Around 10:00 pm last night, Tom walked in the door, much to my relief. It was good to see him, although he looked tired and ready for bed. He explained he would have arrived earlier, but when his Uber driver arrived at the crowded outdoor waiting area and asked for Tom, someone else jumped into his Uber. He had to wait until the driver returned from dropping off the pushy passenger.
This antic resulted in him standing outside in the cold, 40F, with only a zippered sweatshirt on over his long-sleeved tee shirt. No doubt, he was annoyed. Still not feeling 100% after his recent bout of bronchitis, it was particularly challenging. He called to let me know he’d be later than expected, knowing I was following his flight status and could be worrying about him.
We headed to bed in no time but struggled to fall asleep. At 11:30, I heard a little snore coming from him, although he is not much of a snorer. When and if he does snore, it doesn’t bother me at all. Finally, by midnight, I drifted off but awoke many times during the night coughing. It wasn’t as bad as the previous nights, and during the day, I seldom have bouts of coughing. Tom is still coughing as well but he, too, is getting better. We both feel fine otherwise.
I might start working out regularly again, starting today, although I have done it a few times while I was under the weather on the days I felt better. Overall, I only missed about five days, and two days ago, when I tried it again, I was thoroughly caught up to where I left off.
This morning, I prepped everything for tonight’s dinner: grass-fed burger patties topped with bacon, tomatoes, onions, and lettuce, with rice for Tom and salad for both of us. Most likely, if we’re feeling well, we’ll go to dinner at one of the fantastic restaurants downstairs in The Village for the first time. We’ll review the menus before deciding which one to try, and hopefully, we’ll try a new restaurant each Saturday evening.
I hoped Tom could share how his appointment went, but the doctor and staff were all masked. Tom had forgotten to bring his hearing aids and couldn’t understand what the doctor or staff said. This morning, I emailed the doctor’s office asking them to send us a written report on his diagnosis.
All he was able to decipher was the confirmation of the prior diagnosis of pulmonary fibrosis caused by asbestos exposure after 42½ years working on the railroad. He said Tom should see a primary care physician once a year to determine the progression of the disease. There is no treatment or cure for pulmonary fibrosis, which is scarring of the lung tissue. Scar tissue cannot be healed.
As I wrote this, we received the medical report from the pulmonologist in Chicago by email. I read it aloud to Tom as it confirmed the diagnosis. As stated above, he’ll need to be in touch with primary care at least once a year to evaluate the progression of the disease. He is most likely prepared to do that when we’re in South Africa and he sees Doc Theo, whom we have determined to be our primary care physician and fully trust.
In tomorrow’s post, I will share details and pricing of finally signing up for Part B Medicare and a supplement. I will share the details of the plan I’ve chosen and why I didn’t sign up for a drug plan. Please check back for the full details of this process.
Be well.
Photo from ten years ago today, January 11, 2014:
