Loosing my breath on a Yokohl Ride
Surgery
Post Surgery
On Saturday 24th I was out on a short fast Yokohl Valley ride with Eric Blane, we are both tapering for IM CA next weekend. We meet at 8 am at the Water Tower in Exiter and the air was 'cold and dry' but the sun was out so I took off my vest and was wearing my ViTri tri suit, the same one I plan to use next weekend. As we set off up Rocky Hill, we had a cold headwind so I was looking forward to the climb to get warm. Riding through Yokohl we held a fast race like pace but something was off. Every time I pulled, I felt more fatigue than my usual at par on rides with Eric. So we were both riding fast, the air was cold and my breathing was way off. I was taking short breaths and my hand fell asleep so I sat up & shook out the tingles. I felt my chest grow tight so I let out a cough to open up my lungs. After the out and back, chasing Eric home I was holding on to his pace gasping for air up to the point when the muscles in my back, chest and biceps started to spasm from lack of oxygen. I pulled over to the side of the road and shook out my muscles which were twitching. Getting back on my bike, I still could not catch my breath even at a snails pace home. I pulled over yet again puzzled. Eric looped back and agreed to head back solo and pick me up. I was home by 11 and took my kids to the gym for their kids club class. While in kids club, I foam rolled the muscles that were having the spasm and found relief. No underlying issue's there, maybe just cramps from lack of oxygen. But what continued was my chest tightness, chest pain, wheezing or a clicking and a prolonged shortness of breath & fatigue. The ability to breath was interfering with my regular day so I went to the doctor. I talked to my doctor about what ever this is being triggered on my bike ride. I also observed last week it rained and the week prior I was in the bay area so my usual Yokohl Valley ride was suspect for a change in conditions, possibly Asthma. The contrast between the warm air in the lungs and the cold inhaled air could have triggered the asthma attack. The doctor diagnosed me with Exercise-Induced Asthma and prescribed medications for Singular and a beta2-agonist bronchodilator inhaler. That night when Jamie got home from attending a funeral I was laying in bed and she could literally hear my breathing and the severity of my airway obstruction was not going away so she told me people can die from a severe asthma attack so we went to the emergency room to measure my oxygen intake. It was low, 1/3 of a normal person so the issue was still there but I had just enough to sleep on (and settle some of Jamie's nerves) and see the doc in the morning. So it's now Sunday morning and my airway obstruction is not better. My lungs are not functioning normal for breathing and my chest/lungs still feels tight & inflamed. I am now wondering if its asthma plus a respiratory tract infection. So I went back to the doctor for more evaluation. This time I do a spirometry test and can only breathe out 200 vs 600 expected on the test. I also had an eximetry test on the fingertip and the ogygen in the bloodstream is low. I scheduled a test for Monday for a chest x-ray to rule out other conditions with similar symptoms to asthma. Immediately after returning home from the x-ray I received a follow up call from the doctor with instructions to toss all asthma medication and go directly to the emergency room as the x-ray indicates a collapsed lung and I will require surgery today. A collapsed lung occurs when air escapes from the lung and fills up the space outside of the lung, inside the chest. This buildup of air puts pressure on the lung, so it cannot expand as much as it normally does when you take a breath. It may be caused by a gunshot or knife wound to the chest, rib fracture, or in some cases, a collapsed lung occurs without any cause. This is called a spontaneous pneumothorax. A small area in the lung that is filled with air, called a bleb, can rupture, sending air into the space around the lung. Thin people are more likely to have a collapsed lung. My doctor used a needle to pull the extra air out from around the lung so it can expand more fully and I was allowed to go home.
