Posts by Samuel Morgan40

I’ve noticed this happening with certain users who have almost zero post history—even those folks who seemingly registered for the sole purpose of asking a single question... and right there under their username, it says "Patient" 😕 so, I suppose the real question is, are they actually registered users or just guests?

Ashley Turner51 said:When I went in for my HIV testing, I couldn't help but wonder about their hygiene protocols. Specifically, I noticed piles of needles sitting in plastic trays, but none of them were individually wrapped in sterile packaging or foil. Is that actually standard practice?
I've already been tested, and my results came back negative. But now that I'm home, I can't stop overthinking it. Why on earth weren't those needles in their original sterile packaging?

Of course they do; there’s really no reason to spiral into a panic here, trust me. 🙂

I'm not quite following—are you worried about testing for something else and the general "possibility" of an HIV infection, or... are you specifically talking about getting an HIV test at that particular hospital?
Honestly, it shouldn't matter which hospital we're talking about; when it comes to any kind of testing, blood draws, or transfusions, there really isn't anything to fear. It’s all strictly regulated by US medical laws and safety standards. This is especially true for transfusion medicine—for instance, when they're screening blood and bone marrow stem cell donors, organs, tissues, and so on. Everything is rigorously checked, so I guess you shouldn't be quite so paranoid. 🙂

I suggested you ask your gynecologist about getting a referral for a full hormonal panel—just so they can potentially pinpoint which specific class of birth control might actually work for you—but, from what I gather, you usually have to go off the pill for a while to get a truly accurate picture of where things stand. I’m certainly no expert on the matter, but I suppose a specialist would be the best person to guide you through that. 🙂

My bloodwork came back mostly fine, though I guess some of my hormone levels are still fluctuating a bit too much for comfort.

Have you ever actually gone through a full hormonal panel—you know, back before you started using any kind of birth control? 🤷 Honestly, I can’t think of much else that would explain things, though I suppose that's just my take. If you’re planning on taking a longer break from the pill anyway, it might be worth getting a complete blood count done at the same time.
It’s just one of those things—there are simply some women out there for whom no specific brand of pill ever quite feels like a perfect fit.

Sam Flores3 said:I just noticed this weird yellowish tint around my mouth, though I honestly didn't even clock it until I caught myself in some photos 😲 it’s pretty gross. Even my mom—when I asked if she saw it too—claims it's been there forever. What kind of deal am I looking at here? Like, seriously, am I dealing with jaundice or something?

Now, this might not apply to you, but I know a girl who used bleaching to deal with the hair above her lip, followed by regular hair removal, and afterward—well, the skin in that area just ended up being a different color entirely, specifically the shade you're describing—and during the summer, whenever she’d get some sun, it tended to darken even more. She maintains that she's clearly sensitive to those types of treatments, so that's likely what caused it. 🤷

Good luck—please let me know how it turns out 🙂

As far as Flonase goes, it didn't really do much for me in that regard—even after using it for years, I guess.

Samuel Wright28 said:.. because I recently bit my cheek by mistake—honestly, I have no idea how it even happened, quite ridiculous, really... but now the area is incredibly red, looks inflamed, and there's almost like a little crater where it happened. It hurts whenever I eat and the sensation seems to have spread to my tooth

What do you mean it spread to your tooth? Is it actually aching now? 😕
Did you just bite yourself the way most of us do when we're chewing gum a bit too aggressively?
If that's the case, maybe try using some kind of beehive-derived tincture or something similar with medicinal properties (usually sold as oral drops in a small bottle). You could soak a Q-tip in it and apply it directly to the spot. Bee-based extracts tend to work wonders on mouth sores—like canker sores, for instance—and there are plenty of specific over-the-counter treatments for those. The decent thing about those tinctures is that they tend to stick to the area, essentially "staining" the tissue so it stays put.

My X-ray back then showed an absolutely horrific state regarding my lungs and sinuses—just pure shadows—right before I started treatment. That was about 13 years ago. At that point, I ended up on a regimen of penicillin injections, topped off with this massive cocktail of shots to try and bolster my immune system. Before all that, I went through every live test imaginable—they practically drained me of blood 😬—along with spirometry, allergy testing, and sinus ultrasounds. Things did improve afterward, but I still deal with recurring pain in my forehead and eyebrows every single winter, especially when there's a cold, dry wind blowing, much like a harsh gust coming off the Great Lakes. Mucus tends to drain down into my lungs, particularly when I’m lying down in a warm room at night. Honestly, I blame my former doctor; due to their procrastination, they failed to recognize a severe acute sinus infection, and by the time it was finally identified, the damage was done. It had transitioned into a chronic issue, or so several specialists have told me. I continue to get various tests done here and there, which don't really show anything out of the ordinary, other than the fact that those sinuses can get a bit "inflamed"—they're just sensitive, I suppose. I have to keep them under control and be very careful 🙂

wanderingangler13 said:Thanks 👍

I'm heading out to Golden Gate Park tomorrow. I'll be coming back with a bottle of seawater and these ingredients for the upper rinse... I might try some alternative method too... but honestly, I still think this is the best way to "flush" everything out 🤣

I remember when I was with Yoge, he showed me this little device used to clear out sinuses. He picked it up somewhere out East... you basically just pour water from one nostril to the other... pretty much the same thing as what was described above

Look, just a bit of advice—if you're going to collect seawater, please try to find somewhere relatively pristine or at least decent. I'd suggest an open area where there isn't any runoff from sewage systems nearby. For heaven's sake, don't just scoop it up from the Chesapeake Bay, 🙂God forbid.

wanderingangler13 said:Thanks for all the input.👍>

Samuel Morgan40, you hit the nail on the head with what you're describing... I've been digging through my own research for a bit now. I actually went in for some sinus scans and they told me everything looks fine aside from a deviated septum. I'm also dealing with that constant post-nasal drip😢... though I've been drinking this marshmallow root tea and it seems to be helping a little. They told me my allergies are triggered by dust mites. Does anyone know if there's anything that actually helps with chronic sinusitis?

Papa Smurf, it’s almost certainly an allergy if you find yourself feeling better in enclosed spaces...

That’s a tough one. Personally—and I blame a rather sloppy, superficial doctor I once saw—my severe acute sinusitis spiraled into a chronic nightmare. I've been through just about everything since then. It's a constant struggle, and everyone seems to tell me that surgery is the only way out. Then again, I hear plenty of people saying the same thing: that the problems just come right back after the operation anyway. People suggest all sorts of things, from bioenergy (which, in my experience, is just as temporary!) to general alternative medicine, acupuncture, and so on.

What actually saves me is the ocean. Whenever I can, I grab a container of pure sea salt/ocean minerals and "sniff" that. For those who don't live near the coast year-round, there is a decent little recipe that a famous specialist once gave me.

INGREDIENTS:
1. A 20ml plastic syringe (you can pick one up at any local pharmacy)
2. A liter of bottled water (something like Dasani)
3. A teaspoon of baking soda
4. Two teaspoons of coarse sea salt

PREPARATION:
Boil the water and let it cool down until it's lukewarm. Mix in the baking soda and the coarse sea salt. Let it cool completely, pour it into a bottle, and keep it in the refrigerator.

USAGE:
Every morning and every evening (right before bed), do the following:
Pour a bit of the liquid from the bottle into a cup (about a cup and a half)—just make sure it isn't hot. Next, head over to the sink. Use the syringe to "suck up" the liquid. Insert it into one nostril (try to go a little deep), plug the other nostril firmly, and slowly flush the liquid in (if you're using a 10ml syringe, do this twice). Repeat the exact same process for the other nostril (plugging the one you aren't currently flushing). While you're doing this, you might feel a bit of a tingling sensation in your sinuses as the water circulates from one side to the other. Once you're done, stay over the sink, because quite a bit of it is going to drain out. The key is making sure it clears those passages. 😉

Gargle with whatever liquid is left over.

Honestly, it was a lifesaver for me!!! 🙂 Good luck.

In any case, definitely seek out a second opinion. I have to ask—did you actually undergo a skin allergy test?
For what it's worth, my experience was almost identical to yours—though, rather than allergies, my issues stemmed from those damn sinuses 😠. Because of the constant post-nasal drip, things like dry air (say, during a harsh wind chill in Chicago) or even the warm air blowing from an AC unit would really irritate me. Not to mention how bad things got at night; if I were lying down, I probably wouldn't have slept a wink because I’d be choking on a coughing fit. Doctors kept telling me I was allergic to something, yet I wasn't. So, I went looking for a second—and even a third—opinion. I ended up doing allergy testing three separate times within a single year, and every single one came back negative. Absolutely nothing. I also had all the other tests done, including X-rays and spirometry (which resulted in a diagnosis of impaired lower lung function), leading them to tell me I ought to quit smoking 😁. They suggested that such findings are quite common with chronic sinus inflammation, more or less.
Regardless, go get that second opinion.

Thomas Peterson5 said:These are always my absolute favorites—she climbs up onto someone's shoulders, and then you have fifteen other people who actually paid full price for their tickets, unable to see a single thing because of the "princess" and her little stallion carrying her around. It just happened at a Metallica concert; the crowd was losing its mind. Luckily, she wasn't right in front of me, because if she had been, I probably would have handed both of them my regards 🙂

🙂heheee, don't look at me, it's your own fault
Figure it out, buddy! 🙂
Now you see how some of us can't see a thing behind those six-footers, so we're forced to climb up too 🙂
😁 😍

edit: Honestly, I couldn't care less about the people standing behind me. I'm not at the Metropolitan Opera

feraltrucker5 said:I honestly can’t wrap my head around people who spend two whole hours filming everything on their phones.

I’m right there with you—I just don't get them either. ☕
God, those were the good old days when everyone actually had their hands in the air. 👋
I don't exactly go to concerts to sit down—unless we're talking about an opera house or something similar, I suppose.
For me, it’s supposed to be a two or three-hour escape; there is simply no way I’m spending half the set wrestling with phone settings or camera focus, or wandering off to the restroom, or getting caught up in some ridiculous social media trend. 🙄
I’m old school: total immersion, no holding back—hands in the air, maybe a lighter if I can sneak one in, sitting on my partner's shoulders, working up a sweat, dancing my heart out, and singing along at the top of my lungs!!!! 🙂 🙂

@Carol Rodriguez16/">@@Carol Rodriguez16, I suppose I’m inclined to agree 👍
But, first and foremost—if we're being realistic—it all seems to boil down to a woman's specific biology. Genetics play a massive role, obviously, alongside lifestyle factors and, I suppose, whether she actually feels ready to take on parenthood.
In my case, my oncologist actually started advising me quite a while ago that I should consider having a baby before I hit 30—mostly due to breast cancer risks and whatnot. Though, honestly, who can say for sure? It seems like women in America are waiting longer and longer to start families these days. 🙂

rowdyhawk27 said:Fine.
When I go in to drop off my hormone results, I’ll explicitly ask for an ultrasound...
I'm already thinking about bringing my mom along for support :S

It sounds irrational, but I'm 25 and have never actually had an ultrasound done.
This is my second OBGYN since I turned 18.🤷
And I don't live in some tiny rural town, though I suppose that isn't really a metric for anything.😁

Honestly, you should have had an ultrasound a long time ago—it’s practically standard practice. Your OB-GYN is supposed to perform one at least once a year; you have every right to demand it. After all, it’s considered part of a comprehensive gynecological exam. Just getting Pap tests without an ultrasound and the necessary swabs simply isn't sufficient. You need to insist on it—if you have to, tell them you're in agony just to get them to run the scan.

An ultrasound will show if there is anything going on with your ovaries, whether they are enlarged, the state of your uterus, if there are any adhesions, free fluid, and so on. When paired with your hormone levels, it should be quite useful for establishing a proper diagnosis.🙂

Carol Wilson14 said:I take this very seriously, but I honestly don't know what to do about it.

I’ve dealt with this awkwardness more times than I care to admit—both at private practices and with government-run facilities. Regardless of gender or the specific type of exam, patients have a right to privacy, yet many doctors—and those managing the clinics—seem to act as if it doesn't matter. That is a plain fact, and frankly, it really ought to change.

Not long ago, I was caught off guard in a place where I least expected it: the new maternity ward at the hospital in Phoenix. I was called into one of those small exam rooms by my gynecologist—who happened to be on call—and it turns out that anyone can just knock and swing the door open whenever they feel like it. They can walk right in and start questioning the doctor while the exam chair is positioned directly opposite the door, with a patient fully exposed. He opened the door to let me in first, only for me to find another woman already lying there mid-exam. And then, while we were waiting, ten different people just knocked like that.

Then there is the situation with Emergency Services and the local Community Health Center in my town. Everything is visible, even through the blinds. My biggest grievance is when I have to undress so a doctor can use a stethoscope, only to realize that right outside the window is a public park where people are smoking and a large waiting area—it’s quite the theatrical performance, except there's no curtain to hide behind 😠 !!!

I once took a friend to an appointment where she literally felt like she was being watched through glass. Of course, they had to undress her, but there was a massive crowd of people standing right outside the window waiting for their own loved ones.

So, yeah... that's about how much privacy we get. 🤮

What can I possibly say to you without either lying through my teeth or sending you into a full-blown panic? 🤷
You mentioned being a massive hypochondriac—which, let’s face it, means pretty much anything I say is going to spook you.
Look, I’m certainly no doctor—and it could very well be nothing at all; it might just be something you've conjured up, and I’m fairly certain there’s nothing wrong.
On the other hand, it could be anything. When I hear about this mental fogging, my mind immediately jumps to minor strokes—that classic sort of cognitive confusion (but please, don't go panicking just yet).
However, I suspect you’re actually quite far from that, especially since you mentioned your tongue occasionally trips over itself.
We all have those days, I suppose. 🙂
So, try not to spiral. My own speech gets tangled up all the time; if I were any more surprised by it, it would probably be because these kinds of days just seem to happen whenever they feel like it. 😉

I'm wondering why this thread isn't getting much traction 🤷
I mean, they really are such an incredible band 🙏

Aaaaaaa 🙂