Don Kowalewski
Writer. Ad Sales and Marketing. Social Media Content Creator. Aeropress Coffee. Makes the best salsa in the world.
Things I Have: Bronchiectisis
It flared up again last night, which makes that the third time this summer. Logically, I’ll simply make a note of it, log it in my journal, and rest easy knowing that when I calmed my breathing, sat very still, and relaxed, it passed. I coughed and wheezed for about two hours. Laid on my side, then the other side, then my chest, and slowly started taking bigger and bigger breaths.
Bronchiectisis is, for those reading about it for the first time, a lung disease that most often happens as the result of a lung trauma. For me, that was a really bad bacterial infection and then a burst blood vessel (these things might’ve been related, might not have been, tough to tell). Bronchiectisis is a little different for everyone who has it. Some people cough up phlegm every day …and lots of it. For me, it’s when the air changes or allergens are high. I almost should’ve expected it …the weather got hot and humid, I’ve been doing lots and lots of talking at work (“talking” seems to effect it), and then I went to a Detroit Tigers game and cheered and screamed. All day I go into the A/C and then out into the humidity and heat, and back into the A/C.
The bad news is, it keeps happening. The good news is, it passes.
Now I’ll start to examine what I ate, how much I ate, and see if there was anything, besides the quality of the air I breathe, that might’ve made this happen.
It’s a glorious adventure and scientific study I’m conducting daily on myself.
I know this blog post isn’t exciting to everyone, but I have a few fellow Bronchiectisis friends who read and we bounce ideas off each other. Like so many things in life, it’s more fun and easier to beat something, or accomplish something, when you have support. Simply to get some encouragement from someone goes a looooong way. People join running clubs, because they all benefit by pushing each other. People sign-up for, and pay for, 5K, 10Ks, Marathons, and Triathlons. Why? Because doing something alone isn’t as fun. I mean, I don’t know if you realize this, but you can run a 10K any time you want. For free.
But that’s not what human beings are built for. We train alone, but we celebrate with others.
Am I “celebrating” my bloody lung? Not exactly, but I’m bolstered and encouraged when a few fellow lung warriors come around the blog and say, “me too” and “it’s normal” and “hang in there.”
Who have you encouraged, today?
I don’t Tweet about all my bodily functions, but definitely my lungs. So, if you want to follow along, I’m @donkowalewski.
Don Kowalewski 
I know I have said this before but and I am no lung doctor however I feel like you say you have flare ups when everyone else is battling allergy flare ups….maybe taking Claritin or Allegra would help with the mucus with allergies.
I’ll have to read what Claritin does, but I tried it. It makes me more wheezy. Maybe I’ll try that other one and read the label. Plus, all those drugs have such a long list of side effects, it scares me.
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