| T: so where you said you'd like to start Sal is talking about your asthma and specifically about your dog and how one is affecting the other | |
| C: yeah my as was just been out of control lately and my doctor says it might be connected to Oscar | |
| T: hmm so what can you let me know or or what do you know about your asthma and the things that affected or might make it worse | |
| C: I've got allergy testing it's just the dust makes it bad I thought the smoking was the main thing that's cut down and then they said the drinking might contribute to it too so I got a lot of different things I'm working on so that's what I know the drinking the smoking and the dust that I got the scratch test for | |
| T: right | |
| C: and and that's what I know and that I take the medicine for it | |
| T: okay and that your pet has never been mentioned as a concern | |
| C: no I've had it for 12 years and now it's a concern I don't understand | |
| T: hmm yeah and I I can see that you've already worked hard to make some changes you've almost quit smoking you're just down to your last couple of cigarettes and you're not even smoking those in the house and your house is totally smoke-free | |
| C: does that work what the boy said yeah | |
| T: okay and you have also thought about cutting back on alcohol and and I think you mentioned done done a little bit towards that | |
| C: mm-hmm I'm a little I'm a couple down I used to drink for a night now I'm down to three at least | |
| T: okay so now almost like that's not good enough like now you have to douse the dog and I mean and now what what's next | |
| C: yeah yeah okay | |
| T: so I mean there is certainly a lot of evidence that pets in the home and the dander from their fur can make asthma worse but I wonder what are your experiences with Oscar you know when he's in the house or maybe sleeping near you or you're around him what happens with your asthma symptoms | |
| C: well we keep him clean like he's clean so all the dander doesn't really make sense but I have been noticing sometimes when he comes on the bed or just beside I wheeze a little bit but I think it has to do with um the hair the in my lungs cleaning itself up from the smoking so I don't know if it's that that's where I'm confused I don't know how this could be happening | |
| T: hmm so it doesn't make total sense to you that that it's all Oscars fault and then that's the only solution | |
| C: but the wheezing is something that I've definitely noticed a little bit | |
| T: I guess I also wonder whether regardless of if your asthma symptoms are connected to Oscar that may be part of you feels like it's worth it because he's been such a big part of your life for so long | |
| C: mm-hmm mmm I just want some medicine and I want to keep Oscar and I want to feel better about myself because I'm making all these changes in my life in it honestly feels like my my nose is just above the water | |
| T: mmm yeah and and in the end you know whatever you whatever you do about Oscar about your asthma about all the other things that we talked about on that agenda setting worksheet I mean you are in the driver's seat salad it really is your choice | |
| C: hmm ya know that feels good that I you know ELISA it is my choice I just feel like just about I'm not feeling happy about just all these different things that are coming up and I'm kind of sad about things and I don't know I don't know what to do | |
| T: there's a lot of decisions and a lot of change with your wife with the new baby and and now thinking about looking after your health and wanting to be healthy for your wife and your baby | |
| C: you know I want I want Giancarlo to grow up with Oscar so he has his friend when he's young too and I just it's a lot of stress and a lot of things you got to think about and I'm not feeling good about it | |
| T: mm-hmm so what what would need to happen or how would you know when you win or if you ever did have to make a decision about whether to keep Oscar with you or not | |
| C: yeah how would I know I don't know I think if my asthma got really bad and the medicine if she gave me the strongest medicine and I wasn't working | |
| T: mm-hmm | |
| C: that would be the way right now cuz I can't see I don't know how I'm gonna give this dog | |
| T: oh yeah and it got the feeling that it's something that you want to think about that this is a really big decision and it's not one that you're gonna make in a hurry | |
| C: no no it's something I got to just sit there and kind of put the pros and the cons on the table about but something's going on | |