mom2lillian
New member
If I could only say one thing about my approach it is that I am and EDUCATED patient! I read, discuss, listen to everythign that might affect me--CF related or not. I may not have a phD BUT I have lived in this body 28 years and THAT makes me an expert but ONLY if I do my reading and understanding and can 'hold' a conversation, defend my points and lay out my position. The only hard part is finding a doctor that is not intimidated or put off by this. In otherwords I want a PARTNERSHIP because lets face it I have ALOT more invested in teh relationship, ALOT more at stake, and a doctor has dozens of other patients to worry about I only have ME and my best interest.
I am pro-active, compliant, and aggressive. I try to look at the body as a whole picture and not just focus on my 'lung health'. I do my treatments religiously, excercise, try to eat healthfully etc. For instance I am getting a sleep med study not because I think my oxygen is low but because I notice some nights I just dont sleep well and I want to make sure there is nothing that can be 'fixed' so I dont run myself down.
I woudl rather errr on teh side of too many meds for a few better days as long as my liver and kidneys are looking good. When the debate over more vs less meds comes around I KNOW my lungs are going to fail there is a chance my detox systems might, I will err on the side of the healthier (kidneys etc) body part unless they start having a hard time. I would rather treat early then let it get out of hand.
I would like to take meds that are new and progressive but I also dont want to take unneeded or unnecessary risks now that I have a family. Meaning if the data is there and it seems safe even if its not yet approved for CF then Iwould consider it after my own investigating--such as xolair. As far as alternative treatments I do believe we vastly overlook this avenue and again after looking at research and weighing safety then I will try other things. Right now I am limited on this side because of pregnancy/nursing--I anticipate doing more in the future. I would not however run out and eat a pound of curcumin after a lab rat showed improvement.
I want to be 100% compliant with what I need to do but I also do what I would call 'risk management' assessments meaning sometimes, in my opinion, something does have to be missed or I might do something ot save time.
SO overall you could call my plan an EDUCATED CONSERVATIVE!
I am pro-active, compliant, and aggressive. I try to look at the body as a whole picture and not just focus on my 'lung health'. I do my treatments religiously, excercise, try to eat healthfully etc. For instance I am getting a sleep med study not because I think my oxygen is low but because I notice some nights I just dont sleep well and I want to make sure there is nothing that can be 'fixed' so I dont run myself down.
I woudl rather errr on teh side of too many meds for a few better days as long as my liver and kidneys are looking good. When the debate over more vs less meds comes around I KNOW my lungs are going to fail there is a chance my detox systems might, I will err on the side of the healthier (kidneys etc) body part unless they start having a hard time. I would rather treat early then let it get out of hand.
I would like to take meds that are new and progressive but I also dont want to take unneeded or unnecessary risks now that I have a family. Meaning if the data is there and it seems safe even if its not yet approved for CF then Iwould consider it after my own investigating--such as xolair. As far as alternative treatments I do believe we vastly overlook this avenue and again after looking at research and weighing safety then I will try other things. Right now I am limited on this side because of pregnancy/nursing--I anticipate doing more in the future. I would not however run out and eat a pound of curcumin after a lab rat showed improvement.
I want to be 100% compliant with what I need to do but I also do what I would call 'risk management' assessments meaning sometimes, in my opinion, something does have to be missed or I might do something ot save time.
SO overall you could call my plan an EDUCATED CONSERVATIVE!