Good morning fellow ex-smokers.
I have made it through a vacation without smoking. That was hard. At times I really would have liked to have a cigarette (not too many times) but I distracted myself and it wasn't a problem. I would not have been judged had I smoked, but I am happy that I did not so my healing can continue. I do not wheeze anymore when I lay down, I do not cough. I was surprised that I still feel as though I have a little congestion at times in my lungs and can have to clear my throat. That has happened maybe four or five times since I quit. I suppose that will eventually clear. The times when I used to smoke, for example when taking break from sewing in my sewing room, I do not think about any more. I still think about, though, when I am watching TV.
My friend is not doing better even though she has had a 3 week course of radiation and several weeks of chemotherapy. I think next week is when she gets a repeat PET scan to see if this is working. In the meantime, though, I can tell by her voice that she is short of breath. Her voice is shallow. She also is completely exhausted most of the time and she still cannot swallow any solid food. She has a tumor on her brain stem that may be causing the swallowing problem. She also is having difficulty with balance, brain tumor related, most likely.
She is sick of being sick. I hope her treatment starts working soon because this is getting old for her.
Today is the last day of my vacation and back to work tomorrow. Thank you all again for your help and support in getting me past the hump. I am vigilant, but I do not see myself going back to smoking (something new and completely different from my other quits).
