Gabapentin (Still!)
 

Hi,

I am used to the Gabapentin at 400 mgs per night. That is seven nights in a row (Since Dec 14).

Tonight/ Friday/ Dec 21, I am increasing it again.
Tonight's dose is 400 mgs plus roughly a half of a 100 mgs capsule for 450 mgs.

I am holding onto the hope that Gabapentin can work for me.

M

I am hung over today. :p

aw man, I wish it were easier to find a happy medium between some sleep and hung over :Heart:

Hi, Butterfly,

I am trying to get up to a 600 mgs dose to help with nerve pain and with anxiety and depression. That is my hope.
This medication does not help with sleep.


M

I can tell you my experience was positive with it for years Mari, I had no idea though it was working on my anxiety until I weaned off it and that came flooding back! Now many years later I asked for it again and was rx'd it at 900 mgs, I take 300 mg 3 times a day and the results are really remarkable. I don't feel hung over with it at all even at this level. I hope it helps you like it has me Mari. :)

Thank you, Pam,

That is helpful.

I am glad that it works for you.

Mari

I also love it for pain.

I take 600mg twice a day. I think. Sorry its getting late.

Donna:hug::grouphug:

Hubby brought light to my life
 

Hi,

The two light fixtures on the ceiling in the living room have been out for probably a year. The room does have two crappy flour lamps. Hubby has not seen fixing the darkness as a priority partly because the lamps had the added complication of being remote controlled.
The other day, he spent ten hours learning the wiring.
My lights are working!!
This one is similar to the two we have except ours have four bulbs each.
http://i372.photobucket.com/albums/o...psb48f56ee.jpg

Being in that living room feels so much better now.

Perhaps I like him more.
M

Hangover
 

I'm sorry that your getting a hangover efect from the meds.it seems to happen with a lot of antideprssents and pain killers hopefuly when it builds up in your systum that will stop,happy to hear you once again have light have a grate holliday:grouphug::hug:

I'm sorry Mari, I misunderstood. I hope it helps with your nerve pain and anxiety. Cool on your ceiling fan working now! :Heart:

wine 8 hours before routine blood work at the lab?
 

Hi,

The instructions for blood work at the lab in the morning say "fasting."
Do you think that it is ok that i ate a meal around 9:00 p.m. and then had a five oz glass of wine at 3:00 a.m?
My appointment is at 11:00 a.m.

I suppose that I should get to bed so that I can get to the lab for my appoint.
HA. :ROTFLMAO: HA. :ROTFLMAO: HA.
http://www.easyfreesmileys.com/smileys/lol-045.gif
(Bedtime . . . . right . . . . I am wide awake.)

M

Hmmm, I don't know how that could effect bloodwork. Sorry you were up last night, too. :Heart:

how did it go?

Hi,

I got there 45 mins late but it was o.k.
The tech made a weird comment about how I was getting a lot drawn. I explained that my doc is thorough.

My doc will have the results in two working days and I have an appointment with her Friday, Jan 4.

M

parents
 

Hi,

My sister said that Mom and Dad cancelled Christmas dinner for tomorrow. They both went to bed early with fevers.
I am worried about them.
I wonder also how this affects their visit here Thurs Dec 27.

M

It sounds as if they are taking care of themselves. I hope they feel better.
bobby

Awww, so sorry to hear your parents are sick Mari. I hope the blood work is good. I hate going in and having blood drawn. It's even harder for my son. I hope that you have a Merry Christmas/Happy Holiday & Happy New Year in spite of things....♥

My sister and one of my brothers talked to my mom around the same time today. Mom told them that she feels "icky," Dad was sleeping, and they both still have fevers.

I told my sister to check on them again later in the day.

oh dear
 

I hope your parents both feel better soon Mari.

I wish i'd caught the post about the bloodwork and alcohol, i'd have suggested to move the appointment.

Being late works in your favor - makes it nearly 9 hours after the alcohol. Alcohol affects digestion, glycogen processing, hydration, electrolytes and thus potentially many lab values. That said, 4 oz is not much wine and 9 hours may be enough but I would inform your doctor as to 1. time you ate, 2. time of wine, 3. time of blood draw, and let her do the math... as to whether she needs another draw.

If there are abnormal values, a proper fasting draw to confirm them would probably be a good idea. Many tests require 10-12 hour fasts. If you are ever uncertain, call the lab and ask. they know how long of a fast is sufficient for each test.

FYI, I personally avoid all alcohol 24 hours before a blood draw. i do realize you had a very unusual coincidence here.

I hope your Christmas was good other than your folks being ill. My dad has also come down with something this year and was running a fever but he is improving. I hope your folks follow suit.

Take care :hug::hug::hug:

~ waves ~ sorry about not catching this in time to have been more helpful

Waves,

Thanks.

The mdoc will request blood work that the ER took a week or so ago. It had been hours since I ate -- at least 9 hours. She will have that blood draw in front of her when she looks at the blood work from Monday.

I will tell her about the wine. I think she is mostly following or looking for certain things. Maybe those are not affected by alcohol. If they are, she can run the test again.
I feel stupid because common sense might tell a person not to drink before a blood draw and I could have looked it up on line but I had spent the day before completely rearranging the living room and tossing out stuff that did not fit in the room in preparation for my parents's visit. I missed my sleep window that night -- kept working right through it and thought maybe wine would be a good idea for a chance at sleep. I ended up sleeping for four hours.

The ER sent me home with the blood work. I even looked up two irregularities on-line trying to see what was going on. Monday I looked at the sheet again and saw the complete first and last name of a different person.
Someone else has my blood work!!! :mad: :eek:
I hope that their sheet has all results in the good range. :)

M

hey there... no need to feel stupid... feel festive instead?
 

Dear Mari

omg about the bloodwork switcharoo in the ER!!!:eek::mad::rolleyes::( i hope THEY were looking at YOUR bloodwork when they sent you HOME! and of course, i hope it is all in proper range!!! :hug::hug::hug:

i'd probably have called upon seeing the other name, and had a cow over the phone. since you've already had the cow and honey works better than vinegar maybe you could call and find a nice way to say, "Exqueeze me, a baking powder, but wtf and can udumbshts spell PRIVACY? oh, and btw can i get my results, too?" :o:rolleyes:

as to the draws/results.....

the ER one may not be a fasting draw either, depending on the tests done.
different tests call for different fasting periods, can be up to 12 hour.
also fasting means
- no eating
- no drinking anything but water (eg, no unsweetened tea or infusions)
- no herbs or supplements.

so tell mdoc the strict fasting periods for both the ER test, AND the "wine" test, as well as about the actual wine, and then, don't worry. let her sort it out.

ehhh, if you were in the mood for wine... you probably weren't in the mood to consider the effect on the lab draw. holiday incident. try not to beat yourself up. things will work out fine you'll see. i'm only here dotting i's and crossing t's coz i want to make sure you don't let embarrassment get in the way of a medical process.... because i want you to get the proper care.

i sure don't mean to beat on you and please don't beat on yourself. if you only knew how many tests i put off because i absentmindedly have a piece of candy or cheese at 2 am lol. (testing time here only runs till 9.30). :p:rolleyes:

:hug::hug::hug:

~ waves ~

Waves,

I am almost certain that I last ate that day before 12:00 noon. I posted that here because by 12:45 a.m. that night in the hospital I was hungry and had eaten nothing since the banana smoothie in the a.m. My plans to eat a snack before the evening event were disrupted by my efforts to 1) get to the mdoc's office before closing for her note, and 2) get to the event by 5:30 pm. I did drink water. I was mindful of not eating crap in the vending machines in the ER waiting room until after the blood draw.

The ER paperwork (such as it is) will have the time of their draw. Whatever they did or whatever documents the ER sends to the mdoc will have to do even if they are clearly not mine. (Mdoc and I might recognize that they could be mine because the numbers might be consistent with what she and I have been watching for almost four years. ) If it turns out the wine messed up the tests she wanted, she can wait 3 months for me to go to the lab if she needs a re-do. I have had enough for now. I will inform her about the wine. I will especially ask her to talk to me about chest pains and how to know when they are serious.
In addition, I am hoping she can recommend a better hospital for me.


My seriousness about the blood draw ( i.e. no wine) wasn't helped by my speaking two days before with the person in the mdoc's office who does the office blood draws/ blood paper work. I had asked her if the lab would be o.k. with a fasting blood draw if I showed up in the afternoon because I needed to stay up night "working" (let's say). The person told me that it would be o.k. to eat a little something in the morning when I got up, which I took to be around 8 or 9 a.m.

Anyway, I need to see her not only for the blood work. I am going to focus on showing up at the appointment because for some reason (can't remember exactly why at the moment.)
I think that my thoughts are along the lines of how she needs to
1 get me a referral to an orthoped --- she mentioned that the last time but we were covering sooooooooo much ground
2 probably fully update my FMLA folder
I will discuss with her the results of my then increased dose of Gabapentin -- even though pdoc is writing those 'scripts now

And there is a good chance that her own office person can do the blood draw after she and I finish the appointment.

M

Gabapentin dose at 500 mgs
 

Hi,

I believe I took 500 mgs of Gabapentin two nights in a row.

To be conservative, I will note here that I took 500 mgs starting December 25.

I want to work up to a three weeks of 600 (six hundred) to decide if it is helping with stuff.

M

Meditiation
 

Waves,

I moved your waves medication to here from another thread.

I found a four hour youtube of waves. Maybe that will help.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2m2bzWVRph4
Sounds of Waves without any background music

M

update about visit from Parents
 

Hi,

For eight months, my parents have been planning to visit. Then they both got hit with a virus a few days ago.
They are getting better but mom does not feel well enough to get on a plane.

Dad is coming by himself for three nights.
Hubby and I will pick him up at the airport tomorrow/ Thursday and let him borrow my car so he can still stay at night in the nearby hotel as he planned.

I will miss being with Mom.

M

I am sorry that your mother does not feel well enough to travel and that you will miss her. Enjoy your fathers visit. hope it is warm there. bizi who is snowed in at our inlaws.

HI Mari,

sounds like you have your ducks in a row for the meeting with mdoc. and yes the other things are really important too. i hope you did not feel pressured by my posts. i realize now i was getting pretty insistent persistent etc and maybe got carried away. if i was annoying, please forgive me. :o

i am glad you will discuss the chest pains with her and see if she can guide you in how to know if they are serious or not. i would be interested in what she says too.

good luck with the appointment. :heartthrob:

~ waves ~

thank you for this link! :) i can probably find a way to set that up so that my laptop goes into standby after say an hour of play, so i don't have to turn it off when i am half asleep.

I am sorry your mom won't be well enough to come. Glad both parents have though. Enjoy your time with dad.

Happy Saint Stephen's Day. :) :hug::hug::hug:

~ waves ~

Hi Bizi good to see you... I hope you had a good Christmas and that the weather "lets you out" soon! :o :hug::hug::hug::hug:

Happy Saint Stephen's Day!

~ waves ~

Waves,

I do not ever feel pressured by your posts. I appreciate them.

I have an Uncle Stephen. My mother usually remembers this feast day.

M

Mari I'm sorry that your Mom can't go to your house. Safe travels to your Dad! I hope your time together is fun & enjoyable. :Heart:

Bizi sorry to hear ya'll are snowed in. That is, if you're sorry. Maybe you're happy to stay a few extra days where you are. :Heart:

Hi Waves. I didn't know that there was a Saint Stephens day,but I know who Stephen was. This is from the Book of Acts,in the New Testament. He was a man filled with Faith,and was stoned to death for proclaiming his faith.

My birth name is also Stephen. It is pronounced Steven. Some people pronounce it Stefan. I heard the mis-pronunciation all my life. So I just go by the name Steve. BF:hug::hug::hug:

Saint Stephen's and name days...
 

Steve!!!

Oh wow! With the shortening, I had not connected it but yes, St. Stephens day (Dec 26) is YOUR Name Day! :) And btw, I've always and heard St. Stephen pronounced Steven, like yours! However, those who pronounce their name Stefan or even spell it that way would have the same name day since it is simply a variant of the saint's name.

Here and in other countries, St. Stephen's Day (a.ka. the Feast of Stephen) is celebrated as a national holiday and I'm not sure of the reason for that.

However per the Roman Catholic calendar of saints, a feast day is established for each saint - typically the saint's birthday. In Catholic tradition, individuals bearing the name of a certain saint commemorate that saint's feast day, as their own Name Day.

So, in your case, on Saint Stephen's Day, one would wish you a "Happy Name Day." Here there are even cards printed with such greetings, even though much fewer people observe name days nowadays.

Welll............ after all that.............

I hope you had a Happy Name Day this year, dear Stephen! :):Heart:

~ waves ~

Awww.:) Thank you Waves. BF:hug::hug::hug:

Dad made the trip here. Mom stayed home.
 

Hi,

Hubby and I picked up Dad at the airport earlier (Thursday). He looked good but he said he woke that morning with chills . . . determined to travel anyway.

Mom stayed home. She had a lot of congestion and that would stink to fly with that. I guess a fever might not be so bad --- even if it is bad form to fly and expose other passengers.

Hubby and I hung out with him at our house over tea, sent him on to his hotel with my car to check in and put away his stuff, and then went with him to dinner at his favorite New York style Italian restaurant. When we got home to our place after dinner he asked for juice. I went out for orange juice and grape juice for him.

He says he will sleep in and meet us back here at our place ready to go to lunch at 10:45.
Maybe I should sleep now so I can be half awake at 10:45. HA. :cool: :confused: :rolleyes:

M

hope your mom and dad feel better. hope just having your dad with you makes things easier. does it?
bobby

Bobby,
Yes, it is easier with just one of them. Hubby is more relaxed too.

M

Indiana, got hit really big time by the snow. Not sure exactly where Bizi was, but guessing in Indy, were they had between 8 to 10 Inches of snow.

Some area's had 12 inches. I was in Kokomo till today and we had around 5 inches I believe. And I came home today.

Donna:grouphug::hug:

Mari I am so happy for you that you dad is staying at a hotel. I think that makes for a much healthier family dynamic. I wish my in-laws could grasp that a hotel is a great thing and take a lot of stress off both sides. Glad it seems to be going well. Hope your mother improves at home. :Heart: