Couch 191: The Lazy Caterer Couch

Mar 17, 2019, 10:19 AM

Glad you have sun, sd.

Mar 17, 2019, 10:23 AM

Oh yeah I am very glad to be going to eye Dr tomorrow too.

Mar 17, 2019, 11:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ScarletPimpernel

I'm so stressed! Problems with selling the house (we owe on our solar and our floors are damaged by the dogs), we're running out of money, I'm worried if I can actually care for my 2 nieces (2 month old and a 1.5 year old), my T leaving, and then my ovary has a cyst and it's been hurting me. I'm trying to stay strong, but it's so hard!

Sending hugs, scarlet. I'm so sorry you're dealing with so much at one time.

skeksi · Mar 17, 2019, 01:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fille_folle

My asthma has been flaring up the past few days. When I was still in bed earlier, I was feeling pretty bad in terms of my symptoms. However, my heart rate was actually much lower than it is normally. That seemed really backwards, and I don't really know what to think. My oxygen saturation was at 92%, so not really bad, but does seem to support that I'm not just imagining the flare. Have you ever heard of this happening? I thought asthma attacks always caused increased heart rate, so I'm confused.

I haven’t heard of that, but I don’t usually check my heart rate during a flare. I would be more concerned about the O2 saturation or peak flow. Are you feeling any better?

atisketatasket · Mar 17, 2019, 02:09 PM

Today's Carolyn Hax column is about reporting an abusive therapist:

Carolyn Hax: Reporting an abusive therapist | The Spokesman-Review

Quote:

Dear Carolyn: I was seeing a therapist for PTSD. This therapist laughed at me at inappropriate times, said weird things to me – including “f@&% off” – spent a lot of time bragging about himself, and said he couldn’t help me and made it sound like it was my fault. I felt like I was a defective person. It took me months to finally decide to try to trust another therapist.

My new therapist is wonderful and would like me to file a complaint against the other one. But I feel it’ll be my word against his, as I’m quite sure he won’t admit to anything. And maybe he just didn’t like me and doesn’t do this to other people.

Am I obligated to report him in case he’s doing this to others? It’s very apparent he doesn’t know how to treat a trauma patient. He also does family therapy and works with alcoholics and drug addicts. Maybe he’s really good in those areas and I would be doing a disservice to those patients. I’m really torn. – C.

Wait a minute. You’re suggesting it’s not worth a complaint if you’re the only one he harmed, and maybe it was your fault?

Oh, kind person. Please see your worth. Hurting you alone is enough.

This alone would be a valid focus of your therapy, to help you value yourself.

Also recognize your complaint won’t be what ends his career. A complaint starts a process, and that process will determine if the therapist himself has exercised judgment bad enough to destroy his own career.

It is so important to lay the responsibilities where they belong and not attempt to carry them all yourself.

As for whether it’s “my word against his,” that’s also an unnecessary focus on the outcome, which, again, is not your responsibility. Your responsibility is to tell the truth about his actions.

Other patients may also have filed complaints, or will soon, each strengthening the others.

Your wonderful new therapist can help you with all of this. You can also call the licensing board to ask what the process is; the one awful time I had to report suspected abuse (of an entirely different sort), I started by asking what, exactly, I was setting in motion. Knowing there were safeguards against triggering an unfounded catastrophe assured me it was safe to share what I knew.

And that’s all I did. I didn’t draw conclusions, fill in blanks, embellish, omit, or presume relevance. It was just: “[blank] happened and [blank] is how I know about it” and left it to those whose job it was to respond.

You have no “obligation” to do this, per se – but don’t discount the potentially therapeutic effect of removing even one of your burdens and putting it where it belongs.

The last sentence sums up how reporting Smaug helped me.

88Butterfly88 · Mar 17, 2019, 02:24 PM

DP_2017 · Mar 17, 2019, 02:50 PM

I drove 3 miles on the freeway today, for me, that's huge. I'm terrified of freeway driving. It was too much so I pulled off but small progress.

Mar 17, 2019, 02:54 PM

I finally figured out a way to remember the difference between redshift and blueshift, astronomically speaking. When an object is moving towards us, the light waves "bunch up" and get shorter and that's blueshift. Moving away from us, the wavelengths get longer and that's redshift (r is farther way than b in the alphabet). I need all the tricks I can figure out.

MobiusPsyche · Mar 17, 2019, 03:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ArtieSwimsOn

I finally figured out a way to remember the difference between redshift and blueshift, astronomically speaking. When an object is moving towards us, the light waves "bunch up" and get shorter and that's blueshift. Moving away from us, the wavelengths get longer and that's redshift (r is farther way than b in the alphabet). I need all the tricks I can figure out.

Redshift is when the waves get rrrrrrreal long.

Mar 17, 2019, 03:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MobiusPsyche

Redshift is when the waves get rrrrrrreal long.

Ooh that's a goodn too! thank you!

atisketatasket · Mar 17, 2019, 03:44 PM

I’ve been reading on and off about celiac disease and unexpected traps to watch for and I learned that IHOP puts pancake batter in their omelets. Really?

I guess it makes them fluffier?

fille_folle · Mar 17, 2019, 03:49 PM

I don't know if I can tolerate this cymbalta withdrawal. The physical symptoms of withdrawal weren't that bad... But the psychological symptoms have started hitting me really hard. I feel so hopeless. I wish I were dead. I don't know if I can tolerate this.

atisketatasket · Mar 17, 2019, 03:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fille_folle

I don't know if I can tolerate this cymbalta withdrawal. The physical symptoms of withdrawal weren't that bad... But the psychological symptoms have started hitting me really hard. I feel so hopeless. I wish I were dead. I don't know if I can tolerate this.

I remember going off Cymbalta. It was hellish. How long have you been off? I remember the first few days as the worst and everything evening out after a week or so.

fille_folle · Mar 17, 2019, 03:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by atisketatasket

I remember going off Cymbalta. It was hellish. How long have you been off? I remember the first few days as the worst and everything evening out after a week or so.

The taper started 2/27. I stopped the final 30mg last week. I was on Cymbalta for 14 years @120mg. I feel like my brain is broken. I just feel worse and worse mentally.

fille_folle · Mar 17, 2019, 04:02 PM

I think maybe I need to contact my psychiatrist. I can't do this. But then... what can she do? Nothing. Nobody can do anything. This can't be fixed. My brain is broken.

unaluna · Mar 17, 2019, 04:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fille_folle

The taper started 2/27. I stopped the final 30mg last week. I was on Cymbalta for 14 years @120mg. I feel like my brain is broken. I just feel worse and worse mentally.

Thats barely two weeks, right? I googled it, sounds like you might have ssri stoppage syndrome (or whatever) and could take prozac for a while to mitigate the effects? Or just go back on the cymbalta and taper more slowly. Why did you stop? (Dont have to answer)

fille_folle · Mar 17, 2019, 04:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by unaluna

Thats barely two weeks, right? I googled it, sounds like you might have ssri stoppage syndrome (or whatever) and could take prozac for a while to mitigate the effects? Or just go back on the cymbalta and taper more slowly. Why did you stop? (Dont have to answer)

Cymbalta stopped working. I think the effects probably have been lessened as I did start an SSRI at the same time as I started the taper.

CantExplain · Mar 17, 2019, 04:43 PM

I'm upset because someone called me insensitive.

unaluna · Mar 17, 2019, 04:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by atisketatasket

I’ve been reading on and off about celiac disease and unexpected traps to watch for and I learned that IHOP puts pancake batter in their omelets. Really?

I guess it makes them fluffier?

Yeah ive read about that!! Thats probably why the catholic church advises one to "avoid the near occasions of sin". That phraseology always stood out for me. If you avoid houses of pancakes, the batter cant fall into your aigs.

unaluna · Mar 17, 2019, 05:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CantExplain

I'm upset because someone called me insensitive.

That was insensitive of them to say. So i guess they are the expert.

fille_folle · Mar 17, 2019, 05:20 PM

T wants me to call my psychiatrist. But I don't want to. I can't speak. I hate myself.

atisketatasket · Mar 17, 2019, 05:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by unaluna

Yeah ive read about that!! Thats probably why the catholic church advises one to "avoid the near occasions of sin".

Hmmm...does this mean I have to avoid you?

atisketatasket · Mar 17, 2019, 05:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fille_folle

T wants me to call my psychiatrist. But I don't want to. I can't speak. I hate myself.

It’s Sunday...could you manage a voicemail?

Or do you have any Cymbalta left to take? Not ideal but sounds like triage is needed.

fille_folle · Mar 17, 2019, 05:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by atisketatasket

It’s Sunday...could you manage a voicemail?

Or do you have any Cymbalta left to take? Not ideal but sounds like triage is needed.

I have some Cymbalta left.
T wants me to call her emergency number. I am scared to call my psychiatrist. Is this really an emergency? I don't want to bother her. Feel guilty enough for bothering T. I don't want to get in trouble for calling my psychiatrist and bothering her on Sunday evening. But now maybe T will be mad if I don't call her. I shouldn't have contacted T. Feel like they both hate me. I think maybe I'm not being entirely rational, but I can't seem to help myself.

Mar 17, 2019, 05:51 PM

i dont want to give up my endless spring version of my childhood

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