My time in rehab.

[Twerton Village Hall]

I haven’t smoked a cigarette for nearly 35 years, and thank my husband for helping me to do that, but ten years ago was told I had chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Working in a stress and smoke-filled newsroom has finally taken its toll, but l am currently lucky enough to only be experiencing mild symptoms of this chronic – that means incurable – condition.

We live on the side of a hill, and it’s fair to say I am pretty well out of breath by the time the key goes in the door.

I am not looking for sympathy; there are many other sufferers in much worse condition than I am, but I wanted to talk about something l have been experiencing over the last six weeks.

My doctor suggested l try a twice-weekly Pulmonary Rehab course in Twerton which has been organised through the Community Respiratory Service’s Impact Team based at St Martin’s Hospital.

It meant cycling into town, and then along the river cycle and walking track t the first railway arch in to Twerton.

I was amazed how up to date the Village Hall was and good to see that ITV’s Telethon from the 1980’s had helped pay for a refurbishment. I do remember going without sleep for 36 hours for that incredible event!

My fellow classmates were a friendly lot, and I must say I felt a bit of a fraud when comparing my level of lung fitness with some of them.

Basically, this was ‘boot camp’ with benefits. The whole idea was to realise how important it was to be as fit as possible. Maintaining that we were told is the most effective method to manage our health conditions.

We also enjoyed a series of educational talks on every subject from managing breathlessness to fatigue management, diet and medication.

Apart from the individual benefits of going through the course, it helped so much that it was a shared experience. A relaxed atmosphere full of chat and humour. I will miss them all and wish them all the very best.

I wanted to give a shout-out to Lucy and Jesse from the IMPACT team and to Matt, our gym instructor. I enjoyed being introduced to Tai Chi especially!

Thank you! Now it’s a question of trying to keep that fitness level up!