dora said:What if you have, say, nine books, and a few of them are massive 2,000-pagers while the rest run between 400 and 800?
Don't even get me started... I could probably knock that out in a couple of weeks just by grinding through a few chapters a day 😠.
Nevermind.
Personally, I always split my college courses into two camps—the "memorization slogs" where you just have to cram everything into your brain—and then there were the others.
I went to a university where I had to plow through mountains of thick textbooks, but honestly, I only had to do pure rote memorization for maybe two exams in all four years—one of which was Law.
Everything else was pretty much just logic and connecting the dots.
I’m voting for a live band—but not one of those cheesy, wedding-singer types you see at the local office holiday party or playing at the neighbor's BBQ down the street. I want actual professionals who can handle some classical pieces, not just endless pop hits.
None of the people I know in my neighborhood who got vaccinated have come down with the flu so far.
Neither did I during those years when I opted for the shot—usually, if I did get sick, it was just a minor cold that cleared up in two or three days without needing any time off work.
Generally speaking, I'm all for getting vaccinated. Even if someone who’s been vaccinated ends up catching the flu, there's a huge chance it'll be much shorter and way easier to handle.
For certain professions, though, getting vaccinated is a total requirement.
I went through the exact same thing you described. It was the middle of winter, and the itching was so intense I actually ended up with cracked skin—man, it was painful.
To make a long story short, my dermatologist ran some tests for fungus, but everything came back negative. He concluded it was just a massive inflammatory reaction triggered by a rough patch I was going through—basically, a mountain of stress and anxiety. It’s totally possible. A few days prior, I had been in a complete state of mental burnout.
Anyway, he put me on an antibiotic pill, which cleared the skin right up, but it completely wrecked my gut flora, so I dealt with some... let's call them "downstream" issues 🙄 That's just how it goes with meds, I guess.
Oh, and per his prescription, the pharmacy whipped up a custom cream for me to apply to my hands. That cleared things up within a few days.
There’s some info about the orbitrek over on the women's corner—swifteagle18, that machine is actually perfect if you need to take the pressure off your knees. You shouldn't be feeling any pain from that kind of movement.
rustytrucker8 said:Maybe try switching up your footwear. I get such bad static shocks in sneakers that I'm seeing sparks—literally—but once I swap them for leather shoes, it's fine.
Just stay away from those plastic soles, synthetic flooring, or cheap rugs.
Some days the charge hits me hard—enough to send sparks flying. One time it actually zapped my lip... I was just trying to give my partner a kiss, and instead, I got a tiny electric shock.😢
The whole theory about weather patterns or storms doesn't really hold up for me. We don't get those crazy windstorms here, but man, the electricity is definitely there. It's an export.😁
Drew Mitchell55 said:Don't roast me if I sound clueless, but what exactly are stretch marks?
You’ll spot them as lines on the skin—usually on the thighs, hips, or stomach. If they're fresh, they tend to look light purple, but as they age, they fade into this silvery-white color.
They're basically deep cracks in the skin. You can actually feel them too—if you run your finger over them, there's a slight texture to the touch.
I know plenty of women who don't have stretch marks—some didn't even get them during pregnancy.
Then you’ve got others who dealt with them back in middle school just from hitting a growth spurt.
When they're fresh, they show up as these deep purple lines, but eventually, they fade out and become way less noticeable.
At the end of the day, stretch marks are just skin tearing—literal cracks—so no miracle cream is going to fix that. Honestly, maybe some microdermabrasion at a high-end spa helps, though even then, nobody's making any big promises about total disappearance.
I still think staying hydrated is key for prevention—even if we already touched on this and some people here argued that it's all purely genetic and nothing you do matters.
darkbison81 said:The universities in Paris are top-tier, and over in France, you can actually pick up homeopathic remedies at pharmacies—they even get partially covered by insurance. Though, they slashed those reimbursements this year because they officially deemed them ineffective. At least, that's the official word from the insurance providers. Regarding the actual ingredients and efficacy—I’m pointing you back to that science forum discussion. There are plenty of skeptics over there who have cited actual research studies. Have you even read that thread? I highly doubt it.
darkbison81, you're a smart girl. And as such, you know exactly how much money and which massive corporations are pulling the strings behind decisions like these.
I won't weigh in on how they "proved" the lack of efficacy—I don't know enough about the science to play judge. I just know that back in 2004, Germany really took a hit on the list of things basic health insurance would cover.
placidjackal97 said:Plant extracts and homeopathy aren't the same thing. Homeopathy uses highly diluted preparations—which might come from a plant or something else entirely—so there really isn't any active ingredient left. The "active" part is basically just water that’s supposedly "remembered" the substance it once held (we've already gone down that rabbit hole over on Science Forum, so I won't bore you again). I think what slycrane94 meant was this: if you believe a remedy is medicine, it can work for you—specifically for you—via the placebo effect.
I'm with placidjackal97—the foundation is herbal or mineral-based, but it's all about that extreme dilution.
Homeopathy works even on people who don't even know they're taking it (if research shows results, how else do you explain that?)
But let me be clear: homeopathy doesn't need your belief to function.
Look, I used to be a massive skeptic—I am toward anything untested, usually—but I've healed some pretty serious issues myself. My dermatologist tried to put me on a month-long course of antibiotics that would have wiped out every living microbe in my body. 🙄
Ignoring those prescriptions—that's exactly what I did. It's a reaction to being brainwashed by Big Pharma into thinking their tech is the only way to fix anything. 🙄
At the end of the day, everyone chooses their own path. I'll go the conventional route IF nothing else works, but I refuse to pop pills for every little ache and pain.
What kind of water? We’re talking plant-based extracts here—though you do find others made from minerals or animal derivatives.
And there isn't any psychological counseling involved. At most, you might have a chat when you first check in at a homeopathic clinic.
Plus, they don't demand you "believe" in it. Homeopathy just does its thing whether you're a skeptic or not. (Little kids don't exactly sit around contemplating the science behind their spoonful of syrup—they just take it, and they get better.)
I think those herbal calming pills they sell here go by something like "Peressol" or whatever.
My mom used to take them during her divorce—mostly right before every single court hearing. 😢 According to her, though, they didn't do a damn thing; she’d still be shaking like a leaf in a storm, just praying the whole ordeal would finally be over.
My take on homeopathy? It’s basically been my go-to alternative when I want to skip the heavy-duty meds for things like a sore throat, a fever, an upset stomach, or that random rash I once had on my arm.
The results have been solid. I’ve never been much of a fan of overusing harsh chemicals whenever possible.
Sure, the recovery usually takes a bit longer—it's a slower burn—but it feels way less aggressive on the system. In places like Germany, it's actually pretty common for parents to treat most kids this way.
stormylnx14's advice is solid—I usually spend way too much time scrolling through movies once my to-do list is done, but man, after sex, you just crash like a baby.😉
Other than that—try to dial down the stress, get moving more physically, and maybe set some sleep rituals. Going to bed at the same time every night or sipping some chamomile tea might help.
Of course, that’s assuming insomnia is the only thing you're dealing with.
I’m right there with Betty Bennett10 on this one. I've got plenty of shampoo on hand for my daily wash—honestly, I don't bother hunting for anything "extra" or specialty; I just stick to whatever actually works for me, regardless of whether the bottle claims it's specifically for frequent use.