Thankyou

There is only one special word that I can use to sum up the past few weeks, and that is THANKYOU.

I came home from hospital Thursday night, and it seemed to be all the more special as I was returning home with my shiny new lungs during DonateLife Week.

I waited for 18 months and 6 days. Once I'd hit that magic 18 month mark, I started to worry that the phonecall would never come.

I still have a long road of recovery ahead, with three months of intensive rehabilitation where I have to attend the Alfred three days a week. I also have some problems with my diaphragm so I need to use a BIPAP machine at night for a few months. I'm very wobbly from all the meds so you might see me getting around with a Nonna Walker for a little while!

I couldn't have made it through this entire experience without my amazing family. They saw me at my absolute worst, on the days when it was so just so tough to keep fighting on. They stuck by me day by day, and wouldn't leave my bedside until they knew it was safe to do so. Their support got me through.

I also really have to thank everyone for all of the blog / instagram / facebook / twitter comments. In the first few days, my sister would read them all out to me while I was in ICU, until I was able to start reading them myself. All those positive comments also made a huge difference in keeping my spirits up when times were really tough.

The staff at the Alfred also get a huge thumbs up! If you ever have the misfortune of ending up in ICU, the staff there are amazing, along with all of the staff on the respiratory ward.

I have to also thank my beautiful friend Cathy who is spending the weekend at my place looking after me, cooking me gourmet meals, making me do my breathing exercises, and waking me up at the right times to take my meds.

I've saved the final thankyou for my donor. I now have a chance at living a normal life. Thankyou is not enough, but I just haven't quite worked out the right words yet.