When I got PTE in October 2009 when I was 56, I felt like I was dying, and this forum helped me cope and have some glimmer of hope, so I wanted to share with you how much better I've gotten. Due to underlying cancer, I suffered massive pulmonary embolisms that also affected my heart, and my pulse raced all over the place. I often felt quite faint and dizzy. After I had surgery to remove my tumor I could barely breathe and was able to walk at most, a quarter mile on flat ground, and even then I felt dizzy. On top of that, I soon began chemotherapy. Plus I am susceptible to asthma, and before all this happened, I only had 80% of normal lung capacity due to severe scoliosis and two episodes of pneumonia.

I made a point of increasing my mileage every day, not willing to give up and die. Often I went too far, which I only found out the next day, when I'd be very tired and have trouble breathing well. But I kept it up, and now I try to walk 8 miles a day and go the gym every other day. I feel great after that, but what's helped me equally as much is one deep breath of QVAR80 mcg (beclomethasone dipropionate HFA) every day, which I happened to have around from a past episode of asthma. My pulmonologist never suggested this. If I don't take the QVAR80, I become too aware of my breath and my mortality -- enlightenment from awareness of each breath is not going to work for me, all it does is make me more aware of my mortality and feel anxious and depressed.

My heart is back to normal, instead of bouncing around between 70 and 100 it's a steady 60 at rest.

Many of you on this forum convinced me that it was possible to get a lot better -- I was able to walk 8 miles in 10 months, so it can be done! Just keep trying, and don't ever stop pushing yourself a little. Before you know it you'll be back to normal again. Try QVAR80 if all else fails, but I'll bet 99% of you aren't in as bad shape as I once was and won't need to do so.