Posted by TamaraJ on March 13, 2005, at 17:51:43
In reply to Re: Kara, my turn. How you are doing? » TamaraJ, posted by KaraS on March 12, 2005, at 22:58:24
> Hi,
>
> My computer seems to be working again. Don't understand it but my fingers are crossed that it continues to work. Maybe it wasn't a virus at all. Who knows? At any rate, I'm going to try to answer your post and hope that I don't lose everything I type before I get a chance to submit the post.
>
-- That's good news that your computer is working again - phew :-) I'll keep my fingers crossed too that the problems are over and there is no virus.
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> I got a little feedback on it from "Elroy". He seems to think it's a good investment so far but I don't think he feels that he could do without meds though. As for the tapping, I haven't been up to working on it lately. My friend my gave me a Reiki treatment this weekend. Hopefully that will help.
>
-- I'm glad that Elroy is finding that it was a good investment. Too bad about the meds though. But, it is probably better to be safe than sorry. And, it may mean the dosage of meds can be reduced - so it would still be money well spent. That's great that you will be getting another Reiki treatment. I hope it works and you feel like you did after the last one. It will be interesting to see if you have a similar response. Good luck with that.
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> Gyms are good for getting you motivated - if you can get yourself there to begin with! (Good thing you got rid of your exercise bik at home. There are better places to hang your clothes.)
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-- Good point! :-) Getting there is the first half of the battle! I am hoping I can get back to a point where I am motivated enough to make it to the gym. One thing is for sure, I will have to cut down on the overtime I work. I will make a concerted effort to leave work at least 2 nights a week by 5 p.m. Then I would still have Saturday and Sunday to exercise as well. Looks good in type ;-) Now all I have to do is implement and stop being an all talk no action person. Eeks!
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> Yes, the missing heart beats are very scary. It probably is because of the doxepin but I don't want to face it. I don't want to go off of this because I don't see very many other options for dealing with the extreme anxiety.-- Oh Kara, I'm sorry to hear that. I wonder (and sorry if this sounds stupid or a bit of a stretch) if maybe you were experiencing some mild serotonin syndrome. I don't know what lux your lightbox is, but 1 hour a day is quite a bit. I hope you don't have to go off the Doxepin, particularly since it has been doing such at good job quelling the extreme anxiety you have been experiencing. The only other thing to consider for extreme anxiety would probably be a benzo of some kind. Then again, someone like Ed may be able to suggest something non-benzo related. When do you think you will be able to go to the free clinic to have things checked out, including your thyroid? I so hope that the skipped beats were a result of the lightbox/doxepin combination and not just the doxepin. My thoughts are with you Kara. I hope it works out. I'll keep my fingers crossed. .
You doc never gave you a reason for combining the Celexa with the Anafranil? He wants you on the Celexa along with the nort. too, right? I think you're right about treating the anxiety right away to prevent the depression. That increase in cortisol will eventually create depression. I'm convinced of that. Knowing that you may be able to prevent the worst of the depression is a great thing though.
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-- No reason given for the Anafranil/Celexa combo. And, it appears that he wants me to continue to take Celexa with the Nort as well. Maybe it is just a transition measure until we see if I can tolerate the nort and whether I get any therapeutic benefit from it. And, constant anxiety puts a lot of stress on the adrenal glands which can also lead to depression when they become exhausted. It's vicious cycle. But, I guess as we get older, we become more aware of our responses to stress and anxiety and are better able to get a handle before it becomes too much of a problem. Then again, sometimes it just kind of sneaks up on us and catches us somewhat off guard. I think I will plan on staying on a low maintenance of an AD when I get through this episode.
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> I don't know if you saw it yet but Linkadge did post something on the main board. So far he's doing well but he's only on a low dose and he did say that he's having some palpitations. He didn't seem too upset about them though.
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-- Ya, that's good news (except for the palps). I hope the palps subside so that he can further increase his dose. I think he is wise to be taking it very slowly. And, I am pleased to hear that his physical anxiety has diminished. That must be a relief in itself.
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> I still have a ton of chromium pills left. They came in a bottle with about 250 so I have a long way to go on them. I might as well finish the bottle at least and then see how it goes when I am no longer taking it.
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-- May as well. I don't think it will hurt to supplement. I had initially been taking a small dose in the morning as soon as I woke up and then a larger dose right before bed. I stopped the morning dose because it made me feel kind of tired. I hope you get some benefit from it. It seems to be hit and miss with supplements. But, that's ok. Did you read that Vitamin D thread? That's amazing about the woman's daughter and the Vitamin D deficiency. Man, you just never know. I am going to raise that with the pdoc when I see him. Do you think when you go to the clinic you will be able to get bloodwork done to check for possible vitamin/mineral deficiencies? That's one of the many things I am going to miss now that my gp has closed her practice. She always did bloodwork to rule out any deficiencies or thyroid problems before deciding to prescribe an AD>
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> That's so wonderful about your feelings about the nort. so far. Do you think it's working so quickly or are you just optimistic about it all because you're tolerating it so well? I think working with a therapist is a good move. It could help to keep from getting too caught up in your work. I bet this time that you will set more limits.
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-- Ya, I think it is working. I have even found that that awful feeling of "dread" that I was feeling has lifted somewhat. I am feeling somewhat more motivated, so that is a good thing. I had gone up to 50mg, but I think that might be too much. I slept in two days in a row, so maybe that is a sign that 50mg is too much. But, I am so in the dark sometimes with these meds. I'm just glad I don't feel as bad as I did. And, this morning I also tried some NADH and 250mg of L-Tyrosine. Seemed to make even more of a difference. Who knows. As for therapy, I think I will look into that. Or, I will continue to work with that David Burns book to work on some of my issues. Did you find using the David Burns book helpful?
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> Yes, you must have been headstrong. You could have just told that woman that you were lactose intolerant - or maybe you didn't know it yourself at the time. That's an amazing story about your first job. Isn't 14 too young legally in Canada to work? Did you lie and say that you were 16? My experience was the opposite. My mother had to drag me kicking and screaming to sign me up for a job.
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-- I don't think my mom even knew what lactose intolerant was at that time. All I knew is that milk made me sick. 14 was young to start working. If I remember right, it was about 3 or 4 months before 15th birthday. Or maybe I was 15. That would make more sense. I know I was young, but very happy to have had a job. My own money that I could use on whatever I wanted. And, after a while working there, I started being less shy and nervous around people. When I first started, I was so scared of everyone, especially customers. Every shift, a manager would come up to me and say something like "Tamara, you have to look at the customers when you serve them". Everytime I looked at a customer, I could feel my face getting all red, and my heart would start thumping. But, after a while, it got better. I was so happy when I was able to go back on work on the grill with the guys! Not as nerve-wracking! I think that little job helped me a bit in overcoming some of the extreme anxiety I would experience. It has never gone away completely, but it isn't as bad as when I was younger.
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> There are cups of coffee that are bad - too weak usually - but for the most part I'm easy to please in that department. Espresso is too intense for me but I like the way it smells.
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-- When I was at the height of my coffee addicition, I would sometimes drink two or three double espressos a day (that's when I was a manager in an italian bistro). My poor little brother had such a bad first experience with espresso. He ended up working at the same bistro after I had left. Anyway, one day he calls me at work in a panic - "I don't feel very well. My heart is racing blah, blah, blah. Turns out he had made himself an espresso in a regular coffee cup :-) Poor thing. At that time, he rarely even drank coffee. I tease him about it every time we go out for dinner and he orders an espresso!
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> I did try a small amount of nort. and I also tried it in the morning. It just made my heart race whenever I took it unfortunately. I'd be very interested in hearing about your doctor's reaction too. Are you going to get any blood tests to make sure you are within the therapeutic window for nort.?
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-- I don't know if I am going to get a blood test done. I had asked whether it was absolutely necessary once on the main board, and was told that these days it is sometimes only done if the person is experiencing a lot of side effects or is non-responsive. So, maybe it's not necessary. I will ask the pdoc though to see if he wants to do one.-- You take good care of yourself Kara. Please keep me posted about whether the skipped beats subside and how you are feeling. My thoughts are with you. I will talk to you later.
Tamara
poster:TamaraJ
thread:456548
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/social/20050305/msgs/470581.html