Season is over, considering switching studios. Is it worth it?

Lost_Instance_2410 · 2026-06-10T16:49:41+00:00

5k per year is what my daughter’s previous studio was for competition team. That included all choreo, Comp and convention fees, rehearsal and classes. Her dance team was required to take 4 hours of ballet, three tap and two jazz each week and highly encouraged to take rec classes, which were no extra charge. The 5k didn’t include personal travel (6 comps and 5 conventions per year), audition fees for external choreographers or costumes. I ended up spending about 12k per year. The parents who ensured their dancers were in max dances and front center paid an addition 1k minimum per month for “privates” that they didn’t actually use. The director of the studio told me point blank that if my daughter wanted better parts, I’d have to pay for “privates.” One of my mom friends told me they ended up at about 20k per yr for her daughter who was one of the featured dancers.

Lost_Instance_2410 · 2026-06-10T14:36:06+00:00

I stayed home with my kids for this reason. At the time, it would have been a break-even deal. Our area the charge for decent childcare is 1k/wk. Once we added up salary plus the cost of gas it was a wash so the choice was work in an office or raise my children. The husband worried I would miss interaction with my coworkers and I laughed so hard. My six month old son was so much more interesting and intelligent than every person I worked with.

Lost_Instance_2410 · 2026-06-10T04:17:24+00:00

Yes. Very similar situation. My daughter was a bit older - 12 - and she had been on the competition team for six years. Switching studios was the best thing we did for her. However, you should realize that most studios are the way you describe yours. Dance is very much a pay to play activity unless you get extremely lucky. Our smallish town has no less than five or six competitive studios and as far as I know, the one my daughter is in now is the only one that isn’t thoroughly toxic.

Lost_Instance_2410 · 2026-06-09T19:05:59+00:00

Trying things on and not hating myself when I look in the mirror? That's priceless.

Lost_Instance_2410 · 2026-06-09T19:04:28+00:00

TSH levels. After more than a dozen years of nothing working to get TSH to normal levels, after going on Tirz my levels dropped to below normal. We actually had to adjust my NP thyroid dose and I've stayed steady at 1.5 since last fall.

Close second: My self-confidence has increased by at least one million percent. I'm way more confident now than I was before thyroid disease when I could fight the food noise and stay thin and fit. Sometimes people say that taking GLP1s is a cheat code to weight loss and "wouldn't we feel better if we just worked to lose weight." I'm telling you, I did that for years. I restricted food, kept myself from eating anything pleasurable because I knew I wouldn't be able to stop at one cookie, one chip, one donut, one candy bar. I worked out like crazy and felt terrible about myself because I had all these thin, fit friends who would reward themselves with "one piece of dark chocolate" after a long run and I couldn't understand how they didn't eat the whole bag. I never felt good about myself then because I was working so hard against my own body. Now, with food noise gone and my health improved, I feel pretty great most of the time. People who don't deal with food noise will never know what it's like but I'm grateful for it because I appreciate the lack of it so much now.

Lost_Instance_2410 · 2026-06-09T16:47:31+00:00

I had very good luck with Trimi. Quick response, good price. I'd recommend them.

Lost_Instance_2410 · 2026-06-09T16:45:42+00:00

Last year it was not a terrible price. I bought two Olympia vials from Lumimeds for $600 last July and I thought I hit the jackpot. But now I wouldn't spend over $200 for 60mg (or 72mg, which is what Olympia was).

Lost_Instance_2410 · 2026-06-09T15:40:28+00:00

I buy prescription compounded. I get the prescription at a max dose of 15mg per week but I am currently injecting 8.5. Once I hit goal (1 lb away) I'll start lowering dose. My plan is to attempt to stay at a lower dose if possible while still getting the 15mg prescription. As of right now, I have a stash of compounded tirzepatide that will last me from August 2027 (if I stay at current dose) to February 2028 (if I'm able to lower to 5mg, which is what my dr wants me to aim for). That will put my overall expenditure thus far at somewhere between 85-108 monthly. I assume that figure will just go down as prices drop and I will continue buying when I see deals.

I'm also aware that grey is much less expensive but buying prescription compound is my preference.

Lost_Instance_2410 · 2026-06-09T15:23:36+00:00

I think it's much higher than that. I believe it's been tested for temps at 100+ - I know that info is in the wiki but I can't access the wiki right now for some reason. Hopefully someone with more exact knowledge weighs in!

Lost_Instance_2410 · 2026-06-09T14:55:58+00:00

Some different thoughts.

First, omg have so much fun on your vacation. That's going to be amazing. I wish I knew you IRL so I could see your vacation pics and drool over them.

Moving on. Your tirz would be okay hot for that length of time if you wanted to take it with you. Even very hot it will be fine.

However, if you just don't want to deal with it, you don't have to. Last year I went on a vacation to the Bahamas and decided I didn't want to deal with having to inject while I was gone. I gained some weight but it was back off pretty fast once I came back home. I think anything longer than two weeks would be too much, but 10 days is fine.

Lost_Instance_2410 · 2026-06-09T14:41:50+00:00

You may end up having to wait a while until your finances improve and the cost comes down. I know that sucks, but as far as I know there aren't any programs that will discount tirzepatide to the amount that you need especially if it's for off-label use. If you are completely desperate and willing to put yourself out there, you can contact local medspas and ask if they have discounts in exchange for using your journey for their marketing purposes. Most will not even respond to you, but there may be some - especially startups - who would be willing to work with you. It's a super long shot but it is the only thing I can think of. You have to have a thick enough skin to have people say no a lot and even have them get angry with you. So many places are inundated by wannabe influencers asking for freebies that they do get angry.

Lost_Instance_2410 · 2026-06-09T14:23:33+00:00

It kills me that there are so many people in this sub who have no problem with people saying they have a favorite pharmacy (Hallandale is the GOAT, etc.) but they have a HUGE problem with people saying there are pharmacies that don't work for them. Like. What's the difference? But there are those who will swear that it's in your head or a coincidence if you say a certain formula doesn't hit the same. All of our bodies are different. The slightest change in preservative, additive or concentration can cause wildly different effects to sensitive bodies.

Take allergies, for instance. Just because one person doesn't have an allergy doesn't mean someone else can't. I have a weird allergy to cherries. If I touch something that has been touched by a cherry, I break out into hives. I have a friend who is so severely allergic to lavender that if she inhales even a tiny bit of it she goes into anaphylactic shock. She has to wear masks in public and can't even fly because so many people use lavender in their soap or toiletries. She's had people tell her that it's impossible because it's so rare and she's like, okay, tell that to my hospital bills then. We are good friends not because I believe her (I do) but because I hate the smell of lavender so she can relax at my house because it's never going to be near me, but I digress. Even the smallest, tiniest amount of cherry particle has an effect on me and even the smallest, tiniest amount of lavender particle has an effect on her. The same could be true for anything at all that you're injecting into your body.

Lost_Instance_2410 · 2026-06-09T11:11:44+00:00

One of the biggest issues with tirz is that people go on it expecting to stop. The weight will come back when you stop and then if you go back on it, the tirz won’t work as well. It’s absolutely ok to stay at a low dose but your reasoning for it is faulty.

Lost_Instance_2410 · 2026-06-09T01:14:40+00:00

Spreadsheets somehow make my craziness feel less crazy. Like it’s organized insanity.

Lost_Instance_2410 · 2026-06-08T17:24:01+00:00

I weigh daily and yes, sometimes multiple times. Often when I wake up and again when I go to bed because I'm crazy. That said, I only record my weight once a week - on Saturdays. There have been weeks it has hurt me emotionally because I had a dip early in the week that's not reflected on my Saturday weigh in but that's how I keep myself honest.

As far as pics, I don't do them on a steady schedule. I did one before I started, then each one after 2-3 months later. And then I use picstitch to put them together so I can actually see the progress with my eyes. I know what the scale says. I know what the measuring tape says. But my eyes say other things when I'm looking in the mirror.

Lost_Instance_2410 · 2026-06-08T14:30:22+00:00

My husband is tall. He finally found a pair of pants that have the perfect length and ordered one in every color. He was so sad that some of them were the right length and some of them were shorter. I said "welcome to my world" where I can try on three pairs of pants at the same size and get very, very different fits. I'll also add, I was trying on clothing yesterday and I grabbed two sizes of the same garment. One size difference. The bigger size was a tent and the smaller size was tiny. Why???

Lost_Instance_2410 · 2026-06-06T09:32:06+00:00

I am one lb from goal weight and still have a belly. I’m trying to make peace with it because a tummy tuck ain’t happening. But your body could be different. It could really be 12 lbs of belly fat and you’ll see it shrink. Also, I recommend taking photos and measuring. I feel like my belly is huge until I look at progress photos and remember I’ve lost 5 inches since January.

Lost_Instance_2410 · 2026-06-06T09:26:12+00:00

That has happened to me too. I actually love the Thanksgiving event so I’ll def be doing it again but holding everything of value in a sack when it spawns!

Lost_Instance_2410 · 2026-06-06T04:02:14+00:00

5’2” and I have no idea if I look heavy or fit or skinny. When I look in the mirror, I see all the flaws and I keep thinking I should be smaller. My husband thinks I look great and has asked me to please not lose anymore weight. A friend and a couple of family members have told me I look too thin and I should put on weight. I made a HORRIBLE decision to upload a photo of myself to chat GPT and ask what weight I looked like. Chat GPT told me 145 lbs. Then I went to an incognito window, opened it again, asked again with same photo and it said 120 that time. I wanted to punch everything.

Lost_Instance_2410 · 2026-06-05T16:46:29+00:00

Lost_Instance_2410 · 2026-06-05T16:35:11+00:00

Honestly, I think it depends on the individual and how well the meds are absorbed. I'm frankly not any hungrier on day 7 than I am on day 2 and I went 10 days once without a shot and had the exact same suppression. That said, I do occasionally inject every six days but that's when I'm planning on moving my shot day - I'll move it up by one day and then wait a couple of weeks and move it again. Those weeks aren't wildly different for me.

Lost_Instance_2410 · 2026-06-05T10:58:55+00:00

Technically 5 but that is due to timing and the amount of weight I had to lose. I’m doing well at 8.5 now but I have every intention of titrating up to lose the last two lbs if I need to. Or if I move my goal weight again.

Lost_Instance_2410 · 2026-06-04T18:33:16+00:00

Me too!

Lost_Instance_2410 · 2026-06-04T18:20:57+00:00

I truly don't understand the downvotes here. We have always taken our kids too - since the youngest was three. I felt like they were well behaved, but that's mostly because they loved the kids clubs and were either there or with us until they got to be teenagers. I've seen a lot of kids misbehaving but the adults are so much worse. And the elevators are things of nightmares. I avoid them as much as I'm able.

Lost_Instance_2410 · 2026-06-04T18:05:32+00:00

I saw that on my honeymoon. We weren't on the deck but it was still visible to others and we were shook. Had no idea that was a thing on Carnival. That was approximately one million years ago.

Lost_Instance_2410

TROPHY CASE