u/femalechuckiefinster

I live in a cold climate and have a son in preschool, so I've basically been ill since the end of August. After making yet another soup that I can barely choke down, I have to accept the fact that I hate soup. I don't like blended soups or brothy soups with chunks of stuff in it. I just an aversion. I'm also not big on most casseroles (too mushy) or anything containing cream cheese or "cream of ____" in a can. Any ideas for warm, one pan/pot kind of comfort foods that won't break the bank? I have been dreaming of a lovely pot roast but we can't afford it with the price of beef in the US these days. Thanks for helping out a mom with ARFID!

Edited to say THANK YOU SO MUCH for all the wonderful ideas! I have been so burnt out lately and complete uncreative with meals. I've developed food aversions over the last year, my son has severe ARFID (feeding tube and all), and we are on a tight budget, and dinner always feels like an impossible puzzle. Your thoughtful responses have given me tons of ideas to keep us fed and warm through the illness and chilly weather season. I'm going to list some of my personal favorite ideas here for anyone reading through this in the future:

• Loaded baked potatoes
• Shepard's pie
• Shakshuka
• Cheese grits w/ fried egg or other toppings
• Mac & Cheese
• Thicker stews, chili, or goulash (takes away the ick factor I get when everything in soup feels... wet and watery)
• Chicken cacciatore
• Un-stuffed bell peppers

And I am TERRIFIED. But I did it. I've been dealing with migraines for a while and was prescribed a triptan a long time ago, but have been too afraid to take it in case it caused nausea or vomiting. I've been in the throes of an intractable migraine for over a week now and finally decided I had to try it, if for no other reason than to rule it out so I can try another treatment. I didn't take the full dose (too scared) but at least I got some of it in there to see what will happen, and hopefully will be brave enough to take the full dose next time. But I'm really scared, y'all.

39F here. Over the last few years I've started getting migraines at the onset of my period. At first it would be a bad day or two and I could ride it out with ibuprofen and some rest, but they started to become chronic and intractable, coming and going for 7-10 days at the onset of my period every month. This obviously is a shitty way to live so I went to my gyno and got put on Lo Loestrin to take continuously with the hope that skipping my period would stop the migraines. Well, I'm 2 weeks in to the BC and I've had a headache/migraine for the entire last week. I went to my PCP to see if they could do anything to help break the cycle and all she told me was to take more Tylenol and stop taking the BC. I agree that stopping the BC might stop this headache, but the whole reason I went on the BC in the first place was because 1/3 of my month was a migraine, so going back to that doesn't seem like a good idea either. I wasn't offered Toradol, steroids, referral to a neurologist, imaging, nothing. I feel so defeated and like my life is just going to be pain and misery forever. Any advice from experienced migraine sufferers? Push for a referral to a headache specialist? Try different BC?

Hi everyone. I'm a 39F who has been getting menstrual-related migraines for about the last 4 years. At first it would happen just the day or so before my period began and didn't happen every month, but gradually (maybe due to perimenopause?) it seems like I have an intractable migraine from basically the day before my period until like day 10 of my cycle. It's miserable. I also recently found out I have a BRCA2 mutation that makes me high risk for breast and ovarian cancers, and I am supposed to have my ovaries removed before age 45. I thought, at least if my menstrual cycle stops, the migraines will stop... but then I was reading sometimes surgical menopause makes them way worse. Has anyone here had experiences with surgical menopause and hormonal migraines? I would be allowed HRT unless I get breast or ovarian cancer first.

My 4-year-old has always been a kid who likes a lot of interaction and attention, but lately it has gotten out of control. He is CONSTANTLY pestering the adults in the house (me, his dad, and my mom). When I say pestering, these are some examples:

• A steady stream of "Mom. Mom. Mom. Mom. I love you! Hi. Hi. Hi. HI! Mom. Mom? Nana. Nana. Nana. HI NANA! I love you Nana!"
• Asking "what's this?" about EVERYTHING, mostly things he 100% knows what they are
• Asking for constant feedback as he plays. "This is an apple. Mom. Mom. This is an apple." until I say "yes, that's an apple"
• Turning every game/activity into something interactive
• When we go out somewhere in the world for his entertainment, like the kids' area at the library, he will still try to make me acknowledge EVERY SINGLE ACTION and EVERY SINGLE ITEM HE FINDS

I know a lot of this is common behavior, but it is CONSTANT, ALL DAY. It's making all of us feel crabby and snappy because it is so relentless that we can't even think or have a conversation. He used to play or look at books by himself for age-appropriate periods of time but now he has zero motivation to entertain himself.

Has anyone dealt with this kind of behavior and found anything that successfully encourages independent play (or just... some peace)? I've generally had success discouraging unwanted behaviors with either natural consequences (you threw the toy so I have to take it away) or giving him an alternative instruction (if he's jumping down the stairs, I say, use both feet on the stairs). But I can't think of an age-appropriate way to convey to him that I'm happy to talk to him when he wants real connection, but I am NOT willing to be a pull-string doll to respond "Hi! Hi! Hi!" to his every demand. I guess the simple answer is stop encouraging the behavior by ignoring it, but it's more nuanced than that, because I obviously can't/don't want to ignore him all day... but then every time I interact with him, he uses it as an opening for an endless string of back-and-forth.

Despite having really heavy and crampy periods (and anemia) for basically ever, I've only been on BC pills for short stints because I found they all greatly reduced my sex drive and kind of eliminated the time I felt good/sexy leading up to ovulation. The period misery was a trade I was willing to take. However, now I am almost 39 and maybe perimenopausal, my cycles have really switched up on me. I feel AWFUL from basically the start of my period until ovulation. In the last few years I have migraines at the onset of my period almost every month, and feel anxious, depressed, nauseous, vertigo, and just bad until ovulation/luteal phase. That plus my periods are heavier than ever, to the point that I need an iron infusion every 6 months.

Basically I'd like to skip my periods and keep my hormones as level as possible throughout the month. I know everyone reacts to every pill in a different way, but if anyone has had similar cycle problems and found a pill that helped, I would love to know about it! At this point I don't want to get an IUD.

I recently found out I have a BRCA2 mutation and I am recommended to have my ovaries removed by age 45 due to cancer risk, and I am almost ready to just schedule it now and jump right to menopause (hopefully with HRT) to stop the menstrual cycle hell. But if I can hold on a few more years without surgical menopause, I'd like to, because there are other health risks associated with early menopause.

This is just a vent I guess. I've been dealing with pretty intense emetophobia since a stomach bug about 18 months ago (first time throwing up in 20 years). Contamination fears, cleaning and handwashing compulsions, avoidance, eventually having near constant nausea, loss of appetite, weight loss, rumination spirals, daily panic attacks, agoraphobia, all of it. I've been working with an OCD and emetophobia specialist and doing ERP, and I think I have come a long way over the last 6 months or so. The compulsions, food avoidance, and agoraphobia and panic have decreased for sure. I still struggle every day, but I've been able to function much better and have been doing way more despite the fear.

Last night I had a really triggering episode and I feel like it set me back a lot. I've been feeling extra nauseous and just "off" physically the last week or so, and last night I woke up from a dream in which I was very nauseous, trying desperately not to throw up. I awoke mid-panic attack and also felt intensely nauseous in real life, and was certain that this must be the start of food poisoning or a stomach virus. The stomach virus that triggered my emetophobia in the first place started in the middle of the night so it felt just like that night all over again. I was an absolute mess of panic for about an hour until my rescue meds kicked in. I've had many panic attacks precipitated by nausea before, but never before IN MY DAMN SLEEP. I just feel so unsafe now - like even in my dreams I can't hide from this shit.

To make matters much worse, my sweet 4-year-old boy is having open heart surgery in another city next week. I think that is an awful and overwhelming thing for any parent, but I am also dealing with this phobia and having to travel far away, be away from home indefinitely (probably weeks), not having much control over my food options, being in a hospital... I genuinely don't know how I am going to make it through all of it. I just want to be focused only on my little boy and his health and be strong and brave for him, and I don't want to be fighting these emetophobia demons at the same time. I really felt like I've been in a better place agoraphobia/emetophobia wise, but that nightmare and middle-of-the-night panic attack made me feel back to square one today. I haven't been able to eat all day.

Objectively, of course facing their child's serious heart surgery would make anyone, phobia or not, feel more anxious, have bad dreams, lose appetite, etc. I just... I don't know. I've never felt lower or more hopeless. I'm so worried about my kid, and I also feel trapped in phobia hell. It's been a long, long time since I've felt good or happy, or looked forward to anything, or truly enjoyed anything without the phobia kind of torturing me in the background. The meds aren't helping at all. I don't really want to even be around anymore, but I know my son needs me and I can't leave him. I'm trying to tell myself the emeto recovery will get easier once the surgery is behind us and I don't have fear and stress that hanging over me anymore. I have believe recovery is possible because otherwise I won't be able to keep going.

My son is recently 4 years old and we have been working on potty training since a little before he turned 3 with almost no success. We've tried no pants, commando, timed trips to the potty, sticker charts, prizes/bribery, low pressure approach where we just offer the potty a few times a day... nothing seems to get us anywhere. He does have good bladder and bowel control and knows when he needs to go, but refuses to go on the potty and becomes distraught about even sitting on the potty. He doesn't love having accidents in his pants, but greatly prefers "accidents" to going on the potty. Each time we've tried potty training, we end up giving up and going back to pull ups after a few days because it becomes a miserable experience for everyone. He'll hold urine/feces until he's in physical pain, and then when he can't hold it anymore, he will SCREAM and writhe if I try to put him on the potty and will eventually go in his pants/on the floor.

We basically gave up for the last few months and I'm ready to give things another try but I just have no idea what approach to try. Do I just stop the pull-ups and hope this time he'll get it? The feeling of defeat of trying to potty train a child who has zero motivation to use the potty is crushing.