Being told at first he was about to be sent home with Hospice care to die has made some major changes in Mr. Grinch's attitude. He's still Mr. Grinch, but at least now he understands that if he wants to live, he has to get off his butt and work for it. He still gripes and moans about the rehab exercises to me, but he does each and every one of those exercises, and sometimes a little more. He also uses the little thumb clamp meter he had me get to monitor himself with. He knows keeping his oxygen saturation level in the 90's makes his nurses, doctors, and most importantly, Matt, happy.
He monitored himself as we sat out on the courtyard to make sure the little portable oxygen machine we had just bought was keeping him at the levels he should be at. Unlike the continuous forced flow that he has been getting, the little portable machine only sends out a puff oxygen when he inhales through his nose. Which isn't a bad thing because breathing through your nose slows the air flow down, and allows better use of the air and oxygen. As long as he inhales through his nose like he should, he had no problem keeping his oxygen saturation levels in the 90's, even when he dialed the machine down to a 4.
I've already figured out that coping with COPD is partly about learning to breath as efficiently as possible. I think in the future when we are sitting out in the courtyard I'm going to encourage him to do a few slow deep breathing exercises. Deep breathing exercises like that are excellent for not only keeping his diaphragm in shape, but also to help him relax. As he relaxes, his airways can open up even further. If I can get him to fully understand how good for his oxygen saturation levels they are, he will do the exercises so often they will become a good habit. I know this for a fact because I have been using them for years when I meditate as a means of relaxing, when I am out hiking to help me keep going. And sometimes, closing my eyes and taking several of those slow deep breaths, while thinking, "Peace and Serenity In" while I am inhaling through my nose, and thinking, "Stress and Negativity Out." while I am exhaling through my mouth, is what keeps me from snapping.
I remember one day I had gone down to his room to drop off something I had brought, then walked back to the gym. His room is at one end of the long long hall, and the gym is at the other. I had boogied back down the hall at a pretty good clip, and when I got back in the gym Larry put the thumb clamp meter on my finger. My heart rate was 77, and my oxygen level was 99. Even his PT guy raised an eyebrow and mumbled something about my levels were better than his. I just grinned and said, "I take a LOT of really slow deep breaths to keep from throttling him. Keeps my lungs in good shape."
