Tough day

Today has been really tough, and is continuing to be this evening. I didn't get any sleep last night, because every time I lay down my lungs decided to tighten up, and then even when I gave up on the lying down bit, my lungs refused to play nicely. Now I don't know why this should be, but here's a very strange thing I've noticed: a day or two before a bad spell (or major attack) my heart rate goes very low, particularly at night, and last night I noticed that it was going slowly so I counted it and it was only 49bpm. I'm sure there must be some medical explanation for this, even if it's not a common thing, but it is something I've noticed and is almost like a warning sign for me that things aren't good and they may well be about to get worse. Indeed, today has been a bad day.

First thing this morning I was able to go out briefly to the local post office, where I needed to go to post a parcel for baby Eleanor, but before I got home my lungs were beginning to hurt. By the time I got home I was exhausted, tight-chested and very much in need of a nebuliser. I sat on the sofa and nebbed my lungs into vague submission, and then stayed on the sofa for several hours unable to do anything much at all. I have been coughing a lot, wheezing intermittently, short of breath, exhausted and generally feeling rather unwell. At some point in the day I made the effort to read ten pages of my course text book, but I don't think I've taken much in, and since putting it down I've done a lot of nothing again.

I went briefly to the shop around the corner about an hour and a half ago to get some milk and I'm still suffering for the exertion. My peak flow is 140 post nebuliser, and my lungs just don't feel like they're doing this whole breathing thing as they should.

This evening I really don't feel very well. I will see how things go, but I have a feeling that if they go off (which I'm hoping they won't), then it's going to be very fast and I'll have to act very quickly. I am not parting from my community care alarm tonight.