I found a very helpful website. sm

This website has a special section.... [2007-10-03]
a special section for people who cut. Iself-harm was, but this site might help regardless. Here http://otep.forumsunlimited.com/index.php?showtopic=14844 I think the band Some rude people go on the board from time to time. It is a metal band, and some people just try to act rude and tough, but I don If so, please don Some people are just insensitive and uncaring!

Another website [2007-09-24]
Asperger's syndrome has some of these characteristics (sensory input issues, spinning/rocking to handle it) www.weirdnotstupid.com

I found a very helpful website. sm [2007-09-07]
Anxiety Disorders Association of America. They have a lot of information on all kinds of axieties and phobias in kids and adults. Has anyone else had to deal with their child being this way?

All the answers can be found in a pill.... [2007-08-14]
Therethey know it. It Why more people don A huge step in bettterment of our society would be turning off the damned TV, but that-)

Anxiety [2008-06-06]
This sounds like a definite anxiety reaction. Do you have fears that if you don't visit your dad's grave, that something bad will happen? (I ask because that is a common type of thing.) You should ask your therapist if she (or if she knows of someone who) is good at handling OCD issues. I have had a very stressful last few years (won't go into it all), but I have had lots of anxiety, problems with sleeping, restless legs (whole body actually), etc. It sucks. Also, have you listened to any of the A New Earth series on the Oprah.com web site? I have found that very helpful. Hang in there!!

Mental Health - stigma [2008-01-20]
I just found this article, and although it concerns schizophrenia, it covers any mental illness and the stigma attached: http://www.relevantmagazine.com/life_article.php?id=7517#pagetop

BPD site [2007-11-24]
I found this site: http://www.dbsalliance.org/site/PageServer?pagename=home Haven't checked it out, but it seems legit.

Your welcome. [2007-10-03]
Glad to hear you have a loving family. I I hope you do check out that Otep website (if you haven They have a whole You are not alone section where you can ask for advice on anything, which I think is great. I try to get on there and give advice (and sometimes get advice) when I can. Sometimes it just helps to know someone else is going through the same thing you are! Feel free to email me if you ever want to. Take care.

Me, too! Only I wasn't lucky enough to have parents - sm [2007-09-28]
that recognized there was a problem. My mom said when I was an infant that if my dad so much as rattled his newspaper too much, I'd start screaming. Was afraid of fireworks, TERRIFIED of thunder. Got stressed out in crowded, chaotic conditions. All my life it has sounded like the whole world has the sound up too high. As an adult, I never go to the movie theater because the sound is way too loud. If I see a live show (musical, rock concert, opera, etc.) I wear earplugs. Have difficulty dealing with background noise (dryers, dishwashers, and ESPECIALLY leaf-blowers, etc.) Even enjoyable activities, such as Disneyland, were stressful because they were hectic & noisy, and I'd get distracted easily, so usually was the kid in my family that got lost. Finally, about 45 years later, I was diagnosed with depression. Most likely it started in childhood, but back then I don't think most people even knew it existed. I know my parents sure didn't. One of the strongest triggers for my depressive episodes was continual exposure to noise, even if it was very slight background noise, like neighbor's loud stereos or set of windchimes. Going onto an SSRI made a HUGE difference in my ability to cope with a noisy world. For some reason it makes me less over-reactive to it. (At the very least, it enables me to count to 10 before I explode because of it.) I still need a LOT of quiet-time per day, more than the average person, but the SSRI makes it possible to endue at least some exposure to noisy surroundings. My aversion to noisy office settings and hectic surroundings is the MAIN reason I got into MT. It is also a main reason why I quit working inhouse and now work at home. A number of years ago, I stumbled onto a very interesting book. ItThe Highly Sensitive Person: How to Thrive When the World Overwhelms You by Elaine N. Aron. Almost everything she talked about in the book hit the nail right on the head. (She even mentions in one chapter how HSP's (highly sensitive persons) often choose medical transcription as a career. If you can find the book, it will give you a lot of insight into what makes your son tick. I recommend it very highly! I hope some of the above info. is helpful to you! From another HSP!

ERMT & Hayseed - (sm) [2007-09-28]
Please check out the message I wrote a few lines above.... near the bottom I mention a book I found that was very enlightening for me. Hayseed, knowing what your comfort zone is, and trying to stay in that zone as much as possible is a GOOD thing, as Dr. Aron says in her book. It helps keep you balanced, grounded, functional, happy, etc. etc. Anyway, after reading the book it proved that we sensitive people are NOT crazy, just a little too highly tuned-in. (Or high-strung, as they used to call me as a kid!) There may be some things we can't (or don't want to) do in life, but there are so many other things that sensitive people are good at that the average thick-skinned person has no clue about. WeESP usually works better than most people's. We're highly tuned-in and sensitive to animals, as well, and better than most at communicating with them, especially non-verbally/mentally. Anyway, donMy over-sensitive hearing makes me a a lousy neighbor, but a good transcriber!

I felt awful for a day or two, [2007-09-27]
but the problem was nausea. I did better when I would take one and then skip a day for a few days, and then once I felt fine doing that, I could take it every day and had no problem with it. I was started on 60 mg, too. I had previously been on Effexor, which is fairly similar, but causes people a lot more problems, per my psychiatrist. My psychiatrist uses Cymbalta and one other drug for depression more than any others. I believe the other is Lexapro. (I think I've posted all this before). But the reason she favors the 2 drugs is that most patients actually stay on them (presumably because they are satisfied and have no unacceptable side effects). The compliance rates are much higher than any of the other antidepressants. No drug works for everybody, however. A psychiatrist is the best person to work with you and evaluate what should be most helpful for you. I hope you are feeling better soon. By the way, I can now eat fine, yet I'm not terribly interested in food. I'm down to 132 lbs from about 150, which is just about ideal for me.

volunteer or get an easy PT job to meet people (sm) [2007-08-25]
Do you have children or can you get an easy evening PT job? Or volunteer at a hospital maybe? There is also a website called exercisefriends.com where you can meet people to walk with, etc. I met one of my best friends through there a couple of years ago. Get job at a mall in the Orange Julius shop just for the heck of it. Book a trip with a group - look online for your area - there are group trips planned all the time. Church is definitely an option. Call some of your married friends and tell them that you know they may feel awkward about inviting you to go out with them, but you are inviting them - invite them to go somewhere with you. It is awkward for people who knew you as a couple. They are probably afraid of making you feel uncomfortable. So if you reach out to them, it will be much easier for them. I'm so sorry for your loss by the way :-( I know it must be so hard.

Widows [2007-08-13]
Are there any other young widows out there? My husband died suddenly of a massive MI 2 years ago and I am still having a hard time coping. I am only 44, and I was not expecting to have to deal with all of this at my age. One of the things I figured out fairly quickly was that I cannot work at home alone, so I have returned to school for nursing. However, I am very lonely. Our friends, all still happily married couples, rarely think to include me in outings anymore, and I am not sure where to meet new friends my own age. I just want someone I can call and say let's go shopping or get some lunch. I actually dread weekends because I know I will be sitting here alone. I am very outgoing, and have tried various venues to meet people including school and the gym. I talk to people every where I go, but still no one to hang with. Does anyone have any suggestions for me? PS: I should state that I went throgh grief counseling which was very helpful in that they old me everything I was feeling was normal, and I was not going crazy, but that doesn't help with the loneliness.

BEATS YODA [2007-07-04]
Ahh, umm, is better than listening to Yoda who states, Fine, is the patient, she stated. I could live with that, but he goes on and on for 12 minutes with more of the same and worse. I knew I should have found a way to pay for medical school. That would have been hard, but not asoverwhelming as feeling tired and listening to Yoda. Maybe we

You don't say exactly what your situation is. sm [2007-07-03]
How long have you been at this? What kind of background do you have? Is this the only place you've ever worked? The reason I ask is that you need to evaluate your skills and your situation, to identify your options. I know some people use Dragon. Personally I didn't find it helpful, although I didn't use the medical edition. It takes extensive training of the software to be effective. If you have time, it might work. Do you have the option of editing? Do you have the familiarity with the BOS and the technical know-how to do this? What about VR? There are companies that offer accounts that really are mostly just correcting work. One that has to have extensive typing of course isn't an option. You might make less on VR than a healthy typist, but I don't think you would make less than a typist with CTS. Sit down and make a list of your strong points. Be honest, but don't short-change yourself. You may have been beaten down for too long by a rude supervisor. For a person to try to continue MT work with severe CTS isn't realistic. See if you can come up with an alternative plan to put in place before you leave your current job. Then talk to your doctor about any medical avenues available, including state aid. I don't know the rules out CTS, never have had it, thank God. And don't hesitate to come to this board and talk. The people here are mostly very supportive, with a few exceptions. Some of them may have been through what you're going through, and be able to offer some practical advice. Good luck with whatever you decide to do.

I agree 100% about Effexor. I take it for anxiety and panic attacks. SM [2007-04-13]
I It lasted for two weeks. I couldn I wore the carpet out from pacing the house. It started with pain in my right rib cage which I knew in my mind was not a heart attack, but apparently my body didn Next thing you know I My panick attack lasted two horrible weeks. I went to my regular doctor who belittled my symptoms and treated me like the loon I already thought I was. I am hypersensitive to medications and everything was giving me stomach upset. I finally found a wonderful nurse practitioner who completely understood what I was going through, said her daughter had panic attacks, and she prescribed me Effexor. I am now titrated up to 150 mg a day and it is wonderful. I feel calm. My teenaged son calls it my chill pill and that about sums it up. Wow, I No one can every really understand a panic attack unless they've been through one themselves.

I had major postpartum depression with both my kids. SM [2007-04-13]
Looking back, I was probably more prone to the postpartum depression because I Anyway, I found that breastfeeding actually added to my anxiety during that time. I wanted to breastfeed because I wanted to be a good mother and quite frankly the nurses at the hospital really pushed breastfeeding. With my second baby, my OB doctor told me that I would be a better mom to my baby if I eased my anxiety. So I stopped breastfeeding and started taking my Klonopin and felt much calmer. Just the decision to not breastfeed anymore took a big load off. I applaud you wanting to breastfeed your baby and I say go for it to women who can successfully do it, but some of us are just not cut out for it and that So if you need to take your medication and switch to bottle feeding your baby, you shouldn Your baby can sense when your anxious and will respond to that. I would say it would be better for your baby to be on a bottle with you calm and soothing rather than breastfeeding and you tensed up. Ya know? I wish you well whatever you decide.