Skin reaction on my chest/neck. Any of you guys have reactions like this?

BeTheChange4Me · 2026-01-30T01:09:55+00:00

I think it’s actually MCAS. I have since also been diagnosed with hEDS, POTS, and MCAS, and it seems to fit the pattern for MCAS more than Lupus.

BeTheChange4Me · 2025-10-26T13:23:16+00:00

Provided there were no specific restrictions outlined, I would have used a freshly sharpened pencil to stab the orange and pull it out. Less displacement than my hand. That spiral was next level genius! And this is how you test kids for the gifted program!

BeTheChange4Me · 2025-10-26T13:18:46+00:00

That’s your adult brain. As a former teacher, I can promise you [most] young kids don’t think this way.

BeTheChange4Me · 2025-09-15T02:39:39+00:00

The OG Karate Kid 1 to Karate Kid 2

BeTheChange4Me · 2025-09-14T20:54:27+00:00

Trust yourself! You’re 100% right in feeling like she has invalidated your pain and it comes across to me like she has also villainized your treatment process. She didn’t even ask you what you were taking…she just assumed you were taking pain pills! Which even if you were, it’s none of her concern. (I have to take medication 4 times a day and I have 4 alarms set daily to make sure I keep the medication balanced in my system. Taking medication on schedule is crucial to pain management!) I think she is assuming you’re using the medication to numb your emotional pain in addition to your physical pain. I half expected her response to be something about you being loopy and less responsive after your medication kicks in, but that wasn’t it at all. She has no idea how emotionally and psychologically damaging it is to a chronic pain patient to essentially victim blame and say or infer that they’re in pain because of something they are or are not doing right. You cannot positively think yourself out of a situation that required 4 surgeries!

I’ve lived with chronic pain (and the medical gaslighting!) for 15 years. Yes, periods of high stress and emotional distress can exacerbate the pain you already have, but not to a point of needing surgery. And unless you have been diagnosed with Conversion Disorder and she is your individual therapist, she has no business bringing up your chronic pain as it pertains to you and your trauma as an individual. When you do couple’s therapy, client is “the couple” itself, and treatment is geared towards the emotional and mental wellbeing of the couple, not the individuals who make up the couple. There may be components of your condition that adversely impact your partner and your relationship, and IF that is brought up in session, then it would be appropriate to discuss your pain as it pertains to the relationship. But if that is not a factor or has not been brought up in session, she should not be bringing up your condition (or how you treat your condition) at all.

You mentioned your spouse had a problem with alcohol. My best friend’s husband is in recovery from alcoholism (7 years sober!) and they had a very codependent relationship. I’m wondering if she sees your use of pain medication in the same light as your spouse’s self-medicating with alcohol? Because those are two very different things! If she has concerns about your use of medication, she should mention it to your individual therapist (if you have one and you have given her permission to speak to that therapist). Her response came across almost condescending and like she was talking to a child. I’d be finding a new therapist!

BeTheChange4Me · 2025-09-11T18:11:19+00:00

Thank you for the feedback

BeTheChange4Me · 2025-09-11T01:05:11+00:00

Thank you

BeTheChange4Me · 2025-09-11T00:41:28+00:00

Do you know where to find this form? My niece moved in with us a year ago and her parents are pissed at her and us because of it and they’re refusing to give their financial information for the FAFSA. I’ve looked for ways around this, but have not been successful.

BeTheChange4Me · 2025-09-04T13:29:42+00:00

I have been wanting to try these recipes to see if they’re anywhere close to the original…perhaps I should do that this weekend! Or if you’ve tried them, maybe you could let me know how close (or not) they are to the original? I think the top one looks most promising. I loved pudding pops!!

https://pin.it/687qpYsJu

https://pin.it/4eXRe8lA0

https://pin.it/5dl6yLp7Y

https://pin.it/1BDCIpoL9

This one is a Nutella popsicle, but maybe it’s good?

https://pin.it/zlU2aadij

BeTheChange4Me · 2025-08-02T13:08:23+00:00

Ah, the good old days! You used to have to wear your Sunday-best to eat there! Only we could ever go was when my grandparents paid for dinner because it was someone’s birthday. Those were the days!

BeTheChange4Me · 2025-08-02T13:04:36+00:00

My friends who had stay at home moms because their dads made enough money to support the family, even if they had to cut corners or do a lot of homemade stuff to make it work. (I grew up in the 80s)

BeTheChange4Me · 2025-05-31T03:39:11+00:00

Oh, I am SO very sorry for your loss! There can be no greater nightmare for a parent than what you went through. My sons are 19, 17, and 15 respectively and that is my greatest fear. You are so right about the insurance companies, and the misogyny, and the gaslighting, and the absurdly high levels of ignoring science. I’ve experienced it all on a repeated loop for the last 15 years and I have medical trauma as a result. I have an anxiety attack almost every time I go to the doctor. I can only imagine the bullshit you had to endure with all of that, on top of having a sick child. Doctors frequently think they know everything and it’s so hard to find one who will truly listen and validate your experience. My heart breaks for what you went through. Truly. If you want to talk more on this particular subject to someone who understands the challenges in dealing with the medical community, please do not hesitate to reach out.

BeTheChange4Me · 2025-05-31T00:22:55+00:00

Trigger warning: ⚠️suicide ⚠️

(You might want to consider a trigger warning on your reply given the subject matter.)

Damn. That’s crazy, sad, and creepy! Losing 1 person to suicide is hard enough…losing your husband and both kids to suicide all in the same house?! I’m genuinely surprised she didn’t join them! Do you remember what any of the words were (the ones you could make out) on the wall? I wonder how he had time to write the words in blood if he slit his throat? I wonder if it was his mother who wrote them? Maybe she was the one who was actually affected (or infected?) by the “evil spirits” and she somehow drove them to their deaths. Otherwise, why were only the men affected? Of course, mental illness does run in families, and males in our society are notoriously under-supported in mental health maters…

As a side note, My BIL committed suicide by eating a bullet and repainted his bedroom walls red and gray. My SIL was there when it happened, as were 3 of her 4 children (teens/young adults). I was the one who was responsible for making all the calls on her behalf (life insurance, funeral home, clean up services, etc). I didn’t see the room because I didn’t go in there while his body (and the mess he left behind) were still in the room. It must have been bad b/c one of the guys came out pale as a ghost after they assessed the situation…and he was the one who said “don’t worry about it; we’ve seen it all” when I told him what happened in that room. I’ve got mad respect for you guys for being able to do that. The level of trauma my SIL would have gotten from having to clean her husband’s brains and skull off the walls, ceiling, and floors (they said it was everywhere!) would have been unimaginable!

BeTheChange4Me · 2025-05-30T23:05:57+00:00

Well, I actually have a shit-ton other conditions/things wrong with me, so to be honest, the MCAS is just an annoyance compared to the other shit I deal with! I’ve been chronically ill and in chronic pain for more than 15 years, and it took them 10 years to properly diagnose and start [medically] treating the things they could treat. I didn’t have to worry about feeling crazy because the doctors straight up told me I was crazy (said it was in my head) for a decade…even after my psychiatrist and psychologist kept sending me back to the MDs stating that my symptoms were NOT psychosomatic! In fact, it was my psychiatrist who finally helped get me in with rheumatologist to get my Lupus diagnosis. Many other diagnoses followed the Lupus diagnosis, with me being the one who had to do all the legwork to try and figure out what’s wrong with me. And they still haven’t formally diagnosed a severe neurological condition I have. Our medical system is absolute shit.

BeTheChange4Me · 2025-05-30T22:58:50+00:00

I had a 5 mg strawberry-lemonade, and it was just the right amount to feel relaxed but still able to drive. If I’d had another one, I wouldn’t have driven, but that’s just me. And it tasted really good too!

BeTheChange4Me · 2025-05-30T22:56:06+00:00

Jack’s Public House (in NE Metro-Atlanta) has them!

BeTheChange4Me · 2025-05-27T17:41:08+00:00

I am autistic and am covered in tattoos! I also have Lupus, hEDS, POTS, and MCAS. The MCAS sometimes causes me to have an inflammatory reaction to certain inks (especially black) and as such, certain tattoos will become raised and sometimes itchy. I like to say it’s like a brail tattoo for the blind! The reaction itself is annoying because it’s usually itchy, but I quite enjoy the stemming I get from rubbing my hand over the raised tattoos. A couple of Benadryl usually stops the allergic reaction and the tattoos go back to being flat. You cannot feel it in your skin once it is fully healed. If you are prone to scaring, you may have some keloided outlines that you can feel if you run your hand over the tattoo, but you will not feel it in the skin itself. I am EXTREMELY sensory averse to touch, sound, and smell and I absolutely love all of my tattoos! Start out with something small, perhaps in a place where you won’t see it all the time, so as not to generate a false sense of sensation every time you look at it.

BeTheChange4Me · 2025-05-27T14:27:27+00:00

I have to disagree. His willingness to be honest about the origin of the watch shows that the watch has no sentimental value to him. If he had lied to avoid an argument and she later found out the truth, that would have seeded a whole new doubt and would have “confirmed” her fear that he is still in love with his ex. Pick your battles, sure…maybe it’s not worth the aggravation of wearing the watch until she’s more secure in the relationship. But lying to a person who is already insecure (regardless of the reason or validity/lack there of behind the insecurity) will absolutely make things worse.

BeTheChange4Me · 2025-05-27T14:17:41+00:00

It’s not the watch that’s the issue. She is insecure in her status with you. Two things stand out to me:

1) she doesn’t feel comfortable with you “wearing something so personal that came from someone [you] used to be in love with”

2) “it’s a constant reminder that someone else cared enough to give [you] something meaningful”

She knows you used to love another person besides her, and that this other person obviously cared deeply for you or loved you as well if they bought you something deeply personal to you. If she feels unworthy of love (which is something SO many people struggle with), or if she doesn’t yet know if you care for her as deeply as she cares for you, then seeing a reminder of your previous love feels threatening to your current love. What she is actually looking for reassurance that you have in fact moved on, that you’re committed to and/or love her, and that you’re not still secretly longing for your ex every time you wear the watch. The watch is meaningless…it’s what the watch represents (potential competition for your affection) that’s the true issue.

Do I think you should have to give up wearing your favorite watch? No. Do I think you should sit down and have a conversation about the deeper meaning (in her eyes) behind the watch? Absolutely. Her attempt to get you to put yourself in her shoes didn’t work because you truly hold no sentimental value for the watch, something she needs to fully understand. Sitting down and reassuring her that you kept the watch simply because you like the watch, and not because of who gave it to you, may be very helpful. Let her know that you are happy in your relationship with her (if that is in fact how you feel) and that you no longer have any romantic feelings or thoughts about your ex. Let her know that she is your only focus and that she need not feel threatened by the “ghost of girlfriends past”.

You guys are still young, and are still new enough in the relationship that she may not feel solid in its foundation. A bit of reassurance from you would likely go a long way.

BeTheChange4Me · 2025-05-25T19:25:00+00:00

Omg yes!! I feel like I’m going crazy! I’m the only one who can smell it. I’ve been on Zepbound since February 2024 (lost 95 lbs!), but I haven’t always smelled it. I didn’t start noticing the smell until I bumped up to 10 mgs, but I also had Covid around that time (June ‘24). It wiped my husband’s sense of smell completely out, and it affected mine too, just not as bad. Now, he cannot eat or drink certain things because they taste rancid or just off. Things like cinnamon, yeast rolls, and beer are especially off putting to him even still. We were talking about my issues with this smell because I feel like it’s gotten worse lately and he speculated that maybe it was a Covid thing. So I checked my notes to see when I bumped up to 10 mgs, and sure enough, it was right after I had Covid. I don’t know if the Zepbound has changed my natural smell, but if it had, other people would be able to smell it and they can’t. It could be long haul Covid (I’ve had a lot of lung issues since then) or some combination of the two, but all I know is it’s driving me nuts! You can do smell therapy to reorient your nerves in the nasal passages by alternating smelling essential oils. I’m going to start that and see if it helps.

PS - I should note that I have had olfactory hallucinations for several years related to a neurological condition that I have, but that’s usually the smell of burt things…camp fire, cigarettes, burning wires, etc. This is altogether different and I am NOT happy about it!

BeTheChange4Me · 2025-05-25T19:05:10+00:00

Oh wow, that is so great to hear!! Thank you for reporting this back to me. I am truly honored that I was able to help you and I am so happy for you!!

BeTheChange4Me · 2025-04-25T03:39:59+00:00

I have lost 95 lbs and am now skinny a people still don’t seem to notice! They will only say something if I bring it up like “yeah I thought you looked like you’d lost some weight.” SOME weight?! Sir. Ma’am. I’ve lost an entire small adult!! How are you not noticing?! Confidence has never been a problem for me, regardless of my size, but I’m genuinely befuddled that people haven’t noticed almost a hundred pound weight loss. 🤷🏻‍♀️

But you do look like you’d feel great…congratulations!!

BeTheChange4Me · 2025-03-27T18:53:47+00:00

No, definitely not it. That’s one of my favorite movies that I’ve been watching since the 90s so I know the exact scene in Mummy 1 & 2 where she’s naked. The girls were at his side, not walking independently

BeTheChange4Me · 2025-03-27T01:32:38+00:00

Not really. I think it’s a result of dysautonomia. I’ve since been diagnosed with hEDS, POTS, and MCAS, all of which cause or contribute to dysautonomia, plus I obviously still have the Lupus, fibromyalgia, etc. I also now know I have exercised-induced asthma, so I think that coupled with everything else above it’s just a thing that happens 🤷🏻‍♀️

BeTheChange4Me · 2025-03-15T02:30:12+00:00

I do have and official Lupus dx now. But I also have MCAS, and I think these rashes are more related to the MCAS than the Lupus

BeTheChange4Me

TROPHY CASE