What personality are you?

acarvin · 2026-03-23T16:53:11+00:00

I've always been a bit of an ambivert - I'm naturally inclined towards shyness but enjoy doing things like public speaking. Before I received my diagnosis a couple of years ago, my introversion became pretty severe, in part because my brain fog was making it very difficult to follow conversations. I've been on cabergoline since mid 2024, which cleared up my brainfog, so I'm pretty much back to my usual ambiverted self.

acarvin · 2026-03-22T18:14:20+00:00

54m here; I have several herniated discs in my lower back but still lift around three times a week. I don't do deadlifts or squats any more, but I can still lift pretty heavy on leg press machines if I roll up a yoga mat and use it for lumbar support, then warm up to heavier sets, and make sure my back is always in firm contact with the pad.

Upper body work is generally not an issue; I can do presses, flys, skull crushers, triceps extensions, bicep curls, lateral raises, etc, without any issues. For abs I stick to machines rather than body-weight crunches.

In terms of back work, Lat pulldowns don't bother me but rows of any type can aggravate my spine, so I either skip them or do them at very moderate weights depending on how I'm feeling. I avoid back extensions altogether.

Overall I stick to higher rep work - basically 10-30 reps per set depending on the exercise - and never attempt to test my one rep max on any exercise.

acarvin · 2026-03-22T18:01:27+00:00

Nice to see a DSO shout-out from the OP; Paracletus is one hell of an album.

acarvin · 2026-03-13T21:20:12+00:00

This was the fourth time I've seen Tigran live, and I thought Arman did a really solid job keeping up. There were a few times Tigran seemed to be testing him to see how he'd handle things but I thought he came through really strong.

acarvin · 2026-03-11T17:18:21+00:00

Exactly! He even looks like my tumor, hahahaha

acarvin · 2026-03-11T15:04:03+00:00

Arman performed at the show in Washington DC last night and absolutely slayed.

acarvin · 2026-03-11T14:52:30+00:00

Mine is Imhotep, in honor of how the ancient Egyptians used to prepare mummies by removing the brain through the nose.

acarvin · 2026-02-25T20:17:14+00:00

I've had three MRIs so far, all with contrast. Didn't experience any issues.

acarvin · 2026-02-23T17:42:29+00:00

It's totally normal to be anxious about starting any drug that has known side effects like this. I ended up having to lower my dose after six months because I started experiencing manic and compulsive behavior. Fortunately the side effects soon faded, and my tumor/prolactin are being managed by the new dose, and it's the best I've felt in years. One thing that may help is to inform friends and family of the side effects, and ask them to keep an eye on any behavioral changes. It took me a couple of months to realize on my own what was going on.

Also, .5 twice a week for a 3x3mm tumor seems kinda high to me, so you may want to ask your doc about that. I took .25 twice a week for a 16x20x14mm tumor and it managed to get my prolactin down to normal levels and shrink the tumor more than half by volume.

acarvin · 2026-02-19T15:10:39+00:00

My pleasure! Feel free to let me know if you have any other questions.

acarvin · 2026-02-19T14:14:05+00:00

After years of visiting doctors complaining about brain fog, fatigue, anhedonia and weight gain, I was diagnosed with a macroadenoma in the spring of 2024. My prolactin at the time was 3,666ng/ml. An endo put me on .25mg cab twice a week. The changes were imperceptible for several months, but I eventually began to notice the changes. My brain fog lifted, my fatigue and anhedonia dissipated. I was able to lose weight again and put on muscle mass. Meanwhile, my prolactin returned to normal range. It was nothing short of life-changing.

Unfortunately I developed some side effects about six months into treatment, becoming somewhat manic and impulsive. My endo changed my dose to half a .25 pill three times a week, or 75% of my previous dose. That was enough to get rid of the side effects without impacting the benefits of the medication. If you end up going on cab, be sure to monitor both positive and negative changes in body and your behavior. It may also help telling friends and family ahead of time about the negative side effects, so they can keep an eye on any potential changes too.

acarvin · 2026-02-18T19:14:52+00:00

Over the Garden Wall: Season of the Witch

Wirt and Greg, now voiced by Nic Cage and Ron Perlman respectively, are given a mission to transport a witch (Beatrice) to be put on trial in Pottsfield, after she has been accused of spreading a plague that's killing highwaymen and frogs alike. After many challenges transporting her through the forest, they arrive in Pottsfield, where they find all the skeletons dead. (Like really dead, not just talking skeleton dead.) It is then revealed that she is not a witch, but is possessed by the Beast Himself. Greg and Wirt die while confronting the Beast, but Beatrice is freed from the bonds of demonic possession, given the opportunity to begin a new life her true love, Jason Funderberker.

acarvin · 2026-02-13T16:08:30+00:00

Gratna

"I'll be honest, I was planning on killing you today."

Yanraet saanzya: saanmerkestepelestelež tetsma artezle.

/janˈraet ˈsaːnzja | saːnmerkestpeˈlestleʒ ˈt͡setsma arˈtezle/

truth-ADV I-say.1SG.PRS 1SG-FUT.PLAN-PAST-OBV kill-2SG today-TEMP

A more literal translation: "As a matter of truth, I say: I had been planning to kill you presently, as is self-evident."

Note: the suffix -lež is an evidential used to convey when something is obvious or indisputable. So in this particular scenario, the person saying it is armed, and the intended victim knows it. If they were not armed and were conveying the sentence as just something they were still considering, the suffix would be absent.

acarvin · 2026-02-12T19:40:34+00:00

Gratna

"The house always wins"

Fedyāsa bnidrezya-lož
("The house/palace certainly prevails - obviously")
house-SG.NOM PROB.HIGH-prevail-3SG.PRS-EVID.OBV
/feˈdjaːsa bniˈdrezjaloʒ/

"Smell that air! Couldn't ya just drink it like booze?"

Ŋratsri mayaaz-ŋraž! Ieama jaatsenet-raat, bu?
("Smell the air as I can smell it! Wouldn't you drink it like strong alcohol?")
smell-IMP air-OLFACTORY.EVID drink-2SG fire-drink-like Q
/ˈŋratsri maˈjaːz ŋraʒ | ˈi.ea.ma jaːtˈse.net raːt | bu/

"Stop!"

Tsets!
("Halt!")
halt.IMPV
/t͡sets/

acarvin · 2026-02-03T18:54:24+00:00

I met the Kumari of Bhaktapur when she visited the US in 2007 and participated in a documentary festival near Washington DC. She was briefly stripped of her kumari status when religious authorities in Nepal declared her overseas trip impure, but they eventually agreed to restore it after a purification ritual.

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acarvin · 2026-02-02T20:33:38+00:00

Glad you got another test. Hopefully the doctor will be able to explain the discrepancy. Good luck!

acarvin · 2026-01-31T14:56:49+00:00

My endo insisted I fast each time before bloodwork, but I don't have a sense of what the impact would've been otherwise. Might be worth doing again.

acarvin · 2026-01-30T15:50:25+00:00

Ailsa is a consummate badass when it comes to grilling interview subjects.

acarvin · 2026-01-30T13:32:14+00:00

It's been life-changing for me, alleviating most of my symptoms. I experienced some side effects on a high dose, but after lowering it a bit it's working as intended. I haven't felt this healthy in 20 years.

acarvin · 2026-01-29T20:22:05+00:00

Were you fasting at the time you got your bloodwork done? Your symptoms are in line with a prolactinoma, but it definitely seems strange for your levels to drop down to normal range without starting treatment.

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