We have set internet restrictions on our son's ipad to "specific websites only." We entered in the netflix url and netflix comes up, but never completely loads. When we remove the restrictions entirely and allow all websites, netflix comes up just fine. "Allow All Movies" is also enabled, even though all other websites are blocked except netflix. I'm not concerned about limiting netflix, because anything that's watched shows up in our queue, and all my kids know we watch that. So...any advice on what's going on? All other websites seem to be allowed when we enter specific websites, but not Netflix. What can I do? I haven't been able to find an online answer, either. Help! Lisa

Yes, I remember that about mice and hamsters. Our pet, whatever it ends up being, will be in a room where our three youngest boys sleep. I like the idea of a pet that's not nocturnal.

I'm not sure what I said that made you think I consider pets disposable. There are pets, though, that don't have to be taken to the vet. Like fish. I had hamsters and gerbils as a child and never had to take them to the vet. That's not to say that it never needs to be done. My husband and I have to consider whether we're able to maintain the ongoing costs of a rodent, and we have to include the vet bill in that tallly where it applies. My original question was intended to find a good balance between the most sociable rodent we can get for the least projected expense.

DS13 is interested in rats, but the costs seem higher than other rodents. I'm also seeing folks online who say that rats often need to be taken to the vet for respiratory infections. I'm not interested in vet bills. So I guess that leaves me with mice, hamsters, gerbils, guinea pigs...I'm probably forgetting something. He really wants a critter that he can physically handle and play with. And I want a pet that will not be as expensive to maintain as a rat. I'd also like it not to be a biter, and not one that will be quick to make a dash under the furniture (we have a dog, and certainly don't want the rodent to die an untimely death!) If you can convince me that I'm thinking wrongly about rats, I'm all ears, too. Thanks!

Any special program in particular, or just something like Excel where you enter everything manually?

Hubby and I are trying to cut grocery expenses even more, and feel it would be helpful to categorize each item purchased so we can see how much we're spending a month on dairy, meat, produce, paper goods, baking items, canned goods, beverages...you get the idea. That way we can hopefully find out which categories of spending cost the most and can more specifically target areas for savings. Does anyone have a way they do this on a regular basis that's doable and helpful?

How did you determine which changes to make regarding amino acids? Was this your own research, or did a Dr. guide you? Did you read any of the books mentioned on this thread? I'd love to hear which amino acids you found helpful, though I know it's not one size fits all. Did you ever come off the amino acids at some point? I'm also interested in hearing about the behavioral modifications and diet changes. What kind of diet do you eat now? Low carb, paleo, SCD? I'm getting ready to do a parasite/candida cleanse per my doctor's orders, and have to be on a very strict diet during this time. I've cut out all sugar (of course) dairy, grains, starchy vegetables, and fruit. I can eat meat, non starchy vegetables, nuts, nut milks, nut butters, goat cheese and goat butter (because they have enzymes that digest their own sugars), lemon, lime, tomato (to which I'm allergic), and good oils (allergic to olive and coconut, two of the best) but I can have grapeseed, walnut, and sunflower. My physical health problems that brought all of this to a head prevent me from eating a lot anyway. Thanks!

She started me at 350 mg. That was an absolute disaster. My tremors were atrocious. She stepped it down to 100 twice daily. I take the first one at breakfast and the second at lunch so it's less likely to interfere with sleep issues, which I already had before. Thanks for the encouragement! I'm having health related anxiety and insomnia. I'm still wondering why she thought it was a good idea to prescribe Wellbutrin when it often increases anxiety and insomnia!!! I might have to try the GABA, though my start up symptoms from Wellbutrin seem to be receding a little. I was having sleep problems already before the wellbutrin and that just made it worse!

This looks very helpful. I'm also interested in Depression Free Naturally. Early on (without any educated guidance) I tried several "natural" remedies in the amino acid family, but to no avail. I'm sure there's a more scientific way to go about it all, though. I just need to plow through these books and see if either one is a fit. Thanks!

Thanks for the information about truehope.com. I'm definitely interested in checking out their site and learning more. I've never heard of Pyroluria. I'll ask my internist about it. I believe that my anxiety and depression were health induced. I had a sudden bout of symptoms that were severe and caused immediate panic and anxiety, then sleeplessness, then more anxiety, then depression, etc...I just completely spiraled, and the physical problems are not resolved. It's a condition that's hard to diagnose and even harder to treat. Trying to figure out how to learn what the new normal is going to be without being dependent on phsych meds. You asked what my current problem is: I'll try to keep it as short as I can. In January I started having choking episodes out of nowhere. IgE food allergies were ruled out and I ended up at a GI doctor per my internist's recommendation. They did an upper scope and found nothing significant. I started having more and more episodes and developed more symptoms: shortness of breath, chest pain, persistent throat clearing, ear pain, mucous in the back of the throat, sore throat. All symptoms were fine in the morning, but came back consistently after each meal. I hated eating and lost a lot of weight. I stopped sleeping entirely for a week and a half. I would have this weird thing where I couldn't cross over from wakefulness to sleep. As soon as I'd start to drift off, I'd wake up startled and feeling like I'd stopped breathing. I later learned that this was basically unconscious panic (my nerves were shot from the choking episodes and my adrenaline started misfiring at totally inappropriate times, and was keeping me from sleep. After a week and a half of no measurable sleep, I was going completely batty. My Dr. and my hubby insisted that I take something. Enter Ativan. It helped some (small dose) for about 2 weeks, so I decided I could wean off. I was wrong. My Dr. then tried mirtazapine, Ambien, Ambien CR. Melatonin and all the natural remedies didn't make a dent in it. I had a very confusing sleep study which didn't show apnea or hypopnia, but multiple events called "RERA" or respiratory event related arousal. This happened 28 times in one night, even in a medicated sleep. Anyhow...my internist (after I educated her on what I had found in my own research) agreed that my original problem was LPR, or laryngopharyngeal reflux, also called silent reflus (it's anything but silent), or upper airway reflux. Traditional GERD treatment is largely unhelpful for this condition, and there's really no cure. Some have had surgeries, but many folks have gotten much worse from surgery. Some have removed their gallbladers and gotten worse. It was a mistake for me to get on so many health forums and find that there were so many people with this ailment who were not getting any relief. Over the course of the year, It was also discovered that I have a broad range of IGG allergies (underlying and not immediately noticeable), leaky gut syndrome, parasites, and candida in my gut (the last two being confirmed by a stool sample, excuse the reference.) It was all news to me, because I have no lower abdominal issues at all (as far as symptoms go). Only this awful throat stuff, which is really scary when I start feeling my throat tighten. It's just a physiological panic trigger and I can't seem to ward it off. No wonder when you feel like you're going to choke and stop breathing! Anyhow, the diet recommended for LPR (high alkaline foods and low acid foods like breads, starchy veggies, etc...) is exactly the opposite of what i should be eating for the parasites and candida. I'm getting ready to do a complete antimicrobial cleanse with an alternative Dr. (who also happens to be licensed cardiologist, internist and nutritionist gone natural). I've had good experiences with him in the past, so I'm hopeful. But LPR is a relatively new diagnosis, and many doctors don't know what it even is. If diagnosed, it's usually by an ENT rather than a Gastro doc. I've been told by both that they see absolutely nothing in my throat or esophagus. Many people with LPR are told the same thing. I've been taking prescription strength prevacid for several months. It seems to have helped some with the throat symptoms a little. I also have several other supplements like DGL, aloe juice, probiotics, vitamin D, B vitamins, etc...My internist said the prevacid will eventually not be strong enough, and I'll have to step it up to the next stronger medication. Some people battle this without PPIs, and I did that for several months without success, getting only more anxious and depressed. I've been on a cocktail of meds and hate it, hate it, hate it. I want to be off the Prevacid, too, because it's so bad for you. Before this, I only took a natural thyroid medication. This has really thrown me for a loop. That's the short version of my illness. There's much more I'm leaving out, but suffice it to say, I'm on way to many medications, and each of my diagnosed ailments are complicated in and of themselves, but the combination of them all discovered in such a short period of time is absolutely overwhelming. I've experienced that "wham" over the last few days going from 2.5 mg to 2.0 mg. Trying to stick it out. What's the smallest dosage available? .125 mg sounds so tiny, but I've heard this before, too. That would have to be a half mg. quartered, right? I've also heard of water titration, but don't know anything about it. Are you familiar with this? I don't know exactly how to go about finding a Dr. that can help me on a slow taper. I'll have to do some homework, I guess I don't really "like" taking it, but it does calm me and help me sleep. I'm taking .5 mg in the morning and also in the afternoon, then taking 1 mg at bedtime, along with Seroquel and Lamictal. I don't think I'm a candidate for cold turkey. I've heard it can be very dangerous. I also know that my current health problems are significantly exacerbated by anxiety, so I don't want to go backwards in a hurry by doing it cold turkey. I'm so sensitive to medications. I've also heard that if you go too fast, and then end up getting back on because you can't handle the withdrawal, it becomes more likely (physiologically) each time that you'll build an addiction. I want to go slowly and avoid any risk I can. I'm so glad for you that your initial health problem resolved. When the reason for the anxiety and depression are gone, it seems to me that it would be very hopeful regarding being able to get off medications. Please keep me posted on your withdrawal process. I don't know how I'll do since anxiety exacerbates my health issues. Getting off is anxiety producing in itself. I'm concerned I'll be stuck on these permanently. Ughh.

That's great news that there was nothing visibly wrong! Please keep us posted on how you continue to feel and whether your symptoms resolve. I sincerely hope this is one of those "oddball" things that comes and goes (permanently) and you look back and just scratch your head. If you or a Dr. ever conclude that you do have LPR, I can offer you what little I've learned over the last year, fwiw. Best of wishes, and keep us updated!

I've been told several times that I just must be "cut out" to be a home school mom. I've never, ever, felt cut out for it. Just the opposite, in fact. I read this blog post recently, and it really resonated with me regarding being "cut out" for homeschooling. http://www.growinghomeblog.com/2012/03/why-im-not-cut-out-to-be-homeschool-mom.html

Jean, any results yet from your testing? Was praying for you today. Hope all is well.

ditto about the endoscopy, Jean. That part was extremely easy. I didn't even have a sore throat afterwards.

Oh, Jean! I'm so sorry you're going through this. Let's hope it's not LPR, but something easily explainable and easily treated. Throat closing and difficulty breathing are so scary. I ended up in the ER for one episode. When I had my endoscopy done, all he found was a minor spot of irritation at the bottom of my esophagus, which wasn't even the place where I was having my symptoms. He also said that any normal person might have a small area of irritation without any symptoms. I don't know why they call it silent reflux, because it's anything but silent. Nevertheless, It was only through my own research (and some information in a book about reflux which differentiates significantly between GERD and LPR. If you don't get any satisfying answers from the testing, I would go to an ENT. Gastro docs rarely diagnose LPR. If it even gets diagnosed, it's usually by an ENT, especially ones at voice institutes. They have more experience with upper airway reflux symptoms. I soon developed other common symptoms of LPR, but my initial bouts of it included only the choking feeling. It progressed from there. I wouldn't rule out food allergies, either. Maybe you could keep a food diary to figure out if food is triggering it? I never had/have episodes prior to a meal, always afterwards. Please keep me posted on your procedure, diagnosis, symptoms,etc... I will be praying fervently for you as you navigate whatever this ailment is. Hang in there!

Bumping this in case anyone else here has experience with this!

I have been on 2.5 mg of Klonopin per day for several months. I take 2 mg. at night and 1/2 mg. in the a.m. I was not sleeping, and ambien and other drugs were not working. This all started with a major health issue last January, which spiraled into severe anxiety and depression. The health issue is still unresolved, but I want to get off the Klonopin. Last night, I took only 1 mg at night, then today I took 1/2 mg in the a.m. and 1/2 mg in the afternoon. So as of today, I reduced half a milligram. What should I expect now? How slowly should I taper? What side effects should I expect? I have heard that if you go too fast, your risk of having to get back on increases, and your rise for staying dependent also increases each time you unsuccessfully try to reduce without success. I'm hoping someone out there has been on this and has been able to wean slowly without horrific side effects. I'm also on an antidepressant (Wellbutrin) and two mood stabilizers (Lamictal and Seroquel). Eventually I'd like to get off all of them. I have never had issues with anxiety or depression in my life, but for some reason, these health issues have really thrown me for a loop. Any experiences, good or bad, I would like to hear. The more I read about it, the scarier it sounds. I wish I had never been put on it to begin with, and resisted as long as I could. But I was not sleeping a wink at night...would start to drift off and would be jolted out of sleep like I had stopped breathing or was choking. Before I knew it, I was on a cocktail of anxiety meds, antidepressants, and mood stabilizers. It has been horrible. I'm interested in the Mood Cure book, and also wonder if anyone here has had experience using amino acids to wean off anxiety or antidepressant medications. Please help! Lisa

Mommymilkies, is your anxiety still bad? Did you have anxiety prior to taking wellbutrin? swimmermom3, I was started at 350 mg, and was absolutely batty. I reduced to 200 in the SR form. I take one twice daily. No, it's not a regular md. It's a psychiatrist. My M.D. knew when things were out of her league, so she sent me to a Psychiatrist. And you're right about the second opinion. I have another appt. with my original psychiatrist next Monday. If things don't pan out the way I'd like or I don't feel comfortable about what she wants to do, I have another Dr. up my sleeve that a good family friend who's also an MD highly recommended. If only $ weren't an issue for a whole new evaluation! mommy22alyns, Yes, this is very difficult. I've been on for 2 months, and there's no easing up yet. I really want this to work, but don't know when I should throw in the towel. The jitteriness increases my anxiety, which increases my depression. I just want to crawl out of my skin! raisingainsley, I was prescribed the Wellbutrin for depression. I had anxiety too, but she prescribed it anyway. When I first came to her, I had a sleep Dr. prescribe me a low dose of zoloft. I was on 25 mg for a week and then increaed to 50. I was not sleeping at all during this time, and when I came to my new psychiatrist, she said I should have been able to see at least some improvement in that week and a half. She said to abandon it altogether. I was also on mirtazipine, but that was not a good fit either. Didn't really make a dent in my depression or anxiety, though it helped my sleep a little. Thathomeschooldad, Yes, I need some tinkering. I'm starting to think my current Dr. is switching things too quickly, abandoning one and starting another. She wanted to take me off the wellbutrin after one month, but I wanted to stick it out to see if the side effects would lessen. No such luck. I also don't feel like she understands my physical issues very well, which is what kicked all of this off. Sailormom, I want to be off the benzos more than anything. I also want to pare off everything else. Severe sleep issues that started right after sudden onset of physical problems kicked off the anxiety and depression. Melatonin didn't put a dent in it. I also tried Kavanace Ultra PM, which also has 5 htp (gave me nightmares and didn't help much.) I'm one of those who responds to benadryl in a completely opposite way. Ambien CR seemed to help quite a bit, but she didn't think that was a good solution long term. She said that if the anxiety and depression were under control, she thought the sleep would follow. Cold turkey definitely won't work for me. I'm so sensitive to all these medications. Honestly, before January, I'd never taken anything but natural thyroid medication. I hated to even take tylenol. I'm not sure how I ended up in this situation. It's been a complete snowball. melissamatthews, I'll have to look into that combo for myself. I don't have reflux at night at all, in fact that's when I feel the best with regards to reflux, but it's the worst for insomnia. Oh wow, he's a dentist? Shaky hands make for a horrible problem, I imagine

Pawz4me, thanks so much for your response. I have some questions for you. Did you go straight to Protonix before trying some of the milder PPIs (Prevacid, etc.)? How long from the time you started having symptoms until the time you started taking medication? Did you have other supplements that helped? I've heard lots of people talk about DGL, probiotics, slippery elm, chewing gum, alkaline water (high ph), vitamin D deficiency, and I can't remember what else. I'm taking several of these. What were all of your symptoms? Before meds, I had choking episodes. No taste in my mouth, no feeling of acid coming up, just choking. Sometimes it was just a general throat tightening. I also had/have painful throat clearing, pain in my upper chest, sometimes it hurts to speak loudly or even talk at all. I do have mucous down the back of my throat sometimes, and also sore throat, hoarseness, and right ear pain. Was your prescribing Dr. a GP or a GI or ENT? Are those three triggers that you mentioned the only ones that bother you? Did you use the Dropping Acid regimen by Dr. Koufman? Please forgive all the questions. I've heard of very few people who feel like they've been able to manage it well or get to a comfortable new "normal." Your story sounds hopeful and encouraging. melissamatthews, Does your husband have acid reflux or lpr? what are his symptoms? esophageal or upper throat? I have the Dropping Acid cookbook. It does help, for sure, but since I have been diagnosed with candida and parasites since this all started, all the starches and breads in this cookbook are completely out for me. Right now, I'm on pretty much a meat and green vegetables diet (worrisome, since I've already lost so much weight). My alternative Dr. wants me on an 8 week diet with no sugar, fruit, grain, dairy, vinegar, starchy vegetables, etc... Basically Atkins on steroids. I'm concerned that I'll lose another 20 lbs and be completely emaciated. I am allowed to eat meats, green veggies, onions (bad for refluxers) tomatoes (again bad for refluxers) limes and lemons, nuts, nut butters, homemade nut milk, goat cheese, and goat butter (all of these bad for refluxers). This diet, and the herbal concoction that he wants me to take during the 8 weeks are supposed to help deal with the parasites and candida, or any microbial stuff that's in there that doesn't belong. It's a catch 22. The lpr diet is in direct conflict with the anti candida and parasite diet....except for lean meats and veggies, and you can't live off that. Lifetime Ketosis doesn't sound healthy. Praying I'll get the leaky gut, allergies, candida and parasites cleaned up so I can manage a diet that works for the lpr.

I'm really struggling greatly with it, and feeling very lonely because it's so difficult to treat, and I don't know anyone else who has it. When I read online forums, I see so many others that struggle with it, and it seems hopeless. I certainly don't want to take PPIs forever, but I'm on full rx strength Prevacid twice a day, which I know is going to have serious health ramifications down the road. I have just been diagnosed with a whole host of other health problems (all gut issues), and the diets for these other problems are in opposition to the diet recommended for lpr refluxers. I feel like I'm stuck without any clear path on how to begin to tackle all these problems. Please respond if you or someone you know has this, especially if you/they have had any great success with treatment. I need someone to commiserate with. Thanks!

I've been on Wellbutrin for over 2 months, and it seems like my anxiety has been worse and my tremors have been worse, which triggers more anxiety. I wake up in the morning with a jolt of adrenaline, or something like it. I feel like I wake up with a panic attack. It also doesn't help me sleep, which I'm having to use medication for already. I have never been on anti-anxiety or anti-depressants before February of this last year. I had a serious turnaround in my health. Multiple issues: LPR (laryngopharyngeal reflux, which is totally different from regular reflux, and difficult to diagnose and treat.) I was also told according to the large number of IgG allergies that showed up on a blood test that I had leaky gut. Then from a stool sample that I have parasites and candida. I'm taking full prescription strength prevacid twice a day with some improvement in the LPR. But I hate the thought of the suppression of all that stomach acid. I know my body needs it for the GI system. I also know that prevacid can lead to nasty side effects down the road. I also have a painful gallbladder (and have had this for years) but it showed no stones and the hidascan showed proper function. Within a week of the LPR starting ( I didn't know what it was, I just started having throat closing and choking episodes), I transitioned into complete insomnia. I've always slept like a baby, but not so for the last 9 months. After about a week and a half of no measurable sleep, my doctor prescribe a benzo for sleep. It helped right away, and after being on it for a couple of weeks, I weaned off slowly, but the insomnia returned. I was going crazy without sleep. I returned to a different Benzo (Klonopin), and then she kept having to add other things because I still wasn't sleeping well, was anxious, and depressed. I've been on Ambien, mirtazipine, buspar for daytime anxiety (didn't help at all). Then she tried a mood stabilizer. (Lamictal). That wasn't doing the trick either. So I'm currently on 2 Klonopin before bed, 2 small (25 mg) Seroquel before bed, 200 mg Wellbutrin during the day, and three half pills (forget the mg) of lamictal spread out throughout the day. I've tried to stick out the wellbutrin, but it's been over two months. I definitely feel a burst of energy, but it's like I'm way too wired. I already had shakiness before going on it, but it has intensified. I have tremors in my knees going downstairs, my arms and hands shake constantly. Hard to type correctly, shaky hands when bringing a fork or cup to my mouth, arms that tremor with any kind of movement. I'm fine when I'm sitting still, but as soon as I start moving, it gets worse. Of course I start worrying about something like essential tremor or Parkinsons. My dad has Parkinsons, so it's in the family. Anyhow, back to my original question. If you've taken wellbutrin, when did the side effects stop, or if they didn't stop, how long did you give it before you quit?

"...which one was his index finger." Ahem....he's 17. He gets it confused with his pinkie. Huh??? A couple of years ago, when a different ds was 14, he was looking for a straw to put in his soda at Costco. I don't normally buy sodas for my kids at places like that, and we don't eat out all that much. When I pointed out the obvious (to me) straw dispenser, he looked at it kinda sideways. I reached out, pushed down the lever, and out rolled a straw. He exclaimed, "That is SO COOL!!!" in front of the entire Costco lunch crowd. Yeah...we homeschool :) Please tell me I'm not the only one who's often dismayed at the things my kids don't know. Usually innocent and kinda funny...but a bit worrisome, too!

sorry..repost!

I'll have to look into Sequential Spelling for Adults. Why not the one for kids? Is your son already beyond that one? Anyone else have any input about using Spelling Power?