tiredofdoctors

Karen -- it's only half-way to the blue moon . . . . . . . are you already warming up???!!!

I think you should tell them that anyways, just to see thier reaction.

Vincent -- you're right!! That would be WAY too much fun! I could pull that off, too!

Hey -- what is your website? I want to view your photos again, please . . . . . . .

Vegas is on, BABY!!!!!!!

Guess the airline will not have any excitement -- as in, "Um excuse me, but if I suddenly lose consciousness, could you please make sure I get to a hospital as soon as we land. I have an aneurysm."

Sick humor, yes, but hey, I was talking to Karen. And, as you may very well remember, when she and I get together, well, the humor goes straight to he**.

xoxoxoxoxo

Lynne

I kid you not . . . . on full moons, when I was practicing, EVERYONE would call with some bizarre ache or pain and HAVE to be seen THAT DAY. Since I was out on my own, I needed as many visits as I could get. I would work from 7 a.m. until 11 p.m. on full moons -- and the day before, and the day after. I actually marked them on the calendar on the receptionist's desk. ICK.

Sounds like an excuse to party to me, too! Since I walk like a drunk, I always wondered if I actually GOT, well, a little more than tipsy, would I walk NORMALLY????!!!!! Found out the hard way in Vegas with Metta & Chris. It's Chris' fault for bringing the New Grist and ordering the last bottle of wine. That's my story & I'm stickin' to it.

Okay, now I'm crying!

That is so beautiful . . . and you said it so eloquently! What an incredible experience. I am so glad you got to do that, and to meet your baby girl before she was born. To actually see her cheeks move when she was sucking her thumb and to see her fingers and toes wiggle . . . . . that is AMAZING. How did you keep from now vascillating from laughing then sobbing during the ultrasound???!!!!

Thanks for sharing that story. It is so great to live vicariously sometimes, you know? What a VERY cool way to meet your baby. That is awesome.

Love & Hugs to you,

Lynne

Susie . . . . . . .

I think you need a physical. Go to a free clinic in your area. Tell them your dilemma and ask them if they can run the lyme and mercury tests, and ask them to test for a CMP18. While I was at it, I would ask them to test your DHEA, Estrogen and Testosterone. I would also ask them to run a B12. You would be surprised what pernicious anemia can do to you. I was literally exhausted all the time until they found out that my body had a malabsorption problem with B12. I'm on shots. Right now, I'm taking 1 cc/day -- I KNOW, IT'S A LOT -- had to get that out of the way -- but only doing that for a month to get my absorption up. Then I'll reduce to 3x/week, then 2x/week then 1x/week for the remainder.

I also would be very sad if you developed a fatal illness. I would miss you.

Please take care of you.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

Lynnie

Every one here is so interesting! I work for a non profit raising money for our programs. We provide emergency shelter and tranistional living to women and children who are homeless due to domestic violence or other hardships. The best moment of my job was the night I volunteered for child care while the moms had a group meeting and taught two of the teenage girls how to ride a bike. They were 12 and 13 and never knew how to ride a bike. It had never occured to me that a child wouldn't know how to ride a bike.

How cool is that???? It must have made your heart feel so GOOD to teach those kids how to ride a bike. It must make you feel good, too, to know that you're working to help people who are probably SO disheartened by the time they reach your shelter.

I agree -- everyone here IS interesting. I think this is a very interesting thing. While someone said that we all tend to have science and (can't remember the other) backgrounds, by and large, most of us have an element of art within us, as well. Even the IT people are designing websites -- THAT is artistic! I think that is a really NEAT thing that I have found out about everyone. I also read about someone who now sells her watercolors -- isn't that something? And have you checked out Vydorscope's website? His photo's are out of this world! (Sorry, Vincent, couldn't resist!) On the serious side, his photos are of the constellations, planets (I believe), all taken through a telescope -- by him. He is SO creative. I need to look at his site again. Have to PM him!

I think this is a GREAT thread. Thanks for starting it, Lisa!

Yeah, just ask Lynne what it's like when she calls my house! LMAO!

MA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Dave even yells that out when he thinks it's been too long since I've talked to Karen! Let's see . . . one time, the boys were fighting -- we think it's the Canadian hockey influence -- only it was ON THE STAIRS. I hear SCREAMING, and Karen says, "OMG -- I've gotta go. Call you back."

Then, each time Karen is on the phone, Conner decides that it is time to snuggle with Mommy. And snuggle and snuggle -- and wants her to get OFF the phone!

Or, someone needs a movie changed.

Or, someone needs a video game changed.

Or, someone needs a drink that is in the refrigerator.

Or, this one needs to be taken to this activity, that one needs to be taken to that activity, and this one needs to be picked up from another activity fifteen minutes after that -- but it's a 30 minute drive from one place to the other. It's a wonder she doesn't have a van-full of speeding tickets!

Do I need to go on??????!!!!!! Given that she has Celiac, I truthfully don't see how she has TIME to go to the bathroom! Much less, the Celiac bathroom curse!

Karen is AMAZING. I don't see how she does it. Seriously. She also takes care of her mother -- without the help of her siblings. (had to put that in, Karen. sorry.) What an amazing woman.

LIFE IS GOOD!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I have an artery that is a little looped too much, but not enough to require surgery. There is NO aneurysm -- it was part of the loops!!!!!

The symptoms that occur when I flex my chin to chest are apparently due to the vertebral artery in my neck being kinked, and then occluded with the flexion. He feels that the change, and the "kink" probably happened during one of my harder falls. I've had several, but Dave and I could easily list four last night that were pretty significant. One, in particular, was when I fell forward off the porch and took a header into the grass. Another one was the calla lilies . . . I think we all remember that!!! Stupid things -- only three came up last year, and none this year. Hmmmmmph. So, there is a list . . . . . . . .

The difficulty with trying to correct this is multifold. 1) I have a bleeding disorder that has caused me to bleed excessively with each delivery, after and during surgeries, miscarriages, etc. It's because of the Ehler's-Danlos. 2) The angiogram would require opening the femoral artery -- usually not a problem because I've had a cardiac cath and it wasn't bad -- just had to stay lying down with compression over it for a little longer than normal. Evidently, though, because it is active, it would require me to be standing (?) and he said he just isn't comfortable with that 3) The surgery is pretty risky -- it's not the usual surgery and takes about twice the time that you would think a "normal" neck surgery would take. It also has only a 50/50 chance of correcting the problem permanently.

I told him that I wouldn't have the surgery if it was 50/50 even if I DIDN'T have a bleeding disorder! He agreed. So, it was kind of "I went to the doctor and told him it hurts when I do this. He said, 'Don't do that.' " EXACTLY WHAT I WANTED TO HEAR!!! All I need to do is set up things in my house so that I am not positioning myself with my head bent down. Granted, I'm making it sound as though it's going to be the easiest thing in the world, and realistically it's going to be a little harder than that. HOWEVER ---- I don't care -- I'll do that! And, my friend Jeanette, who is an Occupational Therapist had a very "pointed" conversation with me and convinced me that I AM worthy of a home makeover. I told her that everyone who had received one had done something outstanding, and I didn't think that I had. Let's just say I got the message LOUD and clear.

I was really comforted by the nurse-practitioner who did the majority of my visit. She spent at least one hour with me. She said that she strongly felt that the bizarre pupil response that I have is due to the autonomic dysfunction. She explained so many things to me that had been ignored by the other doctor. I was really impressed with her. She has been treating solely neuro patients for 8 years now, and she was really knowledgeable. She also "validated" that the things that I have seen that I KNEW were not normal neuro responses. She didn't give me that "I think you're crazy" look. She even would say -- "I found this - have you seen it before?" when something was not normal. How affirming is that, when you HAVE seen it, but were blown off when you asked the doctor?! She was outstanding. She did say that, because I have such poor control of my left eye, and given the pupil response being abnormal, I really SHOULD get a muscle biopsy. She said that the neuro-opthmalogist is absolutely right. She also said that she knew what I was talking about when I told her what the neuro . . . wanted to do if it's muscular. She said that I should get the biopsy pretty soon. She said I need to talk with the precertification person at the surgeon's office and tell her HOW to get the biopsy done as an inpatient so that I don't have to owe tens of thousands of dollars -- which is what would happen if it was done as an outpatient. Go figure.

So, by and large, I have gotten really good news!!!!! Still have a few 'loose ends' to tie up -- and a few more answers to get, but NO BRAIN SURGERY and NO NECK SURGERY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

WOOOOOOOOOOOHOOOOOOOOOOO Time to celebrate!!!

Thank you, THANK YOU for your prayers, for your good thoughts, for that candle that stayed lit , and for everyone who has been so uplifting on this board. You guys are simply the best.

Love to you ALL,

Lynne

Congratulations, Angie! What a cutie!! I think it's hysterically funny that Tori is already talking about her make-up

I can't believe the picture -- the detail is unbelievable. What was it like when you were watching the monitor? Did you get to see her move, things like that? I got to see Ashley suck her thumb, but it was in the olden days. I would love to see what it looks like now -- I'll bet it gives you chills! If you don't mind, and if it's not too intrusive, can you tell about the experience? I am so interested . . . . .

xoxoxoxoxoxoxo

Lynne

Kelly -- how old are you? Need to know prior to PM'ing you!

Kyalesyin -- thank you VERY much for lighting a candle for me. I appreciate that very much. I also like the idea of the wig-thing! If I shaved my head like Britney, I would have enough hair to make a really decent wig! My hair is below my shoulders now, so that would be a good idea!

Actually, I do think that if I have to have surgery, it will be just a small area that they shave. If it's a larger area, then, I'll just have to "shoot from the hip"! And, quite frankly, I just wouldn't care. My mom lost her hair two years ago when she had chemo -- we're used to "baldies" in our family!!! My daughter bought scarves for both of us, and we tucked our hair up in them and wore them like Mom did. We wanted to shave our heads in solidarity, but mother kind of threw a fit when we said that! So, we decided that tucking our hair up in the scarves was second best.

Tomorrow is the big day . . . . I'm getting nervous about finding out what the neurosurgeon is going to say. Definitely a case of butterflies now.

Hey Vincent -- Luckily, the surgeon has LOTS of hair. He performed my sister's surgery, and she has hair like me, so I may be relatively safe!

Sometimes crazy lives are the most fun -- and can give you the BEST memories!!!!! I think it's pretty neat how you met your fiance. Of course, I'm a romantic!

You know how it is, the only perfect parent is the one who doesn't have kids yet. Nancy

Truer words were never spoken! You know . . . they have all kinds of books, shelves and shelves of them, instructing you about their first year of life. It's not until they're growing up that you realize, "That was EASY. THIS is the hard part -- where are the books???????"

I was at a drugstore when I had two sick kids. Brandon was 3 1/2, Ash was 12 weeks. I was getting their prescriptions. Then, I had to get other things (Get Better Bears, etc.), so I had Ashley in the snuggli and Brandon in the cart. He was coughing and wheezing, she was crying like you can't believe, and I was writing a check in the line. The girl at the register was taking my information and said, "Do you work?" I was so frustrated, I just looked at her and said, "Like a dog, I do." She said, "I MEANT at a job." I said, "You don't think this is a job? You try it." She finally gave up. I think she just wanted my coughing, hacking kid and my screaming her lungs out kid and their argumentative mother to get out of the store!

Close to 30 years

That is FANTASTIC!! I love hearing about longevity in marriages! My parents have been married . . . . forever! Dave's parents were, too. I seriously don't like the fact that I was married only 7 years then divorced. Don't get me wrong . . . being in an abusive relationship is NOT what life is about. And, all my experiences brought me to where I'm supposed to be -- with Dave. I just know that chances are, we're not going to be married 50 years. I'd be 91!! Although, that would still be TEN YEARS younger than my grandmother was!! Okay, maybe I don't feel so bad! I look forward to growing old with Dave. We will be a fun old couple.

Lisa, almost 30 years is great. Pretty cool.

I'm a SAHM; Jenny is almost 5 and Mikey is 3.5.

Nancy

SAHM's are SOOOOOOOOO busy. What a hard job. I was lucky enough to get to stay at home with the first one for one year, and the second one for 3.5 years. It was really rewarding, but it was hard work!

I'm a marriage and family therapists, mostly do clinical supervision of budding therapists in China.

What a great profession! How did you get to supervising in China? Sounds like a pretty fascinating journey.

That's GREAT!!

My hair has been every color imaginable! At one point, I had that very "purple-ish auburn" color. My mother very gently told me, "Honey, I've always believed that eggplant is a vegetable, not a hair color!!"

It's been so long since I've seen my original hair color, I'd probably blow that aneurysm if I knew EXACTLY how much gray there is!!

Karen -- Got it. However, can't root for anyone in the playoffs now. Has to be the Maple Leafs. If I cast a vote for any other team, my son may disown me!!!!!!! Now I know why he's not interested in the Stanley Cup this year!!!!!

I'm curious . . . how old are you? You DEFINITELY gather a different perspective the older you get. TRUST ME!! I've been in some pretty low times in my life -- have even been hospitalized because I just didn't want to stick around here. What I've found, though, is that a lot of the people who are touting positive attracts positive, etc., are right. And until you can't truly become positive, it's on the "fake it 'til you make it" level. Sounds cheesy, and probably where you are right now, trite, but I've come to find that it works for me.

Right now, I'm scared as Hell that I'm going to have to have brain surgery. I already have quite a bit of cerebellar damage because of Neurological Celiac. So, I don't have a lot of brain to lose!!! And there you have it -- without thinking, I immediately result to humor, because that's how I cope. And so, I tend to bring into my life the funniest, happiest people that I know. Friends who are wild, crazy funny. People who are so uplifting. We absolutely have relationships that we keep each other going -- sometimes through some of the most awful things.

Do I sound like a Pollyanna? You bet. I sound like someone who is so "PERKY"!! Trust me, I don't do perky -- ask any one on this board. They would be more than happy to tell you that I'm not the perky type. Smart-aleck, not afraid to get in trouble (well, sort of afraid to get in trouble -- but I still do), but anything but perky. Just relying on my friends to have some fun in the face of some really bad stuff.

I'm not guaranteeing that it works for everyone. Just saying it works for me.

Take care of you, and if you need a sarcastically funny spin on the things that are happening, PM me, okay? I'll do my best.

Lynne

Okay, who put the Puke-y icon on my original message? 'Fess up.

DEFINITELY focus prayers on if I have to have surgery, that God will guide the surgeon to use his knowledge, experience and talent to fix whatever is wrong, and that the optic nerve in my eye isn't permanently damaged.

The hair???? It's just hair. No biggie. Just want everything to go well -- if I HAVE to have surgery -- still may not, just don't know. But if I do, I just want things to get better. I have so many bruises on my arms, I have had people ask me, away from Dave, what has happened to me. It's just from SO MANY falls recently. If I could get some of the vision back in my left eye, I think that would at least make the damage from the celiac more tolerable. Right now, between the celiac damage and the balance difficulties I have from it, coupled with the loss of vision in my left eye -- it's a recipe for disaster! So, just hoping for a little improvement. A LOT of improvement would be greatly appreciated, as well!

Just using the hair as something to laugh about to distract me . . . . . and to make sure that I keep laughing! Norman Cousins says that the endorphin rush from laughing is quite healing . . . . . . . so keep those jokes coming!!!!!!

Physical Therapist -- VERY geeky! Nothing but Math & Sciences, here! I'm the one that loves Physics in the family!! Of course, that's all PT is -- physics of the body! DH is a Naval Architect (engineering degree) and his Masters is in Computer Science. A match made in heaven. Right now, I'm non-practicing, and trying to figure out what I can get involved in . . . . . I am, though, volunteering for the Susan G. Kohmann activities that are happening in our city. I used to play the piano until my brain decided that converting the notes to my fingers on the keys wasn't something it wanted to do! I still sing -- but don't think I have the control over my voice that I used to. My daughter thinks I still do -- it's an ongoing debate.

I have a son, 24 who is the most well-rounded person I've met. He is majoring in advertising and will graduate next year (THANK GOODNESS) He is VERY MUCH English, History, Geography oriented, but also has an appreciation for the sciences. He plays the most remarkable Jazz saxophone -- he has an Alto and a Baritnone sax. Of course, he also has an acoustic guitar, electric guitar, electric bass, banjo and clarinet. I have a daughter, 21, who is majoring in speech language pathology. Very math & sciences, like her mother. She, too, though has an appreciation for the arts. She plays the drums, xylophone, marimba, piano and sings opera.

Okay, I'm finished with my TMI!

Good point. Although I think Karen should let him out for selfish reasons. Her decision. She should be the recipient.

Go Maple Leafs!! Cast another vote for my son -- who, is such an avid fan, should actually get TWO votes!