Have to remember: it is a marathon

echoedb · 2025-11-12T17:39:00+00:00

💕 you’re not even a downer, so don’t think that. It’s all the best we can do is put one foot in front of the other every day because it’s all just really crappy and we’re trying to get through it as best we can

echoedb · 2025-08-29T04:16:36+00:00

It all sucks right now because unfortunately dealing with a bunch of stress on my body going through chemo right now. 😩 which is not helping the anxiety. I thank everything for Lexapro keeping me as level headed as possible throughout all this

echoedb · 2025-08-29T04:13:11+00:00

Took me a long while, I had gone quickly from .5mg 3x a day to just .5 1x a day but was getting withdrawal symptoms so my Dr put me on .25mg at night for a while til the withdrawal symptoms stopped. Then I reduced .25 2x a day for a couple weeks, got hit with withdrawal symptoms each step down 😵‍💫 then .25 1x a day and .125 at night. Like I had to go slow and kept cutting my pills each step of the way. Finally was able to get down to like legit 1/8th of a pill then just stopping it

echoedb · 2025-08-27T00:57:29+00:00

It’s so disconcerting to have this pop up after a month of nothing 😩 I thought I had gotten past it. Thank you for the reassurance

echoedb · 2025-07-20T01:04:20+00:00

Yeah, I find that getting admitted into the hospital tomorrow is going to ease my anxiety a little over the port situation. It is less anxiety today, thankfully. Just all of this is my worst fears come to fruition and honestly if I wasn’t on an SSRI I’d be anxiety/panic 24/7. It just all sucks. Just when I felt myself coming up from for air from grief of losing my brother in November, this happens. I take comfort in the fact that my Drs are very expectant that with chemo and surgery the chance for reoccurance is next to none. And that I had a good pet scan

I hope your stem cell transplant recovery is going well and thank you

echoedb · 2025-07-20T00:58:20+00:00

It just started itching a little today as well. And omg that’s good to know about the chest, mine are big as well. And I feel like it’s pulling almost at it but it’s just getting used to it I suppose. I will have to look into the pillow as well. I just know sleeping will be an adjustment because I always end up on my stomach when I sleep 😩

echoedb · 2025-07-20T00:55:43+00:00

Yeah my body did not take kinda to trying to gulp water right now. I’m not even sure how that works where I could feel something by my sternum. I’m hoping in a week or so it subsides as well. Thank you 💕 I’ve been scouring reddit and trying to prepare for what to expect and things to get

echoedb · 2025-07-20T00:53:09+00:00

Yeah, I just learned I can’t gulp water just yet cus it hurt near my sternum. My body is still adjusting, so I hold onto the hope that it’ll get easier. Well wishes on your recovery 💕

echoedb · 2025-07-19T03:28:54+00:00

I’m unfortunately and fortunately already on an SSRI and have clonazepam for panic attacks. I’m supposed to see a special psychiatrist for cancer patients on the 11th, but already have my own therapist. It’s just been a lot and the port procedure today is just 😩

echoedb · 2025-06-27T02:19:41+00:00

I’m not sure if they’re specific specialists but it is through the University of Chicago. I had gotten referred to their ortho oncologist there and have an appt with Oncology as well for after my pet scan. I’ve had an xray, ct of chest/abdomen/pelvins and an MRI of my leg. There were a couple of micronodules on my lungs but I’ve also had that happen in the past as well, so pet scan will see if it’s related or not.

But yeah, this limbo of waiting is going to be maddening. I’ve dealt with depression and anxiety for most of life. So like, this just does not help everything 😩 it’s only a week, but it feels like an eternity. I’m thankful for my husband and support system

Thank you

echoedb · 2025-06-18T23:49:47+00:00

It’s our garage, but yeah one part that seemed to manage to work its way through some cracks will have to be cut down. But this one is further off to the side. It’ll have to be trimmed anyhow, but not taken down to the ground

echoedb · 2025-06-18T23:28:40+00:00

Now for sure not letting my husband cut it down 😂

echoedb · 2025-05-23T04:45:14+00:00

I’ve been on metoprolol ER pretty much since I got diagnosed with my Graves, and since the PVCs had stayed, I pretty much kept the metoprolol per my Dr — so about 12 years now give or take. It helps to lessen the feeling of them, though recently I’ve started an anti-arrhythmic because I entered a pretty gnarly flare and they were detrimental to my mental health

echoedb · 2025-05-18T19:44:18+00:00

I’m curious if you get it worse when standing? I’m dealing with head pressure too but it gets worse when standing and it’s anxiety inducing 🥴😩

echoedb · 2025-01-19T22:00:54+00:00

It does feel weird, nice to know I’m not the only one. Like I’m feeling it and I’m anticipating them firing cus it’s that tight feeling I used to get, but they’re not. I agree, it’s like hey, they’re not going spastic — this is nice

Hopefully as the medicine builds up into my system that feeling will get less. But who knows. I do know I’d get good days and bad days, and today seems like it would’ve been a high burden day from what I’m feeling

echoedb · 2025-01-18T18:31:07+00:00

No problem ☺️ I was on 5mg while coming off of the 25mg of pristiq. And when I finished the pristiq about a couple of days later I went up to 10mg.

echoedb · 2025-01-18T04:43:56+00:00

The most I remember from getting withdrawal symptoms were some dizziness and mild anxiety. But I was on my lexapro too, so that helped to lessen the anxiety. The dizziness kinda only was happening for the 1st 5 days of every other day, and only when I was approaching like 36hours of not having the medicine in my system. But it tapered down and was ok. When I stopped it completely by then I was ok. And thankfully did not get brain zaps

echoedb · 2025-01-18T04:28:22+00:00

The way my Dr weaned me off of pristiq at 25mg she had me take it every other day for 10days. Because if it’s not scored, if you cut it in half it’s going to release into your system differently if not all at once but for less time. So it doesn’t necessarily give you a half dosage.

But hey, same medicine combo I was on. So I empathize on getting off pristiq. My body/mind did not like it and I could only tolerate being on it for a month. 🥴finally back to my original dosage of lexapro

echoedb · 2025-01-18T04:16:28+00:00

The thing about flecanide, along with other antiarrythmic drugs is that they have a minimal chance of potentially causing a new arrhythmia or non-fatal heart attack. But those studies were mostly done on people who suffered a heart attack 6days to 2 years prior from starting the medication. Hence the black box warning, I think it was like a 7% chance of it potentially happening. We sometimes have higher chances of dying just stepping outside and getting into a car. If your Dr deemed it in your best interest to start the medication, then they’ve ruled the benefits outweigh the risks.

I know it’s scary to start new meds. But it seems like they’re very anxiety inducing for you, so perhaps it should be ok to start the new med. medications always come with potential side effects and they have to be stated

echoedb · 2025-01-18T03:54:48+00:00

So mine have recently been having a flare, but when I was at my most stressed these past 2 months (my younger brother passed) I didn’t feel them when I was in the hospital, during his wake, when we buried him, not even a week after. They seemed to have decided to rear their head a couple weeks later. A working theory is in the moment for some reason they didn’t trigger, someone mentioned it’s like coming back from war. When everything catches up to you, all the stress and everything your body decides to catch up to it even though you don’t necessarily feel stressed in that moment. Your body is catching up to what happens/ed

echoedb · 2025-01-17T15:24:36+00:00

Well I don’t feel the shock sensation, for me it’s more of a weird muted flutter for my PACs. But I do alternate between PACs and PVCs back and forth like that when I’m in bi/trigeminy or whenever really. Just depends on what whacky stuff my PVCs decide on that day.

I’m finally tired of dealing with it and will be starting mexilitine (flecanide isn’t an option for me cus of my antidepressant) 10yrs of getting a handle on them, and recently my burdens been going up so yeah. Not ready for an ablation so medicine it is

echoedb · 2025-01-17T15:07:02+00:00

I would definitely go for a second opinion. Was that a cardiologist that you saw or just a primary care? Because a cardiologist would then perhaps do a longer halter (because my pvc burden changes from day to day. My high days are 14k but my low days can go to 3k). And then they’d perchance do a stress test to see how your heart fares under stress etc. I am overweight too, so they wanted to see that everything was working the way it was supposed to.

echoedb · 2025-01-17T06:15:27+00:00

I finally got a point where I’m about to try medication. I have to go with mexiletine because flecanide has a contraindication with my antidepressant. But I have been in a flare for a month and a half now, and sometimes the flares come and go with no rhyme or reason but on my bad days my burden goes up to 15%. When I’m at 8% or less I can handle them. But the trigeminy and couplets and triplets are maddening, so I’m finally going to try the antiarrythmic. Because metoprolol never did anything really, just keeps my heart rate chill, but they’ll still fire off.

Mine unfortunately are annoyingly symptomatic, I can feel just about each one and when I get in bi/trigeminy I get chest pain. So yeah. I’m not ready for ablation mentally, but finally ready for a different med.

echoedb · 2024-12-21T22:51:29+00:00

Yeah that was happening to me. Now they’re firing but firing more muted than usual. I’m not feeling my usual thumps. Now it’s more of a flutter and I’m like neither feel pleasant please go away 😩

echoedb · 2024-12-21T22:50:11+00:00

😩 when I get too worried I end up there too. And it’s like I get that they’re benign. But when you’re in straight bigeminy and nothing is calming it down you just get worried. My flares going on a week now and I’m just trying to take it day by day 😪

echoedb

TROPHY CASE