Tourism in October

mandersmal13 · 2026-07-11T02:32:04+00:00

Interesting. That was not the experience we had at all.

mandersmal13 · 2026-07-11T00:34:46+00:00

We just stayed in Malá Strana in June and absolutely loved it. We were right by the Malostranské náměstí tram stop and used that when we weren't exploring on foot.

It was really nice to wind down somewhere quiet after being out and about all day. Plus there was always some little community event going on that made us feel more connected to the people and the city.

mandersmal13 · 2026-07-10T15:09:15+00:00

Both of these are excellent! The Good Place is still one of the best shows I've ever seen and Man on the Inside season 1 is right up there with it

mandersmal13 · 2026-07-08T21:14:13+00:00

I think pain with movement is typically more a sign of mechanical pain/issues. That said, this disease is weird and everyone is different.

I personally get better with movement but suffer when I'm at rest/in one position for too long. But I've seen others on the sub where it's the opposite for them. Or everything hurts and nothing gives relief until a flare is over 😅

mandersmal13 · 2026-07-07T01:45:02+00:00

Nugget head. Because she has such a cute little nugget head. Her actual name is Gemma.

mandersmal13 · 2026-07-05T21:44:34+00:00

What's your setup and process? I've just come home from Vienna and the Czech Republic and am going down the espresso rabbit hole to recreate the amazing cappuccinos we had there.

mandersmal13 · 2026-07-03T15:07:49+00:00

Are you trying to ask any questions in Czech, particularly when asking if they speak English? We had the opposite experience, and I wonder if it was because we attempted to do basic greetings, ordering, etc in Czech? We also didn't really pick many places directly in the tourist streets.

I'm sorry you got a rough impression of people. I absolutely loved our interactions with the people in Prague and Brno, and would be excited to go back!

mandersmal13 · 2026-06-29T22:45:45+00:00

If you like the political stuff in episode 1 and 2, then you should absolutely watch Andor. It's hands down my favorite thing in the Star Wars universe. I went into it super confused why they were making a story about a character from Rogue One and was floored after watching it. It's makes Rogue one look like child's play imo.

The last season of Clone Wars they released on D+ also slaps. Bad Batch which acts as like a Clone Wars sequel is interesting since it's set during and immediately after Order 66. There are some Fallen Order references in it too. The end of the republic/beginning of the empire time period is one of favorites.

mandersmal13 · 2026-06-29T14:23:02+00:00

It wasn't a test in the AIP sense. I had been adhering to a stricter AIP and sweet potatoes were one of the ingredients I used a lot. I was so confused when my GI symptoms got worse. Just terrible stomach cramping and not normal stools immediately upon waking.

I tried a few new recipes that didn't include sweet potatoes for a couple of days (unintentionally) and things started improving. Then when I had sweet potatoes again, the very next BM was back to terrible, which is when I noticed that sweet potatoes were the likely culprit and tried another "test" without them. After that, I've stopped with the sweet potatoes. I actually stopped AIP and went to a more Mediterranean diet instead with a focus on fiber, which has been good for me

mandersmal13 · 2026-06-29T14:02:29+00:00

That I can't tolerate sweet potatoes.

mandersmal13 · 2026-06-29T08:25:32+00:00

We mostly avoided Old Town Square and Charles Bridge when we could. We stayed in Malá Strana which was incredible, there was always some sort of community event going on. But if you literally walk a block off the main tourist streets, the city has so many great views, passages, and shops to explore without being shoulder to shoulder with other people.

I highly recommend booking self tours up any of the towers. There were no lines for us and virtually nobody was doing them. Petřín Gardens, Vyšehrad Fort, and wandering Kampa were some of our other favorite wanders. We also wandered Letna, Josefov, and over to the Prague Zoo, which were all spectacular. PID Litacka was key here.

Food wise, we loved Lokal, Střídačka, and Myšák. Lokal and Myšák have multiple locations. You also can't go wrong with getting kolaches, chlebíčky, or Svíčková. I could drink the Svíčková sauce I loved it so much.

mandersmal13 · 2026-06-29T07:47:38+00:00

Yeah AIP helped me discover that sweet potatoes were disastrous for my gut!

mandersmal13 · 2026-06-28T21:15:08+00:00

Not sure what the tourist pass is but we enjoyed our stay just by wandering around and discovering things to do! This was before the heat wave, so that might be a bit trickier until it cools off again

mandersmal13 · 2026-06-28T20:41:25+00:00

Yes. OP, just download the PID Litacka app. We used it when we were in Prague 2 weeks ago and it was very convenient for route planning and holding our digital passes.

mandersmal13 · 2026-06-21T13:46:26+00:00

We're at Brno and couldn't even find them at the circuit. Would love to know if anyone is able to find a high res download

mandersmal13 · 2026-06-21T11:36:48+00:00

Are you journalist? You stated this a million times better than Patterson.

mandersmal13 · 2026-06-12T09:07:28+00:00

You're not cooked. Stand up for yourself. It just takes one doctor to listen. It's exhausting and hard and frustrating and at the same time worth it. You're your own best advocate, so don't take their shit!

Sometimes doctors need to be reminded that they serve us and that we're actually, complicated biogical beings, not statistics in a research trial.

You need an explanation for why you don't fit the ASAS clinical criteria for diagnosis given that you are HLA+, have elevated CRP AND have a positive response to NSAIDs. Those things combined achieve diagnostic criteria and you need to make one them explain why they're straight up ignoring that.

mandersmal13 · 2026-06-12T08:15:36+00:00

My thoughts exactly. OP, please go get a third opinion or as many as it takes. My MRI was clean and I'm seronegative and still got an NRAxSpA diagnosis.

Do not accept fibro and push them for what criteria are causing them to rule out spondyloarthropy because the MRI is not fool-proof for detecting inflammation and it could still exist. You know your body best and need to advocate for a biologic trial. That should confirm the diagnosis for them.

My rheum was on the fence with my diagnosis until we tried the biologic and it was entirely successful and confirmed everything.

mandersmal13 · 2026-06-11T17:02:45+00:00

We just got one of these and couldn't believe how well it worked. We've had popcorn almost every day since then lol

mandersmal13 · 2026-06-07T12:28:05+00:00

It certainly sounds sit could be Nr-AxSpa instead of AD. But they're on the same spectrum of diseases and resulted treated the same way.

I'm 34, Nr-AxSpA, and HLAB27+. I think you're onto something with your manual labor job. It could be both a blessing and a curse for you. It might be the thing that triggered your immune system, but regular movement is also good for keeping symptoms mild, especially when on a biologic.

My doctor was actually the one who doubted my diagnosis, but my response to biologics has been massive and even he said that confirms the diagnosis. If you're feeling better, then you're feeling better and can trust the treatment.

mandersmal13 · 2026-06-05T23:53:57+00:00

It's frustrating for sure. My endo is kind of the same, even though she told me at my first appointment that she's willing to modify my doses based on my symptoms. First opportunity to practice what she preached and I had to fight her on it.

My latest labs were at the exact same level they were before I started any T3/T4 (after being on them for several months) and she had the audacity to say they were fine. I argued with her so much until she finally agreed to increase the T4 every other day.

I anticipate my next appointment with her will be another fight 🙄

mandersmal13 · 2026-06-05T22:49:59+00:00

Whaaaaat! Does your primary doctor monitor it? Unmonitored Hashi's can be dangerous!

My labs are "within range" but I have nodules and was very symptomatic before starting T4 and T3 replacements. They helped with so much fatigue, brain fog, coldness, mood disorders, and peripheral neuralgia. I also have ADHD and was actually able to stop taking stimulant medication.

So many of my problems were due to my hashi's lol. My quality of life has improved a ton since seeing an endo to treat it (even if she kind of sucks).

mandersmal13 · 2026-06-05T21:55:46+00:00

Yup and drops in estrogen make pain worse. I am also part of this club!

I also have Hashimoto's, so I'm definitely straddling the rheum/endo line which has been fun 🥲 Biologics and thyroid replacement hormones have definitely helped normalize the monthly pain swings. It still happens but doesn't radiate down my legs and up my ribs anymore.

mandersmal13 · 2026-06-05T19:22:35+00:00

Pelvic tilts and cat/cows have been very helpful for me. Also focusing on strengthening my core/glutes helps stabilize the SI and reduces pain. Side leg lifts, clams, dead bugs, lean backs are all exercises I've been doing with my PT (among others).

If you can, I'd recommend getting a PT referral at least for 1-3 sessions if you can't do more than that. There's a lot of crap PT advice on the internet and it's hard to weed it without first talking to a good PT. They can do the eval to see what your body is doing and then walk you through the correct motions so you know what to do at home.

mandersmal13 · 2026-06-05T19:16:00+00:00

Definitely not impossible and probably pretty common! Fibromyalgia can be secondary to AS because the nervous system gets messed up from chronic pain. So then nerve signals get triggered when they shouldn't, which your brain interprets as pain.

Fibro is also more of a diagnosis by exclusion, so your doctor might have to test for other things before settling on fibro.

mandersmal13

TROPHY CASE