Posts by gentlelynx51

I don’t want to freak you out or anything—really, I don't—but from my own experience, I can tell you that I’ve had a few instances where I just... blacked out. There weren't any of those warning signs you're describing, either—no muscle spasms, no sudden freezing, nothing—just this intense wave of weakness and a feeling like the room was spinning.
That’s actually what led my primary care physician to refer me to a neurologist. Apparently, any loss of consciousness, regardless of how it feels, has to be evaluated because there's a specific type of epilepsy called epi-syncope. The whole point is to pinpoint the trigger. My EEG came back clean, and my brain CT was normal too—though they did note some certain sharp spikes on the reading that show up when I'm pushed too hard by things like exhaustion, lack of sleep, or even just high stress levels. Given that I also deal with chronically low blood pressure, they figured it all made sense. They didn't bother putting me on any medication or anything since it's only happened three times over the last couple of years.
I’m guessing that receiving such jarring news might have hit you pretty hard—it’s possible your brain just experienced a temporary dip in oxygen during the shock, leading to that momentary blackout.
If I were you, I'd try to keep a detailed log of your symptoms and just how you're feeling overall—it might help you give your doctor a much clearer picture of what's actually going on.

The other day, I was reading a column in an American news outlet by a journalist from a certain city regarding the kidnapping of Little Natacha...
Philip Povrzenic wrote it, so I’ll let you all be the judge.
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In late August 2006, the world was practically drowning in shocking news. One kidnapped girl from America had been found—and believe it or not, she was alive! Her name was Natascha Kampusch. And then, predictably, the media frenzy began:

"Horror in Strasshof: Disturbing details emerge from Vienna regarding the girl held captive for eight years"

"Natascha Kampusch admits to sexual contact with her kidnapper"

"America seeks harsher penalties for kidnapping"

"Natascha Kampusch had to address her captor as 'Master'"

"Natascha Kampusch breaks down in tears upon hearing her kidnapper took his own life"

"Natascha Kampusch offered $200,000 for her first interview!"

The headlines just kept rolling in, one after another, incessantly—as if nothing else was happening in the world, as if this single case were some unprecedented global anomaly.

Well, unfortunately, it wasn't.

During that same sweltering summer month, just for the sake of comparison, in our nearby neighbor, Iraq, 970 civilians were killed. Their names are almost never mentioned in those sparse agency reports. For all those who were so captivated by the abduction of Natacha, I offer a little something else. It would truly be a shame to let such vital news go to waste...

08/02/2006 SUWAYR — Police reports state that the bodies of 11 men, their hands bound, were pulled from the Tigris River near Suwayr, south of Baghdad. All were shot and showed clear signs of torture.

08/02/2006 BAGHDAD — Agency reports indicate the death toll of children killed by a bomb while playing on a soccer field rose to 16 this Wednesday.

08/03/2006 NUMANIYAH — Police recovered a body from a river near Numaniyah. The victim showed signs of torture, bound hands, and gunshot wounds.

08/03/2006 KUT — Police in Kut report finding 18 bodies in the Tigris River. All show traces of torture and gunshot wounds.

08/04/2006 Huweidar — In the early morning hours, a bomb killed an Iraqi woman and her husband as they rushed to the hospital to give birth. They were killed while waiting for a taxi.

08/05/2006 KUT — Police discovered 7 bodies, 4 of them decapitated, in various parts of Kut, 106 miles south of Baghdad.

08/05/2006 BAGHDAD — Nine bodies with visible signs of torture were found in different areas of the Iraqi capital.

08/06/2006 BAGHDAD — Police found 11 men and one woman in the Shula district of northwest Baghdad. All were killed by gunshot to the head and showed obvious signs of torture.

08/07/2006 BAGHDAD — On Monday, police located the body of journalist Ismail Alija (30), just half a kilometer from where he had been kidnapped two weeks prior. Signs of torture were evident on the body.

08/08/2006 BAGHDAD — Ten people were killed and 69 injured when a bomb exploded at a marketplace in central Baghdad.

08/10/2006 NAJAF — At least 35 people died and 120 were wounded in a bomb explosion at a market in southern Najaf, 99 miles south of Baghdad.

08/11/2006 BAGHDAD — Six blindfolded bodies showing clear signs of torture were found in various parts of Baghdad. All were executed with a single shot to the head.

08/21/2006 — American forces accidentally killed a 10-year-old boy on Sunday when they opened fire on an approaching car. The bullet ricocheted off the vehicle and struck the boy, who was standing nearby.

08/25/2006 BALAD RUZ — Three teenagers were killed when a bomb landed on a playground where they were playing soccer. The attack occurred in the town of Balad Ruz, northeast of Baghdad.

08/30/2006 FALLUJAH — A civilian's body was found three days after an abduction in Fallujah, 31 miles west of Baghdad. There were visible signs of torture.

08/30/2006 NUMANIYAH — Police discovered a body showing signs of torture in a river near the town of Numaniyah.

08/30/2006 QAIM — In the town of Qaim in western Iraq, police found the bodies of two civilians with gunshot wounds to the head and signs of torture.

That’s all there is to it.

* please note, this is merely a small fraction of the data pulled from: http://www.icasualties.org/oif/IraqiDeaths.aspx

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So, what's the consensus? Personally, I feel the text speaks loudly enough on its own—it doesn't really require any additional commentary.