Wednesday, February 1, 2012

Does Hard Work Pay Off?

Today was my clinic appointment. As you may recall, I set a pretty hefty goal for myself. I decided to work out like crazy and stay compliant with all of my treatments and medications. I was hoping to achieve a 60% on my FEV1. Well, I have been working out every day. I bought a treadmill that I have been using some (I could definitely up the treadmill usage), and I have now been 100% compliant for 93 days. So.... did the hard work pay off?????

At my last appointment in October, I was at 54%. Today, I blew a 63%!!! The work paid off, and I feel fantastic! I have never been so proud of myself or of my PFT, but I'm not stopping there. I already have a new goal in mind for my next appointment. I am shooting for 70%. My doctor thinks that it is possible, and I have a really good feeling about it.

My doctor asked me during my appointment today what had made me decide to work this hard to get my numbers up. I had to think about that, because there isn't just one reason. There is a whole list of things that has led to my motivation.

  1. Child-- I want to have a child. I want the experience of being pregnant and of holding my baby for the first time. I can only do that if I am healthy enough to go through a pregnancy. 
  2. Eldon--I have an amazing husband, and frankly, I am not ready to leave him yet! I want to spend as much time with him as possible. I owe it to him to try to stick around.
  3. Family and Friends-- I have a huge amount of people supporting me in my fight against CF. I would be letting them down if I didn't fight with all I had. 
  4. Quality of Life--When I work out and do all of my treatments, I feel so much better. Yes, I spend a ton of time making sure I stay healthy, but the pros outweigh the cons. 
  5. Accomplishment-- Giving myself a goal to work towards and meeting that goal makes me feel like I am really accomplishing something. 
  6. Motivating Others-- If someone reads my story and sees the difference that some dedication can make, maybe that person will be motivated to do the same thing. 
  7. Beat CF-- I want more than anything to beat CF. I want to live a long life.... not a long life for someone with CF. 
  8. New Treatments-- I want the opportunity to see what exciting new treatments are in store for those of us with CF. 
  9. Raise Money and Awareness-- I want to see the day when I tell the average person I have cystic fibrosis, he/she knows what I am talking about. Most of the time, there is a need to explain what CF is if it comes up in conversation now. I would also love to raise as much money as I can so that we will see a cure.... maybe even in my lifetime. 
There are probably more reasons, but those are the ones that come to mind right away. So I will work as hard as I can to get my lung function as high as possible. When my lungs reach their limit of improvement, I will work as hard as I can to keep my lung function there. While I have my sights set on 70% for May 2nd, my sights are set much higher for the more distant future. We will just have to see how high my lungs can go. :)

6 comments:

  1. You are an inspiration. We miss seeing your smiling face at preschool. Praying for you!

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  2. Thank you all for your support! I can't tell you how much I appreciate it!

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  3. Great job! That is something to be proud of!! The last year and 1/2 I had a significant increase in my lung function, but not nearly as significant as yours. My biggest inspirations were similar to yours especially the desire to have a baby!You are adding years to your life which everyone in your life especially your future baby will appreciate. You make me want to work out more. Keep up the good work!!

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  4. This is so wonderful, Kayla. Way to go. Your dreams are within reach!

    I gave you an award on my blog. Check it out here: http://momtheintern.blogspot.com/2012/02/xoxo-to-your-blog.html

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