cbhaga01

I had two MRI's this past spring. One for my brain and one spinal. Both came back clean. I was surprised by how pleasant the experience was, to be honest. I dozed off during the second one.

Bruh. Your kidneys are fine. There could be a million different reasons for why your BUN levels are slightly off. Reasons so insignificant, they can vary from day to day. Kidney issues aren't subtle. When you have them, you know you have them. There's no second guessing it. And even if they are acting up (which they're not), remember that you have two. You can live with one. And if they're both being assholes, you get a transplant and you're golden. Hell, I'll hook you up with a kidney if you're really desperate. As long as you agree to pay off my student loans 🍻

Hey folks. So, my wife and I are getting ready to sell our home. We've got an inspection lined up for next week. Way back before Christmas, we checked something up in our attic (where we never go) and noticed a large mound of hay way in the back. We knew we had to get that cleaned up, whatever the cause, before next week. Yesterday, I put on an N95 respirator mask, safety goggles, one of those full-body coverall suits with the hood (like you see painters use), two sets of thick gloves, and booties. I was in the attic for roughly 20 minutes. I ended up pulling two of those huge black contractors bags full of hay out of there. At no point did I see any bird droppings, nor signs that the nest was actively being used. But, in the midst of doing that, I had a full-blown panic attack. In the dark, with only my flashlight on to show me all the shit that was flying up off that nest, I had the terrible thought of, "What if I didn't get my mask sealed tightly enough?" Cue freakout. I got out of there and immediately took a super long, hot shower. Today I feel okay. I've got a slight tickle in my throat, but that could very well be allergies. The idea of something like histoplasmosis freaks me out a bit, but Dr. Google says it's usually pretty mild. I'm more concerned with getting some of the more obscure shit, like the stuff that causes brain swelling. If I get brain damage from cleaning out a bird's nest, I am going to be pissed. Do you guys think I have anything to worry about? Do you have experience with stuff like this? TIA!

I'm three weeks out from my second Pfizer shot. So is my wife. Other than feeling like someone had taken a baseball bat to our arms for a day or so, we're absolutely fine.

Final update: Got the results of my brain scan back today. Totally clear. I do not have MS. At this point, all signs indicate a vestibular issue, as I'd previously mentioned. I'm going to get back into my VRT exercises and try to start enjoying life again.

The saga continues: Got a call from the neurologist's office today at work out of nowhere. They said they'd submitted an appeal to my insurance and got the brain scan approved after all. I go in next Tuesday afternoon. To be honest, I'm super anxious, super annoyed (because I feel like this should have happened already), but almost a bit relieved. Getting clear results from the spinal MRI helped calm me down, but I didn't get that definitive answer that I wanted. So, while I'm amped up quite a bit again, I'm not nearly as bad as I was the first time. I'll update this again next week. Fingers crossed, folks.

I got it last Thursday. They hooked me up with the Pfizer shot. It was fine! The shot itself hurt less than a flu vaccine. My arm was pretty sore for a day or two, but again, less than the flu shot. I did feel a bit of fatigue for a few hours. Nothing extreme, however. You're gonna be fine. Get the shot 🍻

UPDATE! Ended up having a spinal MRI and not a brain scan. My insurance denied it on grounds that it wasn't "medically necessary". I took that as a sign. Test results came back completely normal. Neurologist said there was no reason to follow-up. So, while I didn't get an ironclad answer to my worries, I feel much, much better. Also, my wisdom teeth surgery went great! I'm still on soft foods, but I'm 90% better. And I've lost 8 pounds in the past two weeks while still drinking milkshakes most night, so that's pretty awesome.

MS. Multiple times. I'm just now coming down from a recent scare that had me in shambles for three weeks. Ended up getting a spinal MRI which came back completely normal (insurance denied a brain scan, saying it wasn't "medically necessary"; I took that as a sign).

Isn't that the truth? I saw several dermatologists when I was younger who I can honestly say were in the room with me for less than an entire minute. They didn't even give me time to ask them questions.

My top two are perfectly straight. My bottom two are both sideways. Those have potential to be a complete pain in the ass. But I'm loaded up on protein shakes and Superman ice cream, so I'm ready to rock.

Oh, the MRI isn't until the Monday after next. Yesterday was just an initial consult. I'm having to wait on it due to me getting my wisdom teeth out next week 🤮

Hey folks. I went through a big M*/A** scare back in 2013 after I had an inner ear infection (note: I was never really dizzy). I had quite a bit of buzzing, twitching, etc. I never saw anyone about it, and when my anxiety finally subsided, it went away. When I had the inner ear stuff, I experienced roughly 3-4 months of what I would call a "haziness". My brain wasn't foggy, per se; it was more like I hadn't got enough sleep the night before, but all the time. There's just general sense of something being off, but I can function like normal. It finally diminished as well. Since then, I've went through two more bouts of said haze, the current one lasting since around Thanksgiving. I saw my GP, who told me to check with an ENT. He also suggested I see a neuro, just to put my mind at ease. The ENT appointment was awesome; the guy explained that not all vestibular issues are with the ears, and it could be my neck, eyes, etc. He gave me exercises to do and told me to work on them for the next few months. He was confident I'd get back to normal soon enough. That's been a month ago and I'm slightly better, but not all the way. So, yesterday, I saw the neurologist. Let me start off by saying this dude was a trip. He wasn't American, so there was definitely some cultural differences at play, but his mannerisms were just sort of off-putting, to say the least. I described what I was dealing with and he began asking questions. He asked if I'd ever injured my neck. I told him I'd sprained it back in 2009 and had issues with it ever since. He then did reflex tests all over, then mentioned I was hyper reflexive and positive for something called Hoffman's sign, as there was weakness in my ankles. He wants me to do an MRI to check my neck. He also wants to check my brain "just to be safe". When I point blank asked him if he thought I might have the big M, his response was "let's see what the MRI says". Now I'm beyond scared. He mentioned a possible neck compression, which would make sense with the pain I've had for years. But I'm 100% convinced they're going to find something more sinister there and I don't know if I can take it. I keep trying to remind myself that he himself never mentioned anything neurological, so maybe I shouldn't panic. But I can't help it. Anything you guys can relate would be sincerely appreciated.

Hi Bella! Blood work said by thyroid levels were fine, but my vitamin D was deficient. I've been taking supplements for the last five days now and I'm already starting to notice a difference. Well, as much of a difference as I can with my anxiety still through the roof. Hey, maybe you can help me with something in the test, though: my thyroid hormone levels were low? I think? They were 0.559. The normal range is 0.25 to 4.2. But apparently that means mine is working super well? I don't get that.

@Nutmegbella I'm getting my thyroid checked out tomorrow. Vitamin levels too. My wife has hypothyroidism and she deals with issues being cold, especially if she forgets to take her meds for a few days. And I just found out yesterday that my dad, grandma, and two of my aunts all have thyroid issues, leading me to believe I may have just been a ticking timebomb all along. On the plus side, though, I don't have covid!!