Support Group & Dental Day!

Today was very emotional morning for this girl. Emily’s flight left t 9:30 so we left the hotel at 7:00 am. One of the hotel drivers gave us a ride out to the airport and then brought me back. I was so not ready to say “good-bye” to her. Once we arrived at the terminal we both exited the car and gave each other a long tearful hug goodbye. But this “good-bye” was different than the last time. This time we both knew, this wouldn’t be the last time we would get to see other. I am very grateful to have gone through this journey with Emily by my side. Love her to pieces! While she was out here I had bought several gifts for her little girls Hannah and Jayme. I got a FaceTime call tonight from Emily, she was presenting her girls with their gifs. They were beyond excited, which totally made my day!! Thank you again Emily for coming all the way out here to visit me! I enjoyed every minute of it!

After we dropped Emily off at the airport I came back to the apartment, crawled back in bed and went to sleep for a few more hours. Not going to lie I was pooped! Woke up in time for Price is Right. Wasn’t ready to get out of bed so I watched it in bed! Ha ha! I eventually got up, did my morning routine and ate a bowl of Rice Krispies. Snap Crackle Pop!

Today was support group day. It was a question and answer day for pre and post transplant patients. No guest speaker, or agenda. We sat in a circle, so everyone could see each other. Wasn’t very many people there I would say 15-20 people or so. Started off by going around the circle introducing yourself, if your pre/post transplant, how long you waited or have been waiting, your diagnoses, and where you are from. I will be completely honest I was stoked to say “Hi my name is Jennifer Dwight, this is my father and care taker Greg Myers. I was listed for a double lung transplant due to Cystic Fibrosis this past September. I received the call February 3rd, transplanted February 4th and doing amazing!!!!!” I also told the group I reside in a little town in Southern Oregon called Winston. I was VERY EXCITED to share my story!! Felt so good to let others know, I had a big smile on my face, even though my mask covered it up. Another gentleman introduced himself he had his transplant February 9th, just a few short days after me! Which I thought was pretty coodinesense-odyineol! Another women, who is currently waiting for her double lung transplant has Cystic Fibrosis as well, she is from Alaska. She has been battling pneumonia since August and is living here since. As she spoke you could tell it was difficult for her. Just trying to finish a sentence was a major challenge. Of course she was on oxygen, but I just remember looking at her, listening to her, and thinking to myself I can totally relate to her right now! I have walked in her shoes, I was there and I know that feeling!! I wish this girl nothing but success, keep your positive spirits up, your day is coming you just have to believe and be positive! IT WILL HAPPEN! Another lady came to support group her husband (who was unable to attend today) has Cystic Fibrosis as well. I always get excited when I meet fellow CF’ers, for me its a reassurance thing. Just knowing you aren’t the only one dealing with this “silent deadly disease.” The other members of the group either had COPD, Pulmonary Hypertensions, Pulmonary Embolism, or a rare case. I truly enjoyed hearing their stories as well. Knowing and actually seeing people who are 5 to 10 years post transplant, give me the confidence to know I will live a long life post transplant as well! As of right now for the year UW has done 17 single/double lung transplant. Pretty impressive!

My dad and I couldn’t stay for the entire support group meeting, I had a dentist appointment at 2:00. Ever since transplant my two front top and bottom teeth have been super sensitive. Plus the top tooth on the far left and the bottom tooth all the way to the right has been giving me issues as well. Last time we were at clinic I had mentioned it to Dr. Sid. He said it could be a side affect of a medication, but wasn’t 100%. He referred me to a dentist specialist to have a look. When I arrived at the Dental clinic, we did not have a long wait before my name was called. The assistant took probably eight different X-rays of my teeth. After those were developed and looked at by Dr. Ryan O’Conner, he came in to have a closer look. He thinks there are two things going on with my teeth. He thinks what has happened is when people go in for surgery and have to be on the vent, and then come out of the vent it can irritate your teeth. You try to close your mouth but you have a tube running down your throat, so your teeth try to bite down on it an close it. He thinks since I obviously did that, you can irritate the nerve that runs through there. But good news is I do not have any cavities or issues with my teeth! I even asked the post-transplanters in support group of anyone else has had this issue of sensitive teeth before, guess I am the “special” one! No one said “yes.” Anyways, Dr. O’Conner put some fluoride on my teeth he said that will help, and to dab on Sensodyne toothpaste on my teeth throughout the day. His thoughts on why my back teeth are giving me issues is because I just went through a stressful surgery, and i’m still recovering he said most people do this without even knowing you tend to take your stress out on your teeth at night while you sleep. So you grind your teeth. The only way to stop it, is to wear a mouth grind your teeth while you sleep. He said he could make a night guard for me to wear, or we can just see if it gets better over time. We will try the extra fluoride and sensodyne toothpaste for now. If it gets worse I can go see Dr. O’conner again or just wait and follow up with my dentist in Roseburg.. I said “okay sounds great!”

Once we finished up with the dentist I had to pick up a couple refills at the pharmacy which is super convent and super easy. After that my dad and I headed back to the apartment. The sky was turning black and we really didn’t want to be out in the rain. When we arrived I quickly put my sweats on, and had absolutely no plans to go ANYWHERE!!! My dad and I did several loads of laundry and we cooked spaghetti for dinner tonight and it didn’t taste too shabby!

Now we are getting ready to watch our favorite show which starts a brand new season Deadliest Catch!! Can’t wait! Ha ha! Can’t wait to see Captain Sig, and the Cornelia Marie!! 🙂 Hope everyone had a great Monday!

Until next time……………

~Jen~
“Just Breathe”