Gallimaufry

More Modern Medicine

It's startling just how many searches about depression, neurochemistry, and meds for same lead people to my blog.  Because of that I feel compelled to keep my personal meds history updated whether most of my half a dozen readers care or not.

If a search for info on meds or depression or neurochemistry has brought you here, Welcome!

As we saw in this recent entry, the doctor added Abilify to my meds regimen.  It went swimmingly first; in fact, I may have been manic.  As time passed, the feel good seemed to phase out and I became more and more neutral.  Which allowed me to become aware of the side effects and the negative effect they were having on me.  My tinnitus increased dramatically and sometimes my entire head felt like it was buzzing.  Dry mouth worse too.  And the killer, weird things happening with my sleep patterns.  The worst part was that I almost invariably woke up around 4 am and either couldn't get back to sleep at all or was awake for several hours before I could go back to sleep.  Some nights I got as little as 3 hours, never more than 7.  The past week has been very stressful and I had a mini-meltdown on Saturday.  Oddly enough the near mania feel seemed to come back when the sun was shining.  Considering that Seattle just had 27 straight days of rain, this wasn't very helpful.

So today the doctor took me off the Abilify.  We'll be trying a new atypical anti-psychotic whose name escapes me at the moment.  Starts with a G.  Anyway, I'll keep posting about this as it seems to be work of some importance.  Better living through chemistry is our motto!

You Can't Make This Shit Up

The Wall Street Journal isn't worried about the NSA's covert, illegal surveillance.  Oh no, they're exercised about the FBI building being named for Hoover still.  (His surveillance was worse you see.) How could I make this shit up?

Michelle Malkin (Going to that woman's site always makes me want a bath.) thinks body armor must be bad because Hillary's in favor of it.  No really! I am not making this shit up!

Jeanne covers yet more shit the government is up to in your name.

A Michigan judge has decided to ignore the Supreme Court.  Why not?  The president and most of his administration do!  And I'm still not making this up.

Molly takes on Governor Goodhair Perry, Tom Delay, and Newt Gingrich. Even Molly couldn't make this shit up.

Oh My Goodnes

I just read the Zogby December newsletter (as I mentioned before that's one of their thank-yous for participating in their polls).  The early Demcratic front runner for 2008 is, ghu help us, Hilary Clinton.  Not that I don't admire her, but you know what a disaster that would be.  However, behind Republican front runners McCain and Giuliani (and saying that makes me want a bath) is Condi Rice as a very strong #3.

Imagine if you will a presidential campaign between Hilary Clinton and Condi Rice.  What  a picture!   Heads exploding like popcorn all over the deep South.   This has been good for several moments of amusement on, yet another, cold grey rainy  Seattle day.  So I give it to you as my belated holiday present to you all

Oh Glee, Oh Joy

Schadenfreude R Us.  The WaPo says:

Embattled Rep. Tom DeLay's hopes of reclaiming his position as House majority leader suffered a potentially fatal setback on Friday as a growing number of fellow Republicans called for new leadership in the midst of a congressional corruption scandal.

I know, I know, but it couldn't happen to a nicer fellow.  Apparently the falllout from the Abramoff mess is the last straw.  They need to dump Delay and move on and they know it.  Of course we don't know yet how many other Republican congressmen will fall to the Abramoff scandals. Molly Ivins is particularly incensed over the use of charities as fronts for the dispensation of monetary largesse.  She's particularly eloquent, don't miss it.

Here's hoping there lots more to come so that we can throw the bums out more easily come November.

Modern Medicine

First some news from the world of Modern Medicine

Tea continues accumulating positive benefits.  However, in addition to the usual caveats on news of this kind, this was not a controlled double blind study so there is probably correlation but not necessarily causation.  If there is a valid link though, I'm set.  I LIVE on tea!

On the other hand, eating lots of fiber seems not  to protect against colo-rectal cancer after all. However, fiber is still good for your heart and to lower risk of diabetes so eat more raw fruits, vegetables, and whole grains!

On to more personal medical news (or; it's all about ME):

I scored very high on an adult ADD inventory on my last visit to the neuropharmacologist.  We'll discuss it more on my next visit (tomorrow), but in the meantime,  I'd like to hear from other adult ADDers out there.  How were you diagnosed?  Did you suffer from depression too?  How do you treat it medically?  What non medical things can one do to alleviate the problems?

As you know, Bob, I have very bad neurochemistry (bad brain!  no doughnut!).  The meds have pooped out again and I've gone off Effexor completely (fortunately no withdrawal symptoms!) and have changed to Cymbalta.  While I'm doing better than I was, say August-October, I'm still not feeling really spiffy.  So we've added an atypical antipsychotic to the mix.  These are often used as mood stabilizers for bipolor disorder (which I have as bipolar II; no full blown mania).  The one I'm taking is a very new one called Abilify.  I'd be interested in hearing from other Abilify users.  I'm having trouble sleeping and suffering from some rather bizarre nausea (it only happens when I eat) and I'm wondering if anyone has had these side effects from taking the drug.  It's so new there isn't much known about side effects in the wild  We added it because it inhibits dopamine reuptake.  The Cymbalta is working on seritonin and norephinephrine reuptake so dopamine sounded like the thing to try next.  I wonder how an adult ADD diagnosis would affect all this other neurochemistry.  Sigh.  Man I wish I had a brain that worked.

It's a Competition!

And it's for a good cause.  If you read the law blogs at all you have by now, no doubt, heard of Cory Maye.  In as clear a case of racism and ugliness as you can find, he's being railroaded for having shot an intruder who kicked in his door in the middle of the night.  Maye thought he was protecting himself and his 18 month old child.  Unfortunately for him, the guy he shot was the police chief's son.  Who was white.  Cory Maye is black, and is now on death row.  There are more details here, here, and here.

So what can you do to help?  And where does the competition come in?  Battlepanda says

UPDATE: As both Glenn Reynolds and Mark Kleiman pointed out, this is such an unambiguous outrage that both the left and the right side of the blogisphere should stand united and work to make this man's story known. On second thought, to the heck with working together. Let's make this a competition. I am going to keep track of right and left wing blogs mentioning the Cory Maye to see which side is doing a better job. Mainly, I'll be using Technorati, but please send me links if you see that I've missed anyone.

So go thou and do likewise!

New Orleans

New Orleans is a very special place to me; it's one of the 2 places on earth I call the home of my heart.  The French Quarter is one of the few places where I feel completely relaxed, at home so to speak.  And may God (the one I don't believe in) damn the Bush administration to hell.  It doesn't matter whether it's incompetence, not caring, or cold nutwing political calculation.  They're killing NOLA and nothing can excuse it.

They'd have you believe differently of course. Shrub himself said:

And tonight I also offer this pledge of the American people: Throughout the area hit by the hurricane, we will do what it takes, we will stay as long as it takes, to help citizens rebuild their communities and their lives. And all who question the future of the Crescent City need to know there is no way to imagine America without New Orleans, and this great city will rise again.

But we know what a liar the little shit is now.  Ecomiums like this merely mean you're doomed.  Even the NYT can no longer ignore it.  (via Body and Soul)

Web Gleanings

I am Bemused:   Model/Unix programmer tries to update the world of fashion.

I am Amused:  Enhance your Airport's sensitivity using inexpensive kitchen gadget!

I am Excited:  A new mammal found in Borneo.  (Another reason to Save the Rain Forest)

I am Scared and Angry:  Read it all.

I am Pleased:  Delay money laundering charges stick.  And the Republicans have already started backstabbing and jockeying for position in next month's House Leadership race.

I am Fed Up:  War plan written by pollster.

ETA:  I am Speechless:  via Jordin who got it from BoingBoing

Shiny!

The first 2 items came from Boing Boing so you've probably already seen them, but

Nostalgic Chrismas decor

Toy robots

More shiny Christmas stuff

Snowflakes

LED Christmas lights

Mardi Gras santa

From my Live Journal friends list

Fashion Color Database.  It ought to have samples, but hey, cool color names!

Knitted digestive tract -- REALLY cool pictures

Fabric that lights up -- I love living in a science fictional universe

The One Ring -- in non-traditional material

Not only did I buy a pair of these, I talked my friend Kate into it too!

Chinese dragon bead!

I should probably delete iPodLounge from my RSS aggregator.  I don't even HAVE an iPod Nano.

This year's most adorable TV geeks.

Spread the Light

One of the people on my LJ Friends List has informed me it's the first day of the Indian festival of Diwali.  As it turns out, today is a very cold grey damp day in Seattle and I had just lit some candles as well as all the lamps in the living room before reading her post.  I commend Diwali to you.

    The Diwali illuminations with lighted diyas bring the supernatural brightness     and joy with the hope of finding light in darkness, achieving knowledge where     there is ignorance, and spreading love amidst hatred.

This meshes nicely with a post from another direction entirely about ritual.  I see the destruction of a lot of candles in my future.  Most religious traditions have some sort of fesitval of light for when the days turn grey and short.  There's undoubtedly a sound psychological reason for that.  Candles and light box R us for a while.