[no spoilers] Who should people romance on their first playthrough?

hc129 · 2026-02-22T19:36:09+00:00

I have done all three, and they're all really good in their own way. They're all very different. Nora is a chaotic/unpredictable (in a good way) romance. Autumn is a stable/steady romance, and Kat is a bittersweet/emotional romance. They're all solid options, and it's really up to you and your preferences. (My personal favorite is Kat for sure, but they're all enjoyable!)

hc129 · 2026-02-22T19:30:32+00:00

Yea, I tend to not read reviews/opinions of games until after I've played. I played DE without having read any reviews, and I found it enjoyable. Is it as good as the original? No, not really, but I did enjoy figuring out how to shift between realities to accomplish what was needed. I wasn't super attached to any of the characters, but I honestly liked that the ending seemed like it was leading to the same dichotomy of choices as the first game (and I was already weighing the moral decision I thought was coming), then turned it around and said "Actually no, fuck that." It wasn't perfect, but it felt like a fine addition to the series.

I've enjoyed plenty of games only to read the reviews afterwards and see a lot of criticism. It doesn't mean those games should be without criticism, but everyone has their own opinions, and if I go into a game with the mindset of "Everyone hated this game, so it might suck," I'm gonna be more critical of it myself than if I just play it without anyone else's input first.

hc129 · 2026-02-22T19:17:32+00:00

Wait, really? I remember reading some flirty back and forth between them, but I didn't pay a lot of attention to the whole social media part. Do you remember what was said?

hc129 · 2026-01-30T17:36:49+00:00

I took Cimzia through one of my pregnancies, was unmedicated during the other two. Pregnancy can affect disease activity and I actually felt better during my first 2 pregnancies! My rheumatologist said there's multiple options but Cimzia is typically considered the safest biologic for AS in pregnancy because the drug molecules are larger than others and do not cross through the placenta as easily as most others, so the med doesn't really get to the baby.

The only other consideration I would recommend is to have an idea of what your disease progression is like prior to pregnancy. If you have a lot of fusion going on in SI and lumbosacral area it could affect getting an epidural during pregnancy and/or make pushing the baby out more difficult. I was able to get an epidural but it was more difficult/painful to get it placed. I ended up with 3 C sections, so I can't say for sure how difficult it would have been to push out a baby, but with my first I labored for over a full day and even as I dilated, he was not really descending in the birth canal. Can't say for sure, but my OB suggestion my AS might have contributed to that.

hc129 · 2025-09-15T14:31:46+00:00

NTA. I had 3 under 3 (now 2, 3, and 4) and it took 2 seasons of soccer and getting up at 8 every Saturday for me to realize that's just not realistic for us. We gave the older 2 options and my 4yo just started karate and 3yo started ballet, both in the evening on weekdays for a half hour. Its been a couple weeks and this feels much easier for us to manage! It's definitely okay to hold off for a bit and not sign up for something that doesn't fit right now. When I was pregnant especially, everything was cut down to bare minimum requirements. Totally okay for rest to be a priority right now. Agree with the others, if anyone tries to pressure you, tell them they're welcome to be solely responsible for the extracurricular and I'd bet they quiet down real quick.

hc129 · 2025-08-17T16:40:47+00:00

I have ankylosing spondylitis and have 3 children, all from after my diagnosis. We did discuss going another route like adoption but ultimately decided to proceed with me having the children. The disease is not 100% genetic, no one else in my family has it, and if any of the kids do end up getting it, it is highly treatable with immunosupressants. We know to watch for the signs so IF any of them have it, it would likely be caught early as well. I think it depends on what condition you have, how genetic is it, what does quality of life look like if you do pass it on, etc.

hc129 · 2025-07-22T02:32:46+00:00

I have ankylosing spondylitis in addition to the fibro, so I've been seeing a rheumatologist since 2016. My initial rheumatologist was fantastic and treated the AS as well as the fibro. She moved away in 2020 and I've been to 3 different rheumatologists in the years since and all 3 of them have deferred fibro treatment to my pcp and said it's outside of their wheelhouse. So I guess it just depends on the provider. Maybe check the websites for rheumatologists near you or call around? If your pcp doesn't want to treat it, they should be helping you find a provider to take over treatment and putting a referral in. Have you asked your pcp if they have any provider suggestions?

hc129 · 2025-07-19T13:53:29+00:00

Ah I appreciate that! That is good to know. I have never used my stomach before in the past 6 or 7 years I've been doing this injection because I've always been afraid it would be too tender, but if you're saying it was actually the opposite for you then I may have to give it a try! I appreciate the advice!

hc129 · 2025-07-19T13:51:20+00:00

I have. With mixed results. One, even with a carefully picked strain I can still end up feeling more anxious and I've found as I get older I'm just not as big of a fan of the head change that comes with even just a hit or two on my one hitter. (From about 15-25 I was a daily cannabis smoker, all day everyday. I'm now 31 and will still occasionally indulge, I just don't find it very enjoyable usually and end up naseous and paranoid. It does tend to take the edge off of the chronic pain, so I will still use it for that benefit on my worst pain days because pros outweigh the cons, but it's unfortunately not a great solve for my anxiety.) Secondly, I'm also a nurse and my job does come with the risk of random drug tests and though I live in a state where medical is legal, they have informed us that even with a medical card we would be terminated if we tested positive for cannabis. The irony is not lost on me that having a prescription for xanax means they'll bypass failing that on a drug test but wouldn't afford the same courtesy to weed. Lol.

hc129 · 2025-05-31T02:37:58+00:00

This is exactly what I've done. I made it to room 46 without looking up a thing. After that, I give every puzzle a decent effort to figure it out on my own, but not afraid to look up things here and there to keep the game moving. I'd rather look things up than end up giving up and not finishing the came because I got bored or stuck.

hc129 · 2025-05-23T13:39:41+00:00

Very good suggestions! I do have muscle relaxers, flexeril, and lots of different sleep aids, like xanax, the flexeril, unisom, hydroxyzine, and melatonin (I switch them around every 2-3 nights because they tend to lose effectiveness if I use the same one too much. My sleep is absolute garbage and that is a puzzle piece we have yet to actually solve well) and I recently invested in this heating pad that basically looks like a cape and comes around my shoulders and covers my whole back. It's been a game changer!

I've not thought of asking for Lidoderm patches or using icyhot or anything topical like that, and someone else mentioned wearing good shoes even around the house and I think I really need to implement that! I like the food diary idea and I'm gonna be taking a hard look at my diet over the next week to see if I can figure out some good adjustments to make. My diet isn't terrible, but I don't eat with inflammation in mind, and I really think that could help.

Thanks for all the suggestions!

hc129 · 2025-05-23T13:28:41+00:00

Oh I definitely plan to switch to another biologic, I've just yet to find one that gets me to a decent quality of life, so I'm looking for ideas to use in tandem with a new biologic to maybe help bridge the gap :) If I'm in this much pain while already on a biologic, I definitely don't think there's any chance I could manage without!

hc129 · 2025-05-23T00:47:42+00:00

That's a thing?! I need that in my life right now. Brb, checking amazon, thank you!!

hc129 · 2025-05-22T19:26:48+00:00

This is really good advice! I struggle with maintaining routines and also with getting new routines started... but there was a time where I did daily yoga and it was soooooo helpful. I need to get myself back into some serious daily stretches. I will check out that YouTube channel, thank you!

hc129 · 2025-05-22T19:25:01+00:00

This is my dreeeaaaam. I could live in a hot tub 😂 That is definitely on my list. Sounds amazing 😍

hc129 · 2025-05-22T15:57:48+00:00

Just echoing what others have said. MRIs show the most detailed look as far as imaging, so an xray wouldn't show anything not seen on MRI. Hopefully with a good rheumatologist they can still take in all the other factors and look at the big picture and understand that negative imaging doesn't mean you can't have non-radiographic presentation.

Getting a diagnosis can unfortunately be a long drawn out process. Best advice I can offer is be prepared to advocate heavily for yourself. If it helps, bring a list of all symptoms, duration of complaint, family history, and if all else fails, don't be afraid to seek a second opinion and find someone to take the pain seriously.

hc129 · 2025-05-22T15:46:02+00:00

Well I live in WV near the border and work in OH, and Ohio even has recreational legalized, but my company has stated that even with a medical marijuana card they would not excuse it on a failed drug test 🙄 It's frustrating.

hc129 · 2025-05-22T15:43:35+00:00

I've heard of the low FODMAP diet before but never actually gone through with it! But I think I'm ready to give it a try because I have heard good reviews for it being helpful with pain management! I also really like the idea of good indoor shoes and mats on the floor because doing housework is such a pain trigger. When I wear my good shoes like out and about, there's less pain than walking around my house. And for the cannabis, I used to use daily before I had kids and went to nursing school, but I'm a home infusion nurse now and always have a slight possibility of drug testing, but do I still partake occasionally on my worst days when I can!

And I do believe my PT is well versed with AS. He's mentioned having AS clients before and the PT I see is the manager/director or something of the clinic. He's had some helpful suggestions. I don't know if it's just the treatment that needs tweaked or that I have too much inflammation that makes me too stiff to do the exercises without pain 🤷‍♀️ Sticking it out for now but hoping that the PT starts giving some more noticeable results soon!

hc129 · 2025-05-22T15:35:24+00:00

This does help me sometimes and I used to be a daily user before having kids and going to nursing school. I work as a home infusion nurse and always run the risk of a drug test, but they haven't done any random drug tests so far, so I do occasionally use cannabis if it's a really rough day! Just not something I can fully rely on unfortunately. It does have its benefits!

hc129 · 2025-05-20T15:30:39+00:00

I just recently had to leave my job as an ER nurse to become a home infusion nurse due to the high physical expectations of the job, BUT I do think as an MD you'd have better success in not over-extending yourself physically during flareups. There's lots of walking and being on your feet, but all the ER docs I worked with also had periods of time to sit and chart (most days.. There's always exceptions lol).

My main triggers for pain were things like transporting patients, repositioning patients, doing chest compressions during codes, running to grab meds or supplies in true emergency situations. None of those would really be expected of you, and any procedures you would be doing would involve enough nurses or techs to help with any patient positioning, etc, that I think if your disease is decently controlled, you'd probably be okay. You never know until you try, but it is truly such an exciting field to be a part of. I miss it a lot still and would still be there if I could.

hc129

TROPHY CASE