Couch 244: Great Expectations

ArtieTheSequal

is anybody here tba i'm kinda messed up rn

ArtieTheSequal

nvermind

LostOnTheTrail

Hey, Artie.

Hope you're OK. I'm around if you need.

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LonesomeTonight

Hugs, Artie. Hope you were able to get some sleep and are doing OK today, Artie (well, you're in a different time zone, so probably still asleep!) I think it's fine to ask L for a 30-minute phone call--you deserve support. And post here all you want. Feel free to PM me, too!

comrademoomoo

... And drink plenty of electrolytes when you wake up!

LostOnTheTrail

I'm feeling bowled over by deep gratitude for R today.
She's on leave next week, but contacted me this morning to bring our next session forward by a day.

It just so happens that the day she wanted to move it to is the second anniversary of Steve's death.



She has a boundary about not keeping up an ongoing conversation with clients between sessions, but I had to share that...and I think she understands what that means to me.

'Oh wow. As you are aware, I believe that certain things happen for a reason. I'm glad that my small headache happened now.'

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ChickenNoodleSoup

Hugs to all of you who want or need them, I hope you guys are hanging in there!

I'm currently not doing so great, kind of trying to move out from the place I share with my partner because of DV. It sucks because I own part of the property and it would really all be great and nice, my life would be almost perfect if it wasn't for his behavior which is probably due to untreated Aspergers... but he doesn't want to work on it and I'm getting to the point where I'll have to move out. I'm not online a lot because I just feel too down, but I try to keep up with what's going on here and think of you guys!

NP_Complete

In 12 days my therapist is leaving for a 3 week trip to Europe. I'm feeling anxious about it. We are going to have contact during that time. He offered, I didn't ask or expect it. I wish I could be like "just go and forget about me", but I honestly need some sort of contact.

LostOnTheTrail

Wow, NP.

That's a long time.
I'm glad that P offered contact, and also that you can recognise what you need.
I also hope that you can find ways to distract during this time.

I hope it passes quickly for you.

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LonesomeTonight

Hugs if wanted, CNS. It's good you're advocating for yourself. If someone refuses to work on things, then that's on them.

LonesomeTonight

Hugs, NP. I'm glad you'll have contact during that time. I completely understand feeling anxious--I feel anxious when my T is away for a week (or even less).

LonesomeTonight

Ugh, I just tested positive for Covid. I really thought this was just allergies, or possibly a mild cold? Not sure if I got it at the concerts I attended Tuesday/Wednesday. But I was also feeling a bit off both Tuesday and Wednesday, but chalked it up to allergies. My daughter has also been sniffly all week, but she also has been off and on for the past month or two (she has seasonal allergies, and pollen is especially high in my area right now--including two that I know I'm allergic to by testing). I feel bad because she was supposed to spend the night at my parents' this weekend, but I guess that's out now.

I have moved my HEPA air purifier to right next to me, opened some windows, and am wearing a mask. We'll test D when she gets home, I guess. And H. I mean, if they're positive, I can dispense with the mask. On the plus side, we live in a house with lots of floors, so can generally isolate.

The one good thing is that I opted to meet with Dr. T virtually today out of an abundance of caution. Though I'd have tested this morning, too, if I were going in person. He's lucky I love him!

RTerroni

I got to the Therapy office around 2:30 but than they told me that my session was at 3:30 so I came back than but than the Therapist told me that he had any client before me so I am still waiting in the office. I talked things over with the manager and he told me he would try to get things resolved. I am not sure how much longer I will wait, if the Therapist tells me he still has another client to see I will just leave.

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COVID-19 Survivor- 4/26/2022

LostOnTheTrail

I hope you manage to get it figured out, RT.

I'm sorry LT - I hope you don't feel too poorly, it passes quickly, and that you haven't passed it onto H or D.

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LonesomeTonight

Thanks, Lost! This is actually the first time I've tested positive since the pandemic started. I don't know whether I somehow avoided it when H and D had it last August or whether I just had false negative tests (all home tests). I did feel somewhat ill for a few days before they had it then, but I was always negative. And I also was in a car with D for an hour the day she tested positive. I thought maybe I was one of those people who had some random immunity to it, but apparently not.

I am going to test again with the kind of test I trust more later, but I've read to pretty much always trust a positive test (less so a negative one), and this turned positive within 5 minutes (and stayed that way).

LostOnTheTrail

I empathise with you. I had my first bout in March, after avoiding it for three years.
You are right to trust a near-instant positive.

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comrademoomoo

Oh no, I hope you don't feel tool grim LT. Go slowly with stuff. I don't know what the current strains are like but when I had Covid (two years ago), I felt really ill even when I started testing negative. Regular paracetamol helped and lots of rest and water.

LonesomeTonight

Thanks, Comrade! I worry this will change, but it really just feels like seasonal allergies or a minor cold right now. Maybe it will get worse? I did have a bivalent booster in November, though that was 6 months ago.

H and D just tested negative, so I guess I'm likely patient zero, and it's masks/air purifiers in the house for me for the foreseeable future during waking hours. Unless they test positive later. Unfortunately, the room where I spend most of my time doesn't have a door (our house is weird).

LonesomeTonight

Thanks, Lost. It does kinda suck in a way to get it after avoiding it for so long! I don't think Dr. T has had it yet either--pretty sure he would have told me if he had--certainly if he had in the past year or so that I've been seeing him in person.

I did email him--I hope he'll give me a kind response. When D and H had it last year and I was worried about it ruining our family vacation with my parents that D looked forward to, he said it seemed like I was acting the victim. When that wasn't what it was, in the sense that it wasn't about me--I was worried D would miss something she loved doing.

Maybe he will just be filled with gratitude that I didn't go in person today! And that I agreed to let him put someone else in my slot yesterday (he was out Wednesday for some graduation that he had to attend--not his son--which he said really messed up his schedule).

LonesomeTonight

Struggling right now because my daughter is upset about her plans to see my parents being canceled. And then I told her she needed to keep her distance from me to stay healthy. This is triggering my feelings about being contaminated. I'm crying, but it's difficult because I'm wearing a mask. Trying to not really breathe out except into a tissue when I blow my nose. (They did say if she and H still test negative Sunday, they'd be willing to meet them at a restaurant outside. Not with me, of course!)

I wish I had tested this morning--assuming I would have tested positive then--so that I could have talked to Dr. T about this. Once he replies to my email, I want to ask if by some chance he has anything Sunday (he works about a half-day that day), but I doubt he does.

It really doesn't help that my mom was all like "We've been careful and sanitized for the past 3 years and have avoided getting Covid." Right, yes, but they've been eating in restaurants indoors for like 18 months, not wearing masks in stores, etc. It's not like they've just been holing up in their house. Plus, I mean, I avoided it for 3 years! That's a really long time, especially considering I have a relatively young child in school. So now I feel judged by her, too.

Sorry for whining--I know I probably deserve what I got for taking a risk...if this is even from the concerts (I had some sort of symptoms a couple days ago).