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Joker

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Posts posted by Joker

  1. 4 minutes ago, mommyoffive said:

    Really???  They are in the waiting rooms? 

    The only medical place we’ve had to wait in the car is at the veterinarian. 🙃 We have been in waiting rooms with other patients for all of our appointments since the beginning of this. We’ve had several of them and I have another in two weeks. 

  2. I gravitate more toward eating vegetarian most of the time but my body needs red meat. I’m actually going out for a burger today because I realized last night I couldn’t remember the last time I had any. I was trying to figure out why I felt off and dizzy the last few days and it always takes me time because of the brain fog to remember all it means is I need a burger. I take daily supplements but it’s just not enough. 

     

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  3. We finally know someone personally who has had Covid. Ds’ roomie and another friend (both 20 yr old college students). Fortunately, ds was here the week they were both exposed so he just stayed at home for three weeks. Roomie quarantined in their apartment alone, but fortunately the only symptom she had was a loss of taste and smell for a few days. Other friend was pretty sick for two weeks but is fine and back at work now. 

    Ds went back to the apartment last week, which was about a week after roomie’s quarantine ended, and both he and roomie were here for Thanksgiving. So, now I’m just hoping they listened to us and cleaned well and that Ds didn’t pick it up via surfaces in the apartment (and didn’t bring it back home to us). He’s home now for at least a week so I feel like I’m counting the days until I can relax about it.

    ETA: I have no idea what the current thought process is on how long the virus can survive on surfaces, such as Ds’ apartment. If anyone has any updated information on this, I would appreciate hearing it. I remember early on there was lots of speculating but I’m not sure what they’re saying now.

    ETA2: One good thing about all of this is that those are the two friends ds hangs out with the most so they feel safer hanging in the apartment together for at least the next little while. I know there have been reinfections but they seem rare and usually at least a few months apart.

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  4. 7 minutes ago, Selkie said:

    Hmmm, we use Tidy Cats non clumping litter and our cats don't track it. Is she tracking it or kicking it over the sides of the litterbox? Our litterboxes have tall sides (a 6" entry and the other three sides are 10") and I think that helps to keep the litter contained.

    She’s definitely tracking it because there is litter everywhere she goes (window sills, furniture, all over both floors of the house). I’m also cleaning up little gray paw prints everyday through the downstairs rooms.

  5. Is there a non tracking litter that actually works? Or any tricks at all for stopping/cutting down on it?

    Dd has an indoor cat and it is seriously the messiest pet I've ever had. The litter is what's driving me over the edge, though. It's everywhere! We've only tried Tidy Cats so far and we did discover early on that she highly prefers fragrance free litter. I have a large mat outside the litter box and it does catch a lot but not all. So, any help with this will be much appreciated!!

  6. We usually drink almond milk and only use regular milk for cooking here and there, but I just realized I didn’t get any in my grocery pick up this week. 🙄

    Will using almond milk work? I just do a basic flour, butter, milk, and cheese recipe. Will it change it too much and do I need to any extra flour or anything?

  7. This year is so weird! I’m only making a ham, mac n cheese, deviled eggs, and rolls. I ordered turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing, and a pumpkin pie.

    I did make sausage balls this morning for breakfast and we will have them tomorrow morning as well (it doesn’t feel like the holidays until I make them). I just wasn’t in the mood to make everything myself this year. 

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  8. 19 hours ago, PeterPan said:

    That's a long time to have to wait, when surely the new doc will want labs. Have they run free T3 and antibodies? Genetics?

    https://www.thyroid.org/patient-thyroid-information/ct-for-patients/march-2016/vol-9-issue-3-p11-12/

    So what you're looking at is a supressed TSH with a normal Free T4, which is kind of weird. You will want to google and find out what is going on, so you can possible run labs yourself and get things moving. You can order them through healthcheckusa.com without a doctor's scrip. You get stuck paying for them, but you get them sooner.

    How much D is she taking? Has her bloodwork been done on the B12 and D? And do you have genetics to know her methylation status?

    I'm going to go out on a limb and suggest you *could* actually have two issues going on, if you're administering B vitamins and D without running genetics. You could be aggravation methylation issues (which would show in the genetics) with the D and B12, which would make her feel more tired, and that could parallel whatever is going on with her thyroid. It's a little strange to say she's hyper if neither the Free T3 nor Free T4 are high. It almost seems reasonable to wonder about that genetic explanation or some other explanation for the supressed TSH in the presence of normal Free T3 and Free T4. 

    So I would make sure the Free T3 and Free T4 are reasonable in the normal range (not at the very bottom) and I would run the bloodwork on the D and B12 to see about those levels and genetics to see what they would show. You'd do it through 23andme.com and upload the raw data to knowyourgenetics.com for a free methylation cycle report.

    What happens if she stops taking the D and B12? Is she on any meds currently? Taking soy, iodine, hormones, or other products that affect thyroid?

    The vitamins have made no difference with the fatigue (not worse, not better) but they might have helped with the hives. She was able to cut out the daily Benadryl since taking them so we’re going to stick with it for the time being.

    I don’t think her Free T3 has ever been checked, just the T4. The rheumatologist did run a bunch of tests to check for autoimmune issues and all lab work came back fine except the TSH and T4. There were one or two things a little off (MCHC, MPV, and Albumin)but they didn’t seem to think it was an issue since it looks like she is always a little off on those.

  9. 1 hour ago, gardenmom5 said:

    there are other things that can cause fatigue.

    What are her FREE T3 and FREE T4 numbers? I had a dr not only refuse to run them, but lied to me about having run them. I only realized she didn't because *I* went through the lab results and saw they were missing!  When confronted, she claimed my insurance wouldn't cover them.  Which was BS because the dr with whom I replaced her, ran them three times that same year after I left and paid for each of them.

    do not settle for a dr saying your numbers are "in range".  "In range" includes people whose numbers are leaving them symptomatic.

    1.8 TSH may or may not be an issue - you need the Free T3 and Free T4 numbers to know.   It's also possible to have numbers above optimal, in which case you really want to bring them down. (I had a high Free T3, and needed to reduce my Rx to bring it back into optimal.)

     

    See the source image

      What is her adrenal saliva cortisol like?  long-term thyroid often leads to adrenal issues (which can cause fatigue).  Adrenal blood tests are not useful, they're one and done - you want a 24 hr spit test to measure what cortisol does in a day.

    Cortisol should be high in the morning, slowing going down to low by bedtime.    I won't even go into the symptoms I have when my cortisol is being overly taxed - while fatigue is one, it was awful.  I'm just grateful I found when I'm doing something particularly demanding (for me, because a lower functioning adrenal gland reduces how much you can do) I can take one adrenal cortex  and my symptoms will be relieved for the day.  I can't take it every day- or that leads to other problems.

    there are some very good adrenal support supplements that can help with the adrenal gland too.

     

    ETA: just wanted to add, TSH is a pituitary hormone, NOT a Thyroid Hormone.

    Her TSH level is .18 not 1.8. Her Free T4 was 0.9 and 1.1 the last two times it was checked, so it’s been borderline low. 

    I’m confused by what it all means because a quick glance tells me low TSH would be hyper but that low T4 would be hypo.  Is that right? If so, what would it mean for both to be low? And weight gain seems to be a symptom for hypo but she has actually lost about seven pounds this year without trying (and she didn’t need to lose any).

  10. The screen on my phone tells me I have just over 200 unread text messages. 😁 So, I’m definitely not one who responds immediately because I often don’t even read it for days. If I see a message is from dc or dh, I do check those immediately and respond.

    I actually hate texting with most people though so I’m probably weird. 
     

    ETA: We’re actually probably a weird family because none of us are great with texting. I often have friends of ds (who is  20!!) text me because they’re trying to reach him and he’s not responding. He turns his phone off for classes and then just forgets about it. 🙃

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  11. I know over the years I’ve asked several questions but we finally have a doctor listening.

    Dd’s latest TSH result was 0.18. She is miserable and the fatigue she is experiencing is interfering with everything. We finally were given a referral to an endocrinologist and we see them in January. Our insurance doesn’t even require a referral but the doctors do. It’s been annoying.

     So, is there anything we can do to make things a bit better while we’re waiting to be seen? Mostly for the fatigue. She is so tired. I already have her taking Vitamin D and B12 daily. Also, is there anything we should avoid that could make things worse?


     

  12. I like eating out. Dh and I, pre Covid, would leave early almost every Saturday morning and go downtown to have breakfast. We have several places we enjoy and would rotate. We then would usually spend a few hours walking around. We also would often eat lunch out during the week, again just the two of us. We have still been eating out here and there but only if it’s outdoors so our options are more limited. We do go as a family to our fav ice cream place often, even during Covid, and we all hang out in the car. 
     

  13. 1) We ate outside at a restaurant last Thursday.

    2) We haven’t eaten inside a restaurant since late February.

    3) There are several local downtown places dh and I enjoyed going to for breakfast on the weekends and I’m looking forward to doing so again.

    4) It’s not the same but I still enjoy getting takeout instead of cooking.

    5) Nothing that we enjoy has closed down during this.

    Most of our family eats inside restaurants several times a week and so we’re seen as crazy. Heck, my 80 year old in laws are back in the casinos now.  It helps to see many here doing the same as we are. 

  14. 2 hours ago, kbutton said:

    The chart says Bloomington, Illinois, I believe. 

    I haven't heard much about Bloomington, IN but would love an update. We have family there, but I am not sure we'd get a great picture of what is going on through them.

    All of IN is starting to struggle now and hospitals are starting to get overwhelmed in some areas. Our governor is starting to move things back but not enough IMO. My mom works for a large hospital in Indy and they are expecting their numbers to triple soon based on what they’re seeing.

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  15. I follow 3 different BLM groups for my area and all 3 do different things. One I mostly help out with donating money or food to their food pantry because their biggest need is feeding people in that community. One I donate money to help locals pay rent and bills. One is great for organizing times and places for protests. I’ve never thought of BLM as one cohesive organization because it’s just not what I’ve seen personally.

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  16. I am considered obese and am extremely healthy. Blood pressure, sugar, cholesterol, etc. are all great. Dh is actually about five pounds underweight and his cholesterol stinks. I’d much rather be my fat, healthy self than deal with what he’s doing. I eat healthy and exercise but I’m still a good 50 pounds overweight. I’m really healthy though and my skinny, runner dh is the one with the health issues. 
     

    Also, if we’re going to go with anecdotes, my skinny grandparents all died early but my obese grandparents lived long, heathy lives. My cousins and aunts/uncles on one side of the family are all also very obese but freakily healthy and live a ridiculously long time. I firmly believe genetics mean much more than weight. 

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  17. We’ll be watching! This is Us is one of the few current shows all four of us love here and we’re super excited to watch tomorrow. I’m one who finds it strange to watch tv/movies without Covid restrictions so I’m fine with it. It’s still feels like an escape to me.

  18. I sing in the car almost all the time no matter who is in there with me (and I’m a horrible singer). All four of us have jammed out together numerous times as well. I remember doing the same growing up with my parents and siblings, and dh’s family sings often at home and in the car. We just really like music here and talk about new artists/songs often and have music playing a lot of the time.

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