#but also also the area I live in is really bad with covid atm and one of my managers apparently tested positive (I never work with her tho)

[abbyindenhaag]

A quick note from Lisbon

Revisiting Lisbon for a work trip and wanted to share some impressions!

1. My taxi driver from the airport said that typically companies spend 1,500 euros per month on a worker’s wages but the worker only sees 800 euros because of taxes. I was shocked to find from Wikipedia that this is mostly true, and much lower than in the US: Portugal’s average gross salary is 1450/month and net salary is 1200/month, while in the US average gross salary is $5,400/month and net is $4,000/month. (We are ignoring exchange rates bc atm a dollar is about a euro.) I knew things were cheaper in Portugal but I didn’t realize average wages were 3x less! I do wonder about medians though. I also didn’t point out that Portugal had a national health system and, presumably, a lot of other social safety net benefits that would increase consumption if not income.

(Other notable things about the conversation were that the taxi driver advocated helping others as a personal belief system but also said there were too many immigrants taking jobs and housing in Portugal — I refrained from citing the economics literature finding that actually immigrants raise native earnings — and that the taxi driver complained both about the rich getting richer and the poor getting poorer, but didn’t really agree with me that having a bigger difference between taxes on the rich and poor would fix it. I am not a development economist or a macroeconomist so I don’t necessarily think he is wrong on that point — but just noting.)

(Other notable taxi driver conversation was that my taxi driver *to* the airport -- Logan -- said he was from Tajikistan and won a diversity lottery to get a green card. I had forgotten that this program exists - it apparently awards up to 50k visas per year, which is like nothing, and has a 1/200 acceptance rate. The funny thing is that he won this lottery and then went straight to Springfield, MA, of all places, and was stuck there for the duration of Covid. Real out of the frying pan into the fire situation. His main complaint about Springfield was it was a bad place to be single, lol.)

2. When I walked out of my hotel after dropping off my bags, despite it being in a nice ish area my first 2 thoughts were: graffiti on walls. Smells like piss. Did I remember wrong?? But then once I got over the graffiti and moved to a less fragrant patch of sidewalk the “faded grandeur” of the city became more apparent. All the travel guides (well, Rick Steves and the NYT) had this same narrative of Lisbon being “where the crumbling remnants of a grand civilization sit side by side with the energy of the new growth” which felt rather stereotypical, and I actually peaced out of the Rick Steves audio tour because I wanted to see the city for myself rather than be told how to see it. But unfortunately,…. They were kind of right. Crumbly facades, broken-up sidewalks, new buildings, American-bougie brunch places… this place has it all, often right next to each other. I walked down a street (NYT-recommended, sigh) and it was like half antique stores full of probably junk and half expensive boutiques.

3. Speaking of which, I think for every hairdresser in Bergen there is an antique store in Lisbon. Who is buying this stuff?? The tourists certainly can’t take all of it home. <a moment of self-awareness descends from above. angels sing> oh. People who live here. Who don’t make a lot of money. As in point 1. Not everything is about you, Abigail!! Anyway it is nice to see things being reused instead of thrown out.

4. I saw at least 3 shops with a sign in the window saying they were on lunch break and would be back later. The American brain cannot comprehend this. What do you mean you haven’t hired someone to sell something at a time when people are around to buy it?!? (This is supporting evidence for my taxi driver’s statement that in Portugal people have different priorities than in the US, and they are just more relaxed. I have no stance on the matter, just reporting.)

5. Shops where I wanted to buy things but didn’t included a wool store with lots of beautiful merino blankets, and a ceramic store with lots of nice little bowls. Shops where I wanted to buy things and did were a pastry shop where I got a pasteis de nata (actually 2), and a strawberry cart in the real-people part of the city that was selling strawberries that smelled amazing for 4euros/kg. Unfortunately the two I ate ended up being overripe so I might not even eat any more but the joy of the purchase may still have been worth it.

This falls into the category of “shops I didn’t want to buy anything at but am glad they exist.”

Long snoots standing guard in antique shop #562.

The window of the wool shop. Would that the window wool were wmine!

The jacaranda are out and incredibly scenic!

The facade of a museum of a beloved fado singer, which I did not visit. I might go on Saturday night to hear a performance, not sure. But the scooter in the foreground was too Lisbon-y to resist the shot.

[sluttyten]

how to know if you’re experiencing pms symptoms or covid symptoms, asking for a friend

#because on the one hand there’s sore tiddies #and on the other there’s a headache that’s lasted for 2 days now plus some light nausea and a little bit of chills #which are all symptoms I get for my period but usually I don’t get chills until the first day of my period which isn’t happening yet #but also it’s winter and cold outside so it makes sense to be cold #but also also the area I live in is really bad with covid atm and one of my managers apparently tested positive (I never work with her tho) #and another girl who I crossed paths with at the end of my shift the other day had to go get tested today #and like...... it’s all the night shift people at my job that are getting covid (except one girl in the morning shift had it like two months #ago) but I’m pretty sure they do not sanitize at night as well as they should and fucking customers definitely don’t respect wearing a mask #properly and I feel like I was somewhere recently around people but maybe that was just a dream?? idk I’m pretty sure I’m just experiencing #pms with extra bad symptoms because I knew my period was an irregular bitch but I missed last month and I always feel like she comes back #with a vengeance after being gone for a month #as if it’s not already bad enough waking me up in the middle of the night literally feeling like I’m dying #like this better not be covid I’m supposed to get the first dose of the vaccine next week #but also if this is (which I hope it’s not obviously BUT) then I would have to miss work next week and not help out with this thing that I #may be recruited to do that I don’t really want to do #anyway sorry for this rant #also my headache is could also possibly be because yesterday I didn’t have any protein plus it could be just a sinus headache due to the #weather flip flopping or tension now too due to just everything going on in this country

[heartshattering]

/// TW: st*lking, negative topics, read tags for more

Part of me wants to ask if anyone on here has dealt with st*lking before (in-person, phonecalls/texts, and social media) but...

1 - I know no one on here is a trained professional and I don't want to seem like I'm being demanding(?) or like I'm trying to force people into being a counselor for me when that's not their job. 2 - I feel like I've already gone through all of the options of what I could do about the situation and there's just... no solution except to keep hiding, basically. I mean. I discussed things a lot with my family back in 2019 when this first started going on, like getting a restraining order (it's also the first thing people would suggest to me when I'd mention the situation to them) but this person began stalking me in public places and (from what I understood about the laws where I live) a restraining order would only work if he was coming onto my property, not to public events and similar things. In the hospital I was basically told to "Just avoid going out to places where he could possibly be at" but that became more difficult because he started to follow around people who I thought were my friends at the time, in hopes that I would join up with my friends and that he'd be able to see me that way. (And yes, I eventually dropped contact with those "friends" due to them siding with him/acting like they wanted to bring me and him together)

I'm constantly panicked about the chance of running into this person again due to what I mentioned about him latching on to people who I used to hang out with. But when I explained the situation to those people, one of them was like, "Well I have to keep hanging out with him because of allllllll the mutual friends that I have with him, I can't just ignore him!" (even though 1 - she's well aware of what he did to me, 2 - he only started acting friendly with her and my other friends to try and find out stuff about me, and 3 - probably in the back of her mind she knows that he only talks to her so that he can ask her questions about me, even though I don't really talk to either of them anymore).

Now with COVID-19 still bad in my area, I'm not as worried about running into people at public events and stuff anymore... but sometimes I wonder if I should go back on social media, and then start panicking at the thought of people finding me on there again (he's actually not my only st*lker, but he's the most recent one and the one that I felt the most anxious about since he's extremely dangerous/literally took a 5 hour bus ride to go on a search for me one night during a holiday event I was supposed to be at).

My mind just feels like a mess atm, that's not the only thing that's been on my mind... I've been thinking about a lot of different things, but remembering past friends triggered thoughts of him in my mind again, and I'm just having a lot of trouble dealing with everything going on (chronic physical illness, having to do things for my classes, dealing with my mom, listening to her tell me how my mental disorders supposedly "aren't real" even though they've been professionally diagnosed, etc.)

I just feel like shit. I've taken my limit of anxiety medication for the day but I can't distract myself with anything fun because I have assignments due at midnight. So I'm just sitting here panicked and feeling like a mess while feeling sick (mentally and physically) and hating myself so much.

#vent #venting #stalking tw #family mention #hospital mention #medical #anxiety #panic attacks #mental health #physical health #self-hatred

[putschki1969]

Hello there! If all goes well I will be travelling to Japan this summer (planning to attend some YK Lives). It will be my first time. Do you have any tips for a first-time-traveller? Thank you!

Hello there!

YAY! Your first Japan trip! BANZAI!

You must be super excited! And also worried due to COVID 19. I really hope things will have calmed down until summer. So far they have not postponed any of the YK FictionJunction lives so that’s a good thing. However, they are currently looking for a transfer date for the very first performance which was supposed to take place on July 11 in Kanagawa. I will be keeping my fingers crossed for you and of course I will post an update as soon as we know more about these FJ lives (that have Keiko and Hikaru as vocalists).

As for tips, here is what comes to mind right off the bat〈(•ˇ‿ˇ•)-→

Meticulously plan your trip: When you are travelling for the first time, having a detailed itinerary is KEY. In particular, I would advise you to pay a lot of attention to opening hours and time tables. It will save you a lot of time and it will help you avoid trouble/stress.

Bring a lot of cash: There are many places in Japan that don’t accept cards and usually it’s cheaper to exchange your currency to yen in your own country (speaking from my own experience). Don’t worry though, there are enough places in Japan where you can withdraw yen with your cards (7/11 ATMs, International ATMs - e.g. there’s one at Akihabara Station).

Get yourself a prepaid/rental SIM card for WiFi: Having internet at all times is a life-saver. During my first Japan trip I barely had any WiFi, it was hell. I don’t even know how I survived. I recommend you get one in advance and don’t wait to buy it at the airport (because those are overprized). There are rental services that will send the SIM to the airport and have it ready for you to pick up when you arrive. You will have to return it at the end of your rental period via mail (just drop it in a mailbox). There are also pre-paid SIMs that are sent to your home and they only work for a limited amount of time once you activate them. I order mine from a German site so that probably won’t work for you but I am sure a service like that is available for your country. 

Install Google Maps on your phone: Getting from A to B in a foreign country is always a bit intimidating (especially in Japan). This app will help you navigate your way around the rather complex public transportation system. It provides all the info you need (intervals, platforms, stations, ticket fares etc.). While the app may not be as useful in other parts of the world, it’s super reliable in urban Japan.

Get yourself a Suica as soon as you arrive in Japan: Suica cards can be purchased (500 yen deposit) through ticket machines in any JR Station. It’s a prepaid e-money card for almost all kinds of public transportation (and other stuff). Depending on the length of your trip and your itinerary you should add around 5,000 to 10,000 yen to your card.

Consider getting a JR Pass: If you are planning to travel longer distances by train you should look into different JR Pass options. Riding the shinkansen (Japanese bullet train) is convenient and pro-environmental but unfortunately very expensive. It can really pay off to invest in a JR Pass instead of paying for every single train ticket.

Bring a few small disposable ziplock bags with you: While travelling you will be producing a lot of garbage (more so than usual because the Japanese love their elaborate packaging). However, you will quickly notice that there are not a lot of public trashcans in Japan. I always carry a small ziplock bag with me to collect all of my junk. You are responsible for your rubbish, bring it home and dispose of it in your hotel (or wherever you can find a trash can), do not llitter under any circumstances!

Find all kinds of stores for used goods in the area you are staying in: You can make awesome deals at used goods stores in Japan and the items are usually in great (almost unused) condition. I am mainly talking about Kalafina-related stuff here (which you can find in stores like Mandarake, K-Books, Boof-Off, Surugaya, etc) but in general I would say that Japan is a thrifter’s paradise.

Bring your own pain-killers and meds: When people are on holiday in a foreign country they are prone to get sick so you should bring the meds you are already used to. NOTE: Be careful with prescription drugs though! Do some research!

Always have a small hand-towel in your bag: You will be hard-pressed to find paper towels or hand dryers in a majority of Japanese bathrooms so you better carry your own little towel/handkerchief with you unless you wanna spend your entire trip drying your hands on your clothes.

If possible, get a traveller’s insurance: I pay all my flights with VISA so that usually includes some sort of travel insurance but you might wanna look into some other options. You wanna be prepared if something bad happens to you in a foreign country

* This list is not exhaustive. Just a handful of random tips I find useful.

#kalafina #reply #travel tips #japan #personal #Anonymous

[eldritchsurveys]

1089.

1 - Aside from the necessities (eating, breathing etc.) what is something you do every single day, without fail? >> Check gmail, tumblr, discord. Do my Flight Rising dailies.

2 - Do you use cash or card the most? Do you find yourself using card or contactless methods more since COVID hit? >> I use card almost exclusively (some of the less technologically up-to-date stalls at the farmer’s market make me run back to the ATM sometimes, but other than that I never carry cash). This was even before COVID, so nothing has changed for me there. 3 - Is there anything you enjoy that’s considered childish for your age? What is it? >> I don’t call anything I enjoy “childish” and I don’t think other people should either.

4 - Who’s your favourite voice actor? What’s the best thing they’ve been in? >> I don’t have one. Keith David has a great voice, though, I do love him. And of course there’s Ron Glass (RIP) :’(

5 - How many times a day do you use the bathroom? >> Like twice, normally. Three or four if I have a lot of beverages.

6 - Do you need caffeine to wake up in the morning? What’s your drink of choice? >> I don’t need anything to wake up in the morning -- sleep is one area I’ve never had serious problems in, and thank god for that, because imagine how much worse my mental health would be if I did...

7 - Are you more of an introvert or an extrovert? If you’re an introvert, do you feel like you live in a world built for extroverts? >> I prefer being alone or in very small groups (and infrequently, even then), let’s just put it that way.

8 - What do you do with old clothes you no longer want or need? >> I usually end up throwing them away, unfortunately. I used to give them to Goodwill but then I realised how much of that stuff eventually gets thrown away anyway because it doesn’t get sold and they just get way too much stuff. COVID kind of interrupted this year’s possibilities, but in the future I’m probably going to look up local nonprofit homeless services and see if they need anything I have. 9 - How old were you when you got your first pet (not a family pet, but one that you were solely responsible for)? >> I have never had this particular experience.

10 - What is something popular or fashionable that you consider to be a real waste of money? >> ---

11 - Do you donate to charity? >> No.

12 - Do you live somewhere with lots of livestock or wild animals? >> Livestock, yeah, because there are a lot of farms once you get even a mile or two outside of the city. Not so much wildlife, just your general squirrels and crows and the occasional deer family.

13 - Would you rather live somewhere rural or urban? >> More rural than urban, but not so rural that it’s an all-day affair just to get groceries, you know. Also, I like having the Internet.

14 - Is there anything (a hobby, for example) that’s guaranteed to always make you feel better when you’ve had a bad day? >> Honestly, just... being Inworld. That’s my safe zone. Even if it doesn’t make the bad feelings go away right away (that’s not always possible), it is always at least grounding and comforting to be hugged by Can Calah, or to hear D or Bruni’s voice.

15 - If you’re struggling with your mental health, who are you most likely to open up to, or would you bottle it up instead? >> I bring that stuff Inworld. It’s really difficult to be that vulnerable outworld, although I try to make small forays into vulnerability on places like my blog or certain Discord servers. They’re still small forays, though -- I’m really just testing the waters, not actually swimming like I probably should be if I want to really work at it.

16 - Do you get your five portions of fruits and veggies everyday? >> Not every day, no. I wish it were easier for me to pull that off, but it really is not. 

17 - What room of your house do you spend the most time in? Is this through choice or necessity? >> My room, by choice. I like it in here, it’s my space. The first space of my own I’ve had since 2009, which was the only other time I had space of my own (and then I didn’t even enjoy it because I was horribly depressed and isolated and constantly broke).

18 - If you have pets, do you snuggle with them when you’re having a bad time? Does it make you feel better? >> That’s a thing Sparrow does, but it doesn’t do anything for me. Maybe if I had an emotional support dog...

19 - Would you ever sign up to be in the military? What if there was enforced conscription, would you go or would you object? >> Fuck. No. Fuck no. Nope. Fuck no. I’d literally rather commit suicide. Did I make myself clear?

20 - Would you ever want to go to any kind of fitness bootcamp, or does that sound like utter hell to you? >> That does sound like utter hell to me.

21 - What’s the worst job you’ve ever had? What was it that made it so bad? >> ---

22 - If you could design your own garden, what would you have in it? Do you think that dream is ever going to be achievable for you? >> I have always been most interested in the kind of gardening that was just about caring for native plants and helping them to flourish. Learning the complex intricacies of the ecosystem around me and doing my part to preserve it. Like if there needs to be more pollinators, having some hives. Or if there was once a planted lawn on the property I live on, rehabilitating the soil and replacing it with native grasses instead. I would also like to grow herbs and vegetables, and any kind of flower that is native or at least not invasive to this particular environment (especially if it’s yellow! I love all yellow flowers). I imagine it would be perfectly achievable if we ever moved into a house.

23 - Do you believe there’s life on other planets? If so, do you think it’s anything like humanity? >> I think it’s highly probable that there’s life elsewhere, but highly improbable that it’d be like humanity. But maybe like other life on this planet, particularly microbes, sure.

24 - Does it take you a long time to fall asleep at night? What do you if you’re really struggling to get to sleep? >> No, I usually fall asleep within a half-hour of laying down, as long as I’m not doing anything brain-intensive.

25 - if you drive, how many times a week do you have to fill up your car with fuel? If you don’t drive, how much do you spend a week on travel/transport? >> I don’t go anywhere, period. When I used to go places (pre-COVID), I probably spent about $30 a month tops on public transportation. Usually more like $15.

26 - What did you get the last time you went out for fast food? >> The last fast food we had was Steak and Shake, but through DoorDash. I got the jalapeño crunch burger, like I used to, but I won’t be ordering burgers anymore because I think my GI tract is over red meat (or, at least, the highly processed variety).

27 - Do you tend to snack when you’re watching TV or sitting at the computer? What’s your favourite thing to snack on? >> I like to watch something while I’m eating a meal, but I don’t really snack for the sake of snacking or anything. I just plan the two things to happen at the same time whenever I can.

28 - When was the last time you went to a zoo or wildlife park type place? >> Uh... Labor Day last year? I think?

29 - Do you think it’s cruel when people keep exotic animals as pets? Or do you think it’s okay as long as they have the space, time and money to dedicate to them? >> I do think it’s cruel. I don’t see how any sort of condition could be okay for this, no matter how hard you try. Just... go on a safari. Watch a nature documentary. Why do you have to keep wild animals in your house? Domesticated dogs and cats and lizards and shit are literally right there (and a lot of them are in shelters, just waiting for a dedicated caregiver!).

30 - If you eat meat, is there a particular animal you’d never eat? If you don’t eat meat, what’s the reason for it? >> I don’t eat a lot of meat because I don’t really crave it. Like, it doesn’t strike me as necessary for a meal, probably because I was raised not eating it. I eat chicken most often because Sparrow makes a lot of meals that include it (and fried chicken sandwiches are my kryptonite). My preference for meat-eating is to eat from local sources that employ sustainable, ecologically-informed farming practices -- but, you know. I also live in America, as well as below the poverty line for a two-person household, so this stuff is difficult. It’s often easier (and insanely cheaper) to just not eat meat at all, which may be partly how that became such a big fad.

#surveys #survey #random surveys #not for reblogging *glare*

[annericanstudy-blog]

20.10.11 SUNDAY 11:11 PM (omg! I wish to finally stick to one dream career LOL)

Hey there so uhm yea...looks like I’ve been writing on here every 2 weeks lol 😂 anyway another update...soooo I was kinda on a rollercoaster of happenings the past week. The hospital I work in has started admitting possible covid patients. They put up an Isolation area now like an isolation ward, isolation delivery room, etc. And well, your girl has even worked there! But I did terrible tho, veryyyyy terrible that I feel like I’m still gonna have nightmares about it ugh 🤦🏻‍♀️ Anyway so yea, I got called up to receive a baby in the iso. And so I went there, put on some crazy PPE and stuff. I was sooooo nervous...cos first, it’s my first time in that area! I don’t know where the stuff are and how everything works cos it’s a new area. Although I’ve tried receiving a baby already but man I just get so nervous whenever I’m in a new environment. Second, there was no pediatrician omg. It was my very FIRST time to receive a baby WITHOUT a pedia. Oh my gosh. And so I acted like I was such a newbie (well technically I still am a newbie). Idk but I just felt so disappointed with my performance that day ugh. Thankfully they helped me. I didn’t really know what to do aside from receiving the baby and making sure I did everything I was supposed to do for the baby during its first few minutes and the charting. Other than that such as communicating with the pedia, when to transfer the baby, and other stuff, ugh I felt like I did soooo badly. I felt like there were things that I was supposed to do that I wasn’t able to do...and I really don’t feel good about it. I even said sorry to the ward nurse cos ugh...I really feel like I did terrible. I know I have to forgive myself cos that experience involved a lot of firsts, but I don’t know what’s wrong with me cos I still feel so bad about myself about it. Ugh because of that, my self-esteem hit rock bottom again and I feel like quitting once again. That day was really kinda crazy cos that night, I also got called for night shift duty to take care of a baby whose mother had covid. dayum it was crazy I wore PPE the entire time and handwashed crazily all the time. But the baby was sooo kind (hahaha). When I say the baby was kind, meaning the baby fed well, burped well, and slept well ~yay~ bless that baby. But when I had my second duty with the baby she kept on crying hahaha but it’s pretty normal tho as the baby stays longer in the hospital.

Fast forward to few days. Mylet and Joan invited me to attend German classes! Being on that class will eventually lead us to work there. I got thrilled at the thought of the three of us being together, working together! Cos that’s what I’ve been really struggling here in this hospital. It’s so hard to not have friends at all. And so I asked permission from my parents. I also was lowkey telling them that I want to quit again cos I can really say that the hospital I’m in is not good at handling covid yet and it’s really posing a risk on not only to the staff there but to our families as well. Cos what if I got covid along the way, they might contract it since I live with them, and it will also pose a risk to their jobs and coworkers. And honestly, I still have a choice. Even if I stop working, it’s actually much better for my family cos then our risk of contracting covid will be much lower. Because I can really say that it’s not impossible to contract covid there. I don’t really care if my resume will be empty atm or what. Because if I get covid now then what’s the use of my resume if I die because of it or my family members will contract it esp that my parents are hypertensive? I would never forgive myself. But I can really see it in their faces that they’re not in favor of me stopping work. They kept on saying that it’s really important to be of service. Well, I got their point. Me too. It’s really nice to serve the Filipino people, the babies. But for me, if I contract that covid, idk, it’s just not worth it esp if we’re not compensated enough. I even cried again in front of them. In the middle of our serious talk, the hospital called me, but since our talk was so serious, I didn’t answer the call. I thought it was ok to not answer since it was my day off so I knew it wasn’t about an on call duty. Heol, that call I didn’t take was actually to inform me that the results of the test of the mother of the baby I received in the iso came out positive! Oh my goodness. And so, I now wear mask when I go out of the room and am isolating myself. See? The hospital should’ve been isolating me by now, or got me tested. But none. Coincidentally, the workplace of my mother held an emergency meeting telling them to be extra extra careful as one of their branches had to close down because almost all of the staff contracted covid since one of their employees lives with a nurse. To my parents, it was like a wake up call. And so yesterday, they told me that I should stop working in the meantime and maybe study whatever I want.

Weird enough, now that they’re telling me to stop, I got mixed emotions! Hahaha. I mean, I can’t deny I’m kinda happy about it. Cos really, covid is not a joke. And since I live in the Philippines, it will be hard to battle it. But I also feel a little sad cos I know I still have a lot to learn. But still, since my parents already told me to stop, I guess I have no choice now. Well, it was kinda nice to work at the NICU, being with babies. Idk, I kinda feel proud about it since most nurses start off in the ward while I started in a special area, it’s kinda a rare opportunity. Now, I’m kinda nervous cos I don’t know how to ask permission to resign or what. But I guess I’ll just have to face it! And I know the Lord will guide me.

But now that I will stop working, I don’t know what to do. Cos I’m still torn between being a nurse or a doctor (or a flight attendant but ugh covid shut this dream of mine). Sighs. I don’t know. I still feel like I won’t end up doing either hahaha 😂 Anyway, ugh I hope I can get it done tomorrow.

- anne, ph

[i-am-the-floor-goblin]

long one under the cut bois

So, Here’s the thing. I’ve had chronic pain for.... what? um. officially? a year and a half. Unofficially?... 5 years? Honestly? Probably since I was like 7 or someshit. When I was younger I used to struggle to sleep because of the pain in my knees. But no one really made a big deal about it so... I figured it was normal. And then my back started to really hurt... but I was also suicidal at the time so.. my doctor was very dismissive of anything but that. Even this crippling pain in my stomach that led me to drop out of school. So I figured it was normal.. And then for a couple of years I would try again sporadically and get generic “do more exercise and lose weight shit” to, and i shit you not, the girl with a fucking eating disorder. So, I didn’t go to the doctors again for a long, long time. probably about 4 years? Until my childhood friend was found dead in her dorm room. That triggered a depression and anxiety so profound it was the first time I ever agreed to go on antidepressants.  The first doctor I saw was an actual angel. He genuinely cared. I went back again I think a few months later? And she just threw meds at me. So many infact I still have some of them left a good 3 years later. So, naturally;  I didn’t go back. Flash forward to February 2019. My left knee was fucked. I could. Not. Walk. it hurt so badly all the time. Saw a paramedic at my surgery who legit gasped when he checked the mobility of my knee (this part of the story is important for later). It bent back so far he was legit just like “oh no”. So he gave me the good cush pain killers and a referral to a physio. My physio referral got lost. So I gave up. Until: August. I’m doing the dishes when a blinding pain shoots through my wrist. I could not move it, could not move my fingers without hot burning pain in my wrist. Could not even breathe. So, I went to the doctor because thats what you do when you’re in pain right? Dude didn’t even look at me. Asked me to put my hand flat on his desk. I couldn’t. So, he sent me to get blood tests for arthritis. While all this is going on mind, I was trying to ask my company to step down from a supervisor back to barista because I kept ‘hurting’ my shoulders while cashing up and the strain of carrying £800 in change every day back and forth from the safe to the office to cash up was killing my back and knees. Just keep that in mind. Blood tests came back.. Absolutely fine. The doctor who sees me cannot understand why that statement makes me cry. She was ready to send me on my merry way. So, with no explanation of what they are or what they’re for, she threw meds at me. I didn’t take them. Things get so bad and my pain is so extreme that I’m seriously starting to give up. Then, I remember the nice doctor from years ago. So I ask specifically to see him. God it was like a different dimension. He was like “oh that sounds like you’re subluxating your joints” and explained what the meds from the other lady were for and just really validated my feelings. Made me feel less crazy. Because sometimes you do feel crazy. I got re-referred to physio. After I casually wrote an incident report at work which is read by HR and my area manager, I amazingly went from being told there’s “just no way for me to step down” to demoted in about... a week? Physio goes really well. She was so lovely. I went every 2 to 3 weeks. I built up muscle really well. Learned that the way I hold myself will help keep my joints in place. It was a really validating experience. Both because she could recognize how fucked up my joints were and how gentle the exercises had to be to prevent me from just, breaking. And also because every time she’d tell me she could tell how hard I was working. That I really was trying and doing it.

Enter Covid.

so of course physio got canceled.

And the months go by. lockdown was fine. my hips subluxed during. so I had a few weeks of not really being very mobile, which was pretty scary since I live alone. But heyho. And then back to work. my body threw an almighty tantrum. I dislocated my big toe for one thing. But I didn’t work out that was what it was until after a “phone consultation” with the meanest physio ever. She basically told me I was delusional and to stop wasting her time. All because I told her “I think I may have subluxed my toe”. which probably would have gone over fine if it weren’t for the fact, I hadn’t had any kind of trauma to the area. I was in work, and one second I could stand and the next second? I could not put any weight on my right foot for fear of blinding pain. Sounds... uhhh familiar right? So I just... bought comfier work shoes and bandaged my foot as tight as I could.. and managed. I did end up calling the doctors again about 2 months later when the pain just. would. not. ease up. I still cant wear shoes that dont have really soft soles. So, I had more blood tests... that came back... FINE! BUT, Thats okay! Because the big appointment has finally arrived! The one my good doctor and my physio both told me would be the answer to all my prayers. Finally. I was going to a Rheumatologist! So my brother picked me up. Off we went to the hospital. I had to go in alone, because, you know.. covid. And I finally after a year of being on this waiting list, get called into the doctors office. At first it seems to be going okay. He’s taking notes, listening to my “story” (his words not mine). so then came the physical examination... where he made some bold claims. and then it was over. He sat me back down in his office and told me. “you dont have hypermobile joints, and theres nothing wrong with you”. Right? So, when I didn’t leave his office. He then backtracked and tried to throw “Chronic pain syndrome” at me. Bitch. Thats a fucking symptom not the cause. So, I still didn’t leave. So, this man deadass asks me what I think it is then. And so I was like “I dont know crazily thats why im here?????????????????” And he told me to go on GET THIS hypermobility forums online!!!!!!!!!!!!!! amd see what people on there recommend to help with pain and shit. He THEN asked me if I think I have fibromyalgia. Fam. Again. You are the doctor. I am a very sad 24 year old. And that was that. Bye. Peace out. Come back if you get any real symptoms. (No really he told me I was free to come back if I developed anything he could actually help with) So I walked out of his office. Back to the carpark where my brother was waiting. and then I cried. I cried so fucking hard man. it’s been 3 weeks and 3 days since that fucking day. I’ve stopped taking my meds. I dont eat. I haven’t had work this week so I haven’t left the house. Not once. I can’t even cry anymore. I’ve been depressed before and I’ve been suicidal before. But that was always grief fueled. Anxiety filled. This one hits different. I realized during lockdown I was depressed again. You know. The world is having a hard time atm. Throw in any extra struggles and its ripe for the old brain sads. But I am struggling to think of a time when I was ever this bad. Like. I am actually afraid of how unwell I am at the moment. And how unseriously my friends are taking it? And it hurts you know? Because a colleague of mine is having a hard time and my best friend is there for her... but not for me... and its just fucking with me even more because I for the first time in my god damn life. In the 13 years I’ve been depressed I reached out. I actually told the people who are supposed to care about me “Hey, im really not great atm” and they did exactly what I always knew they would. nothing. Thats not to say though, that my brother is like that. He is my ray of light. The only family I have. God. I would be so lost without him. But I just dont know what to do. I dont want to talk to some stranger over video call for “therapy” and I dont know if I’d be able to tell a doctor what’s wrong over the phone...and I am just so fucking lost. Covid is making this all so much harder. I just dont know what to do. I feel so lost. I needed to write this out though. Writing helps me clear my head.

#sammie being whiny #depression #suicide mention #chronic pain #A lot of shit #doctors fucking SUCK #im so sad fam #this is a long old write up of basically my life? #blahhhhhhhhhhhhh

[garbagecan444]

Ok, so nobody’s reading this... obviously. I have no followers and just made account so hopefully nobody’s reading this. But anyways. I have a friend, let’s call her carrot 🥕. Carrot told me about how she has a tumblr account just for venting and talking about random shit, so here I am. On tumblr. Talking about random shit. She inspired me, seemed like a good, healthy way to get some of my anxiety and stress to go away. So I might as well give it a shot. Random thoughts- long rants and more. don’t know if your supposed to do that on here or not but who cares lmao. Ill say what I want as long as it’s respectful to the people who deserve respect. ( typo warning ahead typo warning ahead )

I’ve been feeling super pent up lately since I just moved into a new town. Also cuz ya-know, COVID and all. I’ve been going to the library for the last couple days just to read and relax. (I’m reading needful things by Stephan king atm) I go and read, get some hot coffe with some pumps of Carmel and vanilla, and then I go explore around the city the best I can. I can’t get my driver’s license and i can’t get a job yet, so I have to rely on my sister to take me places. It’s stupid but I guess all I can do is be patient. Just to clarify I have no idea how to work tumblr, I haven’t been on social media since I left home. I feel bad about not being active on Instagram, especially when I was posting for blm and any type other advocacy for just causes everyday. I honestly really don’t like social media in the first place, but I’m contradicting my self by even posting on this platform. At least it was better to post on Instagram while I did, instead of continuing to feed into the fucked system. Fuck the algorithm, (also the newest childish gambino album is tight, there’s a song called algorithm on there) fuck rules and stipulations, do what makes you happy. Browsing posts and taking a look into other peoples glorifyed lives, isn’t gonna do anybody any good. It’s so unfortunate that the Majority of Instagram is filled with unnecessary bullshit that rots your brain. I would so much rather feed MYSELf the shit of a bull then spend more then 5 minutes on Instagram or tiktok, getting fed blushit and nonsense that makes you feel bad about yourself... anyways back to what I was gonna rant about before I decided to go on a tangent regarding social media (brainrot brainrot) I was trying to say that it’s been very overwhelming moving into a new city, I have no idea where anything is I don’t have any Friends here, and I’m stuck in a time where I can’t really go out places and “socialize” since.. yaknow.. COVID. Which by the way, nobody in the area i live in is taking this shiy seriously. Wearing your mask with your nose hanging out, defeats the purpose of wearing a facial covering IN THE FIRST PLAcE. That’s like wearing underwear but leaving your dick to flop out and around, it’s gross. Seriously it’s not that hard to care about other people. ANYWAYS. I’m feeling restless and I wanna meet new people, but once again it’s one of those situations where the only thing I can do is be patient. And just like everything( this state of uncontentmemt, the anxiety of not knowing what comes next, and every other raw emotion one could be feeling) this too shall pass. -✨🦊

[electricoutdoors]

How to Survive a Pandemic – Make Your Family as Safe as Possible

How to Survive a Pandemic

The thought of a pandemic is pretty scary. Is there anything you can do to protect yourself if a disease is spreading across the entire world? Yes!

Surviving a pandemic is best done by preparing ahead of time and knowing what you need to do to not spread the disease around your home once it starts to spread in the community.

The real way to keep yourself as protected as you can is by preparing ahead of time. Don’t listen to the people that try to act like preparing ahead of time is for crazy people! We all have insurance and prepping isn’t any different than an insurance plan for disasters. [wc_toggle title=“Table of Contents” padding=“” border_width=“” class=“” layout=“box”]

How to Survive a Pandemic

How to Prepare for a Pandemic

Store the Things You’re Going to Need Ahead of Time

Over the Counter Medicine

Don’t Forget to Check on Family Members

What Type of Disease is the Most Likely to Become a Pandemic

What Happens When a Pandemic Occurs

How Diseases Spread

How likely is a global pandemic?

How long would a pandemic last?

Prepare for Services to be Unavailable

Once the Pandemic Starts

Conclusion

[/wc_toggle]

[wc_box color=“inverse” text_align=“left” margin_top=“” margin_bottom=“” class=“”]

Thanks for supporting Ready Lifestyle! We participate in the Amazon associates program and other affiliate programs. We earn a small commission on qualifying orders at no expense to you.

[/wc_box]

How to Prepare for a Pandemic

Preparing for a pandemic before one begins is the best way to protect you and your family. On top of helping you, it also helps the community because you’re one less willing victim that the local and state government officials are going to have to save when things go bad.

The first way to prepare for a pandemic is by getting rid of the attitude that nothing can happen to you. Guess what? Just because you live a relatively easy life, doesn’t mean that nothing bad is ever going to happen to you.

Store the Things You’re Going to Need Ahead of Time

Store the supplies that you’re going to need if you have to spend a couple of weeks in your home. We live in a just in a world that relies on just in time delivery of everything from food and water to gas and medicine. If you don’t plan ahead and store the things you need before something happens, you’re going to have to try to rely on a system that can’t support the strain that a pandemic will put on it.

Simply put, if you wait to try to get the things you need until the last minute, you’re probably not going to get them.

The DHS suggests having a 2 week supply of food and water. I personally suggest having 4 weeks of food and water stored.

This is what you need for a long term quarantine:

5-gallon bucket with trash bags and kitty litter - You can pack most of the items in the 5-gallon bucket and it will double as a toilet by lining it with a trash bag and pouring about an inch of kitty litter in the bottom.

1 gallon of water per person for as many days as you may need to quarantine - A case of bottled water is just over 3 gallons.

non-perishable food for each person for the length of time that you’ll be quarantined for.

Household chlorine bleach (unscented with no additives) - You can add 16 drops per gallon of water to disinfect it or mix 1 part bleach to 9 parts water to make a disinfectant cleaner.

Pool shock (73% Calcium Hypochlorite and 70% available chlorine content) - Allows you to mix bleach at home and has a much longer shelf life than bottled bleach.

Battery-powered or hand-crank NOAA weather radio

Flashlight with extra batteries

First aid kit

Thermometer

Several N95 dust masks per person

Disposable rubber gloves

Clear goggles or protective glasses - Allows you to cover your eyes to prevent possible contamination by airborne particulates.

Plastic sheeting and duct tape to seal around the plastic - Enough to seal all doors, and vents for an isolation room if needed.

Surgical masks - For anyone in the house that may get sick.

Heavy gauge garbage bags - For disposing of potentially contaminated waste.

Anti-bacterial hand soap

Clorox wipes

Hand sanitizer - 60 - 95% alcohol

Handheld spray bottles - For bleach disinfectant mix.

1-gallon sprayer (like this) - For disinfecting larger areas.

Diapers and formula

Food and water for pets

Can opener if you pack canned food

Books, games, puzzles or other activities for children

Prescription medications that will last you for the entire quarantine

Over the Counter Medicine

Over the counter medicines are easy to get when everything is going well, but when things start to go bad, they can be hard to come by.

I suggest starting by boosting your immune system boosting medicines because our immune system is still our best way of beating a disease. Cough suppressants can help limit the spread of and disease but I prefer expectorants since they thin mucus and can help you clear your respiratory system when mucus starts to build up.

Most diseases are going to be accompanied by a fever. Tylenol and NSAIDs will help reduce your fever and get rid of any body aches you may have.

Over the counter medicine to stock:

Immune system boosting OTC medications - Emergen-C and Airborne

Cough suppressants (usually has the active ingredient dextromethorphan)

Expectorants (active ingredient guaifenesin)

Tylenol

NSAIDs

[wc_box color=“primary” text_align=“left” margin_top=“” margin_bottom=“” class=“”]

Read our article on home quarantine to learn what to do with step by step instructions.

[/wc_box]

Don’t Forget to Check on Family Members

If you have elderly family members or other family members that need special assistance, you should check on them as soon as you feel something like this may happen.

You may want to temporarily move them in with you until the pandemic looks like it’s over. At a minimum, you should take them the supplies they’ll need to make it through a quarantine and any prescription medicines they need.

What Type of Disease is the Most Likely to Become a Pandemic

Most experts agree that some variation of the flu is the most likely disease to cause a pandemic.

What Happens When a Pandemic Occurs

According to the CDC, pandemics happen when a new disease occurs that is easily transmitted from person to person in a sustained way. This happens when diseases can be transmitted for a long period of time while remaining asymptomatic.

How Diseases Spread

Learning how diseases spread is one of the best ways to keep yourself from getting sick. Avoiding the things that spread disease will keep you from getting it and keep you from spreading it to others.

Direct contact

Direct contact with a person or animal with the disease is probably the easiest way to get a disease.

Infectious diseases can be spread through these different means of direct contact:

Person to Person - One of the most common ways that disease spreads is between people. This can be through bodily fluids, coughing, sneezing or sexual contact.

Animal to Person - Being bitten or scratched by an infected animal can make you sick. This goes for pets as well. Animal waste can also spread disease if you’re exposed to it.

Indirect contact

Many types of diseases can stay on surfaces for hours (or even days). When you touch the infected surface you can then transfer the disease to yourself and others.

Insect bites

Another common means of transferring disease is though insect bites. Some of the worst epidemics in history have been transferred by fleas. Mosquitos are another really common insect that spreads disease.

Food contamination

Contaminated food can spread disease too. E. coli is a common bacteria that’s transmitted through food contamination.

Individuals can also help reduce the spread of disease by:

Keeping your hands away from your face.

Coughing and sneezing into your arm, not your hand.

Keeping common surface areas clean and disinfected.

If you get sick, stay home.

How likely is a global pandemic?

The World Health Organization has been saying that we need to increase our focus on global pandemic for years. As I’m writing this, COVID-19 is still spreading across the world and has just started to spread in the U.S. among people with no travel history that would expose them…community transmission. I’m going to say the chances are very high!

Even if COVID-19 dies off and never really becomes a massive disaster, there’s always the next disease that’s coming. Be prepared and get stuck in the mentality that nothing will ever happen to you.

How long would a pandemic last?

A pandemic isn’t going to just be one wave of the disease and then it’s gone. The Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety says that it will take 3 months for a disease to spread to the pandemic level with modern means of travel.

They also say to be on the lookout for 2 or 3 rounds of the disease and for the entire pandemic to last between 12 and 18 months.

Prepare for Services to be Unavailable

During a true pandemic, many services that you’re used to will probably be discontinued, at least temporarily. Banks, stores, post offices, utility companies, and even hospitals may all shut their doors.

Medical facilities will probably try to stay open for as long as they can and the government will likely try to force local utilities (like electricity and water) to stay up for as long as they can as well.

Even if medical facilities are open, they’re going to be packed full of people that are contagious. Think carefully before you head to the hospital and be sure that you can’t treat yourself at home.

ATMs and gas stations will probably be out of money and gas. Have some emergency cash on hand and some extra gas in the garage. I don’t think the gas will be gone because of increased demand, but gas probably won’t be getting delivered.

Once the Pandemic Starts

Once everything really kicks off you need to do what you can to stay healthy.

Avoid interacting with people who are sick.

When you are sick, keep your distance from others to protect them from getting sick too.

Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when coughing or sneezing.

Wash your hands often.

Don’t touch your eyes, nose or mouth.

Get plenty of sleep, be physically active, manage your stress, drink plenty of fluids, and eat healthy food.

Conclusion

A global pandemic is probably one of the most likely threats that we face. If we prepare ahead of time, then it’s more likely that we’ll be safe and make it through the pandemic. If we don’t prepare then we’ll be at the mercy of public health offices that are overwhelmed.

I personally won’t ever blindly put the lives of my family in the hands of others.

How to Survive a Pandemic – Make Your Family as Safe as Possible was first published to: Ready Lifestyle Prepping Blog

How to Survive a Pandemic – Make Your Family as Safe as Possible published first on https://readylifesytle.tumblr.com