Cheryl

The energy efficiency deduction expired last year. The renewal is still stuck in Congress.

Thanks for the suggestions.

Thanks, I'll check with my doctor.

Doctor visits & meds bring us pretty close to the 7.5% mark, so any additional expeses should be over it.

I think that's why I avoid filling my pill boxes. It's depressing to see all those pills together. Also, I would rather go to the Pharmacy twice in a week than have to pick up more than two meds in one trip.

I can't tell you how many times I've stared at the pill bottle in my hand, wondering if I just took it, or was about to take it.

Has anyone had any success in claiming a medical deduction for an air conditioner installation or maintenance? The IRS documents seem a little vague about whether or not A/C can be considered medically necessary.

I get the usual palpitations and tachy, but for now, I don't need a pacer.

I'm still looking for someone local to use as a regular doctor. I refuse to go back to my former GP. She told me that I had used enough of the insurance company's money, and that I should just learn to live with "unexplained symptoms". Then she literally turned her back on me when I told her we had just verified that the plumbing worked, and that we should try looking into the control system. I left her office and started researching for myself. That's how I found this wonderful site, along with ndrf.org.

I take both. I can't manage without the Florinef, but the Midodrine seems to be helping too. If they would just change the shape of the Midodrine pills. They are ridiculously hard to swallow.

I don't have anything to add to the excellent advice above, but wanted you to know that there is at least one other POTS person in Mobile.

Just in case you don't already know, Dr Thompson in Pensacola is very good.

Take care.

My husband and kids all had a recent case of whooping cough. Somehow, I seem to have escaped it. My husband's doctor prescribed an assortment of asthma meds, which did nothing. When the kids started coughing too, their doctor told us what it was. The pediatrician's office has a bunch of signs up about a whooping cough epidemic.

A co-worker's daughter spent a while in the hospital before someone figured out what the problem really was.

Actually, a study was done & they determined that Wikipedia is more accurate than the Encyclopedia Britanica. Mostly because it tends to be self correcting. Anyone can post any garbage, but it rarely lasts long before it gets corrected.

I don't have MVP, but I do have regurgiation on the other side of the heart. I forget the name of that valve.

As mentioned above, crafts and learning something new are good.

If you are already good at something, teaching is good. It doesn't have to be in person. You can participate in an established site, or start your own.

Write a book, column, comic strip, etc.

If there is any charity or cause that you are interested in, there are ways to participate from home. This site is one of them.

If you have any political interests, you can participate in the national discussion. Write your representatives, company heads, organizations.

It gets frustrating when there's so much you can't do, but there are plenty of ways to be productive.

www.blogger.com is also an easy way to start a blog.

I grew up in New Orleans. The bottom end of cancer alley. The Mississippi River is lined with petro chem plants from Baton Rouge to New Orleans. Not to mention the fact the the river drains 2/3 of the country and whatever they dump in it. Our drinking water comes from the Mississippi. There's also a nuclear energy plant nearby.

Mosquito control is another possibility that I considered. When we were kids (and stupid) we used to chase the mosquito trucks in the evening so that we could play in the "fog".

Mostly I try to keep walking, but recently found out it's not such a good idea when your vision starts to contract. I was in a store and didn't see the shelf near the floor. Luckily I was able to regain my balance before I knocked anything over, or hurt myself (too much).

I'm on florinef and haven't notices any taste changes. I still like bananas and orange juice, just hate the bloated feeling.

That's a good idea. I've written my congress people about other issues, I'll have to send one about Dysautonomia.

Since the Anthrax scare, email is preferred over snail mail. Snail mail gets held up forever in security checks.

Form letters are fine. I think they get counted and logged to keep track of opinions.

Original letters are given more consideration because they take more time to write. Most Congress people will respond to an original letter. Senator Shelby always writes back with a relevent response, even though we agree on nothing. Sessions and Bonner never bother to acknowlege my letters.

Dave,

I'm a software engineer, so I have similar problems. It's great to have a sit down job with flexible hours, but the stress and the need for sharp thinking can be a real problem. I have days when I just stare at the screen and have no idea what I'm looking at.

I've been diagnosed recently and I am trying to find a way to manage this well enough to keep working. Right now, I don't quite make it through the day, and my vacation time is about used up.

Good luck, and I hope you find something that works for you.

One other suggestion. When I get statements from the insurance company, they list the medical charge, and then they charge allowed. Usually about half the bill goes poof. If they haven't adjusted the charges, try asking the doctors for the lower billing.

Insurance companies waste more time and money with this nonsense.

I see Dr Thompson too. He's definately worth the drive from Mobile.

My doc says this is common. It's the sympathetic and other (forget the name) nervous systems out of whack. A few hours before you wake up, the sympathetic system kicks in to increase heart rate etc. With us it goes overboard. Usually, I turn over and try to go back to sleep. It really is annoying when I can't get a good night's sleep.

1. Cheryl

2. 45

3. POTS

4. dx - a few months ago, but I think I've had a mild case for most of my life.

5. Mobile, AL

6. Fatigue, depression, pre-syncope, tachycardia, short of breath, twitches, insomnia, sleep too much, brain fog, can't stand too long.

7. Symptoms at best - less of the above

8. Medications/treatments, etc. that didn't work for you - just getting started

9. Medications/treatments, etc., that do work for you - now trying clonidine, florinef, prozac

My doctor also recomends abdominal pressure. He says that you can try bike shorts if you don't like girdles.

My employer gives us a choice between an HMO & a PPO. I don't trust HMO's because there are too many limits on who you can see, so we have the PPO. Even so, the co-pays are really adding up.

I'm still working & haven't lost my insurance yet, but I worry about it a lot. Losing the income will be hard enough. I've known so many people hurt one way or another by our "Greatest medical system in the world" that I've been pushing for Universal Health Care for years now.

I had olfactory hallucinations for a while. I would get whiffs of stale cigarette smoke. This was before I figured out that I had POTS. My doctor had no idea where the smells were coming from, but put me on prednisone and asthma medicines for breathing troubles. The smells went away after a week, and so far haven't come back.

While I was going nuts with the smell of smoke, I found this:

Parosmia involves a distortion of the sense of smell -- the affected person reports smelling something other than the scent which is present -- for example, the person sniffs a banana but it smells like rotting flesh instead of a banana. Phantosmia involves olfactory hallucinations -- that is, there is no odorant present, but the affected person reports smelling something, usually something unpleasant.

The rest of the article is at http://personal.ecu.edu/wuenschk/Parosmia.htm