View allAll Photos Tagged Pulmonary
iss063e002916 (April 24, 2020) --- NASA astronaut and Expedition 63 Commander Chris Cassidy sets up hardware that measures pulmonary function while using the station's exercise bike, also known as the Cycle Ergometer with Vibration Isolation and Stabilization (CEVIS), located in the U.S. Destiny laboratory module.
Respiratory problems Occupational and environmental exposures.The respiratory tract comes into contact with approximately 14 000 litres of air during a standard working week. The quality of the air we breathe has major implications for our respiratory health. Any part of the respiratory tract, from the nose to the alveoli, may be adversely affected by exposure to airborne contaminants.Some of the effects of exposures may be immediate, whereas others such as asbestos-related lung disease may not present for many decades. Airborne contaminants may be the primary cause of respiratory disease or can exacerbate pre-existing respiratory conditions such as asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Clinicians should have a high index of suspicion and question their patients with breathing problems about occupational and environmental exposures, especially in the setting of new onset symptoms.Identification of occupational and environmental causes of respiratory disease is important because control of these exposures may lead to a cure for some people and prevention of disease in others. In Australia and other developed countries, effective occupational health and safety legislation has resulted in protection of workers from traditional causes of occupational lung disease, such as asbestos and silica. Current exposures may be subtle and require a high index of suspicion from the treating clinician.Air contaminants may be dusts, gases, vapours or fumes. Any part of the respiratory tract can be adversely affected by poor air quality, from the nose to the alveoli. The site affected within the respiratory tract depends on the integrity of defense mechanisms and the properties of the air contaminants (Figure 1). Other determinants include individual susceptibility and the intensity and duration of the exposure.. If a patient presents with new onset respiratory symptoms it is useful to ask about recent changes in their environment, such as whether they have a new pet at home or if they have commenced a new job. It is also useful to ask whether symptoms improve when away from an exposure. Symptoms of recent onset occupational asthma may improve over a weekend but are more likely to improve over a week or when on holidays. Longstanding or severe occupational asthma may not improve until many months after removal of the cause, if at all.
www.racgp.org.au/afp/2012/november/respiratory-problems/
Breathing Off , daylight; same people that can't breathe clean air, drink potable water.
Environmental Sensitivities, also known as Environmental Illness or Environmental Disease is a name that says it all. A person who is ill because of his environment (food, drink, air) has Environmental Sensitivities. Some people consider Multiple Chemical Sensitivities as another name for the same illness, but it is actually a subset of Environmental Illness. The body cannot deal with all the toxins it comes into contact with every day. Immune System Dysfunction happens. Auto-immune Disease is the body mistaking a part of itself as the enemy and attacking it.The things that trigger reactions can be chemicals, natural and manmade, at very low concentrations. A lot of these manmade chemicals were developed after World War II (including pesticides, cleaning products, etc.) and are petroleum based (petro-chemicals). Some of the natural substances that cause problems are grass, pollen, animal hair, or mould.TOTAL LOAD refers to the different impacts on your system. Think of your immune system as a rain barrel, all of the stresses fill it up. The total load is reached but you may not be aware of the different things making you ill.According to Drs. Rossenbaum and Susser, Multiple Chemical Sensitivity (Environmental Sensitivities) is progressive in nature. Because scents are such a serious problem let's look at them more closely (over 4000 chemicals used in the fragrance industry).We usually do not smell many of the scents we and others are emitting until we become hypersensitive. These chemicals could be causing minor problems for years but we do not see the cause/effect. However, as time passes our bodies become weakened from constant exposure. Overloaded passageways in our bodies, the back up of chemicals in the blood stream, muscles, nervous system, organs, etc. leads to a variety of symptoms. Poor air quality, the length of time the chemical clings to clothes, closed in buildings, etc. hold these chemicals and our bodies absorb them.The doctor can send you for allergy tests. These are generally skin tests. Small amounts of known allergens are placed under the skin. Your skin welts up into bumps that are measurable. This tells you what you are allergic to and the seriousness of the allergy. However, there are times when the reactions are not suggestive of allergies but of Environmental Sensitivities. These tests are a starting point and can be used to give you a direction. However, they are not as reliable as other tests (i.e. RAST).There are several things you can do to treat ES depending on what affects you.Avoiding the offending substances is critical. There are steps you take to do this (a) clean the bedroom, take out clothes, books, comforters, cushions/pillows, etc.; (b) wear a mask or take oxygen in public; (c) get rid of chemical cleaners, personal care products, and synthetic clothing.Eat foods that are not harmful (avoid those you react to), clean foods thoroughly, eat organic.
www.nsnet.org/idacan/enviro.html
The Stimulating Breath (also called the Bellows Breath).The Stimulating Breath is adapted from yogic breathing techniques. Its aim is to raise vital energy and increase alertness.Inhale and exhale rapidly through your nose, keeping your mouth closed but relaxed. Your breaths in and out should be equal in duration, but as short as possible. This is a noisy breathing exercise.Try for three in-and-out breath cycles per second. This produces a quick movement of the diaphragm, suggesting a bellows. Breathe normally after each cycle.Do not do for more than 15 seconds on your first try. Each time you practice the Stimulating Breath, you can increase your time by five seconds or so, until you reach a full minute.If done properly, you may feel invigorated, comparable to the heightened awareness you feel after a good workout. You should feel the effort at the back of the neck, the diaphragm, the chest and the abdomen. Try this diaphragmatic breathing exercise the next time you need an energy boost and feel yourself reaching for a cup of coffee.
www.drweil.com/drw/u/ART00521/three-breathing-exercises.html
COP21.Americans Rank Climate Change as Top Environmental Problem.Americans now rank climate change as the country’s most pressing environmental concern, a new survey reveals. m.livescience.com/4287-americans-rank-climate-change-top-...
The important point to remember is that natural fluctuations in the climate system will continue with global warming, but the baseline will climb higher and higher. This means that scientists can't confidently predict, for example, the first year it will be too hot to grow wheat in Kansas or the first summer the Arctic will be ice-free. But crossing both thresholds is assured unless we reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
www.polarbearsinternational.org/about-polar-bears/climate...
Edibility
· Fruit is eaten in Malay and Sierra Leone.
· Fruit used as flavoring.
· In some parts of India, leaves used as tea substitute.
Folkloric
· In the Philippines, decoction of fresh roots used as gargle for toothaches, and a decoction of the leaves and fruits to clean wounds.
· Decoction or syrup of roots (in sugared water) used for asthma.
· In Sinaloa, plant used for snake bites. Strong decoction of leaves taken internally and poultice of wounds applied to the wound.
· Influenza, cough, mumps, incessant high fever, malaria, cervical lymph node tuberculosis: use 30 to 60 gms dried roots or 60 to 120 gms fresh roots in decoction.
· Fever: Take decoction of bark or infusion of leaves and flowering tops as tea.
· Hemoptysis, pulmonary tuberculosis: use 6 to 9 gms dried flowers in decoction.
· Dermatitis, eczema, pruritus: use fresh stems and leaves.
· Rheumatism - Spread oil on leaves, warm over low flame and apply on affected part.
· Sprains, wounds, contusions: Use pounded fresh leaves applied as poultice.
· Leaf oil used for pruritic skin conditions and antiseptic for wounds.
· Decoction of plant used for tetanus, rheumatism, malaria.
· Decoction of fresh leaves used as gargle for toothaches.
· In Java, leaves applied to swellings; also used as lotion or fomentation for rheumatism.
· Decoction of leaves used internally as emetic.
· In West Africa, an aromatic infusion of the leaves and flowering tops, sometimes mixed with Ocimum, is used as febrifuge and diaphoretic.
· In Uganda, used to treat symptoms of tuberculosis.
· In Costa Rica, leaf infusion used as stimulant.
· Infusion of leaves used for bilious fevers and catarrhal affections.
· Lotions used externally for eczematous eruptions.
· Infusion of flowers used as pectoral for children.
· Tincture of bark used as tonic.
· Pounded leaves used as antiseptic for cuts, ulcers and swelling.
· Decoction of leaves and fruits used for wounds.
source: stuart xchange
Analyzed by: Carmelita Troy MA
Excavated from Ardreigh, Co. Kildare.
Photographed by: Hannah Sims, 2010
Client: Kildare County Council
In August 2012 I diagnozed a young Polish climber high on Ushba (4710m, Caucasus) with accute pulmonary edema (a form of acute altitude sickness). After a night of first aid, phone calls and long waiting, a rescue helicopter of the Ministry of Emergency Response of Georgia arrived in the early morning, flown by one of Georgia's best pilots, for a stunning and brave air rescue effort.
Ushba almost claimed another life, but the young climber survived, miraculously without permanent damage. He fully recovered, has become a grown-up man, enjoys life to the fullest and has become a close friend. He will visit me next week here in Vienna.
I lost the camera I took this photo with during the hectic moments of the rescue (www.flickr.com/photos/45201065@N07/7862797664/in/photolis...). A year later an Armenian climber finds the camera and bring the SD card down. I picked the card up two weeks ago in Tbilisi.
Svaneti, Georgia. August 2012.
Climber in the photo (who was the key figure in the rescue): Tato Nadiradze.
LFI Mastershot.
Leica X1.
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Analyzed by: Carmelita Troy MA
Excavated from Ardreigh, Co. Kildare.
Photographed by: Hannah Sims, 2010
Client: Kildare County Council
A Southern elephant Seal bull (Mirounga leonina), affectionately called a blubber slug, rests on a Falkland Islands beach. That white fluid weeping from its nostrils is a white pulmonary surfactant, a substance that allows the seal to dive deep, between 300 and 900 meters, without the walls of its lungs adhering to each other and as a results, allows for rapid expansion and collapse due to the immense pressure encountered during a dive.
A display at the in the Pulmonary Department at the Womens and Childrens Hospital where I took Michael this morning to see his asthma specialist. I haven't been doing this for 3 years since I started working fulltime and they have moved to a different location within the same hospital. There were many more interesting things to look at.
I think the connection of this display to the Pulmonary Department was that the artist is a glass blower who uses his breath to to create art.
A patient with advanced pulmonary TB in a tuberculosis hospital in Mumbai, India receives a daily injection as well as oxygen. Photojournalist James Nachtwey brought us (through photography) a story this year of a new, dangerous type of tuberculosis called Extreme Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis, or XDR-TB. Tuberculosis is both preventable and curable, but inadequate treatment has been driving the emergence of XDR-TB, especially in developing nations. For more information about XDR-TB, please visit xdrtb.org. (? James Nachtwey/VII)
孟买的深度结核病人每天注射和吸氧 , 结核是可以预防和治愈的 . 但是发展中国家的缺乏治疗导致极端抗药结核病或称广泛耐药结核病的出现。
In support of the Blood Pressure Regulation (BP Reg) investigation, Expedition 35 Commander Chris Hadfield completes the setup of the Human Research Facility Pulmonary Function System and the European Physiology Module Cardiolab Leg/Arm Cuff System, and conducts the first-ever session of this study. The experiment is testing a simple in-flight method to predict which crew members are at greatest risk of fainting after returning to Earth. This test may in the future help to identify the astronauts who could benefit from countermeasures before returning to Earth. This method has great potential for astronaut health monitoring during future long-term spaceflights, and it has important implications for testing individuals on Earth, especially the elderly, who are at risk for fainting. The research also will demonstrate in space the feasibility of obtaining a set cardiovascular regulation indicators from the non-invasive measurement of continuous blood pressure. (NASA)
Image credit: NASA
More about space station research:
www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/index.html
View more photos like this in the "Space Station Research Affects Lives" Flickr photoset:
www.flickr.com/photos/nasamarshall/sets/72157634178107799/
_____________________________________________
These official NASA photographs are being made available for publication by news organizations and/or for personal use printing by the subject(s) of the photographs. The photographs may not be used in materials, advertisements, products, or promotions that in any way suggest approval or endorsement by NASA. All Images used must be credited. For information on usage rights please visit: www.nasa.gov/audience/formedia/features/MP_Photo_Guidelin...
Riccardoella limacum
"Riccardoella limacum or the slug mite is a member of the Acari (mite) family which is parasitic on slugs and snails. Slug mites are very small (less than 0.5 mm in length), white, and can be seen to move very rapidly over the surface of their host, particularly under the shell rim and near the pulmonary aperture. While once thought to be benign mucophages, more recent studies have shown that they actually subsist on the host's blood, and may bore into the host's body to feed.
Hosts
Mite infection among gastropod populations varies greatly. Dense gastropod population favors infection; isolated populations may remain uninfected. Older and larger gastropods are more likely to show infection. Mites have been observed to move from host to host when hosts mate, and when gastropods congregate in moist soil and under rocks during the day. It has been shown that mites move preferentially towards fresh mucus when they travel along mucus, enabling them to follow mucus trails to new hosts. Once infected, individual gastropods take longer to mature and show reduced mating, activity, and feeding. Infected slugs and snails lay fewer eggs than uninfected individuals. Infected gastropods also show decreased winter survival rates.
At least 31 species of mollusks are exploited.
The slug mite was first identified in 1710 by entomologist René Antoine Ferchault de Réaumur. Three species were subsequently named, though they were synonymized as Riccardoella limacum in 1946.
Life cycle
Slug mites are a one-host mite. It is possible for a mite to be born, live, and die on a single host.
Mites have two sexes. Their five-stage life cycle is as follows: Females lay eggs in the host lung, and then the eggs hatch in 8–12 days as six-legged larva in the lungs of hosts and undergo three nymph stages. The whole life cycle can take place in 20 days under ideal conditions. Eggs do not hatch while the host is hibernating.
Economic impact and treatment
Slug mites are a concern for commercial and hobbyist breeders of snails; as little as six mites can sicken an individual and make it susceptible to infection by threadworms and bacteria such as Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Countermeasures include regular washing and introduction of Hypoaspis miles, a predatory species of mite which feeds upon slug mites."
Source:Wikipedia
I think the most interesting thing I learnt today was that some people keep slugs as pets! And yes, that mite is racing across the skin of a slug, albeit one I found in the garden.
2 images @ 5X Magnification +68mm Extension tubes
My beautiful Mum has been in hospital for the past 8 weeks battling pulmonary fibrosis. Mum's always been a religious person and when my eldest daughter was in Europe recently, she visited the Vatican and bought her these Rosary beads.
I love my mother's hands. Although they're now frail and wrinkled they're the same ones that have held my hand throughout my life when I was frightened, soothed my forehead when I was ill and clapped when I achieved.
I love my Mum. xxx
...and now you're gone, I miss you so much there's no words that can express it.
.Rough time for me this Christmas season...a deep vein thrombosis in my left calf, followed by a pulmonary embolism with multiple clots (despite starting Xarelto for the DVT) Spent a few days in the hospital getting my blood thinned.
I'm o.k., but it came with zero warning.They're trying to figure out why.
Radiograph accompanying the file HOSP/STAN/07/01/02/1855, a patient at Stannington Sanatorium being treated for primary Pulmonary Tuberculosis in the left lung. Read more about this file on the album description.
Date: 1947-1948.
This image is part of our Stannington Sanatorium Flickr collection of albums of patient files, as part of our Stannington Sanatorium project. They are from our archive collections at Northumberland Archives. Feel free to share them within the spirit of the Commons. If you have any enquiries or would like copies please contact collections@woodhorn.org.uk for more information.
See a GP if you have shortness of breath and:
it's lasted for longer than a month
it gets worse when you've been active
it gets worse when you lie down
you've been coughing for 3 weeks or more
you've got swollen ankles
It's important to get medical advice to make sure it's nothing serious. You're not wasting anyone's time by getting it checked out.
Call 999 if you're struggling to breathe or have sudden shortness of breath and:
your chest feels tight or heavy
you have pain that spreads to your arms, back, neck and jaw
you feel or are being sick
You could be having a heart attack or a problem with your lungs or airway. Call 999 immediately as you need treatment in hospital.
Common causes include a cold or chest infection, being overweight, and smoking. It can also be a sign of a panic attack.
But sometimes it could be a sign of something more serious, such as a lung condition called chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) or lung cancer.
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Candid shot, Beer, Devon, UK.
...three little indians........
Children of the Guarani indian village, Krukutu.
Today their social needs are many as their living conditions differ little from those faced by many of our children from the favelas in the urban outskirts of the big cities.
Malnutrition and pulmonary and bronchial illnesses are responsible for a high mortality rate among the Guarani children.
The Guarani population structure is indicative of high birth and death rates, low median age and low life expectancy at birth. The crude mortality rate (MR = 5.0/1,000) was similar to the Brazilian national rate, but the under-five (MR = 44.5/1,000) and the infant mortality rate (MR = 29.6/1,000) were twice the corresponding mortality rate in the South and Southeast of Brazil. The proportion of post-neonatal infant deaths was 83.3%, 2.4 times higher than general population. The proportions of ill-defined (15.8%) and preventable causes (51.6%) were high. The principal causes of death were respiratory (40.6%) and infectious and parasitic diseases (18.8%), suggesting precarious living conditions and deficient health services. There is a need for greater investment in primary care and interventions in social determinants of health in order to reduce the health inequalities.
Read the entire report here or download the PDF file
In Portuguese:
A estrutura populacional Guarani expressa elevada natalidade, mortalidade precoce e baixa idade mediana e esperança de vida ao nascer. A taxa de mortalidade bruta (TM bruta = 5,0/1.000) se assemelha à nacional, mas a TM < 5 anos (44,5/1.000) e a taxa de mortalidade infantil (29,6/1.000) são duas vezes maiores que as TM correspondentes nas regiões Sul e Sudeste. A proporção de óbitos infantis pós-neonatais foi de 83,3%, 2,4 vezes maior que a população geral. As proporções de causas mal definidas (15,8%) e de evitáveis pelos serviços de saúde (51,6%) foram elevadas. As principais causas de morte foram as respiratórias (40,6%) e as infecciosas e parasitárias (18,8%), sugerindo precárias condições de vida e de organização dos serviços de saúde. Há necessidade de maiores investimentos na atenção primária e em intervenções sobre os determinantes sociais da saúde, a fim de reduzir as iniquidades reveladas.
Leia o relatório completo aqui
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Analyzed by: Carmelita Troy MA
Excavated from Ardreigh, Co. Kildare.
Photographed by: Hannah Sims, 2010
Client: Kildare County Council
Folkloric
· Used for hemoptysis due to pulmonary tuberculosis, premature abortion, excessive menstruation and blood in urine, bleeding due to piles.
· Used in enteritis-bacillary dysentery, rheumatic bone pains, swelling pain due to sprains.
· Dosage: use 60 to 90 gms fresh leaves or 30 to 60 gms dried roots or 9 to 15 gms dried flowers in decoction.
· In Fiji, root used for baldness, gum abscess, gingivitis, toothaches; leaf juice for eczema, abdominal pain, gastritis, eye infections; leaf buds used for lower chest pains. Also, leaves and stems used as abortifacient.
· In Java, sweet rhizome used with betel leaf to cure diarrhea and dysentery. Also, used for indigestion.
· In Malaya, decoction of red leaves with Lygodium used for dysentery.
· In New Guinea, root decoction used by lactating mothers to treat mammary gland infection. Juice from heated leaves used for colds, cough, and whooping cough.
· Infusion of new plant shoots used for filariasis. Stem juice used for postpartum illnesses and to help expel the placenta.
· Roots used to treat baldness. Leaf juice used for earaches, sore eyes, cough, stomachaches, eczema and gastritis. Roots used for treating toothaches and laryngitis.
· In Sumatra, outer part of the stem used with white sale for inflamed gums.
· In Hawaii, leaves used as heat pack; also for fever, asthma, chest congestion, headache, back pain, burns, constipation; flower juice snorted for nasal polyps.
· Surinamese Indonesians use pieces of root in vinegar for bleeding. Leaf infusion in oil used to treat wounds. Infusion of three crushed leaves of the purple cultivar used for a hypotensive drink. Proximal part of the leaf. macerated in olive oil, used as a cataplasm or tampon for wounds.
· In Lombok, Indonesia, used for diarrhea. Leaves used for wounds inflicted by fish stings.
·In Samoa, used for elephantiasis, gout, scrotal swellings, and back pains.
source: stuart xchange
I’m Sarah Cook and I was diagnosed with multiple bilateral pulmonary emboli on October 4, 2011. I will turn 30 in April, 2012, and before this incident was a very active person. In the photo above I’m at the emergency room at my local hospital waiting for the CT scan mentioned below. The mask was precautionary in case I had tuberculosis or some other communicable disease.
My experience started with coughing up blood, only in the mornings, for a few days. Then my lungs started hurting and quickly progressed to where I could not lay down. I started to increasingly coughing up blood throughout the day. I had no shortness of breath. I saw my doctor on a Monday and she ran some tests and ordered a CT scan to determine whether there was a blood clot. Monday night I hardly slept and I started a low-grade fever. I spent the night sitting up on the couch sleeping vertically when I could. I thought I was finally feeling a little better until I threw up at 4 am and realized I was throwing up blood. I returned to my doctor's office first thing in the morning and she sent me straight to the ER.
The ER medical team tested my blood for genetic disorders and did an ultrasound of both of my legs, looking for a sign or trace of a DVT but found none. Shortly after the CT scan was completed that afternoon a doctor came in and told me I had multiple blood clots in both of my lungs and that I was being admitted to the hospital. Within minutes I was receiving my first blood thinner injection. I was not sure what exactly this all meant. I had heard the term "pulmonary embolism" before but did not know what it was.
I was released from the hospital after three days and spent the next three months unable to work while recovering. Even on the pain medicine, I was in constant pain until almost November, which was when I was able to lay down again. I saw a hematologist after being released from the hospital and he told me I tested positive for the inherited clotting disorder called Factor V Leiden (FVL). They believe that FVL, combined with being on birth control, is what caused the pulmonary emboli.
Currently, I am still on blood thinning medication and back at work part-time, although fatigue is still a factor in my recovery. I had been doing Zumba exercise three times a week before this happened. Now, going to work and moving around is enough to tire me out. I'm working on getting my endurance back; however, I am finding out that it's a slow, long recovery process. I will soon be meeting again with my hematologist to discuss how I can best live successfully with FVL in the future.
To learn more about deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism, visit the following sites:
www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/dvt/facts.html
www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/health-topics/topics/dvt
“This Is Serious” is a campaign that promotes awareness of how to prevent deep vein thrombosis, or blood clots, in women. For more information: www.ThisIsSerious.org
Stop the Clot is a program of the National Blood Clot Alliance, a non-profit, voluntary health organization dedicated to advancing the prevention, early diagnosis and successful treatment of life-threatening blood clots such as deep vein thrombosis, pulmonary embolism and clot-provoked stroke. For more information: www.StopTheClot.org
www.stoptheclot.org/spreadtheword
Clot Connect is an education and outreach project of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Blood Clot Outreach Program. For more information: www.clotconnect.org/
The picture is taken on cliffs overlooking the north sea, just as a sea mist settled in, to the almost exact height of the cliffs. it was like standing on clouds. These are the moments you appreciate, and remember the most
Sorry for the lots of writing. At the beginning of the year, i resolved to be more open about myself. Of course, in my context, it means im still very very private and only about one tenth as open as most people, but i am trying to get better!
I've been told i could drop dead several occasions, by several different doctors. Four times in my life i've been diagnosed with blood clots, and the last time was close. Hours close
My question to myself is, if you've been given not just one, not two, or three, but four chances at life, how do you decide what is a good life? I didn't know what to do with my first life, and the second, third and the beginning of the fourth life hasn't seen much change. Is it enough to be a good person?
I keep thinking back to the day. At 650am i could barely walk up the street. I had to stop three times to walk 200metres. I was feeling so sick and shaky and seriously considered caling 999 then. But never did i imagine what it was. So i kept going. By 1230 that afternoon I asked to go home. I've never done that before. Luckily I changed my mind and went to hospital, expecting to be told I was being stupid and to go home. By 330 I was listed as critical and life threatening. (my life, i wasn't threatening someone else!)
It's what you remember in these moments. I remember the student doctor Matt was talking to me. At the time I never realised it, but he never left my side when i was in the side ward. I wonder now if he was told to stay there. Sneaky NHS! But really, he was awesome. He'll be a really good doctor one day. So will Katie, who was the doctor looking after me whilst the initial tests were being done. I could barely breathe, but she stayed so calm and relaxed. I was never in panic myself, but i'd have picked up if they were. I had been playing with the heart monitor, making the heart rate go up and down by moving and counting how long it took to recover to its then "resting" heartrate. Which i found later was much higher than my normal resting heartrate. Hmmmm, probably won't be doing that again. I started to get a bit more curious when they said my condition was "their worst suspicions confirmed". Really? So what is it then? I never really had chance to ask them at that point, owing to me struggling to breathe, and them whisking me to a monitored ward, with two nurses in two to look after me.
So there i was, in a monitored ward, installed directly in front of the nurses station, rather than by the empty window bay. Damn. I would have liked a view. By this time i've texted my dad to tell him i'm in hospital, and telling him not to call me because i can't breathe. Of course, he calls me...... Doofus!
So i set to getting myself comfortable. With an oxygen line coming in from the left underneath my arm to a mask over my mouth, with three heart monitoring wires going across my chest from the right, with a blood pressure squeezy thing (technical term, obvs') on my right arm that takes my blood pressure every hour. In a strange bed, being stared at by people i've never seen. All older than me by at least a couple of decades. Except the topless guy handcuffed to his bed, who seems to be having the worst comedown ever. Completely silent, but strained . Like he wants to tear away from himself, but can't. I don't know if i felt sorry for him, or glad he was handcuffed. He didn't seem to be aware of himself or his surroundings.
Oddly, at this point, i'm still not frightened, or scared. Should I be? I'd still describe myself as curious about it all. What happens next? I've never done this before. I soon found out. The nurse on duty introduced herself, and busied herself with taking results from the various monitors adorning me. The senior nurse then popped over just to check me over. It was him i first asked the question "how serious is this"? I liked the way he answered. Matter of fact and honest. "if you hadn't come in today, you would have collapsed and come in this weekend in an ambulance. Or worse. You'd have been dead by sunday/monday for certain". I can't remember his name, but he said he was going to work at another hospital tomorrow. He worked hard, and it showed in his face. But never in his attitude or his demeanour to me. He was someone else i liked.
The doctor doing his rounds then saw me. A gentleman doctor, with a kind face and a large waist. He had a smile that showed he knew what he was talking about, and that things would be ok. An earned confidence about him. I liked him, despite him telling the nurses I was not allowed to leave the bay. I was to use a commode or a bottle if i wanted to go to the toilet. If i have a recommendation for the NHS, it's to find a way around this. I could use a bottle, but not a commode. Not with only a flimsy curtain with ill fitting closings between me and the other patients. Can't they let you use a private bathroom, with walls and put a sign on the door saying "Patient xxx entered at 345pm", and then knock on the door at 348pm just to check they are ok? The door doesn't have to be locked, all it has to be shown is that it's occupied. Yeah, it's not a perfect system, but then again, they weren't perfect curtains!
So anyway, back to the doctor. He told me my condition was life threatening and critical. At this point my parents were there, so it saved me some explanation. Which was good, as speaking in sentences was something waaaaaaay beyond me at that point. How i wasn't to move in case the clots moved and if i needed anything, i was to call a nurse. Obviously i could move a little bit, but jumping out of bed and going for a wander was a no no
First night in a hospital ward. Ever. For anything. Didn't sleep more than half an hour at a time. I never sleep well in rooms with strange people anyway, and definitely not when there is activity around. Maybe in a previous life I was a prey animal, if you believe in reincarnation and all that. If i was prey, hopefully it was something eaten only by the biggest creatures. A dolphin gets eaten by sharks for instance. I'd have been a dolphin. A carefree idea of the rules, but respectful of them. Or am i talking about me now? Another discussion for another day :P (erhaps)
Not to forget about all the medical equipment around and on me. And a cannula in the crook of my left arm that kept catching on my oxygen tube. I was more scared of waking up with half my blood on the floor, than my lungs and heart stop functioning. It's only useful to worry about the things you can affect right? The rest will take care of itself.
Second day. I have a wash, but cant do it very well. Im way too tired too quickly and the wires get in the way. Breakfast is here. Im aware i can't use the toilet, so i eat sparingly. The toast was barely warm. The nurses change over. Again, a nice nurse, and i settle down for the morning and watch things unfold. I see a different doctor today. A lady who reminds me of Cate Blanchett. She asks me with a slight tone of speaking to a child "David, do you understand why we are all being so twitchy around you?" I reply "yes, because ive got massive bilateral pulmonary embolism". Although i hadn't really noticed people being twitchy around me. My nature is to stay low profile and out of the way. The doctor smiles and asks if i need anything, to which i reply no. What can I have? i cant use the bathroom, and i can hardly ask her to go and get me a starbucks. Although i was tempted, just for the sake of being cheeky and making someone laugh :) Thinking about it now, i wonder if its better to say "we can do this, this and this for you if you'd like?" I never knew what she could, to ask for it. But maybe for a busy doctor, its a dangerous thing to be too tied up with the small things that make a person feel better, but doesnt actually make them better. A doctor is there for everyone, not just for me. And there are a lot of patients
I also meet another senior nurse today. A lady, with brown hair and brown eyes, with a slight gap between her front teeth when she smiles. She smiles sweetly, with a glint in her eye and a smile that says you can challenge me, but i'll win. I like her too. She spoke to me about what i was drinking and eating. I didn't want to have the discussion that i had consciously dropped my intake of food and drink due to the toilet arrangements, but i did admit to drinking less. So she 'threatened' me with installing a drip in my arm. But in a nice, almost motherly way. So i agreed to drink more. Luckily she didn't push me about the food. Apparently it's not so important how often you eat, or don't eat as the case may be for the first few days, but it's really important you still drink every day. I already heard before hospital that people can only survive a few days without water, but can survive over a week without food, but in my defence, at this point in time, i didn't know how long I was going to be in hospital, and I was very conscious I couldn't use that bathroom!
Second night in hospital. I watched the sunlight on the buildings and roads slowly change to streetlights and car lights. It was interesting to watch a day fade to night like this. Something people don't do enough of. The other patients slowly fade to sleep, but im still awake. Partly because its still new to me, partly because im very aware of the medical kit working to monitor me, and partly because apparently i snore! Really loudly. So i dont want to deprive the other patients of sleep. I eventually do sleep better, but a few times i wake to see the concerned face of a nurse over me checking my pulse, as the monitor flashes red on the ceiling. "is there a problem?" i ask. "no" is always the reply, and as i'm in their care and i have to trust them, i go back to sleep. Wondering if i'll wake up. What can i do. It's all internal, i can make sure i don't move and follow the doctors instructions, but beyond that, im waiting for things to happen. Or hopefully not, as the case may be
Third day. Again struggled to wash properly, but by now im figuring things out and am wearing better clothes suited to staying in bed, so i dont get as hot and sweaty as i had been. The thought of the toilet is starting to intensify. I eat less for breakfast. Start thinking through my conversation with the doctor/nurse to be allowed to use the bathroom. I see the commode being delivered to other patient. Happily dont see them using it. Saggy assed old men is not something i need to see. Ever. My mum has bought an ipad. Im using it. God bless apple and technology. The hospital wifi is just strong enough to let me watch a film "despicable me". God, i love this film. Yeah, i nearly cried. But my ability to push things deep, out of the way and to one side comes through. Desperately trying not to think about other things coming through. Discussion with the medical staff about the toilet is just about set. A bit of pleading, a bit of common sense, a bit of stubborness, mixed in with a soft tone. Yeah, ive got this sorted.
Damn, the nurse im not so sure about is on shift now. Conversation will have to wait until tomorrow
Sleep a bit better on the third night. Im becoming comfortable with my surroundings now. Tonight a new patient keeps getting up, dressed and hiding in the bathroom. He wants to go home. He doesnt know where he is. He doesnt know where home is. Asks me for some money for a taxi. I say to talk to the nurses and see what they say. They put him to bed. Repeatedly. He repeatedly does as he is told, and then gets dressed and out of bed again. It's gone midnight before i get to sleep
Wake up at 6am. Conversation about the toilet is to be had today. Nurse approaches. I'm being moved to another ward. Conversation can wait. I get to my new ward. With my own room!! With a bathroom!! Wait for the nurses to unplug me from the now unneeded heart monitor and blood pressure tube. They connect up oxygen and ask if i need anything. My only question is how long will i have the room? They dont know, it depends if someone else needs it. Its normally for infectious patients. I say if they need to kick me out they can do, but they tell me to make myself comfortable. As soon as they leave, i use the bathroom. Much happier now. Im a fussy eater, but im very much looking forward to the breakfast menu. I have cornflakes, toast and jam, and tea. For a moment I have completely forgotten why im here, and im just enjoying the moment, feeling the room heat up with the upcoming sun. Things are getting better :)
Right now, i'm nearly five months off work. Other than the above, i have spent another 14 days in hospital since the third day described above. But thats for another time of writing. Right now, im getting tired and headachey. I've lost alot of my stamina and capacity to operate normally, but not the belief that I will get better. It'll just take time, and learning how to do things i could do before without thinking.
I still don't have the answer to what a good life is. I'd like to think i recognise the good in other people, and i have confidence i have some good in me. I'd like to think i'm a good person who occasionally makes bad mistakes. I'm still heartbroken over the person who blocked me, i still don't know what i did wrong. I reread the messages we exchanged several times. I've seen a lot worse go back and forth between other people. Maybe i said the wrong thing, but I meant it in the right way. Maybe it just wasn't meant to be. As i said to them at the time, i don't regret trying to make someone laugh or feel better, i only regret failing in that goal, and not having the chance to fix it when i do wrong, when i make mistakes, as all people do. I hope that's good enough
PS this is a story to help others in a similar situation, but if it helps anyone else, then even better. This was my first few days.. I'm doing better now. So will you
My custom desktop.
Wallpaper I made myself from an image I found online. Made in Rainmeter.
SKINS USED:
Monstercat Visualizer
Circuitous Two
Do I Need a Jacket
Vark
SimpleMedia
And one custom cutout I made for the 3D effect on the Pulmonary Artery.
All my resources can be found here: www.dropbox.com/sh/fvxfyihclnszfvq/AABze881yc2y2VHZktEDM_...
See it in action at: giphy.com/gifs/custom-desktop-xThuWbdJZb36AKAgmI
One face. One look, One Scleroderma and PH face
To meet others who understand, join the PH community on RareConnect: www.rareconnect.org/en/community/pulmonary-hypertension
From the right ventricle, blood is pumped through the pulmonary semi-lunar valve into the pulmonary trunk. The deoxygenated blood leaves the heart by the pulmonary arteries and travels through the lungs (where it is oxygenated) and into the pulmonary veins. The oxygenated blood then enters the left atrium. The blood then travels through the bicuspid valve, also called mitral valve, into the left ventricle. The left ventricle is thicker and more muscular than the right ventricle because it pumps blood at a higher pressure. From the left ventricle, blood is pumped through the semi-lunar valve into the aorta. Once the blood goes through systemic circulation, deoxygenated blood will again collect inside the vena cava and the process will continue. »
King's Cross, N1. (1-2)
These cells have almost all the cardinal features of malignancy: marked variation in nuclear size and shape, irregularly distributed nuclear chromatin, and large, prominent nucleoli. Clot sections from this specimen showed tumor cells positive for p63 and negative for TTF1-alpha by immunohistochemistry, so my final diagnosis was poorly-differentiated squamous cell carcinoma.
I was able to enjoy him for almost 4 years, but yesterday I had to put him to sleep.
Since November '24 he was palliative with severe lung problems, pulmonary fibrosis and shrivelled bronchial tubes. This meant he could not breathe properly and often felt short of breath.
For his comfort he was given the maximum dose of medication but despite that his lungs filled with water this weekend, he had to cough a lot and was very short of breath. So sad to see him fighting for a little air. There was nothing more they could do for him except more and other pills and injections (just to prolong his life, but what a life !), so I decided to let him go.
I am very sad and what an emptiness such a small dog leaves behind !
Bijna 4 jaar mocht ik van 'm genieten maar gisteren moest ik hem laten inslapen.
Sinds november '24 was hij palliatief: zware longproblemen, longfibrose en verschrompelde luchtpijptakken. Daardoor kon hij niet goed ademen en had hij het dikwijls benauwd.
Voor z'n comfort kreeg hij de maximale dosis medicatie maar ondanks dat schoten zijn longen dit weekend vol water, hij moest veel hoesten en had het benauwd. Zo zielig om hem te zien vechten voor een beetje lucht. Ze konden niets meer voor hem doen alleen nog meer en andere pillen en spuitjes (alleen om z'n leven te verlengen, maar wat voor een leven), dus besliste ik om hem te laten gaan.
Ik ben heel erg verdrietig en wat een leegte laat zo'n klein hondje achter !
On August 5, 1998, while I was Railfanning in Downtown Tampa, I stopped at Tampa Union Station to once again Photograph the Florida FUN Train, after it's grade crossing accident. Because the startup of the FUN TRAIN had been under capitalized, the dreams of the Fun Train creator, of featuring two Fun Trains, (one on each coast of Florida) were extinguished in Bankruptcy.
But of much greater interest, was the Anti-Tobacco Train seen here in these Photographs. I'm not sure who organized the Anti Tobacco Rally or funded the Train, which apparently was touring the United States to illustrate the Health Issues of Smoking, however it presented a great Photographic Opportunity for me. You can find further information at:
As we all know, Smoking causes several debilitating diseases, such as Lung Cancer, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (aka: COPD) and Emphysema.
I took these photographs with my Minolta Maxxim 5000 SLR using Color Print Film, when I was just learning photograph; so they are very soft & grainy. I scanned the Negatives and used Photoshop Elements to correct the exposure and to generate these Digital Images.
Disclaimer: Since I took these photographs while I was still learning Photography, some of my original Photos are of poor quality in both Exposure and Sharpness, which I could only partially correct with Adobe Photoshop Elements™.
Miliary tuberculosis can occur when tuberculous lung lesions erode pulmonary veins or when when extrapulmonary tuberculous lesions erode systemic veins.This results in hematogenous dissemination of tubercle bacilli producing myriads of 1-2 mm. lesions throughout the body in susceptible hosts. Miliary spread limited to the lungs can occur following erosion of pulmonary arteries by tuberculous lung lesions.
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Thank you all for stopping by.
Today, the muscle nun will be returned
home to her bungalow from the hospital.
The nurse nun and many friends are with
her and will be for a few more days....Her
diagnosis is grim. Pulmonary Edema, with
congestive heart failure. By using notes to
communicate, she has asked the doctors
to let her go. She does not want surgery or
any tubes inserted only an air mask an tank.
She gave a specific note to nurse nun -
" pe meow pe meow, jon jon, jon jon "
Translation is simple, muscle nun
wants no# 1 and myself to come
soon and be with her. That is a
real honor and we will be there.
Lets take a look into "the way-back machine."
June of 2009 I had found the monkey temple
and for whatever reason something continued
to pull me back, day after day, week after week,
year after year I continued to return to this area.
There was many dilapidated and crumbling buildings.
The jungle had taken over years ago and the entry
road was nothing more then potholes so deep a
small car could disappear if it was to fall in one.
Massive troops of aggressive primates roamed
all around these half built structures of a past
time when many monks and nuns were busy
forming what was to be a large meditation
center for practicing Buddhists monks.
Decades ago the head monk in charge
of all the building died of a heart attack.
At that point all progress came to a stop.
The place turned into a ghost town after
that, the monkeys and jungle took over.
But a couple of nuns and a monk stayed.
Mr Kind Monk, who had been there from the beginning
was nurse nuns son. Muscle nun and nurse nun are like
a pair of siamese twins connected through their spirits.
For the first few years I investigated every nook and cranny
of this fairy tail of a place. Digging deep into places that had
not seen a human soul in decades. I was in heaven as I kept
digging while fighting the aggressive primates time after time.
It was like an addiction or maybe like an Indiana Jones
adventure. What i didn't know was the nuns and monks had
been watching my every move, and were quite pleased with
what they saw. A white man who never looked down on them
and continued to return time and time again. I had become the
talk of the temple. They mentioned that the wild dogs seemed
to calm down when I was around. Over time, I found a scared
frightened little puppy that started this whole dog adventure.
She soon was called Mama, plus she had her mother who we
called Mama-san. That seemed to be the hook that snagged me.
From then on I was there most every day with fresh food for
both Mama and Mama-san. I might mention this was not a
simple walk in the park getting out to the temple day in
an day out. Floods, crazed drivers, horizontal rain and
winds took it's toll but yet, I could not stop what I
was doing. More time passed by and real soon
Mr Rocky had made his presence known ;-)
Now this is an important point in the jungle dog adventures.
Soon, even as a puppy Rocky was hanging out at the
nuns place which meant I must make my presence
known too ;-)-
So every day after feeding Mama and the remaining puppies
I would wander on over to the nuns place with a gift in hand.
This my friends started chapter 2 of my relationship with
the nuns. Now I didn't yet know there had been a chap-1.
For two years I would show up around 6:15AM at the nuns
place, handoff some coffee and fruit then walk the dogs to
the spirit house and feed Rocky, Mama and whoever else
had tagged along with us. For many years this had become
a regular event. Upon returning home I would eagerly tell
no# 1 wife what all took place, it was very satisfying 4 me.
Now after 2 years of knowing the nuns and communicating
with limited Thai and hand signals I figured it was time to
bring no# 1 wife along with me so she too could enjoy
meeting my new found friends. This was a big game
changer ! When they first met, it was like three
young school girls so excited they couldn't
stop jabbering away at a million miles a
second, maybe even faster then that.
And that my friends was a beautiful thing ;-)
Over time the nuns told no# 1 a bunch of stories
and how Mr Jon was like no other white man
they had ever encountered. First all of their
dogs went right up to him as if they were
old friends from a past life. Mr Jon was
always so polite and never looked
down his nose on us and always
brought small gifts in the AM.
They told no# 1 they had been watching me from the
very first time I had ever stepped foot on the sacred
temple grounds. ..... "He was such a curious young
boy always searching for answers to something."
"The dogs seemed to trust him so we did too."
What I'm trying to say is this friendship, as unusual
as it may seem all started over an old decaying
temple and and two nuns, one monk and
a bunch of abused, abandoned dogs.
I've told no# 1 that it was so funny how we didn't
speak the same language except for the one
that comes from deep down in your heart.
No# 1 said the nuns and mr kind monk could
see that you spoke a common language
that is only shared with a select few of
Buddhists that meditate on the same
wave length in a galaxy far away.
That seemed pretty heavy to digest
but it is what they said. Maybe that
old monk from years ago was right.
No# 1 was young and a monk in the streets
of Bangkok, who she had never seen before
stopped her and said, " you will be married
to a white man from far a faraway country."
Sometimes life is stranger then fiction ;-)-
Many of you have sent flickr mail asking about
the muscle nun. I hope this text has answered
most if not all of your questions. I could keep
going but my fingers are tired and my brain
is worn out too. After all I am only a young
monkey boy with no brain for thinking ;-)
Thank you all for your on-going support.
We will keep right on doing what we do.
Looks like Thursday we will be out at the
temple to spend quality time with our friends.
Thanks gain.
Jon&Crew
Please help with your donations here.
www.gofundme.com/saving-thai-temple-dogs.
Please,
No Political Statements, Awards, Invites,
Large Logos, Copy/Pastes or 2nd World.
***** No Invite Codes *****
© All rights reserved.
..
On August 5, 1998, while I was Railfanning in Downtown Tampa, I stopped at Tampa Union Station to once again Photograph the Florida FUN Train, after it's grade crossing accident. Because the startup of the FUN TRAIN had been under capitalized, the dreams of the Fun Train creator, of featuring two Fun Trains, (one on each coast of Florida) were extinguished in Bankruptcy.
But of much greater interest, was the Anti-Tobacco Train seen here in these Photographs. I'm not sure who organized the Anti Tobacco Rally or funded the Train, which apparently was touring the United States to illustrate the Health Issues of Smoking, however it presented a great Photographic Opportunity for me. There were several CSX Business Cars and other Railcars in the Anti-Tobacco Train, but in this Particular Photograph, you can see the "DAMAGED FUN TRAIN LOCOMOTIVE" on the extreme right side of the Photograph. You can find further information about the group "truth" at:
As we all know, Smoking causes several debilitating diseases, such as Lung Cancer, Bronchitis, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (aka: COPD) and Emphysema.
I took these photographs with my Minolta Maxxim 5000 SLR using Color Print Film, when I was just learning photograph; so they are very soft & grainy. I scanned the Negatives and used Photoshop Elements to correct the exposure and to generate these Digital Images.
Disclaimer: Since I took these photographs while I was still learning Photography, some of my original Photos are of poor quality in both Exposure and Sharpness, which I could only partially correct with Adobe Photoshop Elements™.
Daniel Bevilacqua, better known as Christophe died yesterday of pulmonary emphysema. I just loved the way his songwriting always alternate between minor and major, trivial and sublime.
He was one of my musical hero.
A true lost gem on B-side, "Rock Monsieur" is hard to describe but just a few seconds are enough to be struck by the uniqueness of this beauty.
An instrumental version of this song, titled "Modèle 76" can be found on the Library album, April Orchestra vol.13, CBS serie.
1973 French pressing on Les Disques Motors label