Peppy

I've been sick for the past few days. Wheezy, asthma-like symptoms. It stinks. Yesterday, my wheeze was so terrible I could hardly get a breath.

Now, I know this is bad. Real bad. But, ever since the pollen came out in April, I've been sneaking puffs of Shaun's Albuterol inhaler. The one he used back when HE had asthma, over a year ago. Its not like I was really stealing his medicine. His symptoms have long since disappeared, and he hasn't had to use his inhaler in over a year. I took my first puff on Easter Sunday. Oh, the relief! I could breathe! So I kept on puffing, as often as I needed. Until all of the Albuterol was gone. GONE! By this time, the worst of pollen season was behind me, so I thought I'd be okay. And I was, for a few weeks. But Sunday night, I was up all night long. Unable to breathe. Coughing. Hardly able to talk without using my "tourrettes" voice- as my sister calls it.

A few days earlier, while cleaning out our medicine drawer, I came across some of Jordan's old Albuterol packs. The kind that's used in a nebulizer. Sometime in the middle of Sunday night, I remembered those packets and thought that I could really benefit from a breathing treatment. Jordan hasn't had to have a breathing treatment in over a year, and its a good thing...because I couldn't find our nebulizer for the life of me. I turned the house upside down at 2:00 in the morning while searching for that crazy thing. Nothing. I still have no idea where it is.

As soon as the sun came up....or around 9:00....I called my sister and informed her that I was sending the Hubs over to her house to borrow her children's nebulizer. Of course, she agreed to loan it to me, and Chris returned home to me carrying the cutest little penguin-shaped nebulizer you've ever seen. Seriously. Its shaped like a penguin. I've named him Peppy and am honored to call him my new friend. And, just let me tell you...What a difference a breathing treatment makes! I could breathe again! I could talk. I could SLEEP! I gave myself breathing treatments ever four hours, like clockwork. I even carted Peppy along on a visit Vogel State Park for a Memorial Day picnic. Yes, I've been attached to that penguin-shaped nebulizer for the past two days.

And I'm feeling better. Still coughing a little, but no wheezing. As long as I keep doing the treatments. But, I realize that I cannot continue to use all of my children's medicine. And so, I think a trip to the doctor is in order.

I wonder if she'll give me a nebulizer of my very own? And if I can request a penguin-shaped one? I've grown really attached to Peppy over the past two days. I'm not really sure that any old nebulizer could ever take his place.