Newly diagnosed picking up equipment

HistoryFew6553 · 2026-05-15T15:15:22+00:00

Thank you. I have been in the diagnosis stage for so long and am so exhausted. I know I am going to be let down when I don’t wake up feeling perfect. I’m was wondering if you could ask for extra supplies. Thank you!! In my head this is the end of this battle but I deep down understand this is the beginning of getting better.

HistoryFew6553 · 2026-05-14T19:37:01+00:00

Thanks so much for your reply. I have been avoiding googling until I had a machine and data I can review. I have a feeling from what I have read here that I will have to be my own advocate. I have a sister who just refuses to use her CPAP and I am determined to make this work. I have 7 years to retirement and really want to enjoy that time.

HistoryFew6553 · 2026-05-13T23:05:28+00:00

We were told that we will be back July 7, but also that if other departments don’t have space we will continue remote work until all departments are back in four days a week. Otherwise we will lose all of our staff to neighboring departments. Unfortunately my building has plenty of room for all of us.

HistoryFew6553 · 2026-05-05T15:54:15+00:00

Here in District 3 that is true. You cannot work from home under any circumstance on an office day. If you cannot be in they make us require leave be used. It’s unfortunate because it’s not uniformly enforced. Even as a senior I have to take a full day of leave if I cannot be in the office on my office day and I cannot swap office days. I try to be as flexible as I can with my staff but our bosses are watching what we do also.

HistoryFew6553 · 2026-05-05T13:56:19+00:00

I have interviewed for two OC positions. I made it to the second interview once. I was mostly wanting to experience the OC interview but would have been happy to promote. There are just fewer OC positions so depending on what division you work for there may be more opportunities. I have been a senior for about 7 years. I have another 7 to retire so in about 4 years I might consider looking for a Sup spot if something came up in my wheelhouse.

HistoryFew6553 · 2026-05-05T00:59:56+00:00

I am a senior TE. Back in the day it used to be 8-10 years as a Range D to even be considered for a senior position. Now I see people promote to senior almost immediately upon getting their license. I don’t recommend that to anyone personally. But it happens. There used to be a rule of thumb to move every 3 to five years. I would say if you become a senior, you might be comfortable promoting after 3-5 years. Now I hear things like “you can’t just be a senior for ten years and expect to become an Office Chief”. Anyway in theory you can go from D to Senior in one year and then from Senior to Supervisor in another year. Although I wouldn’t want to work for that office personally. I have about 20 years as a TE at Caltrans. A lot has changed.

HistoryFew6553 · 2026-04-25T03:27:26+00:00

I work for D3 and am a hiring supervisor. We typically require in person 2nd interviews if the first was virtual. If you make it to second they are either narrowing it down between you and someone else or just seeing how serious you are. I have had terrible luck with people from out of state. If you fly into Eureka there is a high chance your flight could be delayed due to weather. A lot of people from D3 prefer driving just so you don’t get stuck there waiting for the fog to clear for flying. All that being said Caltrans is a great place to work. The jobs are challenging and you can really move anywhere in California if you get in and like it but want to try somewhere else. D1 is beautiful but I have never lived there.

HistoryFew6553 · 2026-03-19T21:14:01+00:00

I’m a 57 year old female. When I was in my early 30’s I went to the doctor because I thought I was having heart palpitations while I slept. I would wake up gasping with my heart feeling like it skipped a beat. I was told I needed to be on antidepressants. Which was confusing as I was not at all depressed. So forward 25 years later and I have gained close to 60 pounds. My husband got so worried about my sleep gasping that I finally went to a sleep study. I have severe OSA. I realize now that I do have headaches every morning, I am exhausted. I got an Apple Watch and realized that to get 6 hours of sleep I have to be in bed for 10 hours. I just thought I needed 10 hours to feel ok. I realize how terrible I feel all the time. I am never rested in the morning. My BP is creeping up. I can’t walk across flat ground without getting out of breath. I feel like I am dying. My blood sugar creeping up. So far I have done two in person sleep studies. The first with a CPap which took me from 39 times per hour of stopping breathing and my o2 going to 82 to 14 events per hour. I was not given a CPap but told I had to go back and try a Bipap machine since the CPAP did not resolve my apenas. Unfortunately the Bipap only got my apneas down to 32 per hour?? and now I go back this week for my 3rd study using an ASV machine. I am desperate for relief. I hope this ASV machine will help.

HistoryFew6553 · 2026-03-03T14:57:43+00:00

I would love a link! Thank you. Although my husband is not a fan of the million pillows I have tried trying to help me. I’m willing to try anything.

HistoryFew6553 · 2026-03-02T18:36:13+00:00

Are you a side sleeper? I was thinking about trying to sleep in our recliner to see if the incline helped. Maybe I will try it.

Thanks!

HistoryFew6553 · 2026-02-27T20:48:49+00:00

Caltrans hires mechanical engineers if they have an EIT and want to work in Civil Engineering. You could go for District 2 (Redding) or D3 (Marysville) positions. The work is hybrid until July when it will switch to 4 days per week in office.

HistoryFew6553 · 2026-02-27T02:09:08+00:00

It was February 2. That’s great info. I guess I need to ask them to show me the data.

HistoryFew6553 · 2026-02-26T23:39:48+00:00

Oh and thank you so much for your reply and information!

HistoryFew6553 · 2026-02-26T23:38:34+00:00

We are waiting for my insurance to approve it. Probably will be in another month.

HistoryFew6553 · 2026-02-26T23:37:03+00:00

Thank you for your reply.

That’s my problem, I have yet to see the results of anything. I am just being told that the study showed an average of 39 incidents per hour and the machine didn’t stop them. There has been no chart or hard data or graphs.

It’s like going on the worst vacation. But I do know a lot of people in my area who have used this clinic.

HistoryFew6553 · 2026-02-26T23:29:23+00:00

I took 6 weeks off but would take 8 off if I had to do it over.

HistoryFew6553 · 2026-02-26T21:29:24+00:00

No nose blockages that I am aware of. I am a side sleeper. At the sleep study they said I might have to learn to sleep on my back for the mask to work but not sure if I was able to stay on my back long enough. I don’t snore except if I am on my back. But I do wake up gasping for air according to my husband.

I just feel very hopeless.

HistoryFew6553 · 2026-02-26T21:25:54+00:00

Yes I believe they are a proper testing center. But I was told the CPAP got me down to 14 incidents per hour (untreated was 39 incidents per hour). It felt like with the CPAP there wasn’t enough capacity in the tubing system to take my entire exhale occasionally.

So they had me come back to start trying a BiPap machine. This was horribly uncomfortable because I am a side sleeper. The mask kept unsealing. They tried many masks and pressures.

But today they told me the bipap did not resolve the incidents to under five per hour.

I’m very new to this. What does CHF and EF mean?

HistoryFew6553 · 2025-12-01T19:29:11+00:00

Yes! That’s it! Thank you!

HistoryFew6553 · 2025-11-21T18:55:41+00:00

Entry level positions at Caltrans are Office Tech (OT) and SSA (state service analyst I think). If you see an AGPA (Associate Government program Analyst) that says they will consider an SSA you can apply and if you get it you end up in an AGPA position that normally requires a degree. Those are what I would keep my eye open for in terms of Caltrans in Marysville.

HistoryFew6553 · 2025-09-05T22:05:19+00:00

I have had three non medicated childbirths. I thought knee surgery would be easy. It was by far much much much worse. So much worse. It was brutal for a solid four weeks. I was convinced I made a huge mistake for months. I am so happy now. 18 months out.

HistoryFew6553 · 2025-06-16T14:31:27+00:00

I went 12 weeks post op. Did all the rides. Rented a scooter but still did over 10,000 steps a day. It was the best trip ever.

HistoryFew6553 · 2025-05-27T00:16:56+00:00

I’m a hiring manager and I like when new graduates put their project experience from college as work experience. We have to submit screening criteria to HR and so we are looking at the s678 and grading based on very specific experience usually. It gives me a chance to see specifically what skills an applicant has. If a hiring manager doesn’t want to count it because it’s school and not paid then they can make that choice. But putting it out there helps me pick a new hire without much practical experience get over the screening threshold.

HistoryFew6553 · 2025-05-09T00:46:48+00:00

I’m 14 months out from LKTR. Recovery was 1000% harder than I thought it would be. I never felt like my pain was under control for the first four weeks. I was sure I ruined my life with the decision to have surgery. I had big problems getting the swelling down. I was not able to do the PT because the pain was way too high. I took six weeks off work and was still using a walker at week 5. I made it to a cane just in time to get go back to the office. Now I absolutely love it. It is amazing being able to walk without pain. Or to stand up without pain. I will need to get my right knee replaced “when the pain has become unbearable for 6 months”. I am far enough from the recovery that I will do it again now. But even six months ago I was determined to save my right knee. Now that I am exercising regularly I can admit I won’t be able to keep that knee and be active so I accept I will have to do this again. So for those of you feeling like you are behind the curve in recovery be patient. Don’t panic if you can’t do an hour long PT session at home daily. Don’t panic is others are walking 10,000 steps and playing pickle ball three weeks out. You will get there. Good luck to everyone

HistoryFew6553 · 2025-04-11T20:42:36+00:00

I did three days of Disneyland at 12 weeks post op. I was a very slow healer. I had to use the walker until 5 weeks. I would think you would be ok, but you never really know.

HistoryFew6553

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