#i'm trying not to think of the depressing stretch of eps

[dont-let-me-eat-pears]

"a servant of two masters," my most beloved episode

[specialability]

House MD S02

House MD Season 2 done. I think this is when the series was established enough that they flipped the format from the story being mostly about the patients and then the doctors or another patient is the b-plot to focusing on the doctors and the patients are just there to move along the character development. We got:

(cw for brief mention of incest / child rape / transphobia)

House buying a motorcycle in proper midlife crisis fashion

Wilson divorcing his 3rd wife and briefly moving in with House

we almost got House/Stacey and then Stacey left :(

we got Steve McQueen (a real hero)

the Cameron/Chase one night stand

House's parents and some more backstory revealed (he was an army/air force brat)

a mildly interesting narrative frame where they explored the story of the case via Chase retelling it to Stacey and a disciplinary board

House using LSD to stop a self-induced migraine (gotta try that some time)

Incestual child rape of a intersex girl whom House insists on misgendering (I'm pretty sure this ep is high on a lot of people's HateCrimes MD list)

Some really toxic lesbians lmao I gotta say I liked how this one turned out

Corrupt cop vs Foreman, not at all subtle but quite good actually. I think Omar Epps did a great job with it. Stretching out the "I think it's this!" -> patient gets worse -> "This time for sure!" -> patient gets worse cycle across two episodes is a bit much but the interpersonal bits are more entertaining.

Cuddy going on fertility treatments, House gets jealous that she (almost) hits up Wilson but not him and not-so-subtly trashes all her other sperm donor options (she does not ask him for his sperm either, which I personally think is a very correct decision)

And of course the finale, David Shore's foray into directing. It's always fun when tv and movies use editing and cuts between scenes to emulate gaps in memory or hallucinations, due to the fact that when we are watching tv and movies we just accept that he was in his ICU and then on the stairs, that's how video storytelling works. I do generally think it's a bit lazy whenever authors want to dig into a character's psyche so they chain them, literally or figuratively, to their opposite, someone who basically gives them a lecture on themselves. But this time I don't mind because in the end House was basically psychoanalysing himself. Moriarty is his own repressed doubt and self-loathing.

I'm not going to count, but I'm pretty sure every single couple that comes in to this hospital and is treated by House ends up breaking up. Except this season's lesbians. And they were going to break up. There should be like an informed consent form - if you consent to be treated by this doctor and his minions you WILL have any existing romantic relationships completely destroyed in exchange for saving your life.

I also do think it's interesting that they make up this thing about the ketamine coma curing his chronic pain... when ketamine is actually IRL found to sometimes cure depression and there are current clinical trials going on. Trials I would like to be in. Meanwhile I am waiting around to hear about a psilocybin trial... Anyway,even if it didn't cure his chronic pain it might have done something about his mood, but you have to do multiple treatments over months. That's just not dramatic enough though, we gotta get him pathetic and grumpy again ASAP because the show is riding on it

[darkicyninja]

My Journey

I would like to share my story because it took me years upon years to rise to the Phoenix that I am today.

One of my favorite songs from one of my favorite movies Beyond The Lights is Blackbird, both by Nina Simon as well as Noni. The lyrics in Noni’s version, second verse, are:

“Now I rise as the phoenix escapes from me…

…through the fire, through the flames

leaving ashes underneath…

I'm free at last,free from you

free from the past

freedom at last

what is life, other than a cage to me…”

Fibromyalgia will claim me no longer

I first started feeling pain in my back around the age of 14. I have had several injuries: fractured left wrist, fractured left hip, torn MCL in left knee, blunt force trauma to my left eye multiple times, broken toes, broken fingers, swollen meniscus, bursitis, sciatica, solar plexus issues, sprains & strains especially in my neck and spine as well as majority of joints and other issues. All of this was discovered from X-rays and MRIs. The doctors could see my spine very out of alignments with some slight unnatural curvatures acquired from poor posture and other bad habits. Massage, topicals (especially CBD, tiger balm, biofreeze, and Penetrex), and stretches/yoga helped tremendously. By the time I was 17, the pain was so unbearable that I could only lay in bed crying and I had to resign from my job & also had a tough time working ever since.

My father took me to a chiropractor named Dr. Bob W. He adjusted me several times, however the adjustments would not hold. My mother took me to the doctor and he said I needed to see a neurologist. I went and had to get several tests done including a nerve test where they insert a needle into your nerves in your arm. They could see that my muscles were twitching but could not find the cause.

I was referred to physical therapy. I worked hard for 3 months but my pain only got worse. Eventually my pcp prescribed me muscle relaxers, tramadol, and a seizure medication in college. A few days later while taking mt world civilizations exam, I noticed that I could not sit still. The seizure medication was causing tremors which my pcp said was an adverse affect and I was having micro seizures. They took me off of the medication however it took around 96 hours to get out of my system according to the half-life. I still actually have a mild tremor/twitches to this day. After that was the trigger point injections which were very painful as the doctor inserted a need in all of the fibromyalgia trigger points generally near joints as well as nerves and vertebra. Eventually those stopped helping as well.

Then I tried marijuana for the first time. I used to be very against all drugs (straight edge XXX), however marijuana saved my life. Most of my pain was instantly eased away. So I went from social smoker, to buying on occasion, to full bud smoker is a matter of months.

My mother was upset about it though and the stress of moving in with my mom and only smoking bed when she was asleep and outside at that made me pick up the horrible habit of smoking cigarettes. I tried K2 but we all know the horrible adverse affects of that. I first got the Marlboro Skyline but then they discontinued them so I switched to menthol. I just recently switched to menthol golds/lights and actually prefer American spirit but they are so expensive. I started rolling my own cigarettes and blending different tobaccos for a a smoother taste. Then I remembered my friend Age in college used to smoke herbal cigarettes, Luna I believe to be the brand but I think they discontinued them. So I decided with my business (Skull Treats), we will bring back herbal cigarettes and detox from tobacco together. I have been using foot detox pads and they are amazing, another product I am working on.

I actually mix CBD with my THC and it is delicious and makes the bud last longer. I am working on getting my medical marijuana card as well as assisting in legalizing recreational marijuana (clinical trials are being planned). Marijuana assists with so much and I had even read before in a scholarly article that it helps detox your lungs of the harmful tobacco byproducts. I don’t believe that experiment was replicated enough in diverse enough populations, but another research experiment I would love to try.

A slight bio, I graduated from Robert Morris University (BS in Biology 2013), attended Chatham University (MS in biology 2014; did not finish), and Devry University (MS in project management 2014; did not graduate). I am currently attending Harvard University (Certifications in Spanish, Japanese, Psychology of Personal Growth, and Oracles - Omens & prophecies 2021) as well as Shaw Academy (Tarot, Crystal Healing, Alternative Therapies, Jewelry Design, Video Game Design & Development, Mini MBA, Coding, Writing 2021). I will be working on my PhD in biology & psychology hopefully next year at University of Pittsburgh, an affiliate of Skull Treats (most organizations mentioned are or are in the process of becoming official affiliates and majority of research shall be conducted with Pitt/UPMC).

Anyway, I had seen that my friend Jordan was a reiki practitioner so I booked an appointment. The appointment was amazing, she gave me the background of reiki as well as crystal healing before playing some zen music. During my session I kept seeing purple and lilies. She told me after she had seen the color purple as well!

“The color purple symbolizes power, insight, and tenderheartedness, purple boasts numerous good qualities. On a more negative note, purple can also be overly sensitive and unnecessarily vigilant. Fortunately, the good outweighs the bad when it comes to this marvelous wonder. With its uplifting spirit and undeniable beauty, purple entices with ease…”

- color-meanings.com/purple-color-meaning-the-color-purple

I did my research and seen that Savella was the newest drug approved to treat fibromyalgia. My doctors had not heard of it so they needed to conduct their own research. After a month, they agreed to let me try it and it has completely changed my life! The only pain I have left is my knees and joints which are apparently arthritis which I will get treatment for as well. My doctor recommended aqua therapy as well as occupational therapy for small more focused tasks.

If anyone is suffering from any chronic pain, whether minuscule or severe, try Savella. I have tried majority of the popular antidepressants, mood stabilizers, anti-anxiety, muscle relaxants, nerve and other medications and therapies. Gabapentin and lyrica ( a GABA isotope) did not help even in high doses and neither did Cymbalta.

“Savella is a prescription medication for the management of fibromyalgia in adults.

Savella is a prescription medication for the management of fibromyalgia — a common, chronic condition that causes widespread pain and affects an estimated 6-12 million people in the United States alone. The cause of fibromyalgia is unknown.

An antidepressant, milnacipran is one of three drugs that have been approved by the Food and Drug Administration to treat fibromyalgia. While relief of fibromyalgia pain can help people feel less fatigued, milnacipran appears to have an additional effect on fatigue — separate from that associated with pain relief.

Many experts believe that fibromyalgia is associated with changes in the processing of pain signals in the brain and spinal cord.

In clinical studies that compared Savella to placebo, patients who took Savella said:

* They felt less pain and

* their fibromyalgia overall was improved

* their physical function was improved

Savella is categorized as

An antidepressant, belonging to a class of drugs called serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRI).

Serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs) are a class of medications that are effective in treating depression. SNRIs are also sometimes used to treat other conditions, such as anxiety disorders and long-term (chronic) pain, especially nerve pain. SNRIs may be helpful if you have chronic pain in addition to depression.

SNRIs ease depression by affecting chemical messengers (neurotransmitters) used to communicate between brain cells. Like most antidepressants, SNRIs work by ultimately effecting changes in brain chemistry and communication in brain nerve cell circuitry known to regulate mood, to help relieve depression.

SNRIs block the reabsorption (reuptake) of the neurotransmitters serotonin (ser-o-TOE-nin) and norepinephrine (nor-ep-ih-NEF-rin) in the brain. SNRIs approved to treat depression.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved these SNRIs to treat depression:

* Desvenlafaxine (Pristiq)

* Duloxetine (Cymbalta) — also approved to treat anxiety and certain types of chronic pain

* Levomilnacipran (Fetzima)

* Venlafaxine (Effexor XR) — also approved to treat certain anxiety disorders and panic disorder

- Savella.com

- mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/fibromyalgia/expert-answers/milnacipran

- Hopkinsarthritis.org

Summary:

In summary, with the right combination of hemp (CDB and/or THC), topicals, heat/ice application, yoga and stretches/meditation (with HZ sound therapy), as well as a medication such as Savella, you will actually have more energy and with less pain, that increases your quality of life so that you can accomplished what you need to do! I also became a distributor for amazing weight loss nutritional spray as well as a energy spray (more overall cellular energy/ATP) and we are also about to have a cash giveaway challenge! This will be so much fun. Let me know if you are interested in the challenge, the products or becoming an affiliate yourself and becoming your own boss with the flexibility to set your own hours from the comfort of your home