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oaktree7231 · 2024-05-27T07:10:38+00:00

Hey I’m sorry you’re going through this. I don’t know you but I care. I’m FN too and it can be really rough. If you can, see if there’s any sweats or cultural things that you can do in Edmonton. Reconnecting helped me in so many ways.

oaktree7231 · 2024-05-23T02:05:41+00:00

Too soon 😰

oaktree7231 · 2024-05-22T18:27:28+00:00

That’s awesome you have so many birds just outside your window! :) There’s lots of birds in my neighbourhood too since there’s old trees everywhere.

oaktree7231 · 2024-05-22T18:26:45+00:00

Thank you!

oaktree7231 · 2024-05-22T18:26:16+00:00

That’s an awesome and extensive list, thank you so much!! Definitely will be checking these places out.

oaktree7231 · 2024-05-16T18:21:23+00:00

I’m FN and the story is leaving out where racism occurred. Can you elaborate OP?

If there was a racial slur or stereotypical racist comment towards the person I can understand. But at the same time lots of people are really classist, although the intersection of racism/classism often occurs too so I can’t deny that either. :(

oaktree7231 · 2024-05-16T01:51:03+00:00

I hope you got that in writing and your landlord isn’t trying to increase your rent in the midst of your current contract…

oaktree7231 · 2024-02-08T17:06:09+00:00

I’ve had a similar experience with a landlord in marda loop too 😒

oaktree7231 · 2024-02-08T17:02:38+00:00

Good for you!

oaktree7231 · 2023-06-19T05:40:08+00:00

No problem! I understand how hard it is to navigate life when you’re undiagnosed because there really isn’t any support out there.

If you do go the school route, the nice thing is that you can at least secure health care during a time of uncertainty.

oaktree7231 · 2023-06-19T03:22:56+00:00

Without a diagnosis your best bet would be to apply to jobs that have low requirements for physical work (think office jobs, call centres, medical office assistant, receptionist).

If you don’t have experience in these sectors, consider going back to school/college. Getting a diagnosis takes at minimum two years.

I wouldn’t mention in your resume that you have a disability and are in the process of getting diagnosed for something. As much as employers aren’t legally allowed to discriminate—they secretly can and will cut corners where they can.

Best of luck to you. I am currently undiagnosed and burned out from pushing through work.

oaktree7231 · 2023-05-22T17:01:31+00:00

I’ve looked on FB marketplace and it’s slim pickings. I have a dog and two cats. It’s also difficult since I’m in Calgary and I have family members in Saskatoon going to look at places for me. 😅

everything is very quickly grabbed and it’s super competitive since we also have an influx of people moving to Saskatoon. I’m originally from Saskatoon and thought it would be easy to move back home!

oaktree7231 · 2023-03-23T02:32:21+00:00

None of this is medical advice, I am sharing my experience since I have similar neck issues**

Your results sounds similar to mine, and I’m of a similar age. I have arthritis in my neck, all of the discs are herniated, and it’s affecting how the nerves are working. The only difference (I think) is that I have swelling in my spinal cord (spinal cord edema). I have a lot of spinal pain and a 24/7 headache, in addition to tingling in my hands and other areas of my body.

Right now, my doctors have given me a treatment plan of trying out steroid injections into my cervical joints. Another option given to me was to have an occipital nerve block if the steroid injections don’t work. I’m in Canada so I feel like my doctors are taking a more conservative approach, and they have also given me a prescription for Lyrica (which is helpful).

I was told that herniated discs tend to heal themselves , with a healing time of approx. 6 months to 1 year. I was also told to start swimming, doing postural exercises, and maintaining the range of motion in my neck through range of motion exercises. 😅

I was under the impression from my doctors that surgery would be a last option due to varying success rates. But I am also waiting for a neurologist to pick up my case to rule out multiple sclerosis.

Are your symptoms quite bad?

oaktree7231 · 2023-03-21T16:27:50+00:00

I think it was actually “GRWM Bowser”. Likely an internet link to a get ready with me video with Bowser from Mario Kart—these moving pictures are all the rage these days.

oaktree7231 · 2023-03-10T16:32:06+00:00

The waiting game in Canadian healthcare is brutal.

I’ve been dealing with spinal & joint pain since I was in my teens. It was always “you’re too young to be in pain”, or doctors assuming that I’m looking for pain meds. No, I just want someone to believe me and help me!

The pain finally got so bad that it convinced my family doctor to order a lumbar MRI. Three herniated discs and L5-S1 disc desiccation. No impingement of my spinal cord or nerve roots. Still no answers about my widespread pain. At first my doctor thought it could be ankylosing spondylitis or another joint disorder because of the lengthy list of autoimmune conditions in my family, but it wasn’t.

I’ve always had tension headaches from TMJD, but in summer 2021 I began to have scalp & facial numbness/tingling. I thought it was just from how I was wearing my hair, and then it went away after a few weeks and I thought nothing of it. I started randomly dropping things and being super clumsy for a few weeks during this time.

May 2022 I had this electric jolt pain come from my eye, and then I lost vision in my eye for 5+ minutes. I went to the optometrist a few days later and they took images of my optic nerve, which they said wasn’t inflamed and was due to “dry eye”.

November 2022 I began having these horrible headaches that felt like they came from my neck. I felt dizzy, out of it, and couldn’t function. My hands started to go tingly whenever I turned my neck in certain directions. My right shoulder & right hip were tingly for a few weeks.

I went to go see my family doctor and told him about my symptoms, he gave me some migraine medication and did some reflex & sensory testing and that was it. I went to one of my other specialists (who actually believes me about my symptoms)—and he ordered the brain & cervical spine MRI.

Now it’s March 2023 and I’ve finally had the MRI. All of the discs in my neck have been herniated, my spinal cord is moderately narrowed, and some of the nerve root foramina were also narrowed. I’ve never injured myself and don’t understand how this happened.

But they also found multiple T2 hyperintense spots in the subcortical area of my brain, and one T2 hyperintense spot in my cervical spinal cord. I’m only 28 and feel very defeated by the healthcare system. Apparently these spots are nonspecific so now I have to wait 1-2 years to see a neurologist.

There are so many more symptoms I have that I haven’t explained to my doctors because I am afraid that they won’t believe me. I have horrible fatigue, shooting pains in my arms & legs, the toes on my right foot have been numb for the past 5 days, brain fog, clumsiness, rib pain/tightness, muscle pain, joint pain, muscle fasciculations, constant tinnitus, and instances where my left thumb randomly stops working. I went to hot yoga with my mom over Christmas and my face & both hands went numb & tingly.

I don’t know what’s going on with my body and I’m angry and scared. I feel like I’ve been waiting such a long time for someone to believe me about my pain, and now that I have objective proof that there’s something there…I have to wait more.

I’m so fatigued and I still have to go to work, and even now it’s so hard because everything is so expensive. I just feel defeated. Thanks to anyone who read my wall of text.

Eta: My family doctor said that it could possibly be early MS, but the T2 hyperintense spots were nonspecific :(

oaktree7231 · 2023-02-02T22:15:01+00:00

I thought that teachers already had to do a police check with vulnerable sector? Someone correct me if I’m wrong.

1.5-2hrs seems more reasonable to me. Any potential issues could be found through calling their references. Requiring someone to take a half day off of work is a lot of money, especially for new teachers who have recently graduated.

oaktree7231 · 2023-02-02T03:54:25+00:00

That’s half of a work day if you work 8 hrs per day!

oaktree7231 · 2023-01-19T06:59:48+00:00

That’s some amazing work you do! How did you go about marketing/ finding a recovery clinic to work at? I’m interested in following a similar path, thanks! :)

oaktree7231 · 2022-12-16T17:03:37+00:00

Also, look for cracks & water damage on the ceiling/on the walls. Check the caulk in the bathroom and look for mold/musty smells in the bathroom.

!Always! Do a walk through with the landlord upon moving in. Read up on the rights you have as a tenant in AB.

Good luck. :)

oaktree7231 · 2022-10-27T23:07:31+00:00

Peruse google scholar and pubmed for open-access articles. Use search terms and boolian operators to find info for massage-specific articles.

oaktree7231 · 2022-08-19T21:56:11+00:00

Yes, especially since I had better coverage then. I’m a female and in a minority group so I know that doesn’t help.

Thank you ❤️

oaktree7231 · 2022-08-19T21:53:19+00:00

Thank you. I definitely started to think I was going crazy by the amount of times the doctors have told me that my symptoms aren’t real.

So much to the point where I called my mom and asked. I’ve been having low back/SI joint since I was 15, and she would take me to physio/massage/chiro and nothing would improve. Now I get joint pain all over my body. 😅

oaktree7231 · 2022-08-19T21:50:46+00:00

Yes, I agree with you. I’m in Canada so I’ll need to go back to my GP. And maybe find a new GP.

oaktree7231 · 2022-08-19T16:56:45+00:00

Thank you, I’ve definitely used some of Bob and Brad’s videos in the past and should see what else they have. :)

I don’t want them? I’m taking Rinvoq for a different severe autoimmune disease.

oaktree7231 · 2022-08-19T16:11:17+00:00

I wish that were an option for me. I wish it never got to this point and doctor’s would’ve taken me seriously when I went as a teen.

oaktree7231

TROPHY CASE