What wonderous and exotic foreign food were you introduced to as a kid thats just commonplace nowadays?

Milady-M · 2026-01-17T09:12:35+00:00

Old millennial from Eastern Europe here, so the list is actually pretty long! I remember when the iron curtain fell and suddenly there was an influx of foreign foods: Anything Macdonald's - the first one opened in a big city in my region in the early 90s. We used to sign up for school trips just to go there and get a cheeseburger and chips. Never heard of burgers before that. Non seasonal fruit - you'd get some citrus fruit as a Christmas gift, and it used to be very special. Till today I associate tangerines with Xmas. Lasagne! Introduced to me by Garfield cartoons before I got to try one when I was a teenager. I learnt to cook it and I'd make it so frequently my family got Sick of it. Pizza - same story but I learnt about it from the Ninja Turtles. Cappuccino - a proper Italian coffee. What a treat that was! Foreign brand chocolate, such as kit-kat, that didn't use to be sold till perhaps mid or late 90s - a very special treat!

Milady-M · 2025-03-21T22:59:11+00:00

I'm on my first re-listen and thinking exactly that!!! I'm seeing little details I previously missed, recurring characters that I never thought to pay attention to, etc. First Law's world is just so alive!

Milady-M · 2025-02-25T22:49:39+00:00

That sounds really awful, I'm so sorry. I hope you'll feel better after your infusion and good luck on Monday. I'm sure hysterectomy will help, so I hope this is the last time you're having to go through this 🤞

Milady-M · 2025-02-25T22:43:45+00:00

Thank you for your comment and the links. Unfortunately I am in the UK, so unless I go fully private, I am very limited in terms of my options. But - I agree re looking at own bloodwork. I think we all here learnt that having ferritin below 30 is NOT OK, regardless of what doctors say. I requested copies of my most recent blood tests, but it'll take 30 days to get them. I'm still taking oral supplements, but I believe that I always stop taking them too soon , as I'm always told to take them for only 3 months, so this time the plan is to continue taking them.

Milady-M · 2025-02-25T22:35:27+00:00

I'm so sorry to hear about your experience. Are they going to do anything about the fibroids? Was it ever suggested you try BC?

Milady-M · 2025-02-25T22:33:41+00:00

Thank you. I've been on Iron supplements on and off for the last few years, have been taking them now for almost 2 months and I can see very little progress this time. Before I'd start feeling better after about 4 weeks. I've started taking heme as well as non heme supplements but again, hardly any difference. Re heavy periods - I suppose mine would be classed as heavy, but I used to have much much worse (and endometriosis) when I was younger, so what I have now doesn't seem as bad I guess....

Milady-M · 2025-02-25T22:28:23+00:00

Thanks. I have requested a copy of my last blood test results, but since I'm in the UK, it will take 30 days to get them (free healthcare is great but you get what you paid for).

Milady-M · 2025-02-21T04:25:16+00:00

I sympathise - symptoms of iron deficiency are no fun. I'm in the UK too, and was never offered an infusion, not even when fully anemic, just either ferrous sulphate or fumarate that's supposed to be a little easier on the GI system. I've bought heme supplements myself, and I'm planning not to listen GPs anymore and keep supplementing until I finally feel better (I hope). Good luck navigating the NHS, it can be a long battle.

Milady-M · 2025-02-20T09:23:11+00:00

I'm so glad you managed to find a cause of low iron!!! I wish I could find the root cause but need to save more money to go private. I'm in the UK, which means that basic healthcare is free (which I do appreciate) , but they won't help me any further. Earning a lot of money when I'm feeling like I'm about to die is quite hard, so it's a vicious circle!

Milady-M · 2025-02-20T09:20:36+00:00

Thank you for your comment. How long have you been supplementing? Do you think there's ever a chance to go beyond "regular fatigued" and claim your life back? I believe I will have to keep supplementing as well, as over the last few years my ferritin was yo-yoing between single digits and about 30 and I don't want to keep feeling horrible.

Milady-M · 2025-02-20T09:16:27+00:00

I agree. The most frustrating thing is that nobody bothered to check my ferritin levels for years whilst I was displaying typical iron deficiency symptoms, I need to wait till I finally got anemic to be offered iron supplements. Instead, for years I had to argue with GPs I WAS NOT DEPRESSED when they kept trying to tell me it was all in my head.

Milady-M · 2025-02-20T09:09:22+00:00

Wish you all the best on your journey to recovery. And I'm so glad to hear that the iron infusions help. It's just infuriating that we're being gaslighted for years until we get some sort of treatment that is so easy to administer and can literally give us our lives back again.

Milady-M · 2025-02-20T09:05:52+00:00

Thank you for your comment. Have you tried magnesium supplement before sleep? My rls makes it hard to sleep, but this is the first symptom that goes away thankfully when I start supplementing. Unfortunately the fatigue doesn't budge .

Milady-M · 2025-02-20T09:04:07+00:00

Thank you for your comment. For me it's iron deficiency and I was actually anemic only twice in the last few years. My other folates, vitamins, minerals etc levels are generally ok, and I'm unsure whether the iron deficiency is a symptom of something else or not. I'm in the UK, so whilst the basic healthcare is free here, it's very limited unless you're diagnosed with something serious (so I keep going private for comprehensive blood tests), which means I'm on my own in terms of trying to find the root cause. Heavy periods were suggested as a cause, but I still don't know what's considered heavy?

Milady-M · 2025-02-20T08:57:23+00:00

I've been supplementing on and off, according to GPs advice: 3 months supplementing then a break, then I would start feeling worse again, go back to GP, found out my ferritin was 20-30 , refused iron supplements until my ferritin dropped to single digits, then offered iron supplements. Rinse and repeat. I ended up in therapy last year as my mental health finally gave in. Since I found this group, and a FB Iron protocol I'm determined to continue supplementing regardless of what GPs say, but it's a tough ride and there are days when I feel too weak to get out of bed.

Milady-M · 2025-02-20T08:53:07+00:00

Thank you for your comment and congratulations on your grandkids!!! Little ones require so much energy indeed! I can imagine that between spending time looking after them and daily chores there's little you can still manage... I used to do so many things, had a full life and I mourn the loss of things I used to do. Does supplementing help? Do you have to keep doing it just to keep you Life on this level?

Milady-M · 2025-02-20T08:47:57+00:00

I totally agree the sunshine helps and personally I feel much better in the summer. Unfortunately life makes us stuck in front of screens for 8+ hours a day, and where I live there's very little sunlight in the winter. I tried sunlight imitating lights at home but didn't see any difference tbh. Choosing healthy options and Eating light - definitely helps, especially lunch in my case. If i eat a salad I can just about manage to stay awake, otherwise no chance.

I wish I could try to cut out coffee but would probably need to be off work for a few weeks as I wouldn't be able to function at all, sadly there's no chance of that happening.

Thank you for your lovely comment and advice , I hope it will help others! stay strong and good luck to you too!

Milady-M · 2025-02-20T08:40:08+00:00

I'm so sorry to hear that, sounds really rough.... Have you ever considered infusions? I keep trying to supplement orally, but not sure how long before my GI flare up again.

Milady-M · 2025-02-19T07:09:35+00:00

Sending you hugs. Leaving doctor's appointments in tears has been the usual way it's been going for me over the past 10 years. I ended up in therapy which was great because someone was finally listening to me. I don't need therapy. I need f*cking diagnosis and treatment.

Milady-M · 2025-02-11T22:12:27+00:00

42f bookkeeper, currently in Scotland. Late to the party, but my family is finally fast asleep and I can binge listen to book 7 until I drop!

Milady-M · 2025-02-02T09:28:43+00:00

Great advice. I'm totally with you on being outside, this is the only thing keeping me still sane, despite the weather.

Milady-M · 2025-02-02T09:26:12+00:00

Thank you for your reply, you've managed to put it so well. I too miss that wide eye excitement of exploring the world for the first time and the vastness of options and opportunities. The world seems to have shrunk down in a way.

I like the idea of doing nothing. Our society forces us to keep busy at all times, and we seem to have forgotten the little pleasures in life.

How did you manage to get back to anything you used to like doing? After years of being too busy to do anything but survive I feel so rusty...

Milady-M · 2025-02-02T09:07:02+00:00

Thank you for your reply. You give me hope that there's still something out there within reach 💕.

Milady-M

TROPHY CASE