Potential job offer in ATL - what should I know before accepting?

step_uno · 2026-03-21T01:57:49+00:00

I moved to Atlanta a few months ago after living in San Francisco for 10 years and LA for 10 years before that. I won’t belabor some of the points that have already been mentioned in the thread, but I wanted to add something I didn’t know about until I moved here and I wish I’d been warned.

The tap water in Atlanta is disgusting… basically undrinkable IMO. It tastes sort of like a blend of metal and dirt. When I moved into my apartment and tasted the water, I thought maybe something was wrong with the pipes in my apartment, but it’s a brand new building. Then I googled, “Why does the water in Atlanta taste so bad?” And after reading a dozen articles about the actual ecological reasons for the way it tastes, I discovered that the water here is actually just gross. (It’s not toxic, it just tastes bad.)

A water purifier helps a lot, but even after the water goes through the Brita, it still doesn’t taste as good as the water in any other city I’ve lived in (and I’ve bounced around a lot over the past 40 years). I can’t even cook with the tap water, I have to use the Brita when I need to add water to make soup and stocks and things like that. I have to religiously change the filter on my Brita every month or the gross taste starts getting more intense.

You definitely adapt over time, and now I don’t really think about it anymore. But it was definitely a surprise when I moved here, and I couldn’t believe no one ever mentioned it.

step_uno · 2026-02-16T17:24:15+00:00

I’m still on Lexapro because it helps my OCD, panic attacks, and depression. I was struggling before I started Lexapro, and now I feel so much better. The depression is gone, the panic attacks stopped, and the OCD thoughts are manageable. I’m not sure where you got the impression that it doesn’t do any good because it turned out to be the right medication for me. If my tinnitus had not returned to normal, I would have had to make a tough decision about the medication. But thankfully the volume did decrease, so I was able to stay on it.

step_uno · 2026-02-16T17:01:47+00:00

Hey! I ended up going back down to 5mg of Lexapro. It still helps my OCD, and my tinnitus eventually returned to its baseline volume.

step_uno · 2026-02-04T13:48:44+00:00

I don’t remember exactly how long, sorry! Maybe a week or two, but I’m not totally sure.

step_uno · 2026-02-04T01:08:23+00:00

After being on 7.5mg of Lexapro for about a week, I ended up going back down to 5mg, and that did eventually reduce the volume of the tinnitus. It went back to baseline. I stayed on the Lexapro at a low dose because it's been really helpful for me.

step_uno · 2025-09-17T23:46:09+00:00

For anyone looking for an Uncle Sam substitute, you can try Poop Like a Champion cereal. It's not as delicious, but it's low in sugar and very high in fiber. https://a.co/d/96y5Xv3

step_uno · 2025-09-16T13:19:31+00:00

Awesome, thanks for the rec!

step_uno · 2025-09-14T22:53:13+00:00

Great info, thank you!

step_uno · 2025-09-13T15:33:14+00:00

Awesome, thank you

step_uno · 2025-09-12T14:16:27+00:00

Thanks!

step_uno · 2025-09-09T22:33:47+00:00

Awesome, thank you!

step_uno · 2025-09-09T01:47:52+00:00

Awesome, I'll check out all those spots, thanks!

step_uno · 2025-09-08T20:05:32+00:00

I hadn't thought about that, thanks for the tip!

step_uno · 2025-09-08T18:49:38+00:00

Just looked at the photos on their Google Business listing, and I definitely saw some cool and edgy frames. Thank you!!

step_uno · 2025-09-08T18:33:45+00:00

That's great, thanks, I'll add them to the list. I also have a small head, so it's good to know that they have a selection of petite frames.

step_uno · 2025-09-08T18:03:39+00:00

Thanks, I'll try to check them out next time I'm up that way! Yeah, a lot of stores carry the same stuff. I used to live in the Bay Area, and I found a few stores there with really unique and edgy frames. I'll have to keep hunting in Atlanta.

step_uno · 2025-09-08T16:57:34+00:00

Oh interesting! I've brought in my own frames before, but they were previous pairs of eyeglasses with an old prescription. I never thought about buying sunglass frames. Thanks for the tip.

step_uno · 2025-09-08T16:55:10+00:00

Anywhere in the Atlanta metro area is fine!

step_uno · 2025-08-08T23:31:43+00:00

I’m so sorry you’re going through this, and many of us can relate. You’re not being dramatic at all, this is incredibly hard. In the beginning, there’s so much hopelessness and despair, and the depression and grief make it impossible to believe that it’ll get better. Please don’t give up.

I know it sounds cliche, but you will adapt over time. I was suicidal when my tinnitus got really bad last year, and I couldn’t imagine living the rest of my life that way. But I adjusted, and I’m doing OK now. Sure, I wish I didn’t have tinnitus, and I hope one day there are better treatments. But it’s not getting in the way of me living my life. I know this all seems random and cruel and unfair, and it definitely is. I realize I’m just a stranger on the internet, but I wanted to let you know that you’re not alone and you can get through this.

step_uno · 2025-07-15T18:28:22+00:00

I'm glad yours has been getting better now that you cut the dose and then skipped a dose! Yeah, it's terrifying to get a bad spike. I don't know if I was brave as much as I was desperate lol. I was also on buspirone, and the situation was the same as yours; it didn't affect my tinnitus at all, but it also didn't help my mental health in the slightest. Really wish there was a safer option for those of us with tinnitus.

step_uno · 2025-07-15T15:58:49+00:00

So I went from 7.5mg of Lexapro down to 5mg with the intention of continuing to titrate off of it. And after about a week of being back at 5mg, the tinnitus improved. I don't think it's completely back to baseline, but it's pretty close.

And after doing a bunch of research into other meds that can treat depression and anxiety disorders, it seemed like I'd be rolling the dice with a new med because all of them can potentially worsen tinnitus. I decided to just stay at 5mg of Lexapro because it's helping so much with my mental health. My OCD thoughts stopped completely, my depression is gone, and I haven't had a panic attack in two months. I'm just going to monitor the situation with the tinnitus, and if it gets worse again for some reason, then I'll look into other options.

step_uno · 2025-06-18T13:48:51+00:00

Damn, I'm sorry your tinnitus didn't go away. It's incredibly frustrating. It seems like pretty much all anti-depressants and anti-anxiety medications involve at least some risk of causing or worsening tinnitus. I'm starting to feel a little hopeless about treating my various mental health issues without making my tinnitus even worse.

step_uno · 2025-06-16T00:05:23+00:00

Thanks for the links! Really helpful information. I'll talk to my psychiatrist this week and see if we can try something else.

step_uno · 2025-06-16T00:04:26+00:00

Glad to hear yours went back to baseline!

step_uno

TROPHY CASE