I have been in the medical field for over thirty years. As an RN for half that time. The rest was as a medial Unit Secretary, and a nurse’s aid, or Patient Care Technician as they are called now.  Thinking about this is pretty amazing.

I have participated in surgeries - bowel and breast reconstructions, amputations, as well as medical procedures such as hemodialysis, bedside hemodialysis, to name a couple and countless memories of patients I cared for.

My interest in the medical field started when I was eighteen when my mother had to have surgery to remove cataracts in her eyes.  I started reading anatomy books and fascinating documentation on surgery in the 18th and 19th centuries. Boy have we come a long way! Thankfully.  It was all so interesting to me.

When I becamea registered nurse I had plans to work in the OR because I loved surgery. But as fate would have it I became a labor and delivery nurse instead (that’s where the job opening was for a fresh nuring school graduate at the time). It all worked out.

I have a love for anatomy and physiology and when I teach childbirth education I always emphasize the magic of physiology and anatomy in my classes – simply because we forget how amazing the human body is, how it performs, or rather how much of the human body we take for granted.

If you are in a career other han the medical sciences, you won’t know what we know. Just like I don’t know about the amazing bio-seciences, in-depth microbiology or biology. I know about the human body its anatomy and how it functions. It’s absolutely amazing.

So I thought I would start a basic series about the human body in hopes you may look upon your own amazing anatomy, the wonders of how your own body works, and gain a better understanding of why it’s a good thing to take care of it – it’s the only one you’ll ever have … love it and enjoy it. It’s remarkable!

RESPIRATORY SYSTEM

When I first learned that oxygen exchange happened in these little “grape” like clusters in the lungs called Aveoli I was surprsed. Simply because I thought when I inhaled, the air filled my lungs like a balloon and when I exhaled my lungs deflated and that was the end of it!

Nope .I was actually inflating the “grapes” where oxygen exchage happens on a microscopic level. In fact it’s at this microscopic level where oxygen passes through the membrane  into the blood stream attaching to red blood cells that transport  oxygen to tissues and cells within my body. At the same time, CO2, or carbon dioxide is exchanged and exhaled as I, and you, exhale.  The actual exchange of CO2 and O2 in the aveoli is called “respiration”.

Watch this video to get an appreciation on how this works.

Once you understand how the respiratory system operates it’s easier to understand how the simple act of breathing can carry other microscopic elements into the body and cause a potential health problem.

Now, having shared this, does it raise questions for you? Let me know what they are…

Thank you in advance for your comments!