Support Group

[Cal]

Oh yes, good job! Yum, I can smell it now...

[Pierced Musie]

My mum read an article about a woman who was so tired that she ended up in a wheel chair. The woman's friend told her to stop drinking soft drinks with artificial sweetners in them. The woman did this, and lo and behold, she miraculously recovered.

Now mum has decided that she doesn't want me to drink Pepsi Max anymore. That is like my favourite thing to drink. I usually have one, two, three cans a day. But now mum's "cut me off" because she thinks that I won't be tired anymore. This all sounds incredibly noble, being cruel to be kind and all that... except that she comes in last night and gives me a 4 pack of vodka cruisers to "ween" me off the Pepsi... Call me crazy, but I think it's better to be "addicted" to a sugarless soft drink with like one calorie per can, than to alcohol, particularly a brand that has an incredible amount of sugar in it... Don't get me wrong, I do like them from time to time and I appreciate them being bought for me, but I just wish it didn't come with the accusation that I'm too stupid to take care of my own addictions. If I want Pepsi Max, I should be allowed to drink that, shouldn't I? And if being less tired is the objective... um... I don't know, how about give me something that's not a DEPRESSANT!! My mother... she is very very extremely weird. She knows my main problems are with fat and sugar too, and even that I drink too much when I get going. So what does she do? Makes me feel bad for drinking something that's harmless, and then gives me all the things that are genuinely proven to be bad for me... She is determined to sabotage me to make herself either feel better by comparison, or to make herself feel worse by having a pathetic overweight drunk for a daughter. I honestly don't know which.

I used to have one bottle of Pepsi a day. Not the big bottles but they are bigger than a can. I have had to give up Pepsi as a regular drink but can have the occassional bottle, if it is diet. To be honest I felt fantastic after giving up pepsi. I had more energy, less mood swings and it did help with tiredness but not much.

If you are suffering extreme tiredness then I would go to the doc and see if you are low on iron. I'm taking tablets for that and they are amazing !

Kat, I still don't know what I want to do... so I know where you are coming from in that respect. Seriously though, College isn't all what it's cracked up to be. College is only for some people, not all. You're only 17/18, you shouldn't be worried about that. Maybe when you are 30, you should start thinking about what you want to do, but you have years to have fun and enjoy yourself. Anyway, you can apply to college as a Mature Applicant, I think it's interview based and they look at your results from your LC.... so that shouldn't be a problem considering you got the maximum points.

These days you can go to college & uni whenever you feel ready, which can be at age 18 or age 88 !

[MarMar]

I need a pep-talk. I was diagnosed with migraine when I was 12 or so, but we (my mom and I) opted against medicine as it wasn't all that often and we thought it was better for me to just stay home and sleep it off.

I have been migraine-free for a few years, albeit not aura-free, so I guess you can say that I've been having pain-free migraines. But lately I've been having more pain that usual, with light sensitivity and all that jazz. I'm also fairly active; 4 courses at uni instead of one, lectures 5 days a week, the paper and flying back and from to Copenhagen to be with my husband whenever I can. So... Something has to be done.

I found a pill based on NSAIDs when we were on England last summer which helps both with normal headaches as well as migraines. I brought one packet with me back, and later ordered one from a UK online-pharmacy. I ordered 3 new packs last weekend as the pain has increased, I'm back at uni and I can't have any days off. It was stopped in customs yesterday and there's no new update. I'm not afraid I won't get the pills - I'm not sure if I'm really allowed to import them, even though they are over-the-counter-drugs. I mean, one packet went through without any problems, but three might be pushing my luck.

Now, I had to stay home today due to pain and slept most of the day away. I got up around noon and made my 4pm lecture, although I feeling kinda icky. I'm thinking I should just pull myself together and book a doctor's appointment tomorrow. The problem is that I'm very afraid of doctors and am scared I'll be laughed at...

[rennyren]

Mar, I know how you feel. I had terrible migraines all through exams last year and still get them 3 or 4 times a week.

My advice would be go to the doctor. They won't laugh at you, and if they do they're obviously either insane or complete tossers and deserve to be disbarred or whatever doctors get. But the point is, migraines can be a symptom of a larger problem and surely it's better to find out than be in pain?

I wouldn't worry about the pills not making it through customs. Three packets is hardly a massive stash, and they are over the counter things anyway, surely customs wouldn't be so pedantic as to stop freely accessible pain killers from entering the country.

And, if it helps, I find that just lying in the dark with a cold towel on your forehead helps, as does using pressure points ... press and hold the skin between your thumb and index finger on your right hand. It doesn't cure them completely, but it takes some of the pain away.

I hope you get better soon

[MarMar]

Thanks. The only reason I'm considering going to the doctor's office today after uni to book an appointment is that I don't have /time/ to be in a dark room whenever I'm in pain. I don't like to take pills, but it's better than failing my classes.

[kitty_baby777]

I think you should go to the doctor. I'm sure they won't laugh at you. After all it's their job to treat patient's health problems and if they laugh at you they should lose their job! I don't get migraines but I am prone to tension headaches which is probably due to me being a pretty anxious sort of a person. When I get them I usually just rub some 4head on my forehead and the back of my neck where the tension usually is and if that doesn't work I take 2 headache pills but of course tension headaches are easier to treat then migraines.

[MarMar]

Thanks for the support. I've actually managed to book an appointment for Tuesday morning, so... fingers crossed.

[Zetti]

Well Kirst

I have had a job for ages and I hate it but its a good paid job

I am quitting, it doesnt matter how many times you quit, if it is good for you then do it.

[Jayde]

While I'm in here, I'll just let you know that Kat has officially driven to Malahide to apply for her new career as a waitress in Starbucks And she promised she'd bring me back a hot chocolate. I asked her for a muffin as well but she's not THAT kind...

Anyway, just a little update on the 'Emma', 'Louise', and 'Caoimhe' situation (nice names, btw Kat. Very Creative...)

Well, today I walked to the bus stop. They were there, obviously. Stood on my own. Bus came half a bloody hour later. Sat on my own. Went into school. Hid in the Canteen for a while, then went up to our baseroom. 'Emma' was hogging all the attention, 'Louise' was laughing and looking at her in some soppy admiring way (starting to think they're lesbians. Would explain so much.), and 'Caoimhe' was just standing there, again with some admiring sick look on her face. I sat down and did my Maths revision, like a perfectly ordinary person. Then Emma (I'll stop doing the ' because they are just annoying me now) comes over to me and asks why the hell am I in such a huffy mood and that I should come over and I should stop swotting, I'm only going to fail anyway.So I packed up and hit in the canteen again...

First Period - PE. We were doing Volleyball and no-one wanted me on the team. Normally Emma then let me be on 'her' team, but when I looked over she quickly pulled 'Jenny' over, who seems to have replaced me. Me who stuck up for her in Primary school when the boys slagged her calling her fat and curlbomb and balloonboobs? Anyway, then I had to be put in a Team with already four players, so I was the odd one out. then we played against Emma's team and another team combined and our teacher tells Emma to go over to our team. She doesn't think this is fair of course, and tells Jenny to go over, because she couldn't be parted from 'precious Louise'. Yep, Jenny, that used to be me. But (we'll call her Ms. C) Ms. C says, No you, over on Jade's team. So she storms over to us in a huff.

Second Period - history, nothing happened, because we sit on opposite sides of the room. Third Period, Home Ec, she's not in my class. Breaktime, I hid in the canteen. Maths - she kept waving at me but I ignored her. English - Debating, she was captain of the Opposition (The motion was - This generation are slaves to fashion). I wasn't in the debate because for some reason my name was crossed off the list... anyway, her speech was good because her sister who I'm quite friendly with wrote it for her, but she couldn't read it out properly. She won best speaker, best speech and best captain, but the motion was defeated. Then it was lunch, I kept right out of her way, then double Science, we dissected a heart and I fainted... Anyway, then on the way home they werent on the bus... so i thought they must have gotten the 102 together, but then I realized they went into town together...

ANyway, my day, very depressing to me...

[Cal]

^Oh my god, it's like 2nd year all over again!

Yay for Kat and Starbucks!

Jade, It looks like 'Emma' is the main reason for all of this. The attention-seeking know-it-all is ALWAYS to blame. The other two are just following her because she is powerful. Try and get those two on their own when 'Emma' isn't around. They'll be quite nice to you then... but when she comes along, they'll get nasty... (It's happened to me, so I have experience! )

I hope they realise that they have been horrible and I hope they live a long and guilt-filled life.