u/bertthefish

My brother has been diagnosed with (among others) COPD, and has been prescribed oxygen, which he refuses to use properly. His fingers have been displaying signs of clubbing for about two years, but in recent weeks, he's been covering his nails with micropore tape, saying he's having problems with his nails, but not providing any specifics. Is it likely that his nails are actually lifting off the nail bed?

I noticed this morning that there was a bird in my greenhouse. A quick search suggests it is s sparrowhawk. It won't go near the door, so how can I tempt it out, before it injures itself?

Update. I managed to get it to step onto my hoe, and I pulled it out and it flew away.

I've recently obtained some old boxes of cereals, that aren't nice to eat, having lost some of their taste alongside their crispness. One of them is a box of shredded wheat. Is this suitable for leaving out for the local wildlife? Apart from the birds, I regularly see foxes, and less frequently, hedgehogs and squirrels, but a neighbour claims she saw what sounds like a ferret once.

The others are corn flakes, bran flakes and weetabix, which I'll probably put out with the food waste.

Further to my previous post, my brother has now declared that he is going to wean himself off oxygen.

Using cloves.

Is anybody aware of any serious, correctly run studies into using cloves, or any other substance from botanical sources to improve lung function in someone with COPD?

While I understand that some of the compounds in various plants can help people's health, I think it safe to say that if this was a valid treatment he'd have been steered in this direction by his doctors, especially as the NHS needs to ensure as much of it's budget goes on treatment with proven benefits.

Has anybody successfully weaned themselves off oxygen using any method? I mean slowly tapering off the amount used, or lung exercises, or taking any substance, be it a whole plant/flower/extract, as well as tablets or any other kind of pharmaceutical product?

My brother has been diagnosed with, among other conditions, COPD/emphysema, Chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension and vascular disease. He is also an alcoholic who has abused drugs, both legal and illegal, but is sober at this point in time.

He has recently accepted that he needs to use oxygen...in theory. His doctors wouldn't allow him to return home from seven weeks in hospital until oxygen tanks and an oxygen concentrator had been delivered to his house. The man delivering the equipment said that he would be on 1-2 at home, or 2-4 when out. Unfortunately, he won't use it properly. Many times I've visited him, and the machine is turned off, or it's running while he's in another room, or he is using it, but turned down to half the minimum amount he's been told he needs, even when walking. He regularly uses his low-oxygen levels as an excuse for not remembering things he has been told, while not using the oxygen properly.

Does anybody have any advice on how to try and convince him to use the oxygen properly? This morning he was complaining of pain in his lungs, and when I said about turning the oxygen up, he complained that it dries out his nose, etc.

I know from past experience, it's not worth saying to him about contacting his gp, as he'd refuse to phone, or he'd lie and say nothing is wrong. The seven week hospital stay was only possible as he was passing out, and he realised he needed medical attention.

He also keeps on about he's got to get back to walking, partially as "when Nigel Farage becomes Prime Minister, he'll have to look for a job due to the policies he will bring in". If I assume a general election will be called in 2029, my brother will be 60.

As my brother is the oldest, and I'm the youngest, of three siblings, he has regularly ignored my advice, so I don't anticipate I'll he succesfull in getting him to listen to anybody, but I still need to try.

I recently visited my GP because the previous day I had been unable to sweat, despite being in a heatwave, and experiencing some of the highest temperatures I'd ever seen in Swansea. When she checked my blood pressure, she said it was a little low, but I don't know what the actual reading was. She asked if I'm urinating okay, to which I responded that I was going quite regularly, which I attributed to my not sweating.

This was the worst I had been since my sweating changed about twenty years ago, after being given different epilepsy medication. Previously, I had been a heavy sweater and afterwards, I sometimes couldn't sweat at all, and other times some sweat would appear, but not as much as previously. My sweating would be reasonably normal if I wear a jacket on a hot day, but frequently very little, if any, otherwise.

The first time this happened was in autumn, and I was feeling so hot that I was sticking my head in a sink full of cold water to cool down.

I was also asked if I was tired, and I confirmed that I was, indeed tired, which I have most of the time since being diagnosed with long covid about five years ago.

I was sent for a blood test, and most of my results were normal, with the exception of a TSH reading of 4.8, and a platelet count of 122. My B12 was high, due to me receiving B12 injections until recently.

Since then, I've checked my BP a number of times in the morning, and the readings range from 89/56 to 106/66. I also had another reading of 120/65 after doing some exercises to see if that would increase my blood pressure.

When I did a quick internet search of my symptoms, I was led to this group, so I was wondering if my symptoms match other people's symptoms and experiences, or if the search has led me astray.

Also, all my life, I've experienced symptoms of Raynaud's, where my hands and feet feel so cold, I sometimes end up getting into bed to try and warm them up.

My two year introductory deal ends on the 3rd of July. On the 10th of June, I informed youfibre that I wished to cancel my service as I was switching to a different provider. I had an email the following day, asking for my contact number, and nothing since then. No confirmation that my service would end, presumably on the 10th of July, no "sorry to see you go" emails, no offering to give me a better deal than the standard £29.99 a month I would have been paying. When I've left other providers in the past, I've had at least one of the above scenarios. Is this a sign of what the customer service is like from them? I've had no problem with my broadband, so I haven't had to contact them until now.

I'm just a bit concerned that they will keep on trying to take money from my account, as I had an email today saying that my next payment is due, and will be taken from my account on the 5th of July, stating the same monthly amount as the last two years.

In 2006, I experienced two epileptic seizures, and was tried on various medications afterwards. One of them, carbamazepine, was discontinued after I experienced an inability to sweat, but it wasn't one of the known side effects. About a year or two later, I realised I had a couple of bald patches on my scalp, which led to me losing almost all of the hair on the top of my head, leaving me with a narrow fringe, as well as a couple of coin sized bald patches on the back of my head. However, the inability to sweat normally has continued to this day but only on my head. My back, armpits, etc are all able to produce sweat normally, while I produce very little on my head.

Is the hypohidrosis likely to be connected to my later alopecia areata?

Could one or both be related to my epilepsy medication?

Has anyone else had a similar experience with similar medicines?

Previously, I had hyperhidrosis, and my father and older brother both had/have normal hair, with just slightly receding hairlines.

My brother follows a vegan diet, and has been in hospital for three weeks, but has been transferred to a different ward a couple of days ago. One of the nurses on this ward has apparently decided that he is not eligible to have vegan food supplied to him. He has been given cheese and tuna in different meals already.

Is anybody able to tell me his rights in this situation?

I'd like to think that if I need to go into hospital I'd not be given meat or dairy to eat.