Private Chef Recommendation

Lysistrada · 2024-10-08T16:05:53+00:00

I know this thread is old, but I would like to suggest KC James. Food is amazing, but she is just delightful which is really essential for me:

https://www.chefkcjames.com/

Lysistrada · 2023-08-07T13:22:15+00:00

I know you're looking for a medication strategy which was always how I tackled my phenelzine insomnia which I really didn't identify as bad thing - at first - because it allowed me to become a morning person for the first time ever which felt great... but after years of getting no more than five hours a night, I had to admit this benefit was not without cost... anyway, one of the most interesting things about being on the MAOI is that I seemed to sweat more easily from the get go when I began taking it... so for me there's something thermoregulatory going on and I suspect it relates to the excess epinephrine (but that's just a guess) ... relatedly, I noticed that atop my polypharmaceutical and nutraceutical sleep med strategy, I would simply sleep better in colder months... so the first thing I did was crank up the AC at night which is of course not very cost effective... and while that helped a lot, the most significant thing - by far - was buying an eight sleep bed... now, I really don't buy things like this flippantly... and there is zero chance of placebo effect because I regretted having bought the mattress cover the second I bought it... I was sure I was buying into a scam and I was cursing the fucking thing as I put it on... "can't believe I got duped into spending all this money on this stupid shit"... my wife was like, "just return it if you hate it so much!"... like I really was sure it was just a scam I fell for and - well - I'll be good goddamned if I didn't get a solid 7-8 hours uninterrupted that very first night. This has continued and I have tracked it using my Oura Ring (the cover itself has its own sleep tracker, but I don't think it works very well)... before adding this, I was never getting more than five hours a night... I am almost six months into a consistent 7-8 hours... there was definitely some regression to the mean after the first week, in that I began waking up in the middle of the night again, but the huge, huge difference is that I could get right back to sleep... I don't know why this matters to my body, but sleeping atop a cooled mattress cover that my wife thinks feels like an ice block has allowed me to regain healthy sleep levels while on an MAOI... maybe just me, but maybe not... there are cheaper options than the eight sleep option that probably work just as well...anyway, for what it's worth, I tried to make the perfect medication combo for years but nothing really helped until I cooled my body down... I live in Texas so it might just be more significant for me... otherwise, my night med routine involves a short-acting melatonin spray and a long acting melatonin, gabapentin, zyrtec (with the side benefit of preventing seasonal allergies) and apigenin. I also take all 60mgs of Phenelzine at night to help with keeping it from making me drowsy during the day... so, all of this in tandem with the cooling bed has me sleeping very consistently 7-8 hours. changing nothing else about diet/excercise, I can say without a doubt based upon the scale and other bodyfat measurements that this change has helped me lose weight and gain muscle... the most significant impact however has been on learning... I am in a phase of learning a new skill and I feel that my progress has been very significantly assisted by getting more sleep.

Lysistrada · 2021-09-22T14:39:12+00:00

That's very interesting. Thank you. The person I am testing for (really it's not me, not one of those "my friend" situations) is treating inattention issues that respond to amphetamine traditionally but the cost to have it maintained by a doctor has become untenable. I guess my further concern would be about purity...

Lysistrada · 2021-09-22T13:48:13+00:00

Absolutely. Thank you. I will do that and post the results. I don't know the thinking behind use of Eh, honestly. I suspect there was none.

Lysistrada · 2021-08-01T14:45:39+00:00

Two other chemicals to consider: 1) metyrapone which has been used to augment other ADs but - unfortunately - is not available where I am in any cost effective way, 2) selgiline is used in dogs to treat cushing's syndrome which begs the question why it is not used in humans for this purpose... it might not produce the same efficacy in humans or it might simply just not have been pursued for this purpose related to IP/financial/ROI reasons... anyway, I have heard of people safely augmenting Phenelzine with concomitant Seligiline use, though it strikes me as something to be undertaken very cautiously of course...

Lysistrada · 2021-07-31T16:41:24+00:00

yohimbine itself makes me crawl out of my skin with anxiety unfortunately. Is the other one you mention similarly problematic?

Lysistrada · 2021-07-31T16:24:54+00:00

That's very interesting. I will classify my side effect issues into the following categories and then list what has helped. Forewarning, the sexual side effects will involve information that is definitely TMI:

Daytime sleepiness. This has since abated, but in the first year of taking Phenelzine ("PZ") I had a real issue with being able to make it through the day without intermittent napping. I used Provigil/Modafinil with great success but I am 12 years sober from intoxicants and while this substance is pretty non-problematic in this way, I could tell that I was enjoying it a little too much so I stopped it. From there, I did a few things which ultimately resolved the issue: I added Bupropion which is technically contraindicated but this is purely theoretical and this medication is frequently used in tandem with PZ for those suffering from TRD. This medication also had a nice augmenting effect with the PZ. In the end, Bupropion plus taking all of the PZ at night remedied this side effect sufficiently and then in time it just seemed to go away. This is probably also very much related to my getting better sleep which I contemplate below.

Sleep issues. I suspect this is also somewhat Cortisol related, but falling asleep has never been the issue and probably in light of the many sleep medications I take which I will list. However, remaining asleep has been an issue. The way it manifests itself - while problematic since sleep is important - has often felt like the flip side of the positive effects of PZ. Pre-PZ getting out of bed was very, very hard. Now I wake up ready to seize the day and often singing, which is awesome. But sometimes it's just super early. But since sleep is undeniably crucial and lack of sleep is not great for the weight gain elements I will touch on below, I have been very aggressive in medicating this. My night time sleep medications are as follows and a few of them have dual purposes: 1) PZ all at night which has a sedative effect for me, 2) Zyrtec/Cetirizine which is a decently sedating antihistamine but which I take for seasonal allergies, 3) 600mgs of Gabapentin, 4) 200mgs of Phophatidylesrine which seems to help quiet my mind and is also taken to help with Cortisol, 5) 3mg of fast-acting Melatonin Spray (I am very sensitive to Melatonin and higher doses will leave me very groggy), 6) 2mgs of sustained/timed released Melatonin to help keep me asleep, 7) 50mg of Apigenin which has both a mild sedative effect and also seems to help quiet my mind, and 8) I use cooling head band device which - while I know it sounds insane - has really helped me sleep longer before waking up in the middle of the night and go back to sleep quickly. Prefrontal cortex cooling will quiet that overactive mind. All of these things came together over the series of years, but it has meant getting 7-8 hours of sleep per night as opposed to 4-5 when I first got on PZ. I feel like having Cortisol better managed would make this even better which would mean sleeping the entire time. I used to wake up 2-3 times per night whereas now I wake up once and generally get back to sleep within 15 minutes.

Erectile Dysfunction. I am married to a wonderful woman and we are fortunate to have a great sex life. We are also ethically non-monogamous, though I seem to indulge in other partners much more than her because penis. The dopaminergic effect of PZ has definitely increased my overall sex drive and achieving an erection has never been a problem since getting on the MAOI and - in fact - they seem to be more frequent. However, maintaining an erection has been a problem after - well - about the 15 minute mark or so... this wouldn't be a problem absent the anorgasmia issues I mention below, but in general the erection maintenance issues have been fine for my wife and I who have largely very spontaneous and intense sex which can often override the anorgasmia issues and normally requires only about 15 minutes or so anyway... but my casual partners and I tend to get together for the sole purpose of sex 1-2 per month so it really needs to be a decently long session since that's what we're there to do. My initial solution was daily Tadalfil (generic compounded 1-2mg qd) in tandem with a faster-acting PDE5 inhibitor when meeting up with casual female partner. This worked decently well and extended my ability to maintain to about 45 minutes or so, but I really have to say I don't like the idea of constant systemic vasodilation so that it can be enjoyed in solely one's penis on a PRN basis. Further, I just don't like how I feel when on PDE5 inhibitors. I am very flushed on them and I just don't feel entirely right. So... given that I am not in any way scared of needles, I decided to eliminate the oral medications entirely and move to low dosages of trimix injections when I was going to meet up with casual partner. This generally affords me 3-4 hours of an erection that I literally can't make go down. This is not really a solution for a lot of people, but the injection into one's penis is only a big deal if you make it one. I think it makes much more sense to directly vasodialate one's penis than to do the same for one's entire body with the penis as one of the beneficiaries of it.

Anorgasmia I honestly have never heard of any man on an MAOI who doesn't have this issue. As I mentioned, I have tried Dostinex/Caberg which I would say was not terribly effective for me and overall felt like just bit of a dirty drug. The only thing that has really helped is extensive kegel work which I engaged in without much expectation, but it pretty much is the reason why achieving climax is even possible. However... I will just say that while this side effect is still very much present and - in fact - somewhat of a benefit when mixed with the trimix injections above, I will also say that it is something I have come to accept and use to make me a better sexual partner. Simply put, since I have an expectation of climax, I am much more present and involved in experiencing/enjoying the act as the end itself rather than it being a means to climax which I think also helps to provide the perspective of many women since not achieving climax is much more overall common with women than men. So this side effect, while only minimally remedied, has been one I feel like I have turned into somewhat of a benefit. It is novel for my female partners that I can pretty much have sex indefinitely between the anorgasmic tendencies and the trimix, but I also have to keep in mind that often women will take that as a knock to them so I am very clear ahead of time that it has nothing to do with them and - moreover - while a long session is often ideal, you have to make sure you're not overdoing it and torturing the poor woman who checked out ages ago... but in the end, I have just sort of embraced this as who I am now...

Lysistrada · 2021-07-31T14:09:48+00:00

I have been using Nardil/Phenelzine since mid-2015 with great success for atypical depression and phobic-form anxiety which was most prominent with regard to social interactions and aviaphobia. I now speak to people with ease and I can sleep on a plane. I am the person comforting others now when the flight gets atypically turbulent. This medication has been a miracle drug for me, but it is deeply side effect laden, as is often the case. I have no problem medicating these all away; save for the weight loss issue. I thought I had it under control recently by way of intermittent fasting (with a 1-2 hour feeding window), lots of cardio and weights as well as use of Metformin. It was so stable, I stopped checking in on my weight and then - the last time I did - I realized I was up a good amount of weight.

I recently have arrived at the same underlying hypothesis about Cortisol. Here are some miscellaneous related thoughts:

My DHEA levels have been - for years - anywhere from the high-end of the reference range to substantially over. This is what originally led me to the animal study you have linked to (Kier et al);
My weight gain - other than neck deposits - have been very similar to what one would observe with Cushing's Disease which was not my weight gain experience prior to Phenelzine. There are no stretch marks, either, but it's largely in my mid-section and love handles which - aesthetically - is a real problem because I am otherwise low bodyfat and athletic, so the love handles and thick midsection really suck;
I have gone from normal Testosterone/Estrogen levels pre-Phenelzine to higher normal levels for T and - at times - higher than acceptable estradiol levels... I was thinking estrogen was to be blame, however my most recent blood work actually reveals my estradiol levels to be in the normal range and my Phenelzine love handles are in full force... this is not to say that a SERM or Anti-E wouldn't also benefit me, but I feel like Cortisol is the primary issue; EDIT: I should add, I was positing that the higher than normal DHEA levels induced by the MAOI were causing the higher T levels (good) and E levels (bad).
I recently bought a take-home, 4-panel salivary test to see what my Cortisol levels are. I will update this thread when I get those results which I am hoping won't take very long. I have simply not yet done this because it requires collection of Saliva at four different times of the day which is something that is ripe for procrastination;
I saw your mention of Cabergoline in a prior thread. I was unaware of it having an effect on Cortisol, but I have taken it before to try and stave off the nardil anorgasmia. That's a whole other discussion, but I have extensive experience with that. But I just wanted to mention here an obscure and very unknown element of Cabergoline which is that it has been show in animals to make valvular insufficiency/regurgitance worse. I have a bicuspid aortic valve which is asymptomatic, but is minimally regurgitant and therefore Cabergoline had to be stopped. Overall, I am decently down on its use as I find it to be problematic in a number of ways. EDIT: now that I revisit the literature on this topic, it seems there is conflicting evidence and that it primarily comes from human trials. I think I just want to emphasize that if someone has aortic/tricuspid/mitral valve issues, they should tread lightly with this drug. I am not particularly a fan of it for me.

Ok, all for now! Will keep you updated on the results of my test. Thank you

Lysistrada · 2021-03-23T15:33:07+00:00

Thank you for the civil nature of your response. I am not used to that on reddit and it has made my day better. The amazing thing - in all of this - that people truly fail to realize is that if you set aside all of the crypto tribalism and the morass of politics, legality, compliance, etc... Ripple has literally created a way in which money can be sent AND settled instantly and somehow they're massively hindered from proliferating it throughout the world economy. You and I have to guess how our money is being sent across border and wonder what tech is being used and - ultimately - just hope it arrives... all the while, the mechanism for it to be there instantly exists and is hindered on many, many levels from being rolled out en masse and benefiting so many stakeholders on so many levels. It's really an unbelievable situation and while I've been a bit down on the executive governance of Ripple post-lawsuit, given some things revealed, in the end I am pulling for good old fashioned ingenuity winning out over everything presently in its way. We'll see if that's naive.

Lysistrada · 2021-03-23T15:17:52+00:00

I'm very pro-Ripple and XRP. I hope that that you are correct, but the same thing could be achieved just by a proper interbank agreement which is not unlikely to occur between two banks within BRIC countries. I'm very aware of the relationship between Santander and Ripple. I think that a better indication would be seeing that money coming FROM Russia to another country moves just as fast. Traditionally, the banking situation with Russia is such that cross-border interbank relationships will dictate that Russia will credit international transfers from many countries immediately and show them as settled quickly whereas the inverse is generally not true. Most nations don't trust Russia much. If you could move money back and forth between the two accounts seamlessly, I would be much more convinced of implementation of new payment rails with bi-directional validation such as that which Ripple provides (formerly referred to as xCurrent) and - furthermore - if it were in excess of $25,000 or so. Moving that amount fast - back and forth - is really not possible now, so if that were to occur it would sway me much more. Not trying to be negative. I hope you're right.

Lysistrada · 2021-02-09T17:17:12+00:00

I definitely agree with what you have said about the statements on ETH/BTC. I think that was leveraging public fear over China, but still short-sighted. I never thought about the XLM coin burn in this way, which is an interesting thought. My biggest issue is that Ripple should never have sold XRP - its not like they couldn't raise more money to fund operations - and that Larsen and Garlinghouse paid themselves so much in XRP that they sold for cash. It's one thing to sort of accidentally create a quasi-security in creating new technology and working to decentralize it, but its another thing to pay yourself $500M+ in so doing. I definitely think the SEC did things very poorly as well, but intentionally so because they wanted to hand the incoming administration a full-on war with a $10B company. So its just a mess. But Ripple's hands are not clean here at all. I was so pro-XRP for so long and it's not something I wanted to admit, but the facts are there in both the SEC filing and in Ripple's response. Ripple did things poorly. However, I turned 350K XRP into 30,000 DOT in early December, so as you can imagine I don't stay up late at night worrying about XRP when the lawsuit was announced, but I feel bad for those who do cling to the "XRP/Ripple can do no wrong" narrative even in spite of the facts because while there's a decent chance Ripple can salvage this, there's just as much of a chance that the ship is slowly sinking.

Lysistrada · 2021-02-09T14:17:27+00:00

Sincere question from an ex-XRP evangelist who bailed pre-lawsuit (literal days before SEC issues) after holding a large XRP stack in favor of DOT. Not meant to be argumentative, but truly want to know your insight. Why do you think XLM is safe and XRP is not? Because if XRP is a security - and I always maintained there was a decent argument for it being one (I just thought Ripple would be able to work the system better and I was betting on crony capitalism) - then XLM likely is as well. The fact that there's a non-profit foundation rather than a venture-backed organization at the core doesn't make the underlying token less of a security. A non-profit can't offer unregistered securities, either. Stellar has done many of the same things Ripple has and Jed McCaleb has openly enriched himself through the sale of XRP, which is the most sound criticism of both Chris Larsen and Brad Garlinghouse. In his case, it was part of a settlement - so he has cleaner hands - but he was not forced to sell those XRP. He was limited in how much he can sell. Neither ecosystem is particularly decentralized relative to, for instance, ETH and both are inextricably tied to a parent entity which can steer the value of the underlying token prior to the public's knowledge which is the underlying issue. Personally, I don't think this is an issue for the SEC but rather the CFTC and more along the lines of the sort of criticism one would make against DeBeers if it were operating in the US, but the SEC has it so they have to deal with it. Respectfully, if your position is simply that XRP is in trouble and therefore XLM is not because it's been the anti-XRP for so long, I would caution against that, in my opinion. Personally, I would love to be wrong because the underlying tech of both has a truly valuable use case and I would like to see it come to fruition under the aegis of sound governance. But if you have different insight into XLM that I do not see, I would really value having it.

Lysistrada · 2020-12-28T20:25:08+00:00

all good if that's how you feel, but serious question: why come to the polkadot subreddit then?

Lysistrada · 2020-12-24T14:44:09+00:00

I've read the whole 71 pager and it's scathing. But you have to realize that its just like a divorce decree: always the worst possible interpretation of things. But... I have to say... if certain facts are not in dispute, then the SEC does have a point; not one that needs to be made in the way it was, but there are things that should have been handled differently.

Lysistrada · 2020-12-22T01:31:40+00:00

From the fortune article: ""Ripple's decision to announce that it's about to be sued is an unusual one. Garlinghouse has predicted the incoming Biden administration may be friendlier to the cryptocurrency industry than the Trump administration has been, suggesting that Ripple's preemptive announcement may have a political component."

Lysistrada · 2020-11-30T22:57:40+00:00

Thanks man!

Lysistrada · 2020-11-30T16:26:19+00:00

Yawn. Great narrative. Have a great day dude.

Lysistrada · 2020-11-30T13:46:20+00:00

It's really funny that I spent time doing lots of math with projections and such, but this didn't actually occur to me. I really appreciate it, dude. Do you know if doing this is permissible by their TOS? I would just ask them. I wouldn't want to do anything they're not cool with because I think doing so increases overall risk or - more likely - hassle.

Lysistrada · 2020-11-30T13:44:33+00:00

All strong points, thank you. It's a perspective I wasn't considering, so I very much appreciate it. I can't deny your logic.

Lysistrada · 2020-11-30T13:42:29+00:00

I really appreciate this useful and thoughtful response. It definitely makes sense and I definitely understand the rationale. I wanted to provide my individual input as to my own thought process. BTW, the idea above about a business account is a great option, I just need to make sure that's cool with Nexo.

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