Fibromyalgia homeopathic supplements.

This is a recent addition to my supplement routine to help manage my fibromyalgia symptoms. A friend of mine sent me a link to a product a friend of theirs found great success with, so I decided to try it.

I've only been taking it less than a week, so I don't have a definitive answer for you. However, I started taking it on a week when our weather went from lows in the 60's to lows in the upper 30's and back again. That alone is usually a flare trigger (or at least a symptom aggravator) for me. Add onto that holiday dinner with family (stress at being around a lot of people, yes we had fun and a good time but people are always a stressor for me, that's just me), AND the massive stress of being on deadline and spending way too much time at the computer to get my book turned in, and I have to say I'm liking what I've experienced so far.

Normally, just the deadline alone would be a huge issue. I usually end up with horrible fibro knots in my left shoulder especially, very stove up and achy. Surprisingly, despite a lot of problems the past several weeks with knots in that shoulder, I am not as knotted and sore as I usually am after making deadline. So that was a bonus.

I received the supplements very quickly, on Wednesday, and started taking them. I ordered the following:

• FibroFree Complex: http://www.nativeremedies.com/products/fibrofreecomplex-muscle-pain-and-fatigue.html
• Fatigue Fighter: http://www.nativeremedies.com/products/fatigue-fighter-support-healthy-energy-levels.html
• PureCalm: http://www.nativeremedies.com/products/purecalm-natural-anxiety-remedy-calms-stress.html

I'm not going to declare them a magic cure of some sort. I've been taking them less than a week. I'm not UNhappy with the results so far, but as far as whether or not long-term they'll work for me, we'll wait and see. Winter is the worst time of year for me, because of wildly fluctuating weather and other stresses. It'll take me several months to render a verdict.

If you have other issues, check out their site, they have a wide variety of products for various conditions, allergies, etc. No, I'm not affiliated with them in any way, am not getting any kickbacks from them, and I paid for the products I am giving my opinion on.

More "frankensteining" my fibromyalgia.

I realized today that while I thought I'd put up a follow-up post about my current supplement regimen to help control my fibromyalgia symptoms, I hadn't.

*head/desk*

First, if you haven't read any of my previous posts about fibromyalgia, including me quitting Cymbalta cold-turkey last fall, you can find them all here.

Let me start by saying I am NOT a doctor. I am NOT saying that just because this is something working for me that you should immediately try it without researching it or talking to your physician. But because the state of health care in our supposedly advanced country is crap, and I know I, for one, cannot find insurance that will touch me (yes, I am TOTALLY in favor of Obamacare) I offer my experience up as reference if anyone else needs to look in similar directions.

For starters, I'm still not regretting quitting the Cymbalta. It had stopped working for me, and since getting off it, I've lost 20 pounds that I gained while on it.

My three prescriptions right now are:

• 10 mg cyclobenzaprine (generic for Flexeril), I take at bedtime (helps with sleep)
• .5 mg alprazolam (generic for Xanax) which was actually prescribed for flying anxiety, but I accidentally discovered it helps me if I'm in a bad flare. I don't know why, but it does. I only take it as needed, which means maybe once every couple of months.
• 10mg/325mg Oxycodone/apap which is my "safety net" drug. Meaning when on a scale of 1-10 my pain levels hit a 37, I break down and take one. Fortunately, I have not had to take one since I screwed up my knee in January. I DESPISE taking them, because there's a 50/50 chance they'll make me puke, and I hate the way they make me feel. Meaning a prescription for 60 of them has lasted me longer than the expiration date on the bottle. LOL

My daily routine with supplements is as follows:

• B-12 sublingual in the morning. (Jarrow Formulas Methyl B-12, 5,000 micrograms). Energy.
• L-5-HTP 100mg at night. (Richard's WellCare Formulas, European L-5-HTP 100 mg). Take at bedtime with the Flexeril, really helps with sleep. (Note: If you are taking any kind of prescription medication that plays with serotonin levels, you MUST talk with your doctor. Too much can cause serotonin syndrome.)
• Malic Acid with Magnesium. (KAL Malic Acid with Magnesium, 4 daily) This was recommended to me through someone in a fibro group I'm in. They are 4 horse pills, and it takes a few weeks to build up in the system sometimes and start working, so if you try it, don't give up after a couple of days. Some people report symptom improvement with a smaller dose, but play with it and see what works for you. 4 is the "daily serving" and seems to be what works for me. (If you have issues with kidney stones, you will want to be especially careful and talk to your physician about this.) I order it from LuckyVitamin.com (NAYY).
• Lecithin, 1,200 mg. (NOW Lecithin 1,200 mg). I have noticed less brain fog since taking this.
• Super Omega-3 Fish, Flax & Borage Oils. (Finest Nutrition Super Omega-3 Fish, Flax & Borage Oils.)
• Glucosamine/Chondroitin/MSM (1,500mg Glucosamine, 200mg Chondroitin, 100mg MSM). I am still trying different brands of this, and sometimes the dosage varies a little depending on the manufacturer. Joint support.
• Green Coffee Bean Extract GCA (Jarrow Formulas Green Coffee Bean Extract, 400 mg). Energy. I take this early in the day, usually with my other supplements, unless I forget to take them until after lunch, then I don't take it because it screws with my sleep.)
• One-A-Day Women's, Active Metabolism (multivitamin).

I was also taking a D supplement but have discontinued it for now because I didn't notice much difference with it. Also, as I said in an earlier post, I'm not taking a multi-B supplement because of my multi-vitamin and the B-12. So far, that seems to be working for me.

I also take C and Echinacea as needed. I use herbal teas like chamomile at night.

Something else that has helped me is fire cupping (which is actually an ancient Eastern medical practice, not just a kinky one LOL). It's like getting a really great hot rock massage in reverse, and I've used it before to break up really bad fibro knots I get in my shoulders. Of course, I've found a good slow impact play session releases boatloads of endorphins into my system and helps with pain relief in that way, too.

Another thing I've started looking into is myofascial trigger points and pain, because many fibro sufferers actually have active and severe pain trigger points. Several great books and tools from Amazon on that.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1594770549/

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000P7PVWU/

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00BXAM6BW/

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1572243759/

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001211O74/

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00120ZMHS/

I also use aromatherapy in the form of essential oils. Have a lot of great results with rosemary, peppermint, and lemongrass. Some people also like lavender, but I'm not really a fan of that one as much for some reason. *shrug*

Found this graphic on Facebook.

Exercise: When I can get to the gym and spend time in the pool doing slow laps and water walking, that helps as well. As does time in their hot tub and the dry sauna. And even just slow stretching really helps out with me.

As for diet, cutting out a lot of processed foods seems to have helped as well. (Hubby is becoming an AMAZING cook and really does a great job with that.)

Again, RESEARCH. Because fibromyalgia is a syndrome of symptoms with multiple possible causes, there IS NO one right answer for everyone. What works for some might not work for others (or might even be harmful). Talk with your physician and do your research on supplements/herbals before trying any. Also, make SURE to talk with your pharmacist with a list of EVERYTHING you're taking (herbal, supplements, and prescriptions) in your hand so they can check for drug interactions.

I hope this list helps you on your quest for symptom management.

Namaste, peeps.

More for my fellow introverts.

In a follow-up to the human-sized hamster ball post from 7/15, here's a list from BuzzFeed:

27 Problems Only Introverts Will Understand.

Um, yep, yep, and double-yep.

Being introverted has definitely caused me problems in my life. It's easy to tell someone, "Oh, get over it," but it's not as simple as that.

Those who are introverts, I know you get it.

Those who aren't, it's not something easy to explain. The stimuli, especially to someone like me with fibromyalgia, can be physically and mentally overwhelming. What energizes an extrovert can send me to bed for a couple of days (or longer) afterward if it triggers a flare.

I'm lucky that Hubby and Sir "get it" and accommodate me. I don't think Sir totally understands it, because He's an extrovert to the Nth, but He's learned to recognize the signs of when I'm getting overwhelmed and need a break if we're out.

How do you cope with being an introvert?

Adult Excerpt: "It's a Sweet Life - Coffeeshop Coven Prequel" (mfm) by Tymber Dalton

Here is an adult excerpt from my book It's a Sweet Life, a standalone prequel to my new Coffeeshop Coven series, and now available from Siren-BookStrand:

http://www.bookstrand.com/its-a-sweet-life

Blurb:

Libbie Addams has a mortgage on her struggling bakery, no love life, no health insurance…and fibromyalgia. She's worried about making ends meet when two hunks show up to rent her extra apartment. Not only do cousins Ken Dougherty and Charles Stackhouse make her money worries disappear, they offer to help out in their spare time.

They also make her panties damp. Too bad they're gay, but they’re great eye candy.

The men have a secret—they're not gay cousins. They're twin brothers hiding from a vengeful mob boss. Charles is Allan Donohue, a prosecutor with the State Attorney's office in Miami. Benjamin Donohue is the undercover detective who helped break the case wide open. Now they're marked for death.

They hope their ruse can keep them, and Libbie, safe. Because now that they've fallen in love with the delicious baker, they’ll never let her go. But when vengeance comes calling, will they ever get to enjoy their sweet life together?

--


Story Excerpt

“So,” Ken teased, “does he screen your boyfriends for you?”

She let out another snort. “That’s a laugh. What boyfriends?” She took a sip of her tea. “This dinner with you two is the closest thing I’ve had to a date in a year.” Time to quit talking about myself. “So tell me about your families. What’s Nebraska like?”


* * * *

Allan frantically groped for a way to fill in the blanks while praying they didn’t end up contradicting themselves or each other in the process. “Well, it’s not Florida.” What he knew about Nebraska was that they had a team called the Cornhuskers, and Penny from The Big Bang Theory hailed from there.

I’m going to need a trip to Wikipedia later if I’m going to do this convincingly for any length of time.

“Thank god,” Ben added, throwing a warning glance his way.

They’d agreed to keep the details to a minimum, lessening the chance of screwing things up. Allan hated lying. As a prosecutor, his job was getting to the truth. Ben on the other hand had way more practical experience in staying undercover and keeping a story straight.

Hell, it was all he could do to remember he wasn’t supposed to be straight and to not start flirting with her. She’d seemed so sad when skimming over the details of her divorce and her parents’ deaths. He longed to reach over and give her a hug, give her a comforting set of arms to relax into.

He mentally shook his head. Must. Focus.

“How are you guys related?” she asked. “You said you were cousins?”

The men spoke at the same time.

“Our fathers—” Ben said.

“Our mothers—” Allan said.

Both men’s mouths snapped shut. Allan thought the fastest and beat Ben to the punch while Libbie’s brow furrowed in confusion. “My dad and his brother married his mom and her sister,” he quickly said.

He noted the desperate look on Ben’s face, so Allan quickly threw in, “It was a double wedding.”

Libbie was looking at him and missed the arched brow and warning look Ben gave him from across the table. When she looked at Ben, Allan sent him an apologetic shrug.

“What?” she asked.

“Two brothers married two sisters,” Ben added. “Sorry, he always says that confusing. We’re double cousins. Our fathers are brothers and our mothers are sisters.”

“Oh,” she said, not looking like she was any less confused. “Does that happen a lot?”

“It apparently does in Nebraska,” Allan muttered as he took a swig of tea.


* * * *

If Ben could, he’d reach across the table and slap the crap out of his brother.

So much for keeping it simple.

“They grew up in the same town,” he added as he glared at Allan when Libbie focused on his brother again. “Small town outside of Omaha,” he quickly added when he remembered they were supposed to be from Omaha.

“I imagine the winters are cold there, huh?”

“So do I,” Allan said. “I mean, yeah, you’re right, they are,” he quickly added upon spotting Ben’s frantic warning look.

“Well, I guess that explains why you both look so much alike,” she observed. “Makes sense.”

“Yeah, we’ve gotten that all our lives,” Ben said. He hoped they made it through dinner without blowing their cover. The guys would never let me hear the end of it back at the station. I made it three years in a New Jersey mob family, just to have a baker find out the truth in one dinner because my brother’s an idiot.

“Any brothers or sisters?” she asked.

“Nope,” Ben said. “We’re both only children. We grew up like brothers, though. Very close.”

“Ah. Oh, I was curious. I noticed you didn’t have a Nebraska plate on the front of your car when I went out. Are they like Florida and just use one tag?”

Ben didn’t dare risk throwing a glance Allan’s way because he sensed his brother had frozen up. “I hit the tag office first thing this morning,” Ben said before taking a swig of tea to buy him some time. “Already changed them.”

“Oh.”

“Ready for soup?” Allan quickly asked to change the topic.

Ben breathed a sigh of relief and hoped he could steer the conversation clear of their fictitious families of origin and license plates that didn’t exist. He mentally smacked himself in the head. The truck they’d borrowed belonged to another retired cop friend of his, one he knew was clean, who lived in Palm Beach. His own car was safely stashed in his friend’s garage. Stupidly, in the rush to get out of Miami, he’d forgotten that little detail about license plates.

I need to get my head on straight. Ben stood and picked up his salad bowl, offering to take hers as well since she’d finished.

“Thanks.” She gave him a warm smile with more than just a hint of sadness coloring her features.

His heart raced. For a moment he wasn’t able to make his feet move. “You’re welcome.” Man up, Donohue. This isn’t like you. He pulled himself away from her green gaze and joined Allan in the kitchen.

They were too close to the table for them to say anything to each other, so he stomped on Allan’s foot instead.

When Allan looked at him, Ben made a “quit fucking this up” face at him. Well, he hoped Allan interpreted it correctly.

For all he knew, maybe his twin would think he was constipated.

--

Adult Excerpt

Blinking, she looked from one identical pair of killer blue eyes to the other. She nodded.

“Any special requests?” Charles asked.

Heat rebounded from her pussy to her face and back again. “Some of…the books…” She couldn’t believe she was actually saying this! “They…you know, the guys…front and back at the same time.”

“Ahh,” Charles said, a pleased smile on his face. “Double penetration. We can oblige. It’s one of our favorite things, too.” His face flashed back to serious. “But only if you want to. We can’t just go to town and have you enjoy it. We need to loosen you up first, or it’ll hurt and you won’t enjoy it. Okay?”

She nodded.

“But first.” His mouth slanted down on hers. She closed her eyes, moaning as her arms found his neck again and she held on for dear life as the world melted away. “First,” he repeated when he broke their kiss, “we need to do something else, or we won’t make it five seconds inside you doing DP. We’re good, but we’re not that good.”

She nodded.

Ken turned her to face him. She found her arms automatically wrapping around his neck as they had with Charles. “And you’re going to have to talk to us,” he said. “We need you to tell us what feels good, as well as what doesn’t. We don’t want to hurt you.” He brushed a stray strand of hair from her forehead, tucking it behind her ear with a tenderness that nearly broke her heart. “We know you have a lot of pain in your life. We only want to bring you pleasure.”

The power of speech had apparently escaped her. She nodded.

Charles nibbled at her earlobe again. “That’s our good girl.”

She felt her heart crumbling into pieces as she fell in love with them. Both of them. It was stupid and irrational and most likely the result of her hormones and lack of real sex in a long, long time. She also knew she could never admit it to them, so she wouldn’t be faced with the humiliating prospect of them not returning her feelings.

But there, deep inside her, she knew the truth, even if she couldn’t admit it.

Charles stepped away for a moment as Ken took over kissing her again. She caught a flurry of movement out of the corner of her eye and realized Charles had stripped. If there was a world record for getting naked without the use of Velcro seams, he’d probably set the bar high.

He pulled her from Ken and kissed her. She ran her hands over his body, over the light dusting of dark hair sprinkled across his pecs, including a treasure trail that led down to a gorgeous and rigid cock jutting from his body. Beside them, Ken dropped his clothes, too, then turned on the bedside lamp and turned off the overhead light. His body looked identical to his cousin’s, his cock every bit as deliciously large and hard as Charles’s.

Ken rummaged through the bag Mandaline had given her and pulled out the condoms. “I hope you’ll indulge me, but I need you, baby. I need to feel my cock in you right now.” He ripped the foil pouch open and rolled it on over his cock. Then he grabbed her, kissing her hard and fierce and sucking the breath right out of her. As she felt her body nearly go limp, he gently pushed her facedown onto the bed, her feet on the floor.

He pulled her skirt up around her hips as her clit throbbed, her whole pussy aching. She felt her face heat as his hands found and yanked down her panties.

“Oh,” he moaned, “you’re soaked, baby.” She helped him by stepping out of the sodden garment as his fingers pressed for entrance. As the bed dipped in front of her, she let out a loud moan as one, then two fingers slipped inside her cunt, slowly thrusting.

She wanted to cry from how good it felt. Not enough to get her off, but more than enough to drive her close to the edge.

Charles cupped her cheeks with his palms and lifted her face from the bed. She found herself inches from that delicious cock. With a will of their own, her lips parted and her tongue tried to reach out, to lick the pearly drop of pre-cum sliding from the slit at the end of the engorged head.

He obliged by scooting a little closer. She didn’t know who moaned more loudly, him or her, when the hot, silken iron of his shaft slid between her lips and down her tongue, filling her mouth. Behind her, she felt Ken step between her legs, his sheathed cock nudging between her labia for entrance. When he slid home, deep and hard and pushing her farther onto Charles’ cock, she moaned again.

Ken’s voice sounded strained. “Can you come just from being fucked, baby?”

Charles pulled out long enough so she could answer. “Sometimes, I don’t know. Not all the time.” She reached for Charles, grabbing at his thighs to pull his cock back into her mouth.

“Okay, baby,” Ken said. “This is going to be hard and fast and I’m sorry if you don’t come this time, but I promise I’ll make it up to you.” He started slow, making her whimper as he bottomed out inside her, the pleasant ache that turned into pleasure as his cock stretched her pussy and churned her juices.

Every time she moaned, Charles moaned, too. He scooped her hair into his hand, holding it out of her way as he flexed his hips to thrust between her lips. As hot and hard as he was, she suspected he wouldn’t last long, either. Lost in the spiral of passion, she sucked down the pre-cum streaming from his cock, sweet and tangy and salty at the same time.

She imagined what she must look like, still dressed while being spit-roasted between these two hunks, how wild they were being, and how good it felt. Then Ken reached around her and slowed his strokes, fumbling and finally locating her swollen clit.

--


It's a Sweet Life is a mfm contemporary with just a TINY hint of paranormal elements from secondary characters.The Coffeeshop Coven series will center around Many Blessings, the New Age shop introduced in my book, Out of the Darkness. Not quite the heavy paranormal of my shifters and vampires, I'm hoping my contemporary fans will also enjoy this series.

If you haven't read Out of the Darkness yet, it's my 2010 EPIC winner that also provides some backstory for Many Blessings. You don't have to read it to read "It's a Sweet Life" or the rest of the series, but if you want the full backstory, you might enjoy it:

http://www.bookstrand.com/out-of-the-darkness

You can go to my Siren-BookStrand author page and click on the Notify Me link to get an email from Siren when they update my page and add new books for pre-order:

http://www.bookstrand.com/tymber-dalton

(It's also where you can find all my releases under my various pen names: Tymber Dalton, Lesli Richardson, Tessa Monroe, and Macy Largo.)

Frankensteining my fibromyalgia.

Apparently I've coined a phrase, according to some of my peers on a FetLife group I'm on for kinksters with fibromyalgia. LOL

I mentioned in a discussion about the various vitamins and supplements I'm tweaking and using to manage the symptoms of my fibromyalgia that I was "Frankensteining" my fibro.

I guess that was a hit. LOL

Since going off Cymbalta cold-turkey a few months back, I've been actively seeking out supplements and vitamins, researching, and trying things. Right now, after over a month on malic acid, I do believe I've got the daily pain under control. In that way, at least, I'm feeling pretty darn good (now that my flare that started in October seems to be over). Recently, my "average" daily pain is far lower than it was.

My current target is fatigue, sleeping issues, and brain fog. Several things have led me to the conclusion I might be low in B-12, so I've added a B-12 sublingual to my mix, while taking away the daily B multi-vitamin (since several of my other vitamins and supplements also contain various Bs) and literally in just a few days, I've noticed a HUGE jump in my energy levels. (Now if the moons on my fingernail beds all come back, I'll know without a doubt that was a 100% win.) I plan on working on my current dosage for several weeks and then tweak it back incrementally until I notice a decrease in energy/increase in fatigue to find my maintenance dose.

Fibro is soooo much fun. (NOT!) But I'm more convinced now than ever that getting off the Cymbalta was the right choice for me, although it might not be the right one for everyone. That leaves me only taking my generic Flexeril (10mg) at night for a daily prescription, with my Percocet in reserve as a safety net drug for severe break-through pain, and a prescription for Anaprox (which is, in essence, 2.5 Aleve).

I've also been gratified to get so many notes from readers of my latest release, It's a Sweet Life, where the heroine also has fibro, CFS, and arthritis. It's resonated with so many who are also "invisible" sufferers of these and other chronic conditions. I'm glad it's been so well-received. I'd wanted to work a heroine into a book with a chronic condition like mine, and Libbie presented the perfect opportunity. I wanted readers not just to simply feel sorry for her, but to empathize with those like her, to understand how difficult it is for us on the inside, so to speak, even though to people who don't know us very well, it might seem like we're either fine, or faking it, or looking for sympathy.

We're not looking for sympathy. We're just looking for understanding and accommodation. Believe me, WE want more than anyone else the ability to have a "normal" life. We didn't choose this, it chose us.

So excuse me while I retire back to my mad scientist laboratory to go research some more supplements.

"It's a Sweet Life" available for pre-order!

Woot! "It's a Sweet Life" just went live for pre-order on Siren-BookStrand's site:


http://www.bookstrand.com/its-a-sweet-life

Blurb:

Libbie Addams has a mortgage on her struggling bakery, no love life, no health insurance…and fibromyalgia. She's worried about making ends meet when two hunks show up to rent her extra apartment. Not only do cousins Ken Dougherty and Charles Stackhouse make her money worries disappear, they offer to help out in their spare time.

They also make her panties damp. Too bad they're gay, but they’re great eye candy.

The men have a secret—they're not gay cousins. They're twin brothers hiding from a vengeful mob boss. Charles is Allan Donohue, a prosecutor with the State Attorney's office in Miami. Benjamin Donohue is the undercover detective who helped break the case wide open. Now they're marked for death.

They hope their ruse can keep them, and Libbie, safe. Because now that they've fallen in love with the delicious baker, they’ll never let her go. But when vengeance comes calling, will they ever get to enjoy their sweet life together?

--

It's a mfm contemporary with just a TINY hint of paranormal elements from secondary characters.The Coffeeshop Coven series will center around Many Blessings, the New Age shop introduced in my book, "Out of the Darkness." Not quite the heavy paranormal of my shifters and vampires, I'm hoping my contemporary fans will also enjoy this series.

If you haven't read "Out of the Darkness" yet, it's my 2010 EPIC winner that also provides some backstory for Many Blessings. You don't have to read it to read "It's a Sweet Life" or the rest of the series, but if you want the full backstory, you might enjoy it:

http://www.bookstrand.com/out-of-the-darkness

You can go to my Siren-BookStrand author page and click on the Notify Me link to get an email from Siren when they update my page and add new books for pre-order:

http://www.bookstrand.com/tymber-dalton

(It's also where you can find all my releases under my various pen names: Tymber Dalton, Lesli Richardosn, Tessa Monroe, and Macy Largo.)

Quitting Cymbalta (so far, so good)...

UPDATE: Today is one week since my last dose of Cymbalta, and actually feeling REALLY good. Mood swings are pretty much gone (although I do keep joking about "not killing" anyone LOL). Hubby said that yes, the past several days I seem really good. I'm still only taking the 10mg Flexeril at night like I had been. I've had no other painkillers, OTC or prescription, and I've had no alcohol (and I don't do drugs or smoke).

I feel better, mentally and emotionally, than I have since I started taking Cymbalta in 10/2010. I feel like I can think far more clearly, like the mental equivalent of having cataracts removed, if that makes sense?

Physically - the "not jittery" feeling is gone. Still having vivid dreams (not nightmares) but when I look back, BEFORE I started taking Cymbalta, I used to have fairly vivid dreams on a regular basis. Not every single night like I am now, so maybe it's my brain playing catch-up? LOL And as a writer, a vivid imagination is a good thing.

One sensation I have noticed that's returned that I hadn't noticed had stopped happening since I started Cymbalta was I used to get little micro incidents of vertigo. Not while driving, but while as a passenger, or like at the gym or something, just literally a flash that I could close my eyes and it went away. Today, I noticed that feeling is back. (Weird how I never realized it was gone.)

That's NOT new, that's something I've had all my life, even as a kid. Nothing that was ever debilitating or anything, just a minor annoyance like having to sneeze and you can't.

Also, no more constipation! WOOT! (Sorry if that's TMI. LOL) Whether that's because the medicine's flushing out of my system or because I'm drinking a lot more water consistently or what, I don't care. BONUS!

Pain levels, seriously? Down to a 3. Meaning a hangnail for most people. I literally have not felt THIS good in a long while. Some occasional headaches, not bad, and possibly due to letting myself get a little under-hydrated while working out today (the pool was closed due to an electrical issue -- BOOH -- so I did an hour on the stationary cycle and some free weights and leg machines). Upping my fluids and using peppermint oil topically makes them go away. (Plus, I used to get headaches around the time of my period, so again, these could be tied in with genuine PMS.)

Here's my theory - The medicine HAD stopped working for me. Had it not, my body wouldn't be adapting so easily. Yes, I'm still cautiously optimistic because some have reported they felt great for the first few days and then crashed in some sort of rebound, but I'm still thinking had the medication still been working for me, I would have felt worse than I did in the early days after stopping.

Again, this is my freaky body. I have a looooong history of my body growing used to medications, making them ineffective.

Also, here's a list of the herbal teas I'm currently using as supplements. I was careful to select ones that didn't have St. John's Wort in them because I know you're not supposed to stack that on top of Cymbalta, and I didn't want to take any chances. I'm also limiting my caffeine intake to just my morning cup of coffee. (And as I write that, perhaps that is also a reason for the headaches, because I've cut waaaay back on the caffeine.)

Morning:

Traditional Medicinals Organic Lemon EveryDay Detox

During the day:

Yogi Relaxed Mind
Organic India Tulsi (Holy Basil) Red Mango (Note: This stuff tastes like bubblegum! It's great!)

Evening:

Traditional Medicinals Organic Nighty Night

We've also cut back on processed food. Hubby's been AMAZING in the kitchen the past several days, although we did go out to eat with my parents last night. (No, you can't have him. He's mine. LOL)

I've also been using my rosemary oil topically on my wrists and neck (I love the stuff!) as well as two blends of essential oils by Aura Cacia, one called Creative Juice and one called Relaxation.

So that's my latest update. I hope the information is helpful to anyone. Just remember I'm not a doctor and I don't play one on TV. LOL I'll also keep posting updates, at least until I hit the one-month mark. Who knows WHY I'm faring so well. Honestly? I expected FAR worse side effects based on my research. But it's still early. And I've also made pretty big changes by upping my exercise and drastically cutting most processed foods from my diet. The things could all be working in combination to help minimize the side effects.

Quitting Cymbalta (and it isn't pretty).

This pretty much describes me (partly) the past few days. Yes, Hubby is still alive. Sir (lucky Him) is several states and several thousand miles away on vacation and out of harm's reach... LOL

I suppose I should back up a few steps.

Okay, for those of you who follow me on a regular basis, you probably know I have Fibromyalgia/CFS (Chronic Fatigue Syndrome) and I've been on Cymbalta since 10/2010. Well, I decided after some thinking and research to quit cold-turkey.

Before I go any farther, let me state this is MY experience, and I am in NO way recommending anyone do anything I have done without talking to their physician first, okay? Also, I was on Cymbalta for FIBROMYALGIA. Cymbalta is an SNRI drug also prescribed for other reasons, physical and psychological. If you are on Cymbalta for ANYTHING other than pain management issues, do NOT go off this medication without consulting your doctor FIRST and setting up a treatment plan.

I have several reasons for quitting Cymbalta:

1) I don't think it's working for me anymore, although in the beginning, it was a godsend of a drug. (My body has a habit of getting used to medications very quickly, and I'm surprised it was effective as long as it was. Lyrica stopped working for me after a couple of months.)

2) I'm nearly positive it's contributing to my continual weight gain and the fact that despite exercise and diet modification, I'm unable to reverse the trend.

3) I'm convinced it's interfering with my writing, and since that's how I make my living, that's a VERY bad thing.

4) If I don't think it's working for me, I don't want to risk potential liver damage by continuing to take it.

5) We no longer have insurance. Although with the money we're saving every month on not paying insurance, we have more than enough to pay the full amount of the medicine, with reasons 1-4, it makes sense to try this.

I decided to try this as an experiment first, and to do it now, in summer, when it's very hot and humid and my best time of year pain-wise. I was on 60mg of Cymbalta once a day, which I took at night along with a 10mg Flexeril. I am still taking the Flexeril, but my last dose of Cymbalta was on Thursday, 9/6.

So far, compared to reactions I've heard others report with cold-turkey stoppage, my symptoms have been relatively mild. Like REALLY bad PMS in terms of mood swings. No brain "zaps" like some people report, but you know how you feel sometimes when you are sleep-deprived and have too much coffee, that not-loopy but odd feeling? Like that. (And actually, I'm getting close to my period, so some of what I'm feeling might actually BE PMS. LOL)

And really, today, day five, I'm feeling pretty good. (Although I did nearly launch our damn Fios modem through a window, but that's been an ongoing problem and only exacerbated by the sort-of-PMS feeling. LOL)

To me, this is pretty clear evidence that (unless something drastic changes over the next few days and I have horrible side effects) the Cymbalta had mostly stopped being effective for me.

So what am I doing to help counteract the side effects of withdrawal? LOTS of water. (Which, honestly, I don't drink enough of anyway.) I'm not taking ANY other medications, other than the Flexeril, not even Advil or Aleve, for a couple of weeks. No alcohol at all. I'm not a smoker, so not an issue, ditto other drugs.

Hubby and I are working on eliminating most processed foods from our diet. He's REALLY doing a fantastic job (thank you, Honey!!!) in the kitchen, cooking nutritious meals. I have "The Fibromyalgia Cookbook" and he's been making stuff from that, as well as from the "Everyday Happy Hervibore." No, we're not going totally nuts and doing vegan, and I'm not going gluten-free (yet). But we're guilty of doing a LOT of processed, pre-packaged foods instead of cooking from scratch.

I've also kicked my gym time into high gear. My goal is to go every day, even if I only do a few minutes on the exercise bikes. Lately, I've hit the pool every day, which is a HUGE help, and then I hit the hot tub and dry sauna. I have no excuse for the next couple of weeks, because I'm house-sitting for Sir and His wife while they're on vacation, and I literally have to drive PAST the gym to get there. LOL So I have no excuse to miss any gym time while they're gone, at least.

And, oh, surprise, I've lost three pounds since Thursday.

We have a chain of stores locally called Richards Foodporium (natural foods, supplements, etc.) and I picked up several "calming" teas, as well as a daily detox tea with lemon (not one of those cleanse things, something to help clean the liver). I've been using those a lot.

I also am doing research on my supplements. I added Lecithin to my daily doses, but after further researching I realized I grabbed the soy one instead of the egg one. Next time, I'll get the egg one, because that's supposed to be good for people with Fibro, and I'm not sensitive to eggs. I'm taking a daily multi-vitamin, as well as other supplements, so I'll be tweaking the mixture there as I see how I feel.

My pain levels so far aren't bad, quite honestly. (Not counting the muscle pain from too many minutes on the exercise bike at the gym. LOL) Overall, I'd say I'm at a 4, which on my scale is actually damn good and not something I'd use pain meds for anyway (like Aleve).

So that's where I'm at. I'm going to give this a full two weeks before I make any other adjustments (other than to supplements) and give the Cymbalta time to flush out of my system. Might even take longer than that.

Now, do not mistake me for knocking Cymbalta, because I'm not. If it works for you, fantastic. It DID work for me in the beginning. And I didn't want to try this in the winter when I typically have worse pain due to cooler temps and fluctuating weather as we get cold fronts (with accompanying low pressure) through all the time.

Why did I decide to go cold turkey and not taper down? Because if my theory of the drug no longer being effective for me is correct, I hypothesized that the withdrawal symptoms would not be severe. And considering so far it hasn't been worse than bad PMS (although others have reported BAD effects) I'm willing to deal with it. I am, however, fully prepared to return to a partial dosage IF and ONLY if I begin to have severe side effects. I would rather not, though, if I don't need to.

Feel free to comment on this post with your experience/questions. I will keep updating my experiences as I go through this. Look for the post label "quitting Cymbalta" in the labels to pull up all my posts on the subject. I would like this to generate a discussion and hopefully be of assistance to others in the future looking for more information on the topic.

One more reminder - I am NOT a doctor! This is MY experience only, and you should NOT base your medical decisions on my experience. You need to analyze YOUR experience, talk to YOUR doctor and pharmacist about your options, and make decisions based on YOUR situation. I am not responsible for any actions you take based upon what I've written here. (In other words, I'm not liable for your mistakes. LOL Okay? Please, please, please, do your research and take your time making your decisions and talk to your health care professionals before making your decision.)

EDIT: I should also add I've had VIVID dreams, not nightmares exactly, since quitting Cymbalta. Not unusual for me to have vivid dreams, but several nights in a row, that is. It is also one of the listed side effects of quitting.

TSTL (the author, not the heroine).

Well, I had a truly TSTL (too stupid to live) moment last night. Let me back up by saying my left shoulder, which is the one that gives me the most problems normally, has been really screwed up since last month's play party when I topped Sir. I felt it pop in a bad way five minutes into the scene, and really, I should have called it, but since it'd been a while since He'd had a chance to bottom, I didn't want to do that to Him. So I toughed it out.

Bad mistake.

Since it's been so bad, I haven't even been skeet shooting in a while. So Tuesday, I was doing a bunch of catch-up stuff, including getting the riding mower running for Hubby. I tripped getting off it in the shed, and, you guessed it, caught myself with my bad shoulder. And it went pop again.

Ouch.

So back to yesterday. I was determined I was going skeet shooting. So I go, toughed it out for three rounds (didn't do too bad considering it was my first time back in a while, 12, 15, and 15, and the last 15 would have been higher had I not been listening to the "advice" I kept getting to try to shoot with both eyes open, couldn't hit squat that way, went back to shooting one-eyed, hit nearly every clay).

Anyhoo, we went out to dinner with our friends, and there was a storm front moving in. Plus I've got a tooth that's been bugging me, but going to the dentist really isn't in the budget right now (don't give me that look, I get more pleasure from skeet shooting than pain from my tooth LOL), and my shoulder was throbbing, so I head home, the front chasing me the whole way. Get home literally as it starts raining. I went into the kitchen to take a pain pill, and Hubby tells me Scudder (our older male Lab) needs an Immodium for nervous tummy (not an uncommon occurrence with him). So I have the bottle for the Immodium and the bottle for my pain pills (no, the bottles and the pills look nothing alike, shut up, I'm getting there), and remember the two trays of seeds I planted on Tuesday.

I opened a bottle, while yelling at Hubby to please go out and grab the two trays of potting soil and pull them under the carport so they don't get poured on and the seeds get flooded out. He runs to go do that as I pop a pill in my mouth and swallow it, followed by a glass of water.

Then I look down and see my Scudder sitting there, tail wagging, ready to take his pill.

*head/desk* Frak.

I honestly had NO idea what I'd just taken. I thought I had just taken his Immodium, because I knew it didn't go down his throat. But I honestly wasn't sure.

I burst into tears, because here I was, in pain and suddenly hating myself and my f'cked up body and this goddamned Fibromyalgia. Hubby races in to find out what's wrong and feeling like a dumbass, I told him. And because I'm NOT 100% sure what I'd just taken, I couldn't take a Percocet, because the ones I have are the stronger ones, and you CANNOT take two of them at the same time without potential serious complications.

So I gave Scudder his Immodium, took two Aleve, and went to bed. Tried to.

Gidget had yakked in our bed.

*head/desk*

So we get up, strip the bed, remake the bed, banish Gidget to the floor (which really pisses her off, because she always sleeps with us) and try to go to sleep.

Took me forever to fall asleep, and then I woke up at 3:49 in pain. Well, obviously it was the Immodium I took. Which also sucks, because I have a hard enough time as it is staving off constipation with the Cymbalta I'm on. So I get up, took a pain pill, and crawl back into bed. I let Gidget back into bed with us because she kept waking Hubby up trying to sneak into bed.

Still couldn't go back to sleep. Around 4:30 I realized I hadn't locked my Element.

*head/desk*

AND, I left a box of shotgun shells that I didn't use (I'd bought four boxes not sure if I'd make it four rounds or not). So I get up again, go out, retrieved the shells (didn't want them sitting all day in a hot car in Florida), locked the Element, and go back to bed.

Around 5:30 (still awake) I realized I hadn't taken my Cymbalta or my Flexoril (which I take every night) because I was so upset about goofing up the meds earlier.

*head/desk*

I get up. AGAIN. (Poor Hubby had nearly as bad a night as I did with me up and down.) Took my meds. Finally, a little before 6:30 this morning, I fell asleep. And woke up around noon today.

With a headache. Either a rebound headache from the Aleve, or from the f'cked up sleep pattern, not sure which.

Not going to be a productive day, I can see that now.

So how's your Thursday going?

Loooong days, longer nights.

Last week was a difficult week for me. Annie's funeral was on Thursday, then I got home from that to find out about the piracy of my books. (Yes, the person apologized for it, and yes, I do believe they're sorry and won't do it again.)

No, not a good day, for sure. I'm not really ready to talk about the funeral yet, although I do want to write a post about it sooner rather than later. Annie was a wonderful woman, and the funeral home was literally overflowing by several hundred people. I'm...still processing. And anyone who's followed me for a while knows that grief is an extremely difficult thing for me to process.

I feel like I'm losing my mind right now.

The fibro flare I'm in isn't helping either. And, oh joy, let's add insomnia to the list of symptoms. The past three nights, I haven't been able to get to sleep until after 3 a.m. and this is killing me. I don't mind the occasional intentional staying up late on the weekend, like for a play party or whatever, but this consistent insomnia is killing me. Yes, I am normally a night owl. However, I'm still waking up at my normal time. Sometimes I could get a couple more hours sleep, sometimes not, and this erratic sleep schedule is hell on a fibromyalgic.

On the other hand, at least I'm making good, steady progress on book four in my Triple Trouble series. (Working title: Triple Dog Dare.) The bridge book is turned in and my tentative release date from Siren is March 26th, so yay! :) I'm hoping to have book 4 turned in by the end of this month. I'm going to have four releases in the span of about seven weeks. Wow!!!

To celebrate this, I'm giving away an e-reader next month on my newsletter group, so make sure you sign up to stay posted on that.

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/TymberDalton_updates/

If you're a member of the list, you can also access the calendar where I'm listing release dates and other events:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/TymberDalton_updates/cal

Also, I would greatly appreciate it if you'd sign and share the petition I created to get Goodreads to remove the ability to add e-book files to book listings to help prevent file piracy:

http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/goodreads/

And don't forget to visit my Facebook page and click the Like button. (I prefer, due to Facebook's restrictions on the number of friends, that you like my page rather than friend my profile. Plus, my profile will clog your feed with pictures and miscellaneous stuff, whereas I keep my page mostly focused on my writing and related information.) Yes, I know it says Lesli Richardson. Facebook won't let me change the name because I have over 100 followers. *sigh* But that is my official Tymber Dalton Facebook page.

http://www.facebook.com/tymberdalton

Busy busy busy.

What a crazy, mixed-up year last year was. Everything that happened (good and bad), new releases, and trying to survive life in general. I think with the fibromyalgia and hubby retiring this year (he's 21 years older than me) I'm now going through my mid-life oasis, as I'd like to think of it (instead of mid-life crisis). I ended 2010 (literally) with two firsts: getting my navel pierced and nearly fainting.

Yes, the two incidents were related, although it was heat and medication on an empty stomach and not the pain that contributed to the near-fainting episode. I am officially a wild woman. I have a tat and and piercings not in my ears. LOL (I'm not telling you where the others are, although they were done last weekend, not at the same time.) And my guitar lessons are going pretty well. (I actually have two guitars now. LOL)

I think my most recent fibro flare has finally abated for the most part, because my pain is down and my energy up. (Woot!) Now the struggle is to not overdo things and wear myself out. I'm working on several manuscripts, including the next installment of the Triple Trouble series, the next one in the Love Slave for Two series, and Bleacke's Geek, which my incredibly patient publisher Captiva Press is waiting on edits from me so they can continue the process.

Among other story ideas, that is. I have no lack of ideas. It's just finding the mental and sometimes physical energy to write. By the time housework is finished, dogs walked (again), and the day's other requirements done, there are a lot of times I have no extra "spoons" for writing. At least that's the way it was the past several months. Getting out of bed was an accomplishment to be celebrated.

And on another note, the first two books in my Good Will Ghost Hunting series will be re-released in both e-book and print format by Captiva Press, as will "Out of the Darkness." Woot!

Then my son had to have surgery earlier this month (rods in his back) and that of course took priority to all else. (Yes, he's doing well.)

And I celebrate my second perpetually 39th birthday this year in May. A milestone. Not that I'm a huge freak-out kind of person about birthdays, because I'm not. Honestly? Once I hit 21 I was like eh, whatever. LOL

I'll admit I'm scared about hubby retiring, because that means I'll be the primary breadwinner at that point. Let's face it, writing isn't a guaranteed paycheck, and as this last year has shown, sometimes life gets in the way with devastating results. *shudder*

So for now I'm putting my nose to the grindstone and keeping myself busy while forcing myself to stay with some sort of reasonable schedule to prevent burn-out. I'm feeling marginally like my old self again, while trying to keep from working myself to exhaustion like my old self would have done.

To answer some of the most frequently asked questions, yes, I'm working on that book. ROTFLMAO! :)

Happy freaking holidays (or how to torture your dog).

Well, there's one good thing about having fibromyalgia I suppose--it forces you to learn patience and hone your sense of humor.

It also forces you to celebrate your accomplishments instead of focusing on what you didn't do. Like today, go me, I actually wrote about 800 words. Which compared to my goose-egg totals of late, that's a pretty damn spiffy accomplishment. I've also ordered me a balance ball office chair which will hopefully help me with some of my pain issues and allow me to spend more time at the computer more comfortably. (Ask me if I care if that sentence is grammatically correct.)

Hubby and I stayed home and had a quiet Christmas alone together. It was nice spending time sitting on the couch and watching the dogs destroy their gifts. Although Scudder and Gidget seemed less than enthused by the reindeer antlers. (Hubby and I thought they were a scream, frankly.)

I know, that's a "kill me now, please" look that Gidget's wearing, but trust me, she survived.

My doctor has added Lyrica to my medicines, and yes it's helping. Unfortunately, we're having horribly freaky temperature swings here in southwest Florida. Freezing one night and 70 two days later. That's playing hell on my body and making it hard for me to even drag myself out of bed some days. But I'm trying to take it one day at a time. It's all I can do.

Our new year will be spent with friends. I'm trying to save up enough energy for their party because I really want to go. No midnight toast for me though (not with alcohol at least).

Here's hoping you have a safe and happy New Year. I know it's finally starting (I hope) to look up a little for me.

Yes, soup for you...

I've been in a soupy mood. It's been chilly (now COLD) and with my current fibro flare, cooking is down at the bottom of my priority list. Late last week I threw together a "Thanksgiving Use Up the Leftovers" soup in my slow cooker, with lentils, turkey, and sweet potatoes and served it over leftover stuffing. Winner!

Hubby made me his delicious potato soup on Sunday.

Today was lentils and ham (leftover ham).

I could grow to like this. To be fair, when I feel like this, the options are pretty much anything I can toss in the slow cooker, or one of the frozen pizzas I now keep on hand for just such a circumstance. Or take out, which I'm pretty much burned out on.

I've taken up crochet again and made myself some spiffy fingerless gloves in a couple of colors, as well as another beret and a scarf. Keeping warm, for me, even though yes I live here in Florida, is a priority. I can easily get cold in air conditioning in the summer and my fingers and toes turn into blocks of ice, so cold weather like we're having now (we had frost last night) is a killer for me.

So I'm sitting here with a full tummy, just finished off the last of the pumpkin pie, watching "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation," and watching hubby starting to put lights on our Christmas tree.

I'm just hoping our Christmas tree decorating goes a little more smoothly than the Griswolds'.

Slowing and steady (although chomping at the bit).

So I've done something that I think has even startled the heck out of my hubby: slowed down. Being diagnosed with fibromyalgia, being put on Cymbalta, what really is some serious medication for it (when you're taking a medicine they strongly recommend you don't quit cold turkey, you know it's serious), and doing a lot (a lot...a LOT) of reading and research on this condition, has forced me to readjust not just my thinking but my way of life.

It's forced me to admit something I have not wanted to admit: I have a chronic illness.

I am not a person used to saying, "I can't do that." I hate that I have to now obsessively make lists because I risk totally forgetting stuff. I hate having to pace myself. I'm the kind of person used to pushing myself, literally, until I drop into bed, ready to start all over again as soon as my feet hit the floor the next morning, pain or not.

In the plus column, it's also forcing me to dedicate myself to staying on the Flylady.net system, because I can see it's working. I use my calendar organizer on my iPad, because it has a built-in task list. I can check stuff off every day as I do it. I can schedule stuff to repeat every week or month or whatever time I specify instead of daily. That takes having to think first thing in the morning when I'm struggling to get started off the table. And that's a relief. Especially on cold mornings like we've had for the last few days.

I'm also learning to just do things in small chunks. Where before I would have ripped my living room apart and got it all painted in a weekend (and spent two weeks cleaning up the resulting mess), now I literally do just fifteen minutes, or small manageable chunks of time where I know not only can I do the job, but clean up behind myself when I'm finished. And that's been a huge step forward for me too. It means my home improvement isn't progressing nearly as fast as I'd like, but it's finally progressing at least.

I'm trying to learn not to beat myself up for what I can't do. That's damn hard. I'm used to mental self-flagellation as a way to keep myself going.

I can't do that anymore. My body can't keep up. Changing that is...well, it's been frustrating. I feel in some ways like I'm babying myself and there's still part of me that's like, "You puss. Why are you wimping out like this? There are people out there far worse off than you who are doing more. What the hell is wrong with you?" And some days, it really is a struggle not to push harder despite knowing the result will be at least the next day in bed trying to recover.

So one thing I'm doing, which has been like a detox program in and of itself *LOL* is I'm shutting down my laptop in the early evening instead of right before bedtime. I'm writing this blog post in bed on my iPad. I know, in a way I'm still "working" but at least I'm taking things easy and I'm resting. It forces me to not focus on hard-core work and take some time off. I'm also going to bed earlier than I used to.

I feel frakking guilty as hell, too. I'm self-employed. Yes, I'm a writer, but if I'm not "working" I'm not earning.

Hubby has been fantastically supportive and in some ways a little hard-assed, but in a good way. He's getting on me when I try to do too much. I've compromised by telling him I promise to ask for help if I need it so he can stop worrying about me so much. *LOL*

I did pick up a recipe book for people with fibro, and I'm going to try some of the dishes this week. Some yummy looking things. At least I'm slowly starting to lose a little weight since my appetite is reduced because of the medication (yay, for ONCE something goes in my favor *LOL*), and my doctor recommended some herbal supplements for me to take to help boost my metabolism. Yes, I'm DAMN lucky to have a good doctor who not only is the one who told me he thought I had fibro when I wasn't even sure what the hell it was, but he doesn't hesitate to recommend supplementing "medicine" with herbals. And so far, knock on wood, it's helping. I know losing weight (ideally I need to drop about 30 pounds to get to a healthy weight for my frame) will help my symptoms improve too. That extra weight is like a bag of friggin dog food I'm carting around on my hips and thighs. LOL

And a new chapter begins.

So I went to see my GP doc last week. The past several months I've been feeling lousy, no energy, pain levels going up, etc. And with a history of cancer in my family, and considering I'll be 40 next year, I figured it's time I start getting some serious baseline tests done. He ordered a ton of bloodwork and referred me to a GI doc for a colonoscopy.

Over the weekend, while helping a friend move to Ohio, I tripped up there and severely sprained my ankle. Spent the few hours before my return flight to Florida in a Columbus ER. Lucky me.

My follow-up with my GP was yesterday, and he starts out by saying that he wished all his patients had such "perfect" test results. I was hoping he'd say you have hypothyroidism, here's a pill, but no.

He thinks I have fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome.

*That thunk was the sound of my head hitting the desk in frustration.*

The good news is, however, that he's starting me on Cymbalta to see if that helps some of my symptoms. And as I start researching FM and CFS and looking at things others have reported about them, yeah, there's a huge chunk of stuff about me that fits that diagnosis. Not exactly the diagnosis I would have wanted, but it beats a lot of others I guess. So a new phase of my life is beginning, and I'm heading to the bookstore tonight to add to my knowledge base. I hate feeling like this. Hubby has been so good over the past few months as my energy as tanked and I haven't been able to do a fraction of what I normally feel I should be able to do, goddess bless him. And he's just relieved to have any diagnosis that gives us a direction to head in. And I guess I should be thankful that my doctor does believe in FM and CFS because apparently a lot of docs don't.

That's been my crazy week. :)