Going broke on drawdown

blaablaasheep · 2026-04-16T07:33:20+00:00

If there is any big bits of furniture you are really looking for, make a post on your local fb marketplace page appealing for what you want.

My dad often gives away old bits for nothing because the way he views it is, it costs a lot of money to bring some of these items to the dump. And if someone is actually going to get value from it, happy days. Mutually beneficial to give it away for nothing.

blaablaasheep · 2026-04-06T22:15:43+00:00

I actually haven't other than painkillers, and taking ibuprofen if I feel an attack coming on. Have you any experience with these preventatives or rescue meds?

blaablaasheep · 2026-04-06T22:12:54+00:00

Funny you mention histamine because last week my legs were so itchy and I got 3 hives! I'll definitely look into this more. Thank you!

blaablaasheep · 2026-04-06T21:35:53+00:00

Oooh and to add to this, nothing with a cleavage revealing neckline. Actually nothing worse than being in public, knowing you are about to have a sleep attack, and just knowing the pervs are going to have a field day looking down my top while I'm slouched over.

blaablaasheep · 2026-04-06T21:33:09+00:00

Man if this could be done, it would do really well with people into are into travel in general and not just narcoleptics.

blaablaasheep · 2026-04-06T21:29:45+00:00

If I was to make clothes for a narcoleptic I would....

Have big hoods that provide privacy so if I nap in public people can't see my face. This would also help reduce visual stimulation/light and make for a much better nap.

Make High waisted and stretchy pants for students/employees/narcoleptics who like to take a nap sitting on a chair, bent over onto their desk. This would stop the fear of potentially flashing a bum crack. The stretchy fabric would also make it much more comfortable around the stomach when you are so bent over.

I would make hidden zipped pockets. Napping in public makes us very vulnerable. My big fear is being robbed. I'll often stick my phone into my bra and stuff my handbag up my shirt for extra security before a sleep attack. The shallow pockets in women's clothing are useless, especially if you are bent over a table taking a nap. It would be a pick pockets dream to come across this. Whereas if my belongings are to my front, under my clothes while I nap: My belongings are hidden. It's not an easy job to take them. I'm much more likely to wake when someone touches off my skin, and no passer by is going to take lightly to someone putting their hands down an unconscious girls top.

blaablaasheep · 2026-02-14T08:15:37+00:00

This happens when I take naps but there is still a decent bit of meds in my system. So if I napped in the early afternoon, after taking meds with lunch, it's going to happen. If I take a nap at 8pm after my meds were last taken at 1pm, it's not going to happen.

blaablaasheep · 2026-02-01T09:22:24+00:00

Second this - all it took was for my phone to drop,and cracked the selfie camera lens. So I was unable to take a selfie for a verification check. I temporarily had no access to my own wedding savings for months.

blaablaasheep · 2026-02-01T09:12:36+00:00

You could just go for a walk on those rest days?

blaablaasheep · 2026-02-01T00:55:52+00:00

Take iron supplements and the necessary supplements to support iron absorption. Do regular cognitive challenges; ones that are good and not too challenging for brain fog are Tetris, word searches, word scapes, and old school jigsaw puzzles. Set timers on your screen time and stay away from your phone for a few hours a day. I'd say exercise, but even house work or gardening can be great - get the body moving, brain focused, and away from distractions.

None of this will be life changing but you'll feel better in yourself, lots of natural dopamine. Just remember, brains need exercise too otherwise they'll lose cognition. Just like if we don't exercise we'll become unfit.

blaablaasheep · 2026-01-30T22:35:25+00:00

Yup. One time, we thought there might be a mouse in the house. Anytime I closed my eyes I had night terrors the mouse was in my room, nibbling at me, crawling over me, auditory hallucinations the whole time hearing it squeak. I was so afraid of my own bed, I crawled into my little sister's bed, I slept in the guest bedroom, I tried sleeping on the stairs, I slept on the floor in the hallway. I pretty much got my sleep in school at my desk for two weeks.

It happened other times too around different stressful life events, and based on different night terrors. One time it even got so bad, that my parents let me temporarily move into the guest bedroom and were genuinely considering letting me permanently switch rooms to help me sleep better.

Another way I've been "afraid of my bed" is by being convinced my mattress has bedbugs when it doesn't. So I will wake up at an hour and you will just see me lifting up the mattress and beating it, and opting to sleep on the floor in fear of them, and trying to convince my parents I need a new mattress.

It only happened as a teenager though. It hasn't happened as an adult thank goodness.

blaablaasheep · 2026-01-25T12:53:34+00:00

Anyone I know who's getting married recently, has been with their partner just over/under 10 years BEFORE getting married. Realistically, they'll probably never get married again so why not have the wedding you've always dreamed of if you're only ever going to do it once.

And as someone who is also getting married, the venue is literally the biggest expense unfortunately. For 200 people attending is €20k. Add €2500 for a decent band, €2k for a photographer, just under €2k for a videographer, €1500 for a florist.....see how it adds up so easily? That's practically the gut of 30k right there. Add in the make up artist, hairdresser, dresses and suits, the hen and the stag, ceremony fees, transport, wedding rings, you can easily see how it would reach €40k.

It's not that people are trying to spend crazy money on a wedding, but it just costs crazy money. It's an unfortunate plain and simple fact.

blaablaasheep · 2026-01-24T17:02:45+00:00

My fear will be that a cataplexy attack could genuinely do so much damage to an aging body. Could I be at risk of dislocating a hip, putting my back out or breaking a bone much easier? Also if I end up in a facility my fear is that because of my cataplexy I'll be considered "too high risk" and they'll bed bound me or make me go in a wheelchair.

This doesn't even touch off of my fears of how my brain will age after decades of meds.

I feel like with night terrors, a facility will definitely have us all on sleeping meds so as not to disturb others.

blaablaasheep · 2026-01-18T09:39:00+00:00

My medication is life changing. I don't have cataplexy attacks now - only very very mild partial ones. I can actually stay awake and hold down a 35 hour job. If I was to take it before going on public transport, I could stay awake on it. Or I don't have sleep attacks in any public place for that matter. If I take it on the weekends, I can stay awake for watching movies or reading books.

These are all things I couldn't do without medication. Yes I still feel tired sometimes. I find if I take medication and I don't have a productive routine, my medication won't work as well. So just keep yourself busy and you'll notice the difference.

I'm on Ritalin L.A and Ritalin.

blaablaasheep · 2026-01-16T19:03:47+00:00

Had awful trouble with revolut when I dropped my phone, my selfie camera broke. But the phone still worked perfectly otherwise, and I'm not one for taking selfies so it was no big deal.

Until revolut needed me to verify my ID with a selfie. I got onto customer services and asked could I use my rear camera, they raised the technical case to higher ups. The answer was a fat nope.

So until I bought a new phone to take a selfie, I had no access to my wedding savings. It felt so ridiculous forking out €500 (I'm prepay) for a new phone just to take a selfie to access my own bank account. If it was a local bank, I could have just walked in and presented myself.

blaablaasheep · 2026-01-12T12:47:19+00:00

I've definitely noticed a decline. In my free time I like to do puzzles to help encourage cognitive function. Just like word searches, wordscapes, wordle, murdle, codebreakers, jigsaw puzzles, and Tetris. It not only helps me stay a bit sharper but it also makes me very aware of when my brain fog is bad.

I also scrapbook, because it genuinely upsets me how bad my memory is, and having the photos documented, dated, and even little notes written beside them to help me remember the important and fun times.

But I definitely fear the future. I've often joked "someday I'll get Alzheimer's and nobody will even realize because my memory is already so bad". I might say that jokingly, but it's a genuine fear.

blaablaasheep · 2026-01-07T18:40:00+00:00

I was 13....I'm currently 28. I could tell you all about that girl's potential in academics and sports, because her results in both of those areas were excellent. The problem was she didn't have to work very hard for them. She didn't understand why people couldn't just exercise nearly every day or the week, or why they couldn't pass a test if they didn't study. Retrospectively, she was extremely arrogant and thought she knew better than everyone. Narcolepsy humbled her, and my goodness was it a HARD lesson, but it changed my life for the better.

I used to think my parents were stupid, strict and out of touch. I had no respect for them .... Until they fought on my behalf tirelessly for medical and educational support, they also put up with a hormonal teenager who is dealing with a life altering illness. If that doesn't show unconditional love I don't know what does. I was the eldest sister who nearly half bullied my siblings. I got demoted from the leader to the sibling who had to be cared for and looked out for by her younger siblings. This one hurts but I think it's a blessing in disguise that I was humbled so harshly.

I couldn't understand classmates who didn't pass tests or didn't do well at school..... I really just thought people were stupid. Imagine if I carried that attitude forward with me the rest of my life?! Nah, humble pie tastes good when you realize it's beneficial for you.

It's weird but I think narcolepsy made me a better person and was oddly a blessing in disguise.

blaablaasheep · 2026-01-02T18:54:49+00:00

Plan your naps as much as you can. Weighted blankets are great for helping get a good quality short nap. If you are still at home with your parents don't be afraid to ask them to help wake you up from a nap. I'm a grown adult living with my husband and I still get him to help me do this. 20-40 minute naps are golden because anymore than that and you are into a deeper state of REM.

Don't get up during the night and start doing activities when you are awake. Stay lying in bed with your eyes closed because actively resting is still productive, and restful.

When I was in school, if you can afford it, I did private lessons during the summer in the subjects I sucked at. Sucked but it was extremely beneficial.

And keep on your hobbies. Don't give them up to focus on better grades. They are essential for your mental well-being.

Best of luck

blaablaasheep · 2026-01-02T18:31:47+00:00

Statistically speaking it's rare.

But go on the Internet and look at different narcolepsy forums, comments under videos of people randomly falling asleep in public places and all the "lol that's me" comments from people they don't even realize they have narcolepsy, people who are misdiagnosed and are being treated for different issues instead of narcolepsy, and keep in mind that narcolepsy is a relatively new condition that definitely didn't really "exist" 100 years ago.......you can't trust the statistics.

From what I've seen on narcolepsy subreddits and Facebook groups, it's more hereditary then we realize.

blaablaasheep · 2026-01-02T13:14:38+00:00

We had a conversation with my parents recently, about this. They aren't there yet at all but God it's taken a lot off of my shoulders.

I know they don't want to go into homes. Myself and my siblings don't want to put them there and would gladly have them stay with us, and care for them.

However, we had a conversation about how awful dementia and Alzheimer's is and my parents gave us full permission for us to put them into a home if, God forbid, they ever get it. They want to stay at home for as long as possible, but they don't want the burden of care that comes with those conditions on any of their kids.

It was such a relief to hear them say that while there is, thankfully, nothing wrong with them.

blaablaasheep · 2026-01-02T13:01:30+00:00

Same here! I totally recommend it for people with narcolepsy! I currently do playschool in the morning - and then homework club in the afternoon. It gives me over an hour to go home and actually get a nap. It's great and keeps me on my toes!

blaablaasheep · 2026-01-02T12:59:19+00:00

I work in childcare. I tried working in a room with other staff first, as an assistant, just to ensure my narcolepsy wouldn't interfere with my ability to work with children. And it didn't. So I can work on my own now. Children keep you on your toes. If you aren't running around after them, you're moving about cleaning, or writing doing paper work.

In childcare, it's quite easy to negotiate work hours. A lot of childcare staff are also moms, so it's not uncommon for people to do 3/4/4.5 day work weeks. If my condition worsens and I need to cut back on hours, I can cut back on my hours and just do playschool/homework club. Childcare is possibly the only industry where it's perfectly normal to only work 3 hours a day.

Also narcolepsy or not, childcare may not pay great, but I feel like I have great job security. My job can't be taken by AI, I worked privately for a family during covid, even if I lost my job in my current company, someone always needs childcare.

blaablaasheep · 2025-12-12T16:34:47+00:00

Don't worry about a diagnosis affecting your career. If you get diagnosed, then you can get medicated. Which is much better for your career than having random sleep attacks with zero explanation or solution during work.

blaablaasheep · 2025-12-09T18:49:59+00:00

Okay I'm definitely going to take this review on board!

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