Mrs. Burschman

Interesting. I'd never even heard of them before. And thanks for the prayers!

I was doing some research on seizures (my 4-month-old niece has tuberous sclerosis -- heartbreaking). I saw a description of "autonomic seizures," which it said could include piloerection, sweating, etc. My question is: How do they know it's an autonomic seizure? It sounds like what a lot of us have when we have "surges." Are they the same thing? Should we all be on antiseizure medicine? Anyone know? I was just curious. And if anyone's so inclined, please pray for sweet, little Sophie! Amy

Hey! Stop eating my crackers!

First period 14. Very irregular from the start until began birth control pills at 15. Went off birth control in college. Periods very irregular again. Skipped up to 10 months at a time. Back on birth control. Regular again. Worried about increased risk of stroke because I have migraines with auras. Went back off. Back to skipping months at a time. Diagnosed with PCOS (even though I have none of the symptoms besides cysts and irregular periods.) Started on metformin (even though my insulin levels are normal.) Periods now regular. Never been pregnant.

I want a specific, underlying cause!!! Amy

Cold is so much better for me than hot. I'm THRILLED summer is over! Although my husband almost had to take me to the emergency room in January. We were at the Inaugural Parade, and it was so cold out, I was actually shuddering, not just shivering. Amy

Nice! Good luck! Amy

You forgot "didn't do a darn thing" on your list!

Hey all, I got the news today that my sweet four-month-old niece, Sophie, has a rare and incurable disease called tuberous sclerosis. It causes noncancerous tumors to grow in many organs. She has at least one in her brain, and it's triggering seizures. I hadn't even heard of this horrible disease until today. If you're so inclined, please say a prayer for Sophie and her family. They are devastated to get this news about their beautiful little girl. Amy (Mrs. Burschman)

I've always been very sensitive to perfume. I can't wear it. It gives me an instantaneous headache, even on someone else. Amy

Me neither. I thought they were nasty when we visited in 2005. But I didn't want to hurt your feelings if you were a big fan! Steak and ale pies, now, THAT's something I can support! And you guys have great beer! Amy

Awesome! Congrats!

"Anxiety" was the first thing I noticed. Bowel issues, diagnosed as IBS, started in my preteen years. Added migraines at age 15. Then interstitial cystitis. Then polycystic ovarian syndrome. Then POTS. Last December, they decided I have ulcerative colitis, not IBS, because inflammation was present. I've never had bleeding (which I thought was the main symptom of UC, but whatever.)

Better safe than sorry. I keep hearing that if you have underlying chronic medical conditions, the flu can be a bigger deal. I think you'd better get yourself to your doctor. Sorry! I REALLY hate visiting the doctor, so I understand your hesitation!

Gotta love invisible illnesses. Amy

Didn't do a darn thing for me. None of the benzodiazepines did. Sleeping pills don't, either. My old doc and I think that I might lack the receptors that they work on. Or something. Amy

Thanks for the responses, everyone! Like you said, it's so nice to know we can come here and people understand our frustrations. Other people try to understand, but I know all of you do! I appreciate all of you. Thanks for listening! I felt a little better this afternoon, so that's good. Amy

Ha! Very cute.

Sometimes, you just feel like grousing ... My autonomic issues are really bad right now. Not sure why. I feel like crud. Heart keeps pounding, hot flushes, exhausted, "blacking out" easier than normal. I feel like I did when I tried to go off Paxil, but I'm still taking it! VERY ANNOYING. This seems to have all corresponded with a worsening of my digestive system issues. Chicken or egg? I don't know if my digestive system is messed up because of autonomic issues, or if a messed-up digestive system (been diagnosed with ulcerative colitis, but it's not a typical case) could make my whole body "freak out." Either way, ugh. It doesn't help that I have no autonomic doc at the moment. Or any doc, for that matter. I sortof have a PCP, but I'm not happy with her. I'm sure she's a fine doctor, but she has a very strong accent, and I have a heck of a time understanding what she's saying. Sorry for the whining. I'll quit now. Amy

You can find fish and chips, but mushy peas? Not so much. My sister in law is English but lives here now. She imports her peas. Amy

Hi Tilly, I think it is pretty common. I think if you search for "chest pain," you'll see that a lot of people do have it. I do on and off. At times, it's lasted a long time. Mine seems to bother me the most when I'm stressed out. It's almost like my chest muscles get really tight. I also have had sharper pain sometimes. I'm not sure what causes that, but I'm still alive, if it's any consolation. Amy

If you're talking federal disability, a GREAT resource is your congressman/congresswoman. They have people on their staff, usually titled "constituent services representative" or something along those lines, whose main job is to help people in their district navigate the federal bureaucracy. They have much better contacts than the public ever can get, and lawmakers can put pressure on the right people if needed. My husband used to be a constituent services representative and worked on these type of cases all the time. Amy

With me, I think it's mostly dehydration. I sweat like a cold Coke can on a hot summer day all night. By morning, I am in severe need of liquid. I usually feel better once I get a couple glasses of water and some hot tea in my system. Amy

I'm sort of the same way, but with taste. I'd probably make a great sommellier (however that's spelled) if I liked wine more! I once called the city's water department because something tasted different to me. Sure enough, they had made an adjustment in the chemicals. They sounded pretty surprised that anyone had noticed. Amy

I guess if you can find a way to take it, and it didn't work, it would at least rule it out as a cause. Then you could try to find the real issue. She doesn't sound very nice, however. Amy