Laura

Hope you've had a wonderful birthday!!

Nina, what a beautiful boy! I've not seen anything like him before... thanks for the info on him! Sounds like a wonderful breed! Please keep us posted on when you can bring him home with you!

Jan, sending you love and comfort. xo

So glad to see you posting, Morgan! Welcome back!

Hi Em, I had previously posted that I've some friends on the Depo that absolutely love it and it's been wonderful for. They are still raving about it. However, I don't know what kind of reactions people with POTs, medical conditions, or medicine sensitivities may have to it and as the others have said, it stays in the body a long while. Whatever adverse reactions you may have from the Depo-provera may take a while to subside because of this. It's definitely a good thing to consider when you are weighing your options. It may be enough for you to stop the pills and have a full cycle as your doctor suggested. That does work very well for some people, though you should be prepared... sometimes when your cycle does come after not having it for quite a while, it can be a little miserable. Might feel like "the worst period ever" but if you are prepared for that, it can make things a little easier! I had a bit of info on estrogen/ progesterone that I was going to PM to you, but your inbox is full. I've managed to figure out how to save the message, so I'll try to send it off to you sometime later! Take care! Laura.

Hey Sophia, This is a fairly common bowel prep. As I'm sure you realise, you need to be sure to be completely cleaned out incase something happens that you end up needing abdominal surgery as any stool left would be likely to cause very serious infections. Basically, the dulcolax is a very good thing to do as it will soften everything up and get things started. A kind suggestion by your doctor as it will make things easier for you. 10 oz of citrate is the dose that you'll need in order to ensure that you are fully cleaned out, and the fleet will take care of any residual bits left over. Try to get as much of the mag citrate in as you can, and it sometimes helps to make sure it is very cold. If you are ok taking gravol, you might consider taking a small dose about an hour or so prior to drinking the prep. It's not pleasant to drink, but very necessary. Basically, it is super important to be sure that you are completely emptied out because any kind of infection risk is very serious stuff! Hope this helps you a bit! Laura

Oh boy, Nolie... no wonder you are so fatigued. To have hemochromatosis, Polycythemia vera, and Pots/NMH must make you completely exhausted. There are alot of people who suffer with very bad fatigue as a symptom of Pots/NMH, and to have your other conditions along side must be very tough. Hopefully your doctor is right and as you go along with treatment some of the fatigue will lift. You'll likely still have fatigue, but it will hopefully be more managable for you and to a much lesser degree. Hemochromatosis has just been found to run in our family so we are all in the process of getting tested. You'll find wonderful support here and caring people to help you out! Laura.

THinking of you on your Birthday! Hope you had a great one!

Happy birthday to you Emily!!

Hope you've had a wonderful birthday, Lauren!!

Hey Maggs, just saw your post! Hope you had a great one!!

Maxine, I am so relieved that you've finally gotten some valid answers. It's been a very long road for you just to get to this point, but I hope that from here on you'll be able to get more reliable treatment. Take good care of yourself. Laura

Laura, I am so glad that you are back home with your family! Take things easy!

Hi Jaquie, I am so sorry that you are having such a terrible time. I use Gravol as a last resort when I am feeling so dizzy that I get severe nausea. It totally knocks me out, and for me, often 1/4 of a tablet is enough. I try to use it only when I know I am going to be able to sleep - before bedtime, or if I know I can nap. Gravol helps with nausea, but also can work for dizziness. Hope this helps. Laura

Nina, I'm so sorry that you've had to make such a tough decision. Such a kind thing that the vet can help her at home. hugs to you. Laura

Hi Dionna, how are you making out with the tea? It's been used by people for a very long time, and has something in it similar to valarein which acts as a mild sedative and is also supposed to help with digestion. Also, it has been used for headaches, so maybe it will help a little with that for you? I hope it does something for you, it's awful not being able to sleep. Makes all of your symptoms that much worse! Let us know how you're doing!

Dear Jan and Jeff, thinking of you both and sending positive, healing thoughts out. Hugs to you both.

Thinking of you Morgan! Feel better soon!

Willows, I'm sorry you are going through this. You've got some wonderful friends here to help and support you as much as we can and it looks like some good suggestions have been given. I hope you can find something here to help. Laura

Sophia, I can definitely see why that number would seem strange to you! In Canada and the UK, the blood sugar values are measured in mmol/L , whereas in the US, they are measured in mg/dL . So basically, if your value was 126 mg/dL in the US measure, it would be 7.0 mmol/L for the UK and Canadian measure. I hope that makes a bit more sense of things!!

Hi Melissa, so good to see your post! You are in for a busy time with the big move this week. That must be a difficult move for you to make, but I hope it will help things get better for you in alot of ways. I will be thinking of you, and sending positive thoughts out that your liver enzymes drop back down and the IVIG starts working!! Take good care. Laura

Morgan, I'm just so glad that they've finally been able to see something that they can work on fixing!! Good luck with things tomorrow. I'll be thinking of you!

Willows, thanks so much for sharing your adventures with everyone! I've really enjoyed reading about the wedding and getting to see the photos! You looked so lovely in your dress and what a beautiful hat!! I would have liked to have seen the blue outfit as well - it sounded just as nice! Hope that you're starting to recuperate. Take care!

I'm so glad you've had such a special day, Corina! You have a wonderful family to celebrate with!! Happy Birthday!

I'm so sorry to hear that you're in the hospital! I hope that you are having many visitors in to see you, who bring in many nice things for you- food and puzzles and books.... The days can be so long! Take good care and be sure to post when you can to let us know how things are going for you.