I have an appointment at my doctor’s surgery this morning, to have some “lung function” tests – I have been wheezing (on occasion) since my deep brain stimulation operation 2 years ago. Its not something that I am unduly concerned about, but I know that my wife worries about it. The nurse has me breathe and blow into a machine a dozen times or so, expresses surprise at my readings (which are almost off the scale) and tells me that my “lung age” is 39, which is pretty impressive for an old geezer like me (57 years old this month). My wife is suitably relieved! I’m still wheezing, though, and we don’t know why – they have given me a “peak flow meter” to take home and use for the next three weeks to see if there is any pattern to my wheezing episodes.
I return to Southrepps, and get cracking on my other commitment for the day – my weekly vlog. I pick up where left off yesterday and finish researching and scripting my chosen subject (MRI-guided focused ultrasound for Parkinson’s Disease). I have a few problems filming myself – my voice is weak and slurred in spite of my device being set to use group “A” settings, the ones that I usually use when filming because my voice is less affected. On the plus side, my eating problems (biting the inside of my mouth when chewing) seem to have improved since I switched over from group “B” settings, so perhaps the settings of my DBS are a factor… I’ll certainly mention it to the DBS nurse when I go to the NHNN for a tune-up later this month.