5 weeks post Nissen still having a lot of breathing issues

Hi Wendi,
How was school? I'll bet it felt good to see everyone. Hopefully your breathing was good enough to make it through the day. We have snow, too. With my allergies, though, I appreciate rain and snow. It keeps the pollen down. I can't even believe how bad my allergies are.

I came down with the flu yesterday. In the afternoon I got really cold. I had my coat on and I was still freezing. I'm usually always hot, so I knew I was coming down with something. I got worse and worse, and still feel lousy. I even had some nausea last night, and had to take a dose of nausea medicine.

I took today off and have already called in for tomorrow. My doctor regrets sending me back to school, since the flu epidemic is just winding down. Oh well...I'll just have to be patient.

Sorry you're still struggling so much with your breathing. I know it's frustrating.
Feel better!
Denise

Hi Wendi,
I'm glad to hear your breathing was better. Hope you had a great day in school. It'll feel good to see everyone again. They'll be happy to have you back! I only made it though a week and a day, and here I am at home again.

Does your wrap ever feel irritated? Mine has been great for a couple weeks, but today I woke up to a burning--i used to get it more often. I've been taking some meds for my virus, so it might bee reacting to that. It seems like it does better when I have something in my stomach. At the moment it is killing me. It almost feels like a big gas bubble pushing on it. It kills. Maybe I should take some gas X. Guess I'll try that.

Can't wait to hear how you did in school. Maybe getting back to a normal routine will help you make it through the waiting for your lungs to recover.
Talk to you soon!
Denise

Hi Wendi,
My acid/wrap pain is right at the breastbone area. Of course my stomach is usually involved/gastritis when my wrap burns. I have a very reactive stomach, and it doesn't take much to get gastritis going. You can be thankful you don't have that problem!

My doctor wants me to take 81mg asprin every 5 days (not every day because of my reactive stomach), and I think that just taking that last night (along with the meds I've taken for flu symptoms) just killed it.

It definitely feels good to be back in school. Wish I was there! I'm too sick with flu, and even if I felt better, I wouldn't want to take the germs in to the classroom. My doc said you remain contagious as long as you have symptoms. So I'll be out tomorrow again. After that we're off for 10 days, giving me plenty of time to get feeling better. Hopefully, the kids will be healthier, too!

When I cough a lot, I do get pain/irritation higher up...about halfway between the breastbone and the collarbone. It almost feels like I'm herniating it...I don't know if I'm explaining that right.

I started back on Singular for my asthma a few days ago, and it has actually helped! I started on it a year ago, and it helped a little bit, but I never thought it was all that effective. I haven't taken it for a few months, and after surgery was struggling with stomach issues, so I didn't start it. Now that I've eliminated the reflux acid spilling into my lungs, it actually has a chance of helping asthma caused by other triggers (my infection--and soon, ALLERGIES). Hopefully it won't kill my stomach, so I'll be able to continue taking it. I'll tell you one thing. No more asprin for a while. Actually my doctor prescribed acetaminophen suppositories for me, so I can bypass my poor tender stomach.

I'm so glad you got to be back in school. It is therapeutic to be with your kids a colleagues!
Feel better, and Breathe Easy!
Denise

Being that I have Fibromyalgia and allot of back and chest problems, along with the usual depression, anxiety, IBS, something that feels like GERD or esophageal spasms, and blah, blah, blah I am going to offer a little exercise I do to help my breathing. Lots of people with Fibro have shortness of breath issues that aren't lung related. This will tell you how much of your breathing issues are in your lungs and how much is stress.

By the way. I do use albuterol and atrovent as needed, even though my PFT's come back normal and I can peg a high flow Spirometer every time, even when I feel short of breath. I am a smoker, can't seem to give it up and as such get tight lungs sometimes, but just as much, if not more of the breathing issue is Fibro and chronic stress related.

Try this exercise. Put a pole or rod over your shoulders and behind your neck with your arms draped over the pole and grabbing the ends with your hands. Have your feet spread two or three feet apart. Now side bend as far as you can to the left until your at the point your stretching the right side ribs and back muscles. Slowly lean into that stretch without hurting or pulling anything and do a normal count to thirty. Make sure you keep breathing normaly as you lean farther into the stretch. Now reverse the side stretch to the right and stretch out those left side rib muscles and back counting to 30. Don't let yourself lean forward or back while you do this. You are leaning side to side only. Keep everything else straight, including your head on your shoulders. After you have done both sides, as you come back up straight, see how easy it is to take a nice inhale. It should be easier then usual. Okay, repeat this stretch and this time count to 40. You should be able to stretch a little farther the second time. After you do both sides, take that nice deep breath. Repeat it one more time and count to 50. By now you may be able to stretch all the way to where your touching your leg. If you are that flexible, bring your feet closer together where your improving your stretch.

Lets just rule out the concept that anxiety is directly causing your issues, but rule in the possibility that allot of chronic stress over time maybe a factor and test it out. If this is the case, this exercise should help to free up your breathing for a hour or two the first time you do it, and how long that last will increase over time if you do it every day. You will slowly retrain the muscles in the chest cavity and ribs to not get so tight. I don't suggest you do it more then once a day to start. If it causes your sides to be sore latter on when you lay down, just give it a days break inbetween. Muscles have to be stretched and healed, stretched and healed until they finally get stronger and retrained to stay in the lengthened position better.

Denise,
Sorry you still are not feeling well.
I guess it may be wrap pain, but it hurts every time I breath in and has since before surgery. It also expands to my lungs at times. I don't know what it is, but it sure can be very uncomfortable expecially after being short of breath so much.
I am leaving tomorrow for New Mexico. My flight leaves Michigan at 5:05, I can't wait.
I will pray for your healing.
Talk to you soon.
Wendi

Hi Wendi,
Hope you had a wonderful and restful time visiting your son! Talk to you soon.
Denise

I never had asthma before this procedure but I do now. My doctor recommended that I get a treadmill and practice with incline training. I will tell you it has really helped. I was having so much trouble breathing but it really did help.