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Hypatia.

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Posts posted by Hypatia.

  1. We bought the Lifeproof LVP from Home Depot. Between the kids (including one newly potty trained 3 year old, and one more to potty train down the road) and the pets we really needed something waterproof. We haven't installed it yet, but everything is prepped and we will be doing that on Friday. 

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  2. We have some experience with non-stimulant ADHD meds. Intuniv (long-acting guanfacine) has been a good fit for one of my sons, helps cut down on his impulsivity. For my other son (aggression and rage in addition to ADHD), Intuniv wasn't a good fit. Kapvay (long-acting clonidine) is helpful for him, but it's in combination with other medications. Finding the right fit for this child is particularly challenging. 

    Could you tell me more about what it means to be an overmethylator, and how you found out? 

    • Thanks 1
  3. Not quite what you're looking for, but DS3 (now 5) was diagnosed with accommodative esotropia when he was 3. His right eye would turn so far inward (at the peak) that you could barely see the iris. He got glasses when he was 3, and then we started patching. We initially thought his brain was using his right eye, but once we started patching it became evident he was struggling with that. He would get iPad time during patch time, and the first couple days the way he was holding the iPad and moving his head to try to see it was heart-breaking. His crossing was still very noticeable with the glasses, and when his glasses were off was worse than it had been initially. We patched for a year and during that time his vision improved in that eye but not the turn. He ended up having strabismus surgery (right side only) in December.

  4. I'm trying to make the same decision right now for my 5 year old (just turned 5 in January) who has ADHD and ODD. Right now he's in the developmental preschool for speech and OT, and it's time to register for K next year. He's apparently very well behaved at preschool, no rages or throwing furniture. His teacher says he frequently moves his chair away from the circle or other people and doesn't participate but isn't raging. She also gets him at the time of day when his ADHD meds are in full effect. He doesn't like going to preschool, but seems to be fine when he's there.

     

    I'm concerned about him handling the change from a 2.5 hour preschool to a full-day K next year. I'm concerned about him refusing to go and me being unable to physically carry him to school or wrestle him into the car, he's strong and big for his age. Right now he has bus service to preschool, but there's no bus service for our neighborhood to the elementary school. He's shutting down when he doesn't want to participate there, and I'm worried about him slipping through the cracks if he's just quietly not participating. I noticed he's forming his letters from the bottom up and mentioned it to his teacher (they also use Handwriting Without Tears, so I know how it's being taught) and neither she or the OT had noticed. He has an IEP for speech and OT, but that's all he qualifies for.

     

    On the other hand, he can be extremely explosive and defiant at home. Currently, having him in the developmental preschool is what is allowing me to get work done with his older four siblings. Things are better now than they were, but he's always very volatile. I'm not sure his teacher believes how he acts at home because he's always so quiet/subdued when he's at school. 

  5. Ugh, how frustrating! I get my care at a Naval Hospital too and had to jump through hoops with my new PCM when restarting my medication after my most recent pregnancy. I'm really happy with the specialists I see, but this routine medication has been frustrating. 

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  6. DS1 (13) has his hair down to his shoulders, a little longer in the back. It looks like a longer version of what Tap linked to with Rush from SGU, the front part now brushes his shoulders. While it was growing out from a DanTDM-esque sideswept cut, he just ignored it in his face for those transition months. It bugged the crap out of me but didn't seem to bother him.

     

    So all of you with sons with long hair, what do you do for hair cuts/trims? Last time I tried to do it myself (huge mistake) he ended up with a bob that would have looked adorable on his sister, he was mortified. He needs a trim now but I don't know what to say to the stylist, I don't want it to turn into a mullet or a bob but the ends definitely need trimming. 

  7. I have one of those. The raging meltdowns multiple times a day, sometimes needing restraint to keep him from hurting himself or his siblings. (This kid threw chairs out of a 2nd story window at age 4.) It's... exhausting. I just don't have the words for it. For him, it's a nasty combo of ADHD and ODD. He's in the developmental preschool right now, but he'll be kindergarten age in September and I'm not sure what direction we'll take yet. He's in OT to help with sensory issues, but I'm honestly not sure how much it is helping. 

     

    I need to read Explosive Child again.

  8. Someone upthread said it depends largely on the maturity of the adults involved. I completely agree with this.

    I also think almost all blended families would benefit from a little family counseling, at the beginning at least.

     

    If the "new to the family" person comes in and tries to parent like a bio parent, it can backfire - unless the child is very young perhaps.

    A lot of relationship building has to take place. Some adults think "I have dated their mother / father for a year or two years, I know the kids too." This is probably not enough. Once the newly formed family gets going, time should be set apart for fun - and only fun activities with the new parent. Rapport, trust and love don't just magically spring up when the wedding vows are said. 

    I remember the words of a man who became the stepfather of two boys - I think 10 and 12 at the time. 

    He said first of all, they are not my step children, the are my "bonus kids."

     

    For the first year, I did no discipline them. I discussed with their mother what course of parenting may be best but not in front of them. I tried to build a relationship by taking them with me to go on pizza runs without Mom, go do "guy" stuff, play ball, etc. I saw my role initially as a supportive coach, bonding with them before I assumed the privilege of disciplining."

     

    Not all people are interested in expending this much effort or know how to go about it.

     

    I think this could have made a huge difference when my mother remarried, the summer before I turned 13. Instead her husband thrust himself into the main parenting role, she chose to hand discipline and tough discussions over to him (which would have been awkward even if I did get along with him), and I felt like I had been abandoned. He was instrumental in getting me kicked out of the house shortly after I turned 14 and my relationship with my mother never truly recovered. I'm in my early 40s now and it's better now than it was in my late teens and 20s but there will always be that hard, protective shell inside me that will never feel comfortable opening up to her. I went from their household (a "yours and mine" kid situation) to my dad & stepmother's house (a "yours and ours" kid situation), but never felt like I truly had a home.

  9. It's been a huge help for my neuralgia. My prescription history reads like a pharmaceutical sales manual, I've had 12+ years of Botox injections to try to control the constant pain, and several radiofrequency nerve ablations. This was a better option (for me personally) to try before more involved surgeries or implants. I live in a state that has medical and, as of 2012, recreational marijuana available. I've been able to find a wide variety of strains and intake methods (not sure how to phrase that, but I've never been a smoker) available with knowledgeable staff to assist me. If anyone has any more specific questions then you are welcome to PM me.

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  10. Ask your doctor for a trial of INDOMETHACIN. It worked miracles for my husband.  It evidently works on a specific type of headache that some people mistake as continuous migraines. My husband tried a large majority of all the things you listed and nothing worked. He struggled for years with it.  Finally saw a neurologist who prescribed a trial - and the very first dose worked amazingly.

     

    I've heard this mentioned in a few different places now, I think I'm going to ask my neuro about it at my next visit! 

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  11. Slightly panicking here, realizing that we haven't done a good job of covering literary elements with my older two, especially my 13 year old son. I refer to him as a reluctant reader because he doesn't enjoy most books that anyone would consider quality literature, though he can tear through books that he's interested in (mainly sci-fi). He's definitely a reluctant writer, we're working through Diana Hanbury King's "Writing Skills" to remediate this issue. 

     

    He's not a curl up on the couch with something like MCT kind of kid, especially with language arts. (There's also the crowd management issue here.) I love reading myself, but I've always hated literary analysis and would need a lot of hand-holding. 

     

    Does anyone have any recommendations? I prefer secular curricula.

     

    Pardon the horrendous rambling post, chronically low on sleep right now. <side-eyes the infant>

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  12. My migraines are rather unusual in that rather than being on one side of the head like they are for most people, they are primarily on the back of my head. The pain will sometimes radiate into my temples, jaw, and eyes, but equally on both sides, and the back always hurts the worst. For that reason, I never thought that my frequent “bad headaches†were migraines until a doctor told me they were!

     

    If you don’t mind me asking, does MMJ work as a preventive? Or do you just take some when you feel a migraine coming on?

     

    Sublingual tincture that's high in CBD is helpful as a preventive for me, and there are other options that help wit bad flares.

     

    The back of my head feels like it's being slammed into a tile floor - that's my occipital neuralgia.

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  13. Chronic daily migraines along with occipital neuralgia here, I totally sympathize.

     

    Are your headaches primarily on one side? One thing I didn't see mentioned was radiofrequency ablation (RFA). I've had it done to my occipital nerves for my neuralgia, and since my migraines are always in the same place (feels like a grapefruit spoon digging into my right eye socket) I also requested an RFA of my right supraorbital nerve. Usually they test with nerve blocks first (depending on where your pain is), and if those are successful then RFA may be an option. It can be hard to get insurance to cover it, though.

     

    Oh, and straight-laced (never experimented with drugs in high school or college), former security clearance holding person here who has found relief with MMJ.

     

    edit for clarification: the radiofrequency ablation of my right supraorbital nerve was specifically for migraines and did give me relief.

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  14. We have that style and I like the style, just not happy with our particular brand (LG, lots of issues, see the repair people more than my own mother). The freezer space wouldn't be enough for our family if we didn't have an additional freezer in the garage, but I like all the space in the fridge. I would get the style again but a different brand.

     

    This is ours, or perhaps a newer version of it:

    http://www.lg.com/us/refrigerators/lg-LFX33975ST-french-3-door-refrigerator

  15. We bought one in 2015. I'm not exactly sure of the gas mileage, but overall I've been extremely pleased with the van. For now, we're keeping half of the backseat (it's a 2/2 split) removed for extra cargo space and that's working well.

     

    We also have grandparents that visit us as none of them live close, the ability to fit all of us in one car is appealing. I just want to get a red one as I worry about people thinking it is a courtesy vehicle if I were to pull up in front of a hotel and wait for grandparents. :yikes: 

     

    I did get chased down once by a couple that apparently mistook me for the airport shuttle! I have a blue one, but this was at a 2 am dropoff for the shuttle (about 2 hours away from the airport) for my husband.

  16. Echoing the others that said get a 2nd opinion.

     

    One of my 11 year old DD1's molars came in without proper enamel, the dentist said it could have been due to a high fever during the tooth's formation. The molar isn't even all the way in yet and already has a cavity, her only one. The dentist said we'll fill the cavity after the tooth is in but didn't mention pulling it.

  17. One of my children has a lot of verbal and motor tics. He also has ADHD and I know a lot of stimulant medications can worsen tics. When we finally made the decision to pursue meds (after he kept hurting himself by walking into things or falling, impulse control) I specifically requested one that could also help with tics. He's on Intuniv (long-acting guanfacine) and I've seen a reduction in both his verbal and motor tics.

  18. I did have a positive experience, however it was immediately after a loss. Last December (age 41) I lost a pregnancy due to T-13. Immediately after that loss I became pregnant again, I just had my youngest in October at age 42. No complications (though I was on blood thinners due to a pulmonary embolism during my pregnancy with #6), 12 lb baby boy born at home after an extremely precipitous (10 minute) labor. 

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  19. Who does this?  A doctor?  If so, which specialty?  If not, then who?

     

     

    My initial nerve blocks (for the occipital nerves, pretty simple) were done by my neurologist that I see for my migraines and occipital neuralgia. After getting those for a year or so he referred me to a pain clinic, one of the doctors there did my radiofrequency ablation. The supraorbital nerve was a little different, I researched (yeah, I know, Dr. Google) and requested a nerve block for that nerve at my next pain clinic appointment. The doctor had never done one before but was geekily excited to try it. It gave me relief, and he suggested that we try an RFA on that nerve, again something else he had never done but was confident he could do.

    • Like 1
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