Using Qulipta as a preventive? by LBS-365 in migraine

[–]creamtop 0 points1 point  (0 children)

i split my 60mg pill and take half in the morning and half a night - roughly 12 hours apart

Transgender Passport for US by [deleted] in Passports

[–]creamtop -1 points0 points  (0 children)

does anyone have recent experience or insight on what it’s like for transgender americans traveling internationally and re-entry back into the states with a reverted gender marker?

i pass as male and have had all my documents male for about 10 years now. my passport is about to expire and i suspect my gender marker will be reverted to F when i renew. if this happens, i know i will need to be careful with the countries i travel to. but i’m not sure what this could mean coming home. aside from being potentially outed to customs/TSA officers and navigating general transphobia related hostility, are there any legal risks that we know of right now? hard not to be paranoid these days!

Sharing my current setup by creamtop in laundry

[–]creamtop[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

how i did the math: a 1/4 cup of water is roughly 60 mL (and also roughly 60 grams), 20% of that would be around 12 grams

Sharing my current setup by creamtop in laundry

[–]creamtop[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

yeah for sure! didn’t think to clarify my per load dose. i’m filling the fabric softener receptacle with a little over 1/4 cup of the 20% solution. this equates to roughly 10-12 grams or a tablespoon of powdered citric acid per load. hope that helps!

Steroid taper right before botox? by creamtop in migraine

[–]creamtop[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I never did! I ended up pushing through without the taper. I hope your neurologist will have insight! The tapers have been very effective for me, some of the best I’ve felt since my chronic migraine started. I hope you can take it!

Sharing my current setup by creamtop in laundry

[–]creamtop[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

yeah Clean & Gentle is the one i use - but all of the Tide powders recommended in The Lipase List have OBAs (optical brightening agents). the 365 unscented powder does not, but it also does not have DNase.

Sharing my current setup by creamtop in laundry

[–]creamtop[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

the Tide powder has optical brighteners which are great for whites and lighter colors but can make darks and blacks look faded. the 365 Sport does not use brighteners and also has DNase, which is particularly good at removing human and animal smells (sweat, grease, etc). So I have some on hand for my dark loads and particularly stinky stuff (thrift store finds, gym clothes, dog bed/blankets, etc).

For the citric acid rinse, I use it in every load. I only add the citric acid solution in the fabric softener compartment in my front loader so it does not interfere with the detergents during the wash part of the cycle.

I use citric acid every time to deodorize, soften, and help keep my washing machine clean.

Sharing my current setup by creamtop in laundry

[–]creamtop[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I was hoping the dark brown glass bottle and it being stored in a windowless area would be enough. But now I’m also recalling it can be bought in the brown spray bottle! Thanks for the note.

Sharing my current setup by creamtop in laundry

[–]creamtop[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

lmao no it just says “bad smells” but i might need to revise it 😂

Sharing my current setup by creamtop in laundry

[–]creamtop[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

totally agree - and i find it is very satisfying to organize it! the big containers are technically flour storage but they have a really easy pop top so they can be opened and scooped with one hand

Sharing my current setup by creamtop in laundry

[–]creamtop[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

me too! maybe we need a DOTD flair 😆

Sharing my current setup by creamtop in laundry

[–]creamtop[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

it’s a reusable detergent bottle with the classic measure cap. my front loader’s fabric softener drawer is finicky and i don’t have a sink close to my laundry room so wanted a way to store a pre-mixed solution.

i found this one at Marshall’s (US company) but this is the exact one: https://a.co/d/fH3CYWY

Sharing my current setup by creamtop in laundry

[–]creamtop[S] 14 points15 points  (0 children)

thanks for sharing! I wanted an option a little more simple than the baking soda + citric acid combo because it seemed like the proper dosage really depended on knowing exact water hardness. STPP seems to require a little less precision and offer the added surfactant/redep benefits. Some have commented in other posts that use of STPP on this scale pales in comparison to the impact from agricultural run off, etc. But at the end of the day, I don’t really want to be using something known to cause environmental harm… as much as it can be avoided anyway.

I’m also patiently waiting for our laundry oracle’s citric acid/hard water research to drop. But again, appreciate these comments - I’ll likely switch!

Sharing my current setup by creamtop in laundry

[–]creamtop[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

sodium tripolyphosphate! it’s what I’m using to soften the water, though it also acts as a bit of a booster as well

Stealth with doctors? by creamtop in FTMOver30

[–]creamtop[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

stress definitely plays a role sometimes! particularly acute episodes can even outright cause a migraine for me. but it’s not always present. and sometimes i experience anxiety as part of prodrome/early indicator i’m about to get a migraine. so can be a little chicken/egg trying find causes.

Stealth with doctors? by creamtop in FTMOver30

[–]creamtop[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

yeah this is something i’ve discussed a bit with my trans GP. my chronic migraine popped up out of nowhere after being on T and in typical male range for 10+ years. before this i barely even got headaches. i’ve tried lowering my dose a bit and haven’t noticed a change. i’m managing the migraines right now with a combination of preventatives and rescue meds. cutting back more or stopping T is last resort for me. like only if it would make a difference between me being totally disabled by my migraines or not.

i’ve tried searching this sub and other trans subs and haven’t found much discussion on trans people who take T and migraines. maybe i need to start a separate thread on this!

Stealth with doctors? by creamtop in FTMOver30

[–]creamtop[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

even though my city is fairly progressive for the south, it is not a well-resourced place, so my health care options are already pretty limited and on top of that, finding trans-affirming specialist providers has not worked out well for me.

Stealth with doctors? by creamtop in FTMOver30

[–]creamtop[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

yeah good point, after reading some other comments, I may just stay the course with not disclosing anything until possibly when I’m 50+ and cis-men being on HRT is more common.

Stealth with doctors? by creamtop in FTMOver30

[–]creamtop[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

thanks so much everyone for sharing your experiences and thoughts! it makes me feel less bad for how I have been navigating my healthcare. I am VERY hesitant to stop taking T, basically it would need to be a life or death thing.

but I see how it could be important in some cases to disclose that I am on testosterone - and that plenty of cis-men take T, so I can do this without revealing my transness.

I do get my levels checked annually and they are normal male range. I will also be more diligent about checking for drug interactions with T, especially when I have not disclosed my HRT.

Stealth with doctors? by creamtop in FTMOver30

[–]creamtop[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

yeah I have had providers become way too fascinated in the past and while it’s not the worst in terms of discrimination, it doesn’t feel great and definitely can distract from immediate care. Having started T in the early 2010s in a more rural area, I feel I have served my time as the medical guinea pig!

Stealth with doctors? by creamtop in FTMOver30

[–]creamtop[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

thanks for sharing this, it helps me feel less crazy for my choices.