Couch 216: The Baseball Couch

Do you have any kind of device that tracks your heart rate? I would keep an eye on that if you can. Sending love your way

Requesting some advice regarding the grey cat. First, I think I want to get a top entry litterbox because I'm tired of having to constantly be vigilant that my dog is not digging around in the litterbox. My question is how do you get the cat to go inside such a thing? I've heard cats like to go in boxes... are they usually averse to this sort of arrangement?

Another question is about playing with cats and l feel kind of dumb for asking, but I feel ineffective in my attempts. The grey cat has always scorned any and all attempts I've made to play with her, although I think she is a relatively young cat. However, it seems we are making strides in our relationship lately as she has been sticking her butt in my face and has now invited me to play with her on two occasions. However, I was not really sure how to go about it. What she has done when she wants to play is get under my bed (where I have spent 95% of my time since March), then starts swiping a paw up from the gap by the headboard. I was really confused the first time she did it because she was acting like she was on crack and it was seemingly out of nowhere.

I have a feather stick thing (she did swallow a feather one time but she seems fine) and a laser pointer. My dog has appropriated all the other small kitty toys as they are the perfect size for him and she never seemed interested. I have dried catnip and catnip spray.

What sorts of toys do cats like? I remember a friend when I was a kid had some sort of round thing with balls in it that her cats were crazy about.

Also, she is a grazer and this is proving difficult with my dog because even though I try to be vigilant about picking up the food as soon as she stops eating (she asks for it when she wants it again), he sometimes gets in a mouthful of two. This is particularly bad since she's on kitten food for weight gain at the moment. My dog is starting to resemble a Vienna sausage. I'm not sure what to do because if I only feed her a couple of times per day like my dog, she won't get enough to eat and she needs to gain weight, not lose it.

I'd also try to track your heart rate. When I was in the ER last summer for high heart rate, they wouldn't let me leave until it was consistently under 100 resting. Mine was in the 110s and 120s. They had to give me two bags of saline and a valium to get it down (think was mostly dehydration from a GI illness).

If a doctor's telling you to go...

I hope you feel better soon.

I'm anti laser pointer for cats. Part of play for a cat is being able to catch what they are playing with, and you can't really do that with a laser. We used to use a laser pointer with our older cats, but we don't with Helios. He seems to like the dangling toys. We have to hide the toy when we're not playing with him, lest he would destroy it like he destroys everything else that he plays with.

My heart rate is rarely below 100...
I did go to a cardiologist like ten years ago because it got so bad that once I actually thought I was going to die. Had to wear a holter monitor for a week and apparently my heartrate regularly exceeded 180 even when I was sleeping. They prescribed beta blockers but I stopped taking them because they made me tired. It's much better now, but still is rarely below 100. My blood pressure is fine, though! And most importantly, there were no arrhythmias.

SheHulk, could you be dehydrated? Or maybe have a change or increase in meds? My heartrate also increases when I don't get enough sleep, but that may just be me. Was your BP ok?

If your husband was there, that could also be it. Stress and anxiety will do that. Every time I used to try to donate blood (and wouldn't be allowed to because of my heartrate), the nurse would always be convinced I was really nervous.

We tried one of those top-entry through a lid litterboxes but only Penelope would use it. So we washed it and re-appropriated it as a cat carrier for taking diabetic cat to all of his vet visits. I duct-taped a piece of sheer cloth over the hole so he can't get out but can still get air. I think the two bigger cats didn't like it because it wasn't easy for them to get in and turn around or something.

Also as for playthings - Penelope LOVES this one we found, it's a long stick and on one end is a longish string with this inchworm looking thing with google eyes on the top end. He attacks it ferociously and grabs it around the "neck" and tries to get it away from us to drag it off. The other 2 cats I guess are too old for that foolery, haha, they both prefer little catnip-filled soft toys.

She would probably like the inchworm google eye toy. The first thing she expressed an interest in playing with was my earbuds. I would give her some old, broken ones to play with, but they probably have lead in them. I have lots of yarn, though. Maybe I can furnish something...

I forgot about yarn! Silly me. I have crocheted little goofy things for them too. Penny plays with those more than the other 2 though.

My cat likes the wiggly things on a stick , so much so we call it his girlfriend, and a mechanical toy that rotates a fluffy thing with holes for grabbing My daughters cat who picked up as a stray isnt interested in toys that much but will play with your habds and feet under the blanket but a little too earnestly.

I have also had to make a special area on the kitchen bench away from the food prep so the new dog doesnt steal the food. I always keep a handful of dry food in the bowls

Oh wow, re: your heart rate. Maybe that's just normal for you? I worry because my mom has tachycardia issues she has to take meds for that started when she was a teen. She can't do any sort of aerobic exercise, for example, and is prone to heat stroke. So I worry about stuff with my heart. (I did try a beta blocker once for anxiety, but both times I took it I got an immediate bad headache.)

Thank you. It's rarely above 100, maybe sometimes it'll hit 105. The one time I remember when it was this high was when I was septic last year. I guess I also had a low grade fever too according to the chart today. I'm going to keep an eye on everything tonight and see how I feel later or tomorrow and go from there.

Yeah, the septic thing is what concerned me. Result of watching too many medical/hospital shows maybe, but still...can be symptom of that, and I know sepsis can go south really quickly.

Video session with L went really well earlier. She was so helpful and I'm glad I scheduled. The connection was still there as if we'd just seen each other last week. I got some good homework to work on.


It was rather jarring though when she ended the session!! I've seen others comment that as well and I so agree. We said goodbye, she said "I'm ending the session now" and BOOM she was gone. No turning around and waving goodbye on my way out, on this video stuff. Ick, right?!

RE: Cats - I would get a baby gate and put the cat's box and food in the bathroom - the cat can go under the gate but not the dog(if you have a very small dog - I would put the cat box in the bathtub and the cat food on the counter in the kitchen or on a table or dresser that the dog can't get to. My cats are not that interested in toys. They will bat the dogs' tails or sometimes attack my charging cords - but if I pulled a string or something they would look at me like I was nuts -but my cats go in and out of the house through the dog door -so they get excitement outside. I have never had an enclosed cat litter box -but I have been told you have to keep them very very clean or the ammonia smell will repel them -but I don't have any first hand knowledge. My cats love catnip and the dogs will sometimes lick up a little as well. It doesn't hurt the dogs.

Hmm I think I have always been the one to click "leave session." We wind down, she asks me if I have anything else I want to say for today, I say no, she says enjoy your weekend (yeah right) if on a Thursday or have a good rest of the day (haha) if on a Tuesday. I say thanks, you too, then I click leave session. I don't think I would like if the therapist told me she was ending the session now and just disappeared. I guess maybe she would if after we observed the niceties I didn't make a move to leave, though.

Feels too much like the kind of thing you say when hanging up on someone so that the other person can't accuse you of hanging up on them. I have done this when it became necessary to set boundaries with certain people. So I'm probably projecting. But I wouldn't like it. It would not bother me if I was the vendor of services, however - although the phrasing would probably strike me as odd.

It felt jarring at the time, but I got over it pretty quickly. Remembering that she's not the most tech-savvy of folks, I'm just super grateful she's even doing these video sessions. I guess I'd still rather have a jarring end like that, than go in person and sit 6 feet apart wearing masks and not be able give/get a hug at the end. That would be worse.

So I got one of the new Halo Top keto line ice creams, because I had read they were gluten free and the cartons I first looked at all had certified GF on them.

Apparently not all of them, and not the flavor I chose, stupid me for not double checking when I’m usually religious about it. And I’d eaten the first 1/2 cup serving before I realized that.

I can report chocolate cheesecake is an excellent flavor choice. And I can predict severe GI discomfort in about 10-12 hours. I feel like a time bomb waiting to go off.

Cheesecake should have been the clue.

Trying to do an assignment that's due tonight at 1am. It's a role play script. Should be easier than I'm making it out to be. I shouldn't have waited until the last minute to do it because it's hard to stay focused when I feel like 💩

ETA: I was able to get my assignment done and turned in before the time expired. I start an ethics class tomorrow and have 2 weeks left of this class.

You could stay with me before said tornado comes along. After school I'm thinking of moving to either Ireland or Wales.

I also think it would be good just to get checked out.

Tonight i am going to attempt to stay up later as my mood is really affected by my sleep. The longer i sleep the more depressed i am. Usually i go to sleep early because i just cant be awake anymore. I will try for 30 minutes later but if i get 15 thats fine got to start somewhere.

I didn’t end up going to the ED but I’m still feeling awful so I called in sick again. I’m going to see if my PCP has any televisits available for today.

When we first started video sessions, my T would end them, and it felt very jarring to me. Sort of like Art described, he was there, then "poof," he was gone. So I asked if I could be the one to "leave meeting," which he agreed to (the one time he forget and texted me immediately after to apologize, which was nice). So now at the end, after we've said parting words, he just sort of looks at the camera till I click the "leave meeting." It helps a little.


I sort of wish he'd wave or something at the end (he does at the beginning sometimes). I said one time that I'd thought about asking him to put his hand up to the camera like a virtual handshake, and he said, "Like this?" and did that, then I put my hand up. We were both laughing because it seemed goofy but was also kinda nice. I sorta wish we could do that at the end of each time but feel awkward asking for it because it seems silly. Maybe I'll just try asking for a wave.