Herdswoman

Your family would rather have you with more energy than any house with location, location, location! There's a game I play with myself called "Name It and Claim It". You might want to try it and see if it works. I name what's bugging me, speak it out loud and claim it for my own. Then I name it and claim it with my husband and if need be, with the rest of the family. Instead of 'quietly lamenting' that I forced our family to move, I spoke it's name out loud. "GUILT....MY FAULT......NOT FAIR TO ANYONE......GETTING MY MILEAGE OUT OF THAT 'SICKNESS AND HEALTH' THING......" Then I talked about it with my husband. Then, with his reassurance and support I laid it down and walked away from it. None of this is your fault! Surely other family members got something out of this move: Kids got their own bedrooms? Their own bath to share? Bigger closets? Basement storage? A nice outbuilding for your husband? Bigger garage? We just went from 3000 sq.ft. traditional to a 1600 sq. ft. ranch. But before we moved we made sure that there would be something in it for everyone. We focused on our daughter first: found a wild, retro style bedspread for her and pulled all of her room colors out of that. Lime green walls, purple crown molding, white (yet white) carpet, wild orange/lime/aqua bedspread with white sheer and hot pink window scarves, beaded curtains for closet doors. She loves her new room so much that she doesn't miss her old, bigger room with the huge closet. Or her own bathroom. My husband got a 30x40 steel building, 14' at the eaves. Monster garage! He also got a ton of "honey-dos" as the guy who lived here before thought he was Bob Vila. ("A man has got to know his limitations......." but that guy never did. So we end up re-doing dang near everything. PITA!!! I could make like "it's all my fault" but it's NOT! I'm not responsible for having POTS or for some else's halfast home repair!) This part might be painful: Sit down and make a list of all the things you do to cope. Put with it all the things you've changed. Then put with all of that the reasons for changing and coping.......and tell it all to the judge. Write it out so you don't ramble. Give a copy to your lawyer ahead of time so that he can make it available to the judge. POTS can be very sneaky. We adapt so much that we forget to take into consideration all the impact that it has. Writing it down might make things a little clearer for you. You sure do have a lot of challenges right now! Best of luck to you. Let us know how you come out with the judge!

Nina, if you have any Darvocet, T-3's or other 'big guns' leftover in your medicine cabinet, go ahead and take a couple at least a half hour before the procedure. Or have the doc write you a script dispensing only four or six tablets. Have somebody drive you if it makes you feel safer. Me, I only feel as fuzzy driving on opiods as I do on a 'brain fog" day. But "brain fog" doesn't show up on a tox screen if I get in an accident, so having a driver is a good idea. I am glad we are in America and our culture values better living through chemistry. I think I had my first vagal response to pain with my last cervical biopsy. Is it a wicked, horrible thing that can come on 30 minutes or more after the test? Feels like an organ got perforated? I spoke with my cardiologist about it and he explained a vagal response. Eeew. Hang in there, Nina!

Doctors who don't listen suck. Indeed, they truly do. Doctors who need to be right suck. Doctors who won't admit that the patient might know something... so you have to jump through hoops in order to make what should have been the obvious diagnosis seem like their idea.....also....... suck. BUT BE THAT AS IT MAY- Florinef is a corticosteroid. Granted, it is a mineral corticoid, not a glucocorticoid, but tweaking one's own steroid doses is generally a bad idea. It is always wise to try and wean back steroids, to use the lowest dose possible. BUT if you are not getting the desired effect, your doctor needs to work with you. If he or she ain't working with you, find someone who will! Familiarity breeds contempt, or so the old saying goes. Most of us here take Florinef like it was a multivitamin. PLEASE, PLEASE remember that this stuff is wicked potent! It is dispensed in one tenth of a milligram!!!!! To take 0.2 is to take a double dose. (And that's fine if it's prescribed for you.) To take only 0.3 mg is a triple dose. To take a quarter tablet a month would be only ingesting 0.025 mg and expecting it to last 30 days. In reality the kidney will clear it long, long before then. It's up to our kidneys to reabsorb the salts and water that Florinef demands. The more meds we take, the more other organs have to work to - primarily kidneys and liver. (Speaking of kidneys, I'd personally take POTS, dizziness, fatigue, bed and all the nausea you could throw at me before I would take kidney failure. I know we get fatigued, but those folks on dialysis really, really whup us in that category! And many others!) Sorry to be preachin', but this is really important. Not only can we get rebound hypertension, but we also risk stroke with that a high pressure.... especially since many of us run a low BP to begin with, higher pressures are that much more of a shock to our systems. Anything over 180 systolic is considered stroke range for the general population. I would think that with us, that risk would be considerably higher. Nuff said. Rita, if I'm reading and interpreting correctly, you felt the best when 0.2 mg Florinef was prescribed? Then stay there for now and cut back on your salt. Just salt to taste, not to medicate. Stay the course, rest for now and let your body try to sort itself out. (here we go, talking to the doc is like taking that angry cat to the vet again....hold it very carefully or you will get scratched......) Let your doc know that you went too high and want to work this out. I'd suggest a quick confession of how you got into this state and then focus heavily on how you need her guidance. Tell her you got your butt chewed out by an RN with POTS on the support group forum. Tell her I used foul, nasty, degrading language, tell her anything you want and use my name (my shoulders are broad if the cause is right.) Then tell her something like "I know you would like me to decrease the amount of Florinef I take. You are right and I agree that it would be helpful to me to take the least amout of medicine possible, but I'm afraid of crashing and getting dizzy again. So I thought of a way to try and do this: " Suggest the level where you feel the best and tell her that you want to stay on that dose for a month. Then suggest a very gradual wean, going to 0.1 for one dose a week, e.g., if you are on M-W-F-S dosing, take Monday's dose to 0.1 mg. See how you do for a month. If you do well, try weaning Friday's dose to 0.1 mg. If you don't do well, you can easily increase back to 0.2mg and you shouldn't have such a rough, abrupt change. There's lots of ways to slice and dice this if your doc will work with you. You could try taking 0.1mg in the AM and 0.05 in the PM, making sure that these doses are 11-12 hours apart. Good luck. Rest well and let us know how you do.

I was young and naive. I was still a size 12. Perhaps the size of my rear end increases with wisdom???? No? I guess correlation does not prove causation. Katherine sure did bring up the $1,000,000 question. I have no idea if my symptoms are from POTS or dysautonomia. Like many of you, I am waiting for an appointment with Dr. Grubb. But I'm not holding out any great hope for answers. For years, I blamed my asthma for my shortness of breath, because I still thought I was having a benign tachycardia. (Most of the time I also imagined I would again be a size 12). But we did a cardio-pulmonary stress test that really told the tale. I do peak flows religiously now when feeling 'twitchy" or short of breath. Peak flows help me separate pulmonary from cardiac origin as the treatments are very different. (There's a really funny story about peak flows and me having no clue......but another time.) I think the source of symptoms - POTS vs. dysautonomia - really doesn't matter much, since all the treatment is aimed at symptom relief. It's an interesting question, a great theoretical debate and there's probably a Nobel Prize for Medicine in it. But right now, POTS vs. dysautonomia is not much more than a high stakes cold virus. I mean, does it really matter if we get Cold Virus A or Cold Virus B if there's no cure and the treatment is the same? All we can do for either A or B is relieve symptoms: rest, Kleenex, tylenol/motrin and decongestant/antihistamine. When the day comes that medical science has more answers, THEN it will matter. Right now all we can do for POTS or dysautonomia is relieve symptoms: rest, beta blockers, salt, fluids and florinef. And the beat goes erratically, rapidly on....... I'm curious what Grubb will have to say, but I'm not looking for any revelations. No clouds parting, no doves descending, no miracle cures. In the meantime, I am blessed by what I have: a supportive husband, a wonderful child, health insurance, a new bunch of folks in a great support group and a comfortable bed when I feel crappy. Oh, thank you for the compliment. Be sure to tell your MD to compare cardiac problems to farts in church if he wants people to understand what he's talking about. Seriously, I loved patient teaching and if I could make people laugh the lesson would stick and patients wouldn't stress as much. Laughter is the best medicine.

Yes, at 43 I have a ton more symptoms now. Dizziness, shortness of breath, extreme fatigue, yada yada yada.... Funny, at 31 I thought I would always just have this weird heart rate that didn't amount to much. It would just be kinda there, be benign. Course, I thought I would always be a size 12 Classic Fit too and we can see how THAT turned out! The people who you really need to be careful of who use the word BENIGN are the cancer docs. Then the connotations are much, much more serious.....and of course, in their world, the opposite of benign is malignant. Bad joo joo and we don't want to go there. But "benign" the way this MD is using it, it's just an adjective. I would say that in most instances - anywhere in the body - if something (tissue growth, heart rhythm or even a good fart) isn't causing a problem, it can be said to be benign. Once the tissue growth hurts, the heart rhythm produces symptoms or the fart erupts in church it quits being benign. Generally, in cardiology, there is a progression of adjectives that are used to give a general description of a problem and are not diagnostic statements in and of themselves, e.g., benign, then symptomatic, then problematic, etc. They're just words..... how you feel is what matters!!! (To go back to the fart in church analogy: If you stay cool and look accusingly at your spouse when that happens, you'll be looked at as being benign and the congregation will see him as symptomatic. It's not problematic unless there's a lingering odor....) The point at which we see arrrhythmias as no longer benign is something that is very individualized. I guess mine quit being symptomatic and started being problematic when I could no longer physically compensate for it, when my world became more limited. It quit being benign a long time ago and started being symptomatic.......so slowly and so insidiously I never really saw it sneaking up on me. Bottom line: if it's causing a problem, it's no longer benign. And it's always a good idea to go back to your MD for clarification......especially if something here has seemed to make sense and you want confirmation.

This is a hard post........I am able to stay on top of so many other areas of this disease, but food has really come to be my Achille's heel. With the slowdown of physical activity, I find I've been packing on the pounds. It's really hard to not love myself with food. Food is always there, always comforting and I've never met a cookie I didn't like. For you sisters who struggle to eat and to keep weight on, I really have a hard time understanding your pain. I'm not minimizing it or discrediting it, I just am way, way, way on the other side of the spectrum. I'm wondering if anyone else is in this same boat? Even in mid-crash, I am hopeful that just a "little something to eat" will make me feel better. I've finally come to realize that all it will do in a crash is give me indigestion. We moved to a single story house this summer and I was up and active enough that I worked myself into bilateral plantar fascitis with heel spurs......so it's not like I just sit on my duff. Yet the weight kept creeping on. Today I went shopping for a dress for my godchild's wedding. How depressing to see those yards and yards of fabric that are now needed to cover up my chubby self! I've gained about 4 sizes in 3 years. HELP!

Good advice, Jessica. I too, have the bad habit of TV in bed. And napping. One easy thing that does help me with insomnia is Tylenol PM.....just plain ol' acetominophen with a benadryl kicker. Night, night.

Been there, done that........I hope the following example can clarify it: In my 30's I tolerated my tachy arrhythmias much, much better. In fact, there was one shift where I put myself on monitor just to see how fast I did go. Put the EKG patches on, threaded the cables under my scrubs and tucked the monitor into my back pocket of my pants. I worked most of a 12 hours shift with a heart rate between 130 and 150. I lived like that for years. Impressive? Yep. Benign? Yep. Benign because I could tolerate it: I had no symptoms, no shortness of breath, no cool, clammy skin, no syncope, no nothing. Benign just means harmless, benign does not necessarily mean normal. Impressive because my body DID adjust to it and I could work a full patient load like that. Shoot, out of 22 post open heart patients, I had the most abnormal rhythm. Woo hoo! Give the nurse a prize! I'm not sure what he meant by "ectopic" episode. We used to refer to ectopic beats as those which came from some source outside the usual conduction tract. Don't know how - or if - that differs from saying PSVT. Tomato, to-mah-to. I'm so old I still use the phrases VPB's and APB's So reading between the lines, he said that if your tachy arrhythmias start to cause symptoms THEN you can look at the option of ablation. Somewhere in another thread I posted about patient monitoring. I'll reiterate here briefly: The first rule of patient monitoring is to TREAT THE PATIENT, NOT THE MONITOR. If you as the patient are doing okay, let it ride. And consider finding a cardiologist who doesn't rush you. Is this guy also an electrophysiologist (i.e, the one who would do your nearly-proposed ablation?)

Barium (taking an imaginary toke) and that's HEAVY, man, HEAVY! Filling.....oh yeah. But I tolerated it fine. Check with the RADIOLOGIST before you go for your appointment and let him know what type of allergic reactions to dyes you have had in the past. He or she is the one who will be responsible for your safety during the test. Sometimes dyes that are ingested or injected directly into the digestive tract (like a biliary duct during and ERCP) do NOT have the same allergic risk and reactions as taking dyes via IV. I've tasted worse stuff. But drinking it cold does help. We make people glow in the dark all the time for Xrays. Nothing to be afraid of.

Hang in there, Amy. There is nothing so upsetting like the loss of a beloved pet. They give us so much unconditional love and companionship. Their loss is an ache that runs deep. However, an old sailor I know says "Dogs are like women. The only cure for getting over a woman is to get another one...and the quickest way to get over a dog is to get another one." Perhaps in a couple of weeks a visit to the local rescue shelter would be in order. Oh, and fire your doc. Just because he's well respected in the community where you live doesn't mean he knows diddly about dysautonomia. He stacks up Jack in the POTS community. Better days are coming. Vent, whine and then wine. Maybe not in that order!

Nina, I am very interested in how this knowledge has affected your treatment. Was this part of your workup and diagnosis? Is NIH the National Institute of Health? I've never had catacholemines done and honestly, would there would be a difference in meds? rest? fluid intake? other treatment? If a person is already diagnosed and being treated would it matter what their catecholemines are? Why? ( Oh dear, I sound like one of those essay questions we had in high school ...define catecholemines and their role in POTS. Is this knowledge essential? Why or why not? Whatta science dork!) Seriously though, I am a big believer in treating the patient, not the numbers. As I have taught many students "THE FIRST RULE OF PATIENT MONITORING IS TO TREAT THE PATIENT, NOT THE MONITOR." If a person has a heart rate of 150 and no symptoms, that's fine. Make sure the MD knows and let it ride. If the patient has a heart rate of 120 and a BP that's in the toilet, sweating, clammy and pale, then you best be gettin' busy with that! Sometimes we get all wrapped up in test results and what this number or that number is.....and it really doesn't matter. What matters is how the patient feels and well symptoms are controlled.

Paige, please share what was in your case file that made them approve you. I am going through the appeals process right now and any little tidbits you could share would be greatly appreciated. Do you have a SS caseworker you can call and ask what that means?

Hang in there, Nina! Keep us updated. I recently had an abnormal reaction to a cervical biopsy. Was a big girl, relaxed and breathed right through it, A-OK, but just like you I wish I could whined and cried. 45 minutes later I was in the grocery store and had this sudden, horrible, awful abd. pain. Found myself in the bathroom and all I could think was that I'd left my phone in the truck and couldn't call anyone (yep, it was that bad). Got home and actually called my husband home from work and I never, ever do that unless I think I'm going to the ER. After about 2 hours it subsided. No idea why it came on so late or what it was......I Chalk it up to another one of the wonders of dysautonomia. Accelerated pain perception. Woohoo. Not. Female stuff would be funny if it wasn't so painful. I'm heading for a hysterectomy on Dec. 7th myself......not thrilled, but then I don't really recall anyone asking me if I wanted two major surgeries six months apart. Had my gall bladder out in May and then started all this BS bleeding 3 weeks out of 4. Tried meds/hormone for three months, no fix. Have had 2 biopsies (big whoopin' deal, my problem isn't fixed.)

Friday, please correct me if I am wrong, but based on your other post today I don't think you have an established diagnosis of POTS yet. I can understand that you feel crappy and want to feel better soon. We all want that for ourselves and for anyone else. But IV saline is only a stopgap. Yes, it helps and it helps fast. But it's not a cure. I'm thinking you need to investigate your sleep apnea. It can cause profound fatigue, irregular heartbeat (and therefore some fluctuation in BP) and depression among other things. Check it out: http://www.wrongdiagnosis.com/s/sleep_apnea/intro.htm Hope this is the right answer for you. SLeep apnea is a very frequently missed diagnosis.

"Something" the doc said bugs you? How about "everything your doc said bugs me?" I am an RN of 20 years and it sounds like this guy is a real dog (god spelled correctly for those who deserve it the most.) I know I'm windy. In advance, PLEASE FORGIVE ME. But any nuggets of wisdom I have were hard earned and paid for with a price, believe me. No need for anyone else to make the same mistakes I have. I've looked like a natural dork many, many times......but eventually I caught on. So here goes: When he offers you a cardiology consult, take it and say thank you. Then ask for a referral to one who is also an electrophysiologist. Demand if you have to, but do it with a smile and a calm voice. Since you don't have a diagnosis yet, an electrophysiologist is the best place to start. Besides, how else could Mr. Dr. Dog Neurologist prove you wrong? " Yes, Doctor, I think a cardiologist would be very helpful. Thank you. Don't you think an electrophysiologist would probably provide the most definitive answer?" Just suggest the correct answer and he'll figure it out. Then it'll be all his idea and he can still be a genius. Kinda like being married, lol! Do be careful how you present yourself. Getting a doc to do what you want is like taking an unhappy cat to the vet. Unless you handle him right, you're going to get scratched. You were the one who brought up your sleep apnea as an example of a neurological disorder, but when he offered you a sleep study, you said you weren't interested. To him, that was backpeddling at least. At the worst, it was arguing and looking like a hypochondriac. If you had played that hand a little differently and said OK to the sleep study, that would have left the door open to ask about POTS without appearing to jump from one diagnosis to the other. A lot of these guys really, really need to be right, need to be the "authority". So play the game, stay one step ahead of them and do NOT do anything to present yourself as arguementative or noncompliant. Like on Jeopardy, you must state your answer in the form of a question, lol, but true. And if you don't get the response you want, just calmly say "I'm not sure I understand. I thought it was like this _________? " But the name of the game here is Getting What You Want. And the bottom line about mentioning other disorders (like sleep apnea) is do NOT mention it unless you want the treatment for it. Most docs will not see an accumulative pattern of symptoms that encompass other disciplines as they tend to look only at their little slice of the pie. So get your cardiology/electrophysiology referral. And a sleep study too. As for POTS being neurological, I don't know if it is or not. A year ago I couldn't pronounce "dysautonomia" and now I are one........ I tend to think of it as a neuro-cardiological disorder. Food for thought: What do they call the guy who graduated last in his class from med school? They call him Doctor.

Friday, hang in there! I also wonder about getting better. I have good days and bad days, sometimes bad weeks sometimes a really, really good week. But my overall course has been downhill for the last 12 years and I recently stopped working. I make myself do things somtimes during the bad days. Later, when I am resting in bed I am proud that I went to the mailbox or threw in a load of laundry or stuck dinner in the crock pot or walked to the barn to feed the horses. Any little accomplishment on those days is HUGE. I can honestly tell myself that "This day didn't totally suck, I made it to the mailbox". Habits are hard things to form but even harder to break. So I am determined to make the most of every day, whether it be good or bad. I resolve to look at the positive and see what I have, even it is only the mailbox. I recognize what I no longer have, but I do not focus on it. On bad days I am thankful that I no longer work outside the home so I have time to rest. We recently left a beautiful 2 story, 3000 sq. ft. home....but now my bedroom is in the middle of a 1600' single story. I am grateful that I don't have to work as hard to keep it clean and that even if I am in bed, I am now still in the midst of my family. Even though it once was my dream house, I am no longer stuck a whole floor away from the people I love. I am blessed with an understanding husband and a wonderful daughter, age 11. I know that this is the only life I am going to get and good or bad, it's up to me to make the most of it. I wonder about how you are too sick to enjoy things. That is a hallmark of depression. Are you on an antidepressant? Have you discussed this with your doctor? Is he/she aware that an SSRI (selective seritonin reuptake inhibitor, like Prozac or Wellbutrin) can enhance cardiac therapy? The place to start is with your doc. If he or she is not your advocate, find another one. We'll help you! And lean on us!!!!! Once your symptoms are under better control, that may give you some perspective on what it means to be "too sick" to enjoy outside activities. I think there is almost always a price tag attached to things we do......but, hey, 988 times out of 1000 I am going to pay the piper whether I "sit it out or dance". So I dance! Anything this side of chest pain and bronchospasm is fine with me! Nausea? That's what bread, crackers and hard candies are for! (Or an early dose of ProAmitine -bad, bad, self-medicating patient!) Fatigue? Diet Pepsi, fresh brewed iced tea or a nice big cafe mocha. Tachy from the caffeine? Try splitting your beta blocker doses in half and taking them 4x a day instead of 2 (MAKE SURE you do this with your docs' knowlege and official okey dokey.) Good luck!

Weight and BP, every visit, it's a government thing.........really. The people who review medical records for insurance companies use that info for quality review. As if BP was only ONE problem with ONE solution and its CAUSE was weight. Buncha dumbasses. Seriously though, getting a baseline height and weight is definitely part of a thorough physical. I just have a problem having my weight checked two and three times a week. Jules, Dr. Susan Gross is a great MD, boarded in internal medicine and pediatrics. She's at Central and McCord Rd. She's my husband's PCP and I hope to have her take care of me again once my insurance changes. She knows what dysautonomia is. I rag on her all the time for being a science nerd, reading all the magazines that have no pictures unless they're data graphs, lol. In fact, she's the one who taught me how to pronounce "dysautonomia" correctly. Kinda like "graduate"....I couldn't spell it but now I are one. "Dysautonomia"....I can't pronounce but I are one of those too!

CONGA RATS! (visual humor....picture little rats in a conga line.......) You are SO BRAVE......I'm in awe of you. I'm also a couple of decades older, but I still wouldn't do pregnancy with POTS. YOU GO GIRL!

Jess, good for you! The worst day/ first day is behind you. Even if Ethan pick up germs - and he's going to eventually - it may as well be before he goes to kindergarten. Sounds like you are doing a great job with him. Kudos to you for the handwashing! PS I remember peeking around the corner to see what my little one was doing the first day of daycare.

No hyperpigmentation that I haven't earned, either by pregnancy (and they said it would fade!) or overexposure to the sun & wind. My 75 year old mom was bemoaning the few age spots on her arms she has the other day. I pointed out a couple dooseys I have at 43 - especially the two on my left cheekbone - and said "I know what you mean...like these here...but, oh, I had me a GOOD TIME!" Facial "masking" can be symptoms of other things though. Good luck.

Emily, you are most welcome. BTW: The HPP issue with me in it came out today. Hmm... very odd, looking at it, kinda surreal. The three of us ladies with traditional racecars were definitely birds of a feather. Adrenalin freaks, experience junkies and all around nice gals. Funny, but the young girls with the newer front wheel drive cars just sorta stayed away from the old babes in the fire jackets, lol. Here is another "parable" that I wrote after the Nationals and a picture of the dragster that I got to play with: (I can't seem to copy and paste the pic here.....so you can go to www.spottsperformance.com and click on the button on the left 'Spotts Dragster" Awesome machine!) Paul Spotts Personal Best August 7, 2004 - Amy Richcreek For those of you who haven't met him, Paul Spotts is very cool, a kind, strong and gentle man, a very interesting mix of adult ADD and nitromethane. He's also a single father of three gorgeous teen/preteen daughters and a nationally known builder of race engines. Paul let me pit crew with him on the dragster this year at the Pontiac Nationals as our car was broken. I had the use of a 4x6 wheel John Deere Gator as a pit vehicle, so we used that to tow the dragster up the starting line and then after a race, back to our pit area. An acquaintance, Mike Nixon, had his son Trey there in his wheelchair (Trey has severe cerebral palsy.) So Friday night at the barbeque I quietly asked Paul if we could take Trey on a run with us, he could sit in the Gator next to me when we went up to the starting line. Paul said sure. So first thing Saturday morning, Trey was waiting for us with his parents, wheelchair, leg braces and all. Trey had the time of his life - about made me nuts asking questions at first, but it was more than well worth it. Then all he kept saying was "Wow" really stretched out, like "Waaahhooowwww". We started setting personal best records with the dragster, three of them back to back. Finally ended up with a time of 7.36 seconds at around 188 mph - and for covering only 1320 feet, that is WAAAAHOOOOW for sure! I saw Trey later that afternoon, slumped over in his wheelchair. He didn't see me until I said "There's my co-pilot!" He snapped upright, eyes shining behind his trifocals, grinning ear to ear. "Paul did GOOD!" he exclaimed. "Yes he did" I replied, thinking about this young man's happiness and how he'll remember being in the staging lanes with us - no Mom or Dad, just a regular part of the crew right down to his ear muffs. I thought about how we set those records right afterwards, one after another, only on alcohol - not even using nitromethane. I thought about the old saying 'What goes around, comes around.' "Yes," I thought, "Paul did real good." So what was the personal best? I think that is for each reader to decide. For myself, I know that there are very few people who would take a handicapped child and put him in the middle of their Quick 16 agenda, ever, let alone at a national event. But I also know that Ray Cox took him for a ride in the pits and let him purge out an entire bottle of nitrous - just for the fun of pushing the button, hearing that really cool hissing sound and watching the cold crystal mist fly up in the air. Well done, gentlemen! And the King will answer them, 'Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me.' Matthew 25:40

JLB, where are you located? Can you get a referral to an electrophysiologist? Or go see one on your own? I've read your posts about the sympathetic/parasympathetic nervous systems.....are you in the medical field? I can understand that getting the diagnosis can give some peace of mind. But it's far from an end point. I think that's when the meds really begin.....and the door opens to another journey. Best of luck in your decision and your search.

For The Times They Are A Changin' August 9, 2004 Amy Richcreek I was fortunate enough to be asked to drive for an article in High Performance Pontiac magazine this past March. They needed six women from across this part of the United States and I was thrilled! Their first comprehensive article on women in racing, it was a big honor to be asked. Despite my recent heart and lung illnesses and upcoming surgery, there was no way I was going to miss out. I called the surgeon and postponed my gallbladder surgery. April 29th dawned bright, cool and clear - perfect weather for making maximum horsepower. High Performance Pontiac had rented all of Norwalk Raceway Park for the photoshoot and racing. Norwalk, as always, would have the track in tip-top shape for this event. I couldn't wait to return to my favorite track! We unloaded the car and headed up to the starting line for the driver's meeting. I was dismayed to find how quickly I now became fatigued, how short of breath I was when attempting to walk what had been my regular long-distance pace. The last time I had been at Norwalk before this was seven months prior in August, at the Nationals. I slowed down considerably, took it as sign of the times and an omen of things to come. If I became this tired, this slow, in the April cool; how would I ever handle the Nationals in the August heat and humidity? I figured I'd better be getting Plan B together as Plan A was too pokey to be acceptable on those long, long stretches of concrete and asphalt. Fast forward to August at the Norwalk Nationals 2004: My cousins let me borrow their John Deere 4 x 6 Gator for a pit vehicle. Let me tell you, you get respect driving a monster like that. Our friend Paul Spotts let me pit crew for him with his vintage front engine dragster since both our cars were broken. The Gator was my perfect disguise - all I did was make sure we had everything loaded in the cargo bay then sit down and drive. "Everything" for driving a front engine dragster at those speeds is kinda like putting on the armor of God: helmet, fire suit, fire gloves and shoes, arm restraints, neck roll, toolbox, tire pressure gauge/air tank box, battery/starter box and ice cold Powerade. I'd tow us up to the staging lanes, walk about 15 feet, help Paul with his suit and safety equipment, make sure he was in the shade as much as possible, then walk back another 15 feet and sit down in the Gator. I'd do other easy, menial tasks, like handing tools off, helping with the jackstands and floor jack, dumping in the oil when the oil needed changing, picking up the skinny front tires when they needed changing. Between that and chasing the dragster down the return road and towing it back to the pits I really looked like I was doing something. Hah! No one had any idea that I would have trouble walking and shortness of breath at the track. And I am still in the middle of the sport that I love. Not that I complain of want; for I have learned, in whatever state I am, to be content. I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound; in any and all circumstances I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and want. I can do all things in him who strengthens me. Philippians 4:11-13 Now my friend, can you find me a corresponding thought in the Old Testament? I am sure that there must be one somewhere........I'd love to hear it!

Happy New Year! I also long for a community of people with similar values and understanding. That's one of the things that has brought me here. I am not Jewish, but I do try to find ways to nourish my soul. I try hard to find the positive in every day, in every experience, whenever possible. If I can find no positives, I try to bring it in. Try to be the joy, the love, the peace that is needed. One cannot give away what one does not already have. Being thankful for my time here is a way of nourishing my soul. The forum here is a blessing. Perhaps you'll find somewhat of a community of faith here, Jewish or not. Almost like the childhood rhyme, "ready or not, here I come". Jewish or not, here I come! Dancing Light, for being forthright with your needs and yearnings, I will post a story just for you.

I understand your frustration! What does the MD say who originally prescribed the Levoquin? Will he be referring David for some allergic testing? What ED did you go to? Please tell us the name of the hospital......I am interested if he was seen by a board certified ED physician or just a resident with inadequate supervision. Most ED docs I know are very competitive, e.g., they like to keep learning, improving, keep up with all the current trends, etc. Sounds like a call to the head of the ED is in order here. Ask to have David's records reviewed so this doesn't happen again. And DO NOT tell them you have POTS, DO NOT tell them you took his vitals at home, etc. Let them figure it out from their own records. Getting an MD to do what you want and come around to your way of thinking - no matter how obvious it may seem - is like holding a cat. You gotta let the cat think it's his idea, hold on lightly and guide it very, very gently.