The Beat Goes On

Most recent update on my body: my hormones, which went all kinds of wacky following the Effexor fiasco (as I call it) have since resolved into a menstrual miasma at an age a little to early to write off as ordinary early menopause. A recent uterine biopsy relieved any concerns about cancer, but revealed that I am (and I'm quoting my OBGYN) "raggedy in there." After much pressure and resistance, I gave in to the combined urgings of him and Dr. O to try birth control pills. Tonight, my long dormant tardive dyskinesia has found new life. Go figure. I look like Inspector Dreyfus in the Pink Panther Strikes again, my right eye twitching and my right hand twisting reflexively. My left foot is getting a little action too.

I keep encountering ongoing pressure from my kids teachers to put them on medications to help them "focus." When I explain that a psychotropic drug once almost killed me, they back off a little, but they always seem a little surprised that I'm not jumping on the Ritalin/Conerta/Adderall bandwagon that has "obviously helped so many children." I was tempted to turn in one teacher for trying to prescribe medication for my daughter, really not her job. My kids manage in school... in fact, my son has proven quite gifted this year, and all the the things he's struggled with have come together, not because he took a pill, but because he worked for it. I couldn't be prouder.

Found the Dr. Beggin website today. Worth a viewing. Wish he was more persuasive.