many times the homeless make terrible decisions that land them in their current situation, but, it's deeper than that. Their story isn't as black and white as I used to think it was. Sure, they made bad choices, but all that did was make them have something in common with me.

I've made terrible choices as well. The difference is that I've had people in my life that were willing to pick me up when I was down or be by my side to see me through a mistake that I had made. One thing I learned about many of the homeless - they had no one. They were one mistake away from being homeless. So there they were. No one to turn to. No one to pick them up. No place to go. And eventually, no one to be.

It was through that experience that I realized how important family was to the outcome of one's life. It was through that experience that I felt obligated to give my time to others who only get one shot at this life. I serve a God of second, third and eighty-second chances. The least I can do is give my fellow human a couple as well.