dawn

I take EmergenC often. It works wonders. I haven't had a cold or virus for about 6 years. (Knock on wood). I love the tangerine flavor. I haven't tried anything else. Dawn

I have been on pozac, effexor, lexapro and tried cymbalta. Then I was off of them for 2 years and all the weight I had gained disappeared. About 6 months ago I started Celexa 10mg. It has worked the best for me. I rarely have an adrenaline surge and it has made my nausea so much better (it did take a couple weeks to get used to it). I have gained 10 pounds but to not be so anxious and to sleep better is worth it. I also tend to eat alot of junk food so if I would quit that I probably wouldn't be carrying these extra pounds. Dawn

Thank you all. Nina, thank you. I found Jan's posts and will look up the radiation treatment you wrote about. I just want him to make the right decision. They don't seem to be moving on it fast enough for me. He had an ultrasound in October and they saw "something" it has taken them this long for a diagnosis. Ridiculous!!!!!!!!!!! I am not ready to lose miy brother. Dawn

Hi, I counted on 2007 being a better year than 2006. I thought how can it be worse? Last week my brother was diagnosed with liver cancer. He has one tumor that is 7cm and several others. Because the tumor is so large he is not a candidate for a liver transplant. He is such a nice guy. Anyway, it has not spread that they know. He is being treated at the University of Chicago Hospital. His son wants to send him to Cancer Treatment Center's of America, it costs $250,000 for the down payment. Looking for any suggestions for treatment. They did mention chemo-ablation. He has cirrhosis also so they cannot do a resection. He is 64 years old going on 40. Dawn

Hugs and prayers of healing being sent your way STAT. Dawn

You are in my thoughts and prayers. There is nothing harder than seeing our children sick. Hope they come up with some answers for you. You and your hubby take care of yourself's. Don't let yourself become dehydrated. Hugs and healing being sent your way. Dawn

Can you maybe get some pedialyte down. I have the popsicles. They are in plastic like Mr. Freeze's (is what we call them in Wisconsin). I also get the preggie pops (suckers at the red giraffe) they have ginger in them. Before I had my gallbladder out I was soooo nauseated. He suggested dramamine and that helped alot. Probably want to check in with a nurse advisor or your doc first. Dawn

Mighty Mouse, That reminds me when I first got sick, I was too weak to do a treadmill and they wanted to do a Thallium scan. They inject a drug I think it was persantine in your IV. Your heart beats like you are running a marathon. I looked at the cardiologist and said "my heart is beating so hard!" He looked at me and said "beating is good." LOL. Sometimes we just have to crank up our sense of humor with all this junk. Dawn

I asked my doctor this specific question years ago. He said "well, you would have to have the epinephrine, it would be better than dying of an allergic reaction." The thing is there are medications they can give IV to slow down your heartrate and the effects of adrenaline. I know once I had a procedure and they numbed the area with lidocaine and I crashed. It wasn't pleasant but I made it through. I can drive myself crazy with thoughts of "what ifs" being a nurse I have thought of every situation possible. Sometimes it is best not to think about these things. Dawn

Hi, I can totally relate. I was glad to say goodbye to 2006. I take betablockers and they do not help with the depression issue. I spend most days in my PJ's and just don't feel like doing anything. My husband moved out for a month in November. He is back now and we are trying to work things out. I miss being healthy and active. Sometimes I am bitter, sometimes just sad. I do force myself to go to church on Sunday morning's, I finally found a small church that is like family. Lots of hugs and a Spirit Filled Pastor. Morgan is right about getting mad. I don't get mad at God though, he doesn't want us sick. We are his children and he loves us more than we can imagine. Everyday I walk around and say "God is able." I believe I am being healed in "God's time." I refuse to doubt that. I don't want to get on a rant about my faith and offend anyone. I know it is a struggle. I know it is hard. Sometimes I just don't care about anything. It is those times I pull out my Bible and quote the promises of God. I play alot of Christian music too. It helps. I got a tambourine for Christmas, so even get a little exercise LOL. Don't give in, draw a line in the sand and say ENOUGH. Dawn

Hi, I always have them draw from my hand with a butterfly needle. I had the same problem when they used my arm. Your hand, you can keep opening and closing, so the blood flow continues. Haven't had a problem since. Dawn

Hi, I have taken propranolol 10mg 3-4 times a day for many years. I did try toprol first but blacked out. The good thing about propranolol is it crosses the blood brain barrier so it helps with anxiety too. I have never had any problems. If I am having a rough time (tachy wise) I just pop an extra one. It is nice cuz it is short acting. Dawn I just read your post about the fatigue. All beta blockers make you tired but your body does adjust to them. You also lose your sex drive usually. Alot of people take a dose of propranolol before they have to do something stressful, it calms down the autonomic system. I have heard of alot of people who take it before giving a public speech. Dawn

Alot of big green olives throughout the day, every time I open the fridge I eat 1-2 followed by a big glass of water. People have bought me salt licks (like for animals) as a gift. Dawn

Nina, Happy Birthday. Hope it was a good day. Many, many more!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Dawn

2 cups of strong coffee every morning or I couldn't function. (Take beta blocker an hour before). Dawn

If it is any comfort, I have been to Dr. Low twice. He works more as a consultant than a regular physician. A resident does your history and exam. You go through all the testing. He sits down with you and says yes, you have POTS. Follow up with your regular physician. We are all looking for a miracle but he doesn't have any miracles to offer us. He is kind and knowledgable about explaining POTS. But you really aren't missing anything. The first time when I was diagnosed he recommended lower leg exercises to prevent pooling. That did help me. Dawn

I haven't worked for 2 years. Dawn

John, My doctor gave me a Rx to take occasionally. He said I needed to be cautious because in the long term it causes parkinson like symptoms. He really doesn't like the medication at all. I have been chewing 5 papaya tablets that I bought at GNC. Papaya has a natural enzyme in it to aid digestion. It has helped me and is safe as it is only fruit. Do you have severe gastroparesis? I do have it and have learned to eat very small meals sometimes just bites. When I can feel my stomach is not working at all I just drink fluids. Dawn

I have had 3 TTT, one of them I was on Florinef and had hypertension while standing. The other 2, I was off and became very hypotensive. The last one I had at Mayo they had me taper and stop my Florinef a week before the test. Dr. Low then recommended I stop it permanently as my urine sodium was so low. I haven't taken it for a couple years now. Dawn

Ariella, Thank you for the info on Lyme's and the flu shot. I did have Lyme's and was never properly treated as it was new to the medical field when I got it. They finally biopsied the area and found the spirochete. What is the problem with getting the flu shot and having post Lyme's do you know? My doctor has never mentioned it. I have only had one flu shot in my life. Have had influenza twice and it was BAD!!!!!!!!!!! I just fret about getting it. Dawn

Becky, Look up bppv on google. I have this problem and have a wonderful physical therapist who does the treatments. She said people with autonomic problems are very likely to having this. It makes such a difference after the treatment. Dawn

Hi. I get that when my inner ears are having a problem. Look up bppv on google. It is common for those of us with autonomic problems. I have a physical therapist that does the treatments. It is unreal after she does a treatment, the nausea goes away immediately as does the dizziness. The hardest part is sitting up to sleep for 2 nights after the treatment. Thinking of you Dawn

I took effexor for 2 years, I just stopped it without any problems at all. I remember having nausea at first. Now I take celexa which works better for me. We are all so different it's hard to know which one will work. It takes a couple of weeks for the side effects to go away but they do. They all seem to work by leveling out the surges of adrenaline. My physician said that Wellbutrin and Paxil would be the most likely to increase anxiety for me, so I have never tried them. I have used zoloft, prozac, effexor, lexapro, cymbalta (2 days), and now celexa. Hang in there. Dawn

This is the first year that we are doing this. Jesse is a junior in high school. It is going very well. There are alot of resourses on the internet and each state also has virtual public school as long as you register in February for the next year (open enrollment) which we missed. We may do that next year. I do the language arts, geography and history. My husband does the math and science. I can lay on the couch and read to him, look at his outlines and papers etc. It's much better than the stress I had with him in school. He is home due to behavior issues. Dawn

Hi, I never drink an hour before I eat, then I eat without drinking, then I wait at least an hour until I drink something again. It has seemed to help some. Plus I eat small meals, actually usually just peanut butter toast for breakfast and then a little supper. Sometimes I eat a protein bar in bites all day long. I could honestly give up eating and would never be hungry. I also avoid milk products-they really seem to make me bloat up. Hang in there, I know it is so hard. The other thing they say is never eat protein and fruit together. Fruit should be eaten alone an hour before your meal. Something about fermentation. My GI doc told me that. Dawn