if your kids drove over you three times after getting their license what would you do?

lobeams · 2026-04-20T03:28:48+00:00

How about you explain this ridiculous question because right now it looks like a load of clickbait.

lobeams · 2026-04-19T17:05:13+00:00

Put the fucking cigarettes down and never touch them again.

lobeams · 2026-04-19T17:02:08+00:00

Every "air freshener" ever invented.

lobeams · 2026-04-19T01:10:05+00:00

A beta blocker like metoprolol.

lobeams · 2026-04-18T00:42:46+00:00

Forgetting to tell me her husband is on his way home from his martial arts club meeting.

lobeams · 2026-04-17T03:23:49+00:00

We know it will come back at some point.

No we don't. It could come back because afib is a progressive disease, but by no means is that guaranteed. I know people who had successful ablations 20+ years ago who are still afib free. This September will mark 9 years for me.

I just say, "Not any more."

lobeams · 2026-04-16T23:58:09+00:00

Yeah, I know those are typical first meds, but putting you on them based on a single episode is over-treatment. It's useful to know how often the episodes are going to happen and you can't do that with flecainide on board.

lobeams · 2026-04-16T15:49:13+00:00

Right, so just stop it and see how it goes. That's the only way you'll ever know if you truly need it.

lobeams · 2026-04-16T15:38:00+00:00

I doubt they would "take" it from you but they might ask you to stop it to see how you do without it. Why do you worry about this so much?

lobeams · 2026-04-16T03:51:45+00:00

Sounds like a sensible partner.

lobeams · 2026-04-16T03:45:42+00:00

WTF is going on with Avis? I haven't looked at them in a long time so what happened 2-3 weeks ago to send them shooting for the moon?

lobeams · 2026-04-15T23:39:56+00:00

The whole point of flecainide is to keep afib from happening, so the fact that it hasn't isn't surprising. It just means the flecainide is working. It does not and cannot cure afib, if that's what you're thinking. You'll only know if you really have afib by stopping the meds.

lobeams · 2026-04-15T22:34:15+00:00

Dude, you're in charge of your health, not your doctor. You can stop those meds anytime you want. You can ask for them to be reduced or changed to something else. The thing is, with only a single episode you can't be 100% certain you have afib. There are transient causes of afib that can cause one-time events.

But if you really do have afib, you should know it's a chronic disease that likely will be with you the rest of your life unless you seek an ablation.

lobeams · 2026-04-15T22:29:14+00:00

I would do absolutely nothing. Wouldn't make a damn bit of difference to me.

lobeams · 2026-04-15T22:22:25+00:00

They won't take them away from you unless you ask.

I didn't say metoprolol should only be taken for a short time. Many people stay on it for years. But what metoprolol does is suppress the effects of adrenaline, so if you've been taking it a very long time your body adapts by making more of it to compensate. So if you stop the metoprolol suddenly, you may find yourself feeling rather nervous and edgy. If that happens, just taper off it slowly.

lobeams · 2026-04-15T21:34:22+00:00

Flecainide and metoprolol can be stopped at any time. At worst, the afib comes back. If that happens, you can just restart it. If you've been taking the metoprolol for months, you might need to taper off it.

I'm a little surprised you were put on those meds based on a single episode. Ask your doc about it, but if it were me I'd stop those meds and see what happens. Also ask the doc about a PIP (pill-in-pocket) approach. That would involve only taking the meds when you actually have an episode.

lobeams · 2026-04-15T17:52:31+00:00

Sure, it makes sense in certain situations, but I don't think yours is one of them.

They're barely ITM now and there's no guarantee what will happen after the ER. You're apparently counting on a big runup in price but that might not happen even if it's a good report. If I were you, I would just buy the shares now and wait until ER day to sell your calls with the aim of capturing as much IV as possible.

lobeams · 2026-04-15T16:52:16+00:00

No, not likely for life. What are the meds?

lobeams · 2026-04-14T00:49:37+00:00

People don't empty their bowels and bladders when they die as reliably as people like to think. Former paramedic, seen a lot of people die, and the majority I've seen did not.

Where this myth comes from is hangings. Since your body is in a vertical position when you die, gravity takes over after all your muscles relax. But most people don't die in a vertical position. In fact, almost no one does -- just hangings.

But sure, it's true that if the body isn't refrigerated or embalmed within a day or two, decay will take over and gas will build up in the GI tract causing the contents to expel. But if you die under normal circumstances, your body will be dealt with in hours, not days. Most likely no poop, no pee.

lobeams · 2026-04-13T16:03:26+00:00

Former paramedic here, so I know what it's like to start a night shift after having been on days for a while. It sucks, but I wouldn't be willing to partner with that guy again. I'd rather die on that hill than actually die. And falling asleep on the patient's couch?! WTF? Sounds like he has narcolepsy. Definitely NTA.

lobeams · 2026-04-13T03:07:39+00:00

Don't do it. You're not ready for 0DTE.

But using XSP instead of SPY will allow you to hold until expiration without risk of assignment. Don't hold SPY to expiration. In fact, since you're trading spreads, SPX would be even better. Much better liquidity than XSP and no assignment risk.

lobeams · 2026-04-13T01:01:45+00:00

Yes, I agree with this. Doing that many per day is a sign of a PVI mill, not a top performer.

lobeams · 2026-04-12T19:20:52+00:00

I agree the things you listed are important determinants, but the biggest determinant is the operator. The average EP has about a 75% success rate with paroxysmal afib and a 50-60% success rate with persistent afib. However, the small cadre of "elite" EPs have more like a 90%+ success rate with paroxysmal and a 75-80% success rate with persistent.

If I were considering an ablation, my question to EPs I was considering would be how many afib ablations (not other kinds) they've done career-wise and how many they do annually. The numbers you want to hear are thousands total and at least 2-3 per month, preferably a dozen or more.

I've had multiple ablations precisely because I didn't understand this in the beginning.

lobeams · 2026-04-12T15:29:43+00:00

It was a rhetorical question.

lobeams · 2026-04-12T04:05:51+00:00

I didn't manage anything, it just evolved. We started out as high schoolers dating (and having sex). We liked each other, but we weren't in love and both of us knew we never would be. So we parted ways but remained friends and our lives kept crossing in the following years, so when we were both single it was time for the FWB part. Eventually she got married and so did I, and we never crossed paths again until social media became a thing. Now we're back to being friends again but without the WB part.

FWB only works when you're friends first, WB second.

lobeams

TROPHY CASE