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    Created in 2008, Phoenix Rising is the largest and oldest forum dedicated to furthering the understanding of and finding treatments for complex chronic illnesses such as chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS), fibromyalgia (FM), long COVID, postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS), mast cell activation syndrome (MCAS), and allied diseases.

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  1. Dichotohmy

    Jen Brea on whether some of us might be mis-diagnosed EDS patients.

    I'm diagnosed JHSD - but to split hairs actual believe EDS-classic is more appropriate due to oddly specific signs like subcutaneous sphereoids along my shin and forearm bones, atropic scarring and stretch marks, and quite elastic skin. For me, EDS-C, along with the heavily-related comorbidities...
  2. Dichotohmy

    SEID and antidepressant failure

    It also seems, if you willing to risk the potential serious side effects and get past the stigma of the drugs, low-dose atypical antipsychotics, like Amisulpride and aripiprazole, could be very helpful for those who otherwise respond favorably to psychostimulants. @Hip has written a lot about...
  3. Dichotohmy

    SEID and antidepressant failure

    As someone who has tried virtually every class of anti-depressant treatment, plus about every supplement and lifestyle hack you can think of, with the lone exception of 1950s-style irreversible MAOis or any neuroleptics, both before and after the distinct dividing line of developing chronic...
  4. Dichotohmy

    Is UNconscious cognition more impaired than conscious cognition in ME/CFS?

    There are indeed some interesting ideas about unconscious or automatic cognition here that I have pondered myself. Quite often I find myself having done a task with little-to-no recollection of having performed such a task. For instance, having driven for an hour or more with little-no...
  5. Dichotohmy

    Hypothalamic PVN, autonomic dysfunction and limbic system theory

    I for one, can definitely say that my own sensory gating ability declined markedly before, during, and after what I view as the tipping point into CFS/ME-like illness. I actually have a similar background to you, @Iritu1012, with an ADHD and joint-hypermobility-syndrome/dysautonomia-NOS...
  6. Dichotohmy

    psychosomatic is the root of all?

    Functional, psychosomatic, or somatic symptom disorders are quite possibly real - despite the premise being neither provable or disprovable with current medical technology. With over 7 billion people on earth, there is likely a cohort of people out there for whom anxiety and/or psychological...
  7. Dichotohmy

    Case for BioPsychoSocio Cause of CFS

    I see this is a dead, old thread, but there is a fair amount of GWI discussion within - which as a GWoT veteran compels my curiosity. First, CMI is a completely new acronym to me, and I am a VA patient who has been presenting to VA doctors with complaints of a very chronic, multi-system...
  8. Dichotohmy

    Best earplugs?

    Yes, I meant the outer hollow of the ear, thanks for clearing that up as there's a big difference between that and the ear canal.
  9. Dichotohmy

    Best earplugs?

    Here's another vote for Howard Leight. 3m also has a very similar product to these, but I like these cheap ones: https://www.amazon.com/Howard-Leight-Laser-Earplugs-Cords/dp/B00362CNMM/ref=sr_1_19?s=hi&ie=UTF8&qid=1469339188&sr=1-19&keywords=Earplugs This might sound gross, but i've learned...
  10. Dichotohmy

    Complete anhedonia (loss of feelings) as a ME symptom. Anyone else who has it?

    I used to believe I had anhedonia and blunted affect back when I still had faith in psychiatry's ability to help me. Indeed, I have had almost no luck in trying to solve these problems with stimulants, anti-depressants, or other psychoactive drugs and supplements. I now realize these symptoms...
  11. Dichotohmy

    Nature paper: Shocking new role found for the immune system

    Very, very interesting article. Its fascinating how cytokine activity can be both good and bad. Such as in promoting deep sleep and normal tissue recovery from exercise as good versus creating malaise or autoimmunity as bad. I have also long felt I have no choice or control over my desire for...
  12. Dichotohmy

    Questions about pot for medical benefits and buying from dispensary

    As said, medical dispensaries are happy to sell by the gram and often have legitimate medical strains as opposed to just THC bombs. I would definitely shop a medicinal-oriented dispensary instead of a purely recreational one. In my journeys through the world of medicak marijuana, i've had very...
  13. Dichotohmy

    Severe sleep issues resolved with resistant cornstarch

    Its possible those benefitting from cornstarch and corn foods could benefit from seeking out hi-maize products - hi maize being a synthetically engineered resistant starch. Its also possible that the corn supply is truly homogenous and hi-maize corn makes its way into the food system with...
  14. Dichotohmy

    Scientists discover gut bacteria that influences mood by ‘eating’ brain chemical

    GABA is also active in the enteric nervous system, thus, it could follow a deficiency of GABA in the gut (due to bacteria metabolization or otherwise) could cause both GI issues and CNS effects and inflammatory disease due to involvement of the vagus nerve. Perhaps this lack of gabaergic...
  15. Dichotohmy

    Seborrheic Dermatitis

    I spontaneously developed sebborheic dermatitis outbreaks on my face, scalp, ears, and chest during a prolonged course of 100mg/daily doxycycline while I still healthy. Since decending into health limbo, the SD has never gone away but doesn't seem to get worse either. Nothing seems to kill this...
  16. Dichotohmy

    Question for former athletes/fitness rats

    I was a fitness rat before illness. I tended to prefer anaerobic-type weightlifting and HIIT-type stuff because I long considered it the best bang for the buck timewise. Time was important because prolonged aerobic exercise and prolonged lifting would cause more joint and muscle pain for me...
  17. Dichotohmy

    yet another unexplained huge improvement

    For me, it's primarily the next day or days that I benefit. I suspect this has to do with alcohol's complex endocrine effects and improved sleep after moderate drinking. I bet alcohol's immune-system modulation also is at play. This isn't for the faint of heart at all, and not recommended, but...
  18. Dichotohmy

    The brain-fog recipe, what is yours?

    Awful sleep, and by that I mean a lack of total time asleep or very unrefreshing sleep, plus stimulants (caffeine, methylphenidate, amphetamines), plus sensory stimuli from a public place such as an airport or shopping mall, along with a touch of present or prior-day physical exertion is pretty...
  19. Dichotohmy

    Watch out! Got inflammation? The it's aggressive meds for you!

    This is one of the big reasons I won't take a depression diagnosis. I have already trialed and not responded to over 5 antidepressants from 3 or more drug classes, without a depression diagnosis mind you. By the basis of that drug failure, I would quite possibly be diagnosed as treatment...
  20. Dichotohmy

    Where to find people for moving at bay?

    I still stand by my answer: the bay area, or other expensive metropolis is probably a bad place to move to if you have ME.
  21. Dichotohmy

    Interesting article about post-concussion persistence:note the similarity to ME

    The big question when it comes to PCS is why a relatively small percentage of people develope it. Personally, I suspect a common sense answer of concussion severity, or severity of head injury probably plays a big part. I say this based on seeing first hand how PCS seems to be relatively common...
  22. Dichotohmy

    Coyne: Is mindfulness training the new “gateway drug” to quack breast cancer treatments?

    Stress reduction does undoubtedly have a place in cancer treatment, in the sense that it's best for the patient to rest and focus on healing instead of worrying. This is on the presumption that worrying will interfere with resting, not on anxiety precipitating somatic conditions. Even though...
  23. Dichotohmy

    Watch out! Got inflammation? The it's aggressive meds for you!

    Neuroinflammation has been a known correlate to psychiatric diseases for a long time, but the evidence never seems to gain traction or lead to effective pharmaceutical treatment for neuroinflammation. It could be because medicine isn't very good at treating neuro-immune diseases. However, in the...
  24. Dichotohmy

    Where to find people for moving at bay?

    I lived in the bay area for many years, but would never want to live there again with this illness unless it was to be in a rural area of the north bay. While the weather is very pleasant, the bay area has ghastly rental prices, dreadful traffic, and that intangible "fast paced" life that is...
  25. Dichotohmy

    What are your PEM/Crash triggers? - Poll

    Its all of the above choices for me. PEM really is like an energy depletion state for me, and there are a lot of ways to deplete one's battery, or spoons if you prefer. All of my symptoms revolve around an inadequate ability to recharge and PEM is always the result when I reach a sufficient...
  26. Dichotohmy

    "Explaining the Unexplainable: Chronic Fatigue Syndrome"

    I think its been mentioned here, or maybe in the comments section at Psychology Today, but this article is another example of fixating on the fatigue component of ME/CFS. I can speak for myself to say that fatigue isn't even in the top 10 of symptoms for me; and furthermore, I don't even really...
  27. Dichotohmy

    Anyone aware of bradypnea (slow breathing rate) or CO2 issue?

    I've had episodes of inexplicable yawning attacks, air hunger, and pretty consistent bradypnea without forceful exhalation. My breathing tends to especially slow down when I'm laid out with PEM, yet despite not breathing notably deeply, never seems to leave me gasping for air. I wouldn't be...
  28. Dichotohmy

    So what (Presciption) Medicine should I try next for my sleep?

    Cyproheptadine is worth a shot. Its OTC in many countries and dirt cheap (its an old drug) if you need to buy from a pharmacy. The pharmocological profile is pretty similar to mirtazapine, in that both are potent antihistamines and selective serotonin antagonists, but cypro doesn't have a nasty...
  29. Dichotohmy

    yet another unexplained huge improvement

    I'm also in the slim minority that finds alcohol helpful in moderation. The type of drink could make a difference - ie the nutrients in beer, tannins and resveratrol in wine, chemicals in dark spirits resulting from barrel aging that aren't present in clear spirits, etc. I don't find the type of...