The DDA Trouble Free Zone Part 2

[bethbuchall]

I LOVE IT!!!!! I think I will go ahead and combine the two themes. Perhaps have them all explore with Dora to find Dumbo.

That was going to be my suggestion! One year my ds couldn't decide whether he wanted Elmo or Blues Clues, so I made a cake with both of them on it. He was turning 2, so we didn't have a party other than family. Since you have twins, though, it's probably better to have two small cakes.

Beth

 

[lmartin2711]

I wanted to send this to Kate & Nancy.
http://music.yahoo.com/track/22518436
When I Get to Where I'm Going.
Click on watch video.
Takes a little while to load.
I think it's beautiful.

WOW!!!! You got my tear glands going this morning. That is a great song. I lost my Grandfather in 2004 so when it got to the part about walking with my Grandfather I lost it!!!! Thanks for sharing this with us Brenda.

Nancy and Kate.....I hope ya'll are both doing well during this difficult time.

Lynn

 

[tink2020]

Ewwwwwww!

The snow is back I mean, I saw it last night, but it's worse today... and I have to go out in it! I LOVE snow for a while, but it's been so warm for weeks....... I'm unprepared!




Off to class.... have a good day everyone!

 

[karebear1]

I have to be in bed by midnight, like Cinderella

Didn't even have a chance to read the material in my DVC box.....
















Yes, decided I'd just slip that it.......

ETA, Sorry to all the DVC members on this board who have helped so much. There was a referal on my file from 2002.

And another DDAer bites the DVC dust! Who's next I wonder?!?!?!? That's very exciting Steffy! We're just here to tell you to buy more points then you think you need! That, or be ready to add on right away!!!
Let us know if you have any need for help- there's lots of that around here!

 

[marcij]

Good morning everyone! Sorry -- this will be long.
I need some advice from my friends, please. I have had sinus/allergy problems since I was very young. Have taken shots two different times with two different doctors, to no avail. I've been to 3 different ENT's, who all say I should have surgery. But, they don't really give me a good case for the surgery -- say they will fix my deviated septum, take out a bone spur in one sinus, and clean them out. They don't know if this will stop me from having all of these sinus infection/upper respiratory infections. My internist and allergist tell me they don't think the surgery will help. Meanwhile, I have year-round terrible allergies, that always flare up the most when I'm run-down. Slowing down much isn't an option (I've been at the same job for 19 years -- since my senior year in college and now run the business), although I am trying to take better care of myself.

Normally I start getting more stuffy than usual and start sneezing. At this point, I start taking Afrin for 3 days, make sure I am taking my decongestant and Allegra. The headaches start, then I have this gross drainage in my throat that makes it sore, ache from the shoulders up, ears feel funny, run slight fever, have a hard time climbing stairs (but no cough) and am exhausted. Yesterday I woke up with the same symptoms for the third time since the second weekend in December.

I make myself go to work, because I can't afford to get behind, plus have to get the kids from school (we live 35 miles from downtown Dallas but the kids have to go to a special school an additional 15 minutes further away). I hate to take antibiotics for every "episode" because I get yeast infections, plus I don't want to get resistant to them from overuse.

The one flaw (did I saw flaw???) in my near perfect husband is that he doesn't have the sympathetic/compassionate gene for all these sinus/allergy problems. I'm sure he gets sick of hearing about my problems, but I'm even more sick of living them. I got in the shower last night trying to steam all this crap out of my head and throat and just broke down crying.

Does anyone have any other suggestions for things that have helped them with these symptoms/problems? I'd be so grateful for any advice at this point.... and thanks for listening.

 

[disneyeveryyear]

Good morning everyone! Sorry -- this will be long.
I need some advice from my friends, please. I have had sinus/allergy problems since I was very young. Have taken shots two different times with two different doctors, to no avail. I've been to 3 different ENT's, who all say I should have surgery. But, they don't really give me a good case for the surgery -- say they will fix my deviated septum, take out a bone spur in one sinus, and clean them out. They don't know if this will stop me from having all of these sinus infection/upper respiratory infections. My internist and allergist tell me they don't think the surgery will help. Meanwhile, I have year-round terrible allergies, that always flare up the most when I'm run-down. Slowing down much isn't an option (I've been at the same job for 19 years -- since my senior year in college and now run the business), although I am trying to take better care of myself.

Normally I start getting more stuffy than usual and start sneezing. At this point, I start taking Afrin for 3 days, make sure I am taking my decongestant and Allegra. The headaches start, then I have this gross drainage in my throat that makes it sore, ache from the shoulders up, ears feel funny, run slight fever, have a hard time climbing stairs (but no cough) and am exhausted. Yesterday I woke up with the same symptoms for the third time since the second weekend in December.

I make myself go to work, because I can't afford to get behind, plus have to get the kids from school (we live 35 miles from downtown Dallas but the kids have to go to a special school an additional 15 minutes further away). I hate to take antibiotics for every "episode" because I get yeast infections, plus I don't want to get resistant to them from overuse.

The one flaw (did I saw flaw???) in my near perfect husband is that he doesn't have the sympathetic/compassionate gene for all these sinus/allergy problems. I'm sure he gets sick of hearing about my problems, but I'm even more sick of living them. I got in the shower last night trying to steam all this crap out of my head and throat and just broke down crying.

Does anyone have any other suggestions for things that have helped them with these symptoms/problems? I'd be so grateful for any advice at this point.... and thanks for listening.

Marci - Let me start by saying that I truly sympathize with you. There isn't much worse than having your head constantly clogged. My DS11 suffers from some pretty bad allergies. He was just skin tested over Winter break and started allergy shots last week.

I only thought of one thing, do you take your Allegra daily, or just when you feel an "attack" coming on? I would suggest you take an antihistime/decongestant daily to help prevent the "build-up." DS took Claritin-D for years with great success, but then it stopped working for him and we went to Allegra-D. It is doing wonders for him. The Dr. told us that you build a tolerance, but a lot of times after 6 months you can change back and the old meds will work again. So you may want to try taking your Allegra daily, or picking up some Claritin-D (OTC) and trying it daily.

BTW - I totally understand what you mean about the antibiotics and yeast infections. I swear that all I have to do is look at the bottle of antibiotics my kids are taking and I get one. God love Nizoral, or Monistat 1 day.

Hope you get to feeling better and take care of yourself.

 

[MazdaUK]

My MIL had sinus washing, said it was gross and didn't really help. Sorry that won't solve anything, but thought you should know.

All those with UTI, as well as drinking plenty of water, drink cranberry juice. I used to suffer a lot (stress-related) so now I always have cranberry juice in the fridge and try to drink a glass a day. You can mix if with fizzy water if you want - best not to mix with vodka while you're suffering! my doctor also recommended potassium citrate solution - you have to get the pharmacist to mix it up, and its DISGUSTING but it works the same way as those sachets you get OTC, but loads cheaper. You put a couple of spoons in a big glass of water (and have a big glass of soda or something to take the taste away) and drink it down. You can't take it if you have kidney problems though.

 

[marcij]

Beverly -- I do take Allergra daily -- have for almost two years now, and take Sudafed Nighttime Sinus at night. I also have two prescription nose sprays -- Astelin which I take in the morning if I start having problems, and Rhinocort Aqua that I take every night. When I have the "episodes" I also try Tylenol Sinus Severe congestion. I'm so tired of taking all of these meds. Thanks so much for answering my e-mail. My DH makes me feel like I'm being a baby, so I try to push through, go to work, etc. but I really feel like crap. Hence, I'm sitting at my desk DIS'ing.
MazdaUK -- thanks for the info on sinus washing -- I will definitely try to steer clear of that!

 

[Tammi67]

And another DDAer bites the DVC dust! Who's next I wonder?!?!?!? That's very exciting Steffy! We're just here to tell you to buy more points then you think you need! That, or be ready to add on right away!!!
Let us know if you have any need for help- there's lots of that around here!

I feel like I have started something. I came back from our trip in December and we bought, and now everyone is jumping in! What a trend!

 

[Tammi67]

Good morning everyone! Sorry -- this will be long.
I need some advice from my friends, please. I have had sinus/allergy problems since I was very young. Have taken shots two different times with two different doctors, to no avail. I've been to 3 different ENT's, who all say I should have surgery. But, they don't really give me a good case for the surgery -- say they will fix my deviated septum, take out a bone spur in one sinus, and clean them out. They don't know if this will stop me from having all of these sinus infection/upper respiratory infections. My internist and allergist tell me they don't think the surgery will help. Meanwhile, I have year-round terrible allergies, that always flare up the most when I'm run-down. Slowing down much isn't an option (I've been at the same job for 19 years -- since my senior year in college and now run the business), although I am trying to take better care of myself.

Normally I start getting more stuffy than usual and start sneezing. At this point, I start taking Afrin for 3 days, make sure I am taking my decongestant and Allegra. The headaches start, then I have this gross drainage in my throat that makes it sore, ache from the shoulders up, ears feel funny, run slight fever, have a hard time climbing stairs (but no cough) and am exhausted. Yesterday I woke up with the same symptoms for the third time since the second weekend in December.

I make myself go to work, because I can't afford to get behind, plus have to get the kids from school (we live 35 miles from downtown Dallas but the kids have to go to a special school an additional 15 minutes further away). I hate to take antibiotics for every "episode" because I get yeast infections, plus I don't want to get resistant to them from overuse.

The one flaw (did I saw flaw???) in my near perfect husband is that he doesn't have the sympathetic/compassionate gene for all these sinus/allergy problems. I'm sure he gets sick of hearing about my problems, but I'm even more sick of living them. I got in the shower last night trying to steam all this crap out of my head and throat and just broke down crying.

Does anyone have any other suggestions for things that have helped them with these symptoms/problems? I'd be so grateful for any advice at this point.... and thanks for listening.

Marci -
I know how miserable you are. I get at least one sinus infection in the spring and another in the fall, related to weather changes. This fall I didn't have one, and the only thing I did different was not spray anything up my nose to relieve stuffiness. I don't know if that aggravated the problem or not, but in my mind it worked. I take guafenisine (SP?) daily to prevent allergy-related congestion, during high allergy seasons.

A co-worker of mine had his sinuses, for lack of a better word, roto-rooted a few years ago. He would get sinus infection after sinus infection and finally had enough. He was miserable, and the surgery didn't sound to fun either. I don't know all the details of why he had it done, but he doesn't have anymore problems. I can find out more details from him if you would like. Let me know.

Prayers and PD

 

[karebear1]

Marci- I have terrible allergies and usually have several sinus infections a year. I take claritin everyday as well. One thing that helps me quite a bit is to use a saline solution nose spray. I usually use this at night, but when it's really bad, I'll use it 2-3 times a day until it gets better. For some reason moisture helps. Try to avoid using Afrin, because I was told it tends to make you reliant on it ultimately making the situation worse. If you must use this to open your sinuses- don't use it for more then 3 days- and use the saline solution intermittantly with it- then continue with the saline nose spray afterwards. Another thing that has helped me in the past- when it was REALLY bad was.... ok.... this sounds gross but it did help... ok- how do I explain this??? My dad was into homeopathy and reflexology. Natural remedies... you know? Anyway he gave me a small bowl that had a long narrow pour spout on it. You filled the bowl with warm water then (Oh- I hate saying this- it's sound so gross!) kinda carefully suck the water into one side of your nose. Once it was done, blow your nose. THERE! I said it! This did a great job of cleaning out the sinuses! It does sound like "sinus washing" only are you guys using that term in reference to the surgery you were talking about? If so- this would be a literal sinus washing.... right?

Just another thought about the Afrin- have you tried any another kind of nose spray?

I hope you feel better soon. It's awful having sinus infections all the time.

 

[karebear1]

I feel like I have started something. I came back from our trip in December and we bought, and now everyone is jumping in! What a trend!

Yep! We should have a DVC DDA meet! Any DVC owners or potential owners invited!!

So- how many DVCers do we ave on this board anyway- do we have a count?

 

[marcij]

Tammi -- I would like to hear why he finally did the surgery -- what problems he had that necessitated it. I hear it's terribly painful, but I'm willing to try it if it means I won't be so miserable all the time. I'm most allergic to dust, mold etc., which of course is year round, but I do have more fall allergies. I take Entex twice a day, as a decongestant -- just started it in December, but I have a hard time remember to take it. If I don't take it before 2 or 3 in the p.m., it keeps me up at night!

Thanks again for your input. It means a lot when people take the time to respond.

 

[Blueeyes101817]

Hey all, I am also a American Idol Fan. The tryouts are the best! Makes me laugh. I have been working on my tshirts. Got 5 more done tonight. Made my wife this one:

She said it was perfect for the way her days seem to always go.

Very cute--i know those days

 

[marcij]

Marci- I have terrible allergies and usually have several sinus infections a year. I take claritin everyday as well. One thing that helps me quite a bit is to use a saline solution nose spray. I usually use this at night, but when it's really bad, I'll use it 2-3 times a day until it gets better. For some reason moisture helps. Try to avoid using Afrin, because I was told it tends to make you reliant on it ultimately making the situation worse. If you must use this to open your sinuses- don't use it for more then 3 days- and use the saline solution intermittantly with it- then continue with the saline nose spray afterwards. Another thing that has helped me in the past- when it was REALLY bad was.... ok.... this sounds gross but it did help... ok- how do I explain this??? My dad was into homeopathy and reflexology. Natural remedies... you know? Anyway he gave me a small bowl that had a long narrow pour spout on it. You filled the bowl with warm water then (Oh- I hate saying this- it's sound so gross!) kinda carefully suck the water into one side of your nose. Once it was done, blow your nose. THERE! I said it! This did a great job of cleaning out the sinuses! It does sound like "sinus washing" only are you guys using that term in reference to the surgery you were talking about? If so- this would be a literal sinus washing.... right?

Just another thought about the Afrin- have you tried any another kind of nose spray?

I hope you feel better soon. It's awful having sinus infections all the time.

Yes -- I have actually done the sinus rinse thing. It was terribly gross, but didn't help me at all! Maybe I'll try it again and see if the second time is the charm! And my allergist did worn about Afrin. Today is my third day, so I'll have to stop today, and resume the other nose sprays I mentioned above. I do have saline sitting on my desk to help remind me to use it, but I have to admit that I forget to do it until it's too late and I already have a problem.

Thanks again to you all for letting my have my pity party in public!

 

[marcij]

Got to get back to work. Have two new interns starting this morning, and then I may call my internist. Thanks again everyone. Just hearing from others that I'm not being a baby and that it can be miserable somehow makes me feel not as bad.

 

[Blueeyes101817]

i have absolutely no plans today and i love it!! Tomorrow, i start work again and have more classes, so ill take the boring day before that!!

 

[Tammi67]

Tammi -- I would like to hear why he finally did the surgery -- what problems he had that necessitated it. I hear it's terribly painful, but I'm willing to try it if it means I won't be so miserable all the time. I'm most allergic to dust, mold etc., which of course is year round, but I do have more fall allergies. I take Entex twice a day, as a decongestant -- just started it in December, but I have a hard time remember to take it. If I don't take it before 2 or 3 in the p.m., it keeps me up at night!

Thanks again for your input. It means a lot when people take the time to respond.

Hopefully I will see him tomorrow and I will pm you with the info.

 

[Steffy]

Good morning everyone! Sorry -- this will be long.
I need some advice from my friends, please. I have had sinus/allergy problems since I was very young. Have taken shots two different times with two different doctors, to no avail. I've been to 3 different ENT's, who all say I should have surgery. But, they don't really give me a good case for the surgery -- say they will fix my deviated septum, take out a bone spur in one sinus, and clean them out. They don't know if this will stop me from having all of these sinus infection/upper respiratory infections. My internist and allergist tell me they don't think the surgery will help. Meanwhile, I have year-round terrible allergies, that always flare up the most when I'm run-down. Slowing down much isn't an option (I've been at the same job for 19 years -- since my senior year in college and now run the business), although I am trying to take better care of myself.

Normally I start getting more stuffy than usual and start sneezing. At this point, I start taking Afrin for 3 days, make sure I am taking my decongestant and Allegra. The headaches start, then I have this gross drainage in my throat that makes it sore, ache from the shoulders up, ears feel funny, run slight fever, have a hard time climbing stairs (but no cough) and am exhausted. Yesterday I woke up with the same symptoms for the third time since the second weekend in December.

I make myself go to work, because I can't afford to get behind, plus have to get the kids from school (we live 35 miles from downtown Dallas but the kids have to go to a special school an additional 15 minutes further away). I hate to take antibiotics for every "episode" because I get yeast infections, plus I don't want to get resistant to them from overuse.

The one flaw (did I saw flaw???) in my near perfect husband is that he doesn't have the sympathetic/compassionate gene for all these sinus/allergy problems. I'm sure he gets sick of hearing about my problems, but I'm even more sick of living them. I got in the shower last night trying to steam all this crap out of my head and throat and just broke down crying.

Does anyone have any other suggestions for things that have helped them with these symptoms/problems? I'd be so grateful for any advice at this point.... and thanks for listening.

Oh Marci,

I had this for years! Still do sometimes, but it has gotten better...

Some things I did. I switched from my Allegra and then AllegraD to Zyrtec. I stopped using the nose sprays, even my Flonase, which I swore by. And the biggest thing, I stopped drinking milk. No milk on cereal. No milk in coffee. No milk, period.

I got my flu shot. Last year I had only one bout with a sinus infection. My sinus over my teeth was so swollen... yikes. I had to get a new antibiotic... have to look it up... and put warm clothes on my face to help with the pain. I had them so frequently even Zpac wouldn't work...

I was offered that roto router stuff. I declined. My internist told me it wouldn't help and suggested removing the dairy from my diet. At that point, I was so sick, and so tired of being sick I agreed.

I have been 3000% better. I haven't had broncilitis in 3 years. NOw I most cough and sneeze if I'm triggered... bleach, dust, perfumes, paint, tobacco, stuff like that.

Get better!!!

 

[ksoehrlein]

Marci,

My DH had a deviated septum, allergies, asthma, and really bad sinuses for years. He didn't technically "snore" but something kinda like that -- only much, much worse. He had the sinus surgery, and while it was gross, especially the post-op part, he is doing so much better. We can now sleep through the night (or could in theory, if not for the 2 kids and nocturnal dog).

That said, I don't know if I could go through the surgery myself. The post-op required doing the gross saline rinse (described by karebear1) several times a day. So nasty and it looked painful to me. But if he didn't do it, the odds of infection were astronomical. He handled it well, but I think I would have been a baby.

I hope you feel better soon!