Swollen Brain Feeling Stinging/Burning Brain Brain Fog Feeling Spaced Out Neck Pain Swollen Burning Sinuses Blurry Vision Lactic Acid Myalgia Derealization Depersonalization Shortness of Breathe Air Hunger Fatigue Tinnitus Pots Blood Pooling High Heart Rate When Standing Temperature issues Feels like I have a Brain Infection Head Feels Full Extreme PEM Poison Feeling Flu like symptoms Sore Throat Warm Sensations in feet Concussed feeling in forhead Arms Feel Cold/Chills Prickly Hands and Feet Chest Tightness Watery Eyes Shoulder Pain Kidney Pain Eye Floaters Can’t Focus Bladder Issues Confusion Orthastatic Intolerance Muscle Twitching Burning Skin Anxiety Depression Cool sensation when breathing in Thighs burn Cell Dying Feeling Cannot Produce Energy Brain Inflammation
Could use some hope, I’m completely bed bound with these symptoms. Scared I won’t get better.

Hi, not sure if this has been documented before but here I am, giving my 2 cents worth to everyone who needs this. I know it’s been really tough on everyone who has to go through this. It’s a really long post, so if you are short on time, just go straight to the heading in bold to find out what you’re looking for.
I don't know where everyone is from, but I am from Singapore and apparently, I can’t find any related posts by Singaporeans in any subreddits. If any fellow countryman needs this, there you go. For fellow netizens with Hip Dysplasia, there might be differences in the processes, but I suppose the recovery process is just about the same. Hope this helps, nonetheless!
Pre-diagnosis I have been a leisure runner in my late teens, and pretty much run about 5 to 10km regularly til mid-20s. It started with knee pain in a particular race, and the pain continued for a couple of years more. I had wanted to train for a half marathon, but I also wanted to ensure that I started my training right and pain-free. So I went to straight to a Sports Specialist Doctor in a Public Hospital and she diagnosed me with a Runner’s Knee (or formally known as Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome, PFPS) after looking through my x-ray, and my description of pain. She referred me to the Podiatrist and the Physiotherapist for gait correction and muscle strengthening. It was going on fine for a while, but I still couldn’t run pain-free. Then Covid came, and the appointments have to be suspended. But I was still doing my physio exercises and running about 2.5 to 5km when we were allowed to.
Diagnosis As more restrictions eased, I began training for speed, and that was when the pain started coming from the hip, and walking became strangely painful with a pinching sensation at the hip/groin area at this point. I sought help from a private physiotherapist to find out what happened. After a few sessions, he realized something was not right and suggested me to get a hip x-ray done. And so I did, at a Polyclinic, and the x-ray showed shallow acetabulum and I got referred (again) to a Sports Specialist to get a MRI done. And LHP with a labrum tear was the diagnosis. And to no surprise… I got referred to another Specialist again, who was affirmative that I need a LPAO and at the same time broke it to me that I have a RHP which will need a PAO too. If you need to know the timeline - I had the x-ray done at the end of 2022, MRI done on mid-2023, LPAO done at the start of 2024.
Pre-surgery Preparation (Work) Check with your doctor on the estimated rest period (mine’s 3months) and inform your boss about it. The surgery will most likely be about 5 hours max, hospital stay 5 days, and you will be on 2 crutches for 6-8 weeks, and another 1-2 weeks on 1 crutch to stabilize your walking. You might be able to resume work obligations if it’s a sedentary job or another 6 more weeks of home rest if your work requires much walking or manual labour. So it’s really important to work out with your boss and colleagues for a proper handover so that you can concentrate solely on recovery.
Pre-surgery Preparation (Hospital) There will be a blood test / some swab done 3 – 4 weeks prior to the surgery; the nurse will let you know. You will be under General Anesthesia (GA) during the surgery, so fasting is required a day before is required.
Do pack light for your hospital stay. Use a backpack for convenience. Clothes to wear after discharge + source of entertainment and communication is enough. You wouldn’t want to carry a lot of things home after discharge when you’re on 2 crutches.
Pre-surgery Preparation (Insurance + Hospital Wards) Do inform your Insurance Agent / Company about it so that they are aware. It may or may not be covered, so please get in touch with them as soon as you have the details.
[Singapore’s context] There will be a pre-admission appointment with the hospital staff about 3 weeks before the scheduled surgery, which the staff with share with you the cost of the different class wards. Basically, Class C (8-bedded) and Class B2 (6-bedded) wards are fully subsidized by the government. I can’t remember how much a Class B1 (4-bedded) ward costs, but probably about 10-15K SGD. Class A (1-bedded) is about 21-23K SGD. The staff with help you out with the Letter of Guarantee (LOG) from your Insurance Company and will let you know in about 2 weeks if the application for LOG is successful, if not you would have to prepare for the bills depending on your chosen ward (either Class A or Class B1). There is no need for LOG for Class C and Class B2 wards, since it’s fully government-subsidized. Medisave and MediShield/IPs will be used for all Class Wards (Note: IPs is only applicable to 30 years old and above). My insurance allows me to be in the Class A ward and the application for LOG was also successful, thankfully.
Pre-surgery Preparation (Personal) Since you will be on crutches, do arrange your house to accommodate that. A folding bedside table, a caddy trolley, a long-arm grabber, pillows are items that you can prepare beforehand. Do also ensure that your toilet is slip-free as well or restructure it in a way that is beneficial for you. I had to bathe sitting on the toilet bowl for the 1^st week as it is difficult to make it slip-free. It got better 2^nd week onwards when I was allowed a 30% weight-bearing on my operated side, so I could be in the showering area. You will be at home and ‘confine’ to the bed/chair most of the time, so it’d be good to have some form of entertainment at home. Nanoblocks, Colouring books, Wordsearch, Sudoku, Crosswords, Netflix, Disney+, Hbo, Reading, Crocheting, Journalling, Zoom with friends are some of the things that you can do / prepare before surgery. You may or may not have energy for them, but that’s ok, the main idea is to focus on resting and having a sound mind so that you won’t be discouraged / feel bored / unmotivated. For meal wise, it’d be good if your family can cook / buy food, if not do ensure that your budget allows you to get food delivery for 6-8 weeks. I got my meals from Grabfood. Do ensure that you have a good chair – not those that put your knees above your hips.
Day of surgery If you can, do arrive 5-10mins earlier to settle in after registration.
[Singapore’s context] Do note that the staff who registers you in will ask you for the person to contact after the surgery. It’d be a text message to inform the person on the end of your surgery and which ward you will be in. You will need to sign the LOG letter (if any) and proceed to take your height and weight at the self-administered machine. Wait and follow any instructions by the nurse. You will be asked to change into the hospital gown and the nurses will ask you more questions, just answer them accordingly. They will also help to keep your belongings in their storage and will deliver to your ward at their timeslot after your surgery.
Process of surgery The Anesthesiology team will introduce themselves to you and go through the pain management methods. They asked what method (they mentioned 3, but I only remembered what I had) I preferred, and I told them to go ahead with what they think was good for me. Epidural, it was. And so, I got pricked with needles and whatnots and they finally brought me into the operating room. I didn’t realize the room was so big and cold and there were many doctors and nurses around. They did their thing, and I was just trying not to feel awkward with so many people looking at my bareback and being in a very vulnerable state. It’s a little pricky and painful at some point. Do let them know if you’re too cold, they have this hot air thing that can warm you up. They will also insert a urine catheter for you to help with the bladder movements. I was quickly under General Anesthesia (GA) with a breathing mouthpiece (the Anesthesiologists will direct you on what to do). I woke up after the surgery with a very dry throat and asked if I could have some water. They gave me a tiny vial of water, just about enough to soothe my throat. I guess it was also caused I was under GA and couldn’t be given much for my stomach too. I was quite aware of what was going on though I was still a little sleepy. I had to be brought to the High Dependency Ward (HDW) due to low blood pressure.
After surgery (in HDW) I kept wanting to drink water but that also caused me to vomit out water and had no appetite for dinner. Nausea and vomiting are just some side effects of GA. (I remembered being disappointed that I couldn’t have the watermelon, I had wanted to eat that, but I knew I couldn’t stomach it) And little did I realize that was the last time I saw a watermelon during meal times (damn the side effects). I was also quite weak on my operated left side, I was not in that much of a pain, just some discomfort. I was given a self-administered morphine device too, there is this button that I can press to administer morphine into my system at regular interval, the device has some safety feature which helps to stop people from abusing it) Used it once after I had to be flipped over to be wiped clean by the nurse (at this time, I had given up on trying to maintain my dignity, though the nurses were quite humane about it, if you know what I mean) But I was also trying not to use the morphine at all cos it gave me more side effects like drowsiness and an even lower blood pressure). Thankfully I had a good Pain Team (that’s what they call themselves), which helped to lower the dosage after they realized I was not using it that much and I was still very drowsy (I fell asleep halfway unknowingly after talking to people), and eventually I was off it. I was taken for an x-ray after the nurse ascertained that my blood pressure was normal (since I had the catheter, I just sipped water without a care in the world, to help raise my blood pressure). And I administered the morphine once after they flipped me over for the x-ray (it was bloody hell painful and it took a lot of strength). Probably in a day or 2, the doctors decided to remove my epidural needle and I was finally free of it. The next thing to get rid of was the catheter. I had a love-hate relationship with it. I need to be able to pass motion to get rid of it, which I did after an arduous process. Constipation is a side effect of not moving around. Your stool will most definitely be a Type 1 under the Bristol Stool Chart but it will be back to normal in a few days or so. I did a little cheer when I finally pooped.
My physiotherapist came and pushed me to move around. The first step coming down from the bed was the hardest due to gravitational pull. My muscles needed to be woken up after lying down for 48 hours or more. I got transferred to General Ward (GW) soon after.
After surgery (GW) I had some bed exercises to help to wake up the muscles and I was using the walker to move around. It was tough doing the bed exercises, but they have to be done. I was also able to bath independently by sitting down on the bathing chair in the bathing area of the toilet. I still needed assistance to wear my pyjamas pants. So unfortunately, the nurse still had to be around when I bathed for safety purposes since I was a fall-risk patient.
At this time, I was trying to get out of bed and be in the chair and also use the walker more to help with moving around and getting the muscles up and running. I had 2 more physio sessions with the crutches. Using the walker frequently helped with the use of crutches. (You will know what I meant when you have tried both out. You can push yourself but please do not force it if you are not strong enough yet.) My doctors have cleared me for discharge, I just need my physiotherapist to clear me too (they have to be sure that I can use the crutches properly and safely and also complete simple daily adaptive skills). Finally, I got cleared for discharge. I got the medication, and it was a cashless and fuss-free stay/process for me. I stayed in the hospital for 7 days (3.5 days in HDW, 3.5 days in GW). Remember to get your crutches before leaving the hospital.
Home rest 1st Week I must say, it’s really liberating to be at home, though it’s really a chore to move around. I did my physio exercises about 3x a day and just be a sloth. I was still very tired, but it was difficult to sleep. I’m usually a side sleeper, but I had to sleep on my back for 6 weeks, at least. My doctors said that I could sleep on my unoperated side, but it can be achy.
Home rest 2nd Week Things are looking up a little more since I could place a 30% weight on my left. I could enter the showering area now, just be careful not to overload the operated side. 2 crutches are still a must to prevent any overloading of weight to help with the recovery. Protein and calcium-rich food are your best friend. Again, do your physio exercises regularly. I still do mine 3x a day.
Home rest 7th Week Finally, I got to put full weight on my operated side. Happily, I tried to ditch BOTH my crutches, please do not be like me! Ease into walking slowly. Use 1 crutch to help you with the gravity pull as you put 100% weight on both legs. It is also possible to ditch the crutch and try walking on very short distances, do take care of your walking form. If you limp badly, please use 1 crutch and practice walking. I did try stairs and use the railings if necessary. I managed to ditch the crutches by Week 8. Physio continues, if you have access to the gym, please go ahead, slowly. I am sleeping both on my back and on my unoperated side now.
Home rest 13th Week Not sure if things are still looking good, but my knees kinda hurt, and that’d be another story for another day. I am cleared to resume work, though I still got to be careful with the walking and all.
Week 14 – Week 18 (current) I think since I am walking a lot more, I am limping a little, but not enough for a need to bring back the crutch. It got more achy when I’m sleeping on my unoperated side and still a little discomfort if I try to sleep on my operated side. My operated side is still weak and achy when I walk or sit or lie down. I am still doing my physio, though not 3x a day now.
I am not too sure how I will progress but that’s my journey thus far. Happy to share here and to answer any questions you may have.
Edit: Formatting

I’ve noticed on this forum that many people that have gotten reinfected either:
A. Got set-back for a few months and went back to normal or baseline.
Or
B. Got better after reinfection.
I was wondering if somebody could share their experience and give me some insight. For some background I dealt with my first Covid infection in December of 2021. I had the typical brain fog, headaches, fatigue, and muscle twitches. Best of all… NO PEM! Fast forward to March of 2023 and I was reinfected with Covid. A month or two passed and I thought I was in the clear. I started working manual labor jobs, going on trips etc. Next thing I know, I crashed. As of today I am housebound 80% of the time. My symptoms have tripled and now I’m left feeling hopeless after a year in a constant up-and-down rollercoaster. My newest longhaulers symptoms are but are not limited to:
Vertigo Aches and pains Neuropathy Shaky hands Tachycardia SOB Brain fog Weakened in arms and legs Heat intolerance Headaches PEM Fatigue
I’m not trying to sound pessimistic either, but I’m just so sad that a year has passed already and I’m in the same spot… Im just curious as to if anybody happens to be on the same boat as me.

19 Male 180 5 9
About 4 days ago I started getting a dull pain in the left side of my stomach up until my pectoral muscle area. Normally I wouldn’t care but it’s different than anything I’ve had. It’s just this dull pain probably a 3ish on a scale from 1 to 10. It hasn’t gone away and has been accompanied by light swelling in that general area as well as other discomforting things like random weird feelings, sensitivity to the touch, and headaches (could be unrelated but started around the same time). Sometimes I get random sharp pains too but overall it’s just dull.
I have decently bad health anxiety so I am trying to determine if it’s worth getting checked out. A few things recently that could be contributing to this are: my friend who I shared drinks with recently just tested positive for money. I also after 7 years of being vegetarian started eating meat again. I started about 3 weeks ago which is a major diet change but I don’t know why it would all the sudden affect me.
What do you think I should do and what do you think is the problem?

Hi, I know this is Reddit but just wondering if anyone else has experienced this.
I am a healthy male, 28 years old and typically gets sick about 1-2 times a year (common cold, sinus etc… just your basics) recently, since late last year, I have noticed I’ve been sick at least every 3-4 weeks and it’s the same symptoms. Starts with body aches, then fever, chills, bad headache and my eyes hurt when I move them. It’s the same symptoms everytime I get sick now. At first I thought it was the flu, but I’m getting this every 2-4 weeks now. What do you think it could be?

I have an injury and have been in severe pain for over two months. I do not have a head injury, however I have had physical symptoms like headaches, nausea, vertigo and now I’m convinced I’ve developed migraines or something.
I am extremely stressed out due to my injury, environment and other life stressors.
I want to take pain medication but won’t bother if it won’t help the stress.
Does the stress come from the physical injury like a pulled muscle?
Or does the stress come from the pain your brain is experiencing from the injury?

When I was ten, I formed a junior detective squad.
Mom bought me the entire box set of What's New Scooby Doo, and I was inspired to start my very own detective gang. I held auditions outside the gymnasium at recess (serious enquiries only) after a number of kids tried to apply for the role of Scooby Doo despite me reiterating I was not interested in playing make believe.
When I was laughed at in class, I made posters strictly asking for SERIOUS wannabe detectives, even going as far as using my Mom’s printer to make flyers, sticking them all over the school.
Auditions were simple. I asked them to solve a simple riddle.
Whoever impressed me got to sign their name down, and I’d get back to them.
I spent three days sifting through kids who definitely had charm, but they lacked the intelligence of a junior detective. Most kids were only auditioning to make fun of me, anyway.
Still, though, I didn't give up.
My flyers had five requirements:
1). You had to be smart.
2). You were not allowed to be a scaredy cat.
3). You had to accept your inevitable death at the hands of our town’s evil villains.
4). You had to have a fully registered driving licence (I quickly changed this to a bike).
5). You cannot have a criminal record.
(I later scribbled this one out, writing over it. *“You cannot have any tardies.”
Narrowing the applicants down to three kids, all of whom failed to share my enthusiasm for solving cases. The kids I picked didn't even know how to make plans, and when I invited them to my house, they stole my Mom’s necklace.
I didn't even need to solve the mystery of who stole Mom’s necklace. The girl was wearing it at school. I punched her in the face, and was immediately sent to the principal’s office. When I was being given the mother all lectures, the door quietly opened, a head peeking through.
It was Ben Callows, a freckly kid with overgrown brown hair hanging in his eyes. Ben really needed a haircut.
He was always wearing the exact same baseball cap, and I found myself wondering if it was permanently glued to his head, stuck on top of unruly brown curls practically matted to his forehead.
In class, Ben was also known as Bloody Ben. In the second grade, the boy had a nosebleed in the middle of a spelling test, bleeding all over his paper.
It's not like he didn't try and detach himself from the name.
Ben brought in Digimon cards, so kids would call him Digimon Ben instead.
Then he “accidentally” spilled yoghurt down his shirt in hopes we would call him Yoghurt Ben. But no. The kids in our class were relentless in reminding him of his name. No matter what he did, he was still Bloody Ben, and when anything related to blood came up in class, fifteen pairs of eyes would swivel to him, like he had invented the concept of bleeding.
I feared the nickname would follow him to junior high.
Ben didn't wait to be let in. He didn't even knock, striding in with his arms folded. Over the years, Bloody Ben, had definitely soured his personality.
He smiled rarely, and when he did smile, someone was falling over or hurting themselves.
Which definitely strengthened the claims of him being a sociopath.
The rumor mill was churning, with the latest claiming Bloody Ben killed his cat. That wasn't true. Ben’s cat was seventeen with cancer, and that was why he was sobbing all the way through reading time.
According to Ellie Daly, however, Ben had killed and dissected his kitty, and buried her in his Mom’s flowers.
Now, my principal did not like being interrupted, especially when she was in the middle of screaming at me.
Principal Marrow was old old (like, thirty, in my ten year old mind) stick thin like a pencil, and always wore the same stained sweater.
She used to be pretty, but I was convinced she had kissed a frog and been cursed. After our old principal suffered a stroke, she stepped in as a temporary replacement, and since becoming principal, had banned my favorite book series, colored shoe laces, and hamburger helper, even officiating a uniform.
(vomit green shorts and a tee, and plain white sneakers).
Kids were convinced she was a witch, and I kind of believed it.
Principal Marrow’s whole existence was built on sucking the fun out of school.
I was already reprimanded for my mystery gang flyers.
Her office smelled of peppermint and she was definitely sneaking sips of whisky in her coffee cup. I could see the bottle sticking out of the trash.
She straightened up, folding her arms across her chest, squinty eyes narrowing at the boy. I had spent the whole time she was lecturing me trying not to cry, my fists bunched in my lap.
I took the distraction as the perfect opportunity to swipe at my eyes, allowing myself to breathe.
Ben Callows was her victim now.
I was right. The woman's voice was like a thunderclap in my ears.
“You better have a good reason for not knocking, young man.”
Ben wasn't fazed by her tone. “You took my Switch two weeks ago,” he said, “I want it back, or I’m telling my Mom.”
At first, I thought I'd misheard him.
No, I was pretty sure he'd threatened our principal.
I swore I heard all of the breath sucked from the room.
“I'm sorry,” Principal Marrow cleared her throat. Her soft tone was dangerous.
She wasn't being nice. The lady was about to explode.
I could see visible veins straining in her temples, her right eye twitching.
It was straight out of a cartoon.
“Did you forget something, Ben?”
Ben sighed, like she was inconveniencing him.
He held out his hand. “Please can I have my Switch back? It counts as stolen property. Give it back, or I'm telling my Mom.”
The kid put so much emphasis on the word please, I couldn't resist a smile.
I think our principal was too shocked to get angry.
“Get out.” She said, firmly. “I don't have your gaming device.”
“It's in your drawer.” Ben nodded to her desk, “Under your divorce papers and the restraining order ordered by Jake Willow, the seventeen year old boy you've been having math ‘tutoring sessions’ with.” He quoted the air, his gaze lazily rolling to me. “Tutoring”
Principal Marrow went deathly pale, her eyes darkening.
“Benjamin Callows–”
“The school already knows about the restraining order, but your uncle is the head of the Board of Education, so all you get is a slap on the wrist and a warning to leave the boy alone."
Ben continued, and I found myself mesmerised by his words. He was a natural, his expression stoic, mouth curved with satisfaction that wasn't quite a smile. “However.” He held up his phone, pulling it away at the exact moment the teacher attempted to grab it. “You were outside Jake Willow’s house at 6:12am, drunk, and trying to climb through his window, which, I think violates the restraining order, does it not?”
Ben pretended to think real hard, his gaze flicking to the ceiling.
“I mean, I'm just a kid, right?” His mouth curled into the hint of a smirk
“What do I know, huh?”
Principal Marrow’s expression twisted, her lip wobbling.
“Mr Callows, remove yourself from my office, or I am calling your father.”
Leaning comfortably against the door, Ben’s lip twitched.
“Why? Are you planning on telling my Dad about your relations with a teenage boy, or will I have to tell him instead?”
I was enthralled, and fully disgusted, making a move to inch away from the woman.
“But it doesn't end there.” Ben continued. He straightened up, taking slow, intimidating steps towards the woman's desk. “You don't even want Jake, do you? Because, once upon a time, you were in love with his father. Jason Willow. You despised him for rejecting you, so you decided to defile his son.” Ben leaned over the principal’s desk, slipping his hand into the drawer, and pulling out his switch.
Painfully slowly.
She stood there, speechless, her shoulders trembling.
Ben smiled, and I found myself liking it.
“Thank you!” He said, waving the console in her face. Ben mimed locking his mouth and throwing away the key.
“My lips are sealed.”
Ben’s half lidded eyes found mine. “Are ya coming, Panda?”
I forgot my own nickname.
Panda.
I wore my Mom’s eyeliner because I thought it looked cool.
It did not.
Finding my breath, I snapped out of it.
Jumping up, I followed him out of the office, and when the two of us were safely on the hallway, I burst into hysterical giggles. “How did you know all of that?!” I whisper- shrieked.
Ben surprised me with a splutter. “Wait. You believed me?”
Something very cold trickled down my spine.
I stopped walking. “You lied?”
He shrugged. “I had a dig around her office before she caught me a few days ago,” Ben swung his arms, a smile curling on his mouth. “There's no restraining order, but there is prescription anti-psychosis medicine, and an extremely detailed story on her laptop about a teachestudent romance, which I presume is a self insert.”
Ben shot me a sickly grin. “The school refused to make her condition public.”
He prodded at his own cotton shirt embroidered with the school emblem.
“Why do you think she's made all these dumb rules? The woman is a certified Looney Tune.”
I nodded slowly. “Wait. What about Jake and his dad?”
“I made them up.”
I choked out a laugh. “And… the video?”
Ben walked faster, pulling out his phone and shoving it in my face. The video was real. Principal Marrow was walking around in circles, draped in her nightgown. “It's her own house,” he explained. “She locked herself out.”
Nodding slowly, I was in awe. Bloody Ben was kind of fucking amazing.
“But the restraining order isn't real.”
Ben raised a brow, coming to an abrupt halt. It was his smile that cemented his place in my gang. His lack of empathy for a woman he had gaslit into being a disgusting human being. Ben Callows wasn't exactly what I was looking for, but he fascinated me. Maybe for the wrong reasons. “Her filing cabinets are filled with tinned cat food, Panda,” he said with an exaggerated sigh, “I’m not psychic, but I thiiiiink we’ll be okay.”
I turned to him, unable to stop myself jumping up and down with excitement.
“Will you be my first?!”
Ben inclined his head. “Will I be your what?”
I shook my head. “Sorry. I mean, will you join my mystery gang?”
The boy’s eyes lit up, and I shoved him playfully.
“To solve real cases,” I corrected myself. “Not make them up.”
Ben wore a real, proper smile. But there was something in his eyes, a darkness that was so hollow and polluted and wrong, I pretended not to see it for the sake of his smarts and intellect. “Well, if you insist, sure!” Ben held out his hand, and I shook it. I'll be your first.”
We found our second member, who was, ironically, looking for her glasses under the table in class. Lucy Prescott, the quiet girl, was born to be with us.
The class eraser went missing, and she found it in the blink of an eye.
When questioned, Lucy’s face turned as red as her hair. “I asked everyone in the class and followed the clues to the last person who had it,” she pointed to Chase Simpson. “Which was Chase, who was throwing it at Marcus Calvin.”
Twisting around in my chair, I aimed to get Ben’s attention. But he was already looking at me, chin resting on his fist, eyes ignited with excitement.
The two of us cornered Lucy after class, and when she motioned for us to get back, I dragged Ben (who was a little too excited) to my side.
Lucy looked mildly horrified when I said, dangerous cases, though her expression pricked with intrigue.
She agreed, her gaze lingering on Ben, cheeks smouldering.
Our last two members were a surprise.
Violet Evergreen was what you would call popular on the middle school hierarchy. Not just because her mother was the mayor, but because Violet could get away with murder. The girl refused to wear the school uniform, coloring a single purple streak in her hair to cement herself as the it girl.
She was also one of the girls who started the Bloody Ben rumor.
Ben, Lucy, and I were sitting on the grass during recess, trying to come up with a name for our detective service, when Violet came storming over, hands planted on her hips. She was copying how her mother held herself during town meetings.
“What are you doing?” Violet demanded.
Lucy opened her mouth to answer, Ben nudging her to shut up.
“Making a mystery gang.” I told her. “Why?”
Violet inclined her head. “Oh.” She folded her arms. “Well, can I join?”
Ben stood up, stepping in front of the girl. Violet didn't move, stubbornly standing her ground. “Sure.” Ben flashed a grin that didn't quite reach his eyes. He stepped closer to her, his smile widening. “If you can pass the test.”
Violet’s lip curled. She took a single step back. “What kind of test?”
Ben nodded to me. “Meet us at the swimming pool at 8pm.”
To my surprise, Violet nodded. “Do I need to bring anything?”
“Nope!”
8pm. The four of us met outside the local swimming pool.
Violet was already on the other side of the fence, waving.
“Hey guys!”
I noticed Ben’s expression, his eyes darkening, lip curling.
Still though, he maintained positivity, vaulting over the fence.
“You made it!”
I followed him, helping Lucy, who was immediately freaking out. I didn't blame her. The pool looked cold and dark, a hollow oblivion carved into the ground.
Ben and Violet stood on the edge, the two of them shoulder to shoulder.
Violet Evergreen was braver than I thought.
Standing with her arms at her sides, Violet's hands clenched into fists.
“What's the test?” Violet said, her gaze glued to bleeding black depths.
“I don't know,” Ben murmured, his voice teetering on a giggle. He leaned forwards, arms spread out. “I didn't think you'd actually come meet us.”
Violet hummed, stretching out her leg, teasing it across the surface. “Was that the test?”
The boy leaned back. I caught the glint of a grin under the floodlights. “Nah.”
Before I knew what was happening, he shoved Violet into the pool. The girl didn't scream or shriek, she just hit the surface, sinking into pitch dark nothing.
“Sink or swim,” Ben said in a low murmur, when Violet’s head bobbed under water. I could see her shadow under the surface, imagining the freezing cold depths pulling her down.
“Drown, and you can't join us.”
It was so quiet, suddenly. The three of us staring into rippling water.
A minute passed, and my tummy started to twist.
“Fuck.” Ben’s expression stayed stoic. I wasn't expecting him to say a bad word.
He cocked his head. “I thought she could swim.”
I hit him, holding in a cry. “You need to get our parents!”
But he didn't listen to me, taking a single step, and dropping into the pool.
I fell to my knees, scanning the water.
Lucy was crying. “Are they dead?!” she shrieked.
“Shhh!” I was watching two shadows lingering under the water.
Violet broke through. I expected her to be crying, but her expression was unwavering. She was silent. I thought the splashing underneath her was her legs trying and struggling to tread water, before Lucy shoved me. Hard.
“Panda! What do we do?!”
Looking closer, Violet was perfectly still, her gaze on the sky.
While she shoved Ben under the water, drowning him.
Violet’s eyes sparkled, and somehow, I knew she belonged in my gang.
Her gaze found mine, glinting with that darkness, that poisonous streak I found myself drawn to. It was a starving, insatiable need to understand a fractured mind. Know your enemy.
“Do you want to see if Ben’s a witch?” Violet asked me, her tone something else entirely. This girl did not make sense, using barely her finger to drown Ben Callows. I knew she was wrong.
I knew there was something loose, something unlocked and unbridled and drowning inside her mind and heart.
But I wanted more of her. I wanted Violet Evergreen in my detective gang.
I think that is why I stood there, frozen.
When the thrashing stopped, Ben broke through.
He wasn't coughing or spluttering, his head inclined. “You didn't drown.”
Violet climbed out of the pool, offering her hand. “And you're not a witch.”
He declined her hand, taking the steps instead.
I asked Violet in a shaky voice. I was trembling with terror, but I was excited.
Exhilarated.
“Violet, will you join my gang?”
She didn't answer me until we were sharing hot cocoa in my house.
I told Mom we fell in the pool, and she believed me. I should have told her that my friends were sociopaths, and I was kind of maybe in love. Violet sipped her cocoa, nodding with a smile I didn't recognise. Violet never smiled at school.
Well, she did. But it was always the prick of a cruel smirk.
I don't think her smile was genuine, but she was definitely enjoying herself.
Our last member came to us, instead of finding him.
Jules Howell, a straggly brunette pushed his way in front of me in the lunch line. I didn't really know the kid.
He sat at the back of the classroom and slept through most of class. I did like his accent though.
Jules had moved from Melbourne in the second grade. He didn't talk much.
When he did, I found myself enveloped in his voice, which sounded like water to me, a bleeding cadence to his tone.
Jules piled his plate with fries, smiling widely at the lunch ladies.
“I saw you last night.” He murmured through that perfectly moulded grin.
“Saw me where?”
“At the pool,” Jules said. “You, Bloody Ben, Violet Evergreen, and that Lucy girl. You were doing a suiciding pact.”
“That's not what we were doing.” I said, “What's a suiciding pact?”
“When you kill yourself together.” Jules said. “I saw it in a scary movie my Mom was watching.”
I grabbed a fork. “We weren't doing that.”
His eyes were strange when I took the time to notice them. The excited gleam had fizzled out. Jules’s hands tightened around his tray. “Then what were you doing?”
I didn't reply, making my way over to our usual table. Ben was already waving me over, Violet and Lucy holding up the flyers we were making.
THE REDBLOOD DETECTIVES.”
Do YOU need our help? We can find/solve anything! Contact us on the number below. (We take donations!)
When I bothered turning around, Jules was lost in the crowd of kids.
We were on our first official case, searching for Mrs Lake’s missing mail, when Jules appeared seemingly out of nowhere. And with him, a golden retriever puppy he introduced as Arlo.
It took a dog jumping up at them for Violet and Ben to find their real smiles, their real selves slowly seeping through these facades they had built around themselves. Ben dropped to a crouch, ruffling the dog's ears, his smile faint.
“Who's a good boy?” He chuckled.
Arlo didn't move, tail wagging, eyes bright.
Ben motioned the dog towards him, but Arlo stayed put.
Jules joined us…quietly.
I don't remember asking him, or even him asking me.
He just became part of us, side by side with Arlo.
We soon came to quickly realize that our town was boring.
There were no monsters or thieves, or soul sucking demons. No criminals or serial killers. Not even one missing person. We did, however, get calls about missing cats. I turned eleven years old, patiently waiting for a murder or a kid going missing. But there was nothing.
All we did was chase cats, and the occasional dog. Maybe a budgie if we were lucky. Twelve years old, our detective club became a joke.
The five of us (and Arlo hiding under the table) were trying to pinpoint Mrs Tracy's lost hamster, when three girls came over, dumping their soda all over us.
We watched crime shows for inspiration on catching killers.
Ben’s favorite crime was one that happened in the 80’s in our town.
2 girls murdered.
Their intestines stuffed into envelopes and mailed to family members.
“That's what we should be solving,” he told me one night, “Not missing cats.”
Thirteen years old, we lay in Violet’s backyard under the cruel glare of the summer sun. We called it working and didn't like to admit it was hanging out, or that we were even friends. However.
That didn't stop us growing closer.
Even if it wasn't quite the way I’d expected.
I proposed a plan, standing up, wobbling a little off balance.
“I've got it.” I said, my voice kinda slurry from Violet’s special summer cocktail, which was just random alcoholic beverages we found, thrown into a blender, and diluted with water.
The town wasn't taking us seriously.
So, we were going to make our own mysteries.
I ordered a full-scale assault on our small town. One that they could not ignore. Ben stamped on Mrs Mason’s flowers, and Lucy threw mud pies at people's cars. Jules trashed the high school gym, and Violet and I spray painted threats and warnings on every store window. Now, this did cause panic, but also an official curfew.
Thirty minutes before curfew, we met in our usual spot, deep in the forest near the lake. Ben yelled at me when I was three minutes late. He was real passionate about finding a real mystery.
“You're late.” Ben was sitting on a rock waving a stick in Arlo’s face.
The dog still wasn't going near him, whining softly.
I took my place, muttering an apology. “I had to lie to my Mom.”
Violet, sitting with her legs crossed, idly digging her manicure into the dirt, suggested we buy mannequins and masquerade them as dead bodies, hanging them from the school rafters.
Lucy, who had slowly grown out of her shell, becoming a lot more outspoken, nudged her. “That's a stupid idea.”
The girl groaned, leaning into her. “Urgh. You're right.”
Jules was the only energetic one, standing on the tireswing.
He jumped down, definitely twisting his ankle.
But his smile only widened, kind of like he enjoyed being in pain.
“Why don't we pretend to be kidnapped?” He said, pulling the hood of his sweatshirt over blondish curls growing out. Jules did a dramatic spin, his eyes shining. “We can ‘go missing’ for like a week, and then when our parents are really scared, we can turn up, and tell them we escaped a kidnapping.” His lips split into a grin.
“And then we solve our own kidnapping!”
Ben awkwardly patted Arlos head, only for the dog to pull away with a snort.
“I like it,” he murmured. “I'm in.”
Jules’s idea was stupid.
But.
It was worth a shot.
The five of us agreed to meet the morning after with enough food and supplies for a week. Then we were going to hike to the next town, and hide out for a week. It was an almost perfect plan, using ourselves as victims of our own mystery.
Packing as much as I could, I kissed my mother goodbye (I told her my pack was for a picnic) and set off to the rendezvous we agreed on.
When I arrived, I was the first one there. I checked and re-checked my pack.
I waited ten minutes, unable to contain my excitement.
Then 20 minutes.
It was getting kind of cold.
One hour.
I sat on a rock for enough time to watch the sky change color.
When the clouds were orange, I stood up and stumbled back home. They had gone without me. Mom lectured me when I got home, and I stuck to the plan of pretending my friends had gone missing, even if I they had betrayed me.
Ben said he'd text me when he arrived at the redervous. I at least expected him to text an explanation, but there was nothing. I was in the dark, and after three days of nothing, our town finally began to take us seriously.
“Our children have been kidnapped!” The adults were screaming.
Mom was crying in the kitchen, praying to a god I knew she didn't believe in that I wasn't taken next. I was interviewed and stuck with the exact same story I came up with when I was with the others. Our plan was to return after a week, claiming to be locked up in a dark room with a masked man.
I told my Mother and the other parents that I didn't know where my friends were, repeating the same thing over and over again until I was tongue tied.
“I saw them the day before they went missing, and… yes, everything seemed okay.” I slowly sipped my glass of milk provided, looking the sheriff directly in the eyes.
“No, I didn't notice anything suspicious, sheriff. Yes, I'm sure, sir. No, they didn't tell me anything.”
It was Ben’s mother who shattered my mask.
“Did I know about… what?” I whispered.
Something warm filled the back of my mouth, foul tasting milk erupting up my throat. I leaned forward, trying to look Mrs Callows in the eye. “No, I… I didn't know about Ben’s…condition.”
Mrs Callows was screaming at me about her son’s troubled past when I barfed all over myself, my eyes burning.
In the privacy of my own room, I sobbed until I couldn't breathe.
I tried to tell Mom, but we had come so close.
One more day, and the others would be back.
But that day came. I sat cross legged at our usual spot, which was now covered in police tape. I waited for their thudding footsteps, their laughter congratulating each other for coming up with a great plan. I waited, my face buried in my knees, for my friends.
It was dark when my phone vibrated, and I'd fallen asleep.
I wasn't scared, forcing myself to my feet.
“Where are you?” Mom yelled down the phone.
“Coming home now.” I muttered.
“Sorry.” I paused, holding my breath against a cry. “Mom.” I broke down, forcing my fist into my mouth to hide my squeak. “Mommy, did they come back?”
Mom didn't reply for a moment.
“I'm so sorry, baby.” She whispered, ending the call.
I took my time walking home that night.
There were no stars in the sky.
When a hand clamped over my mouth, I could smell him.
When he dragged me back, stabbing a kitchen knife into my throat, I stared at the sky and looked for stars. His arms were warm around me, violently pulling me into the back of a pickup truck. The pickup truck he'd said he was bringing.
It was his grandfather's, and he could just about drive it.
Hitting the backseat, my body was numb, my thoughts in a whirlwind.
The pickup flew forwards, and I remembered how to move.
I rolled off the seat, my hands pinned behind my back.
Twisting around, blinking in the dim, I could feel something warm, something seeping across upholstery seats. Blood.
It was everywhere, sticky on my hands and wet on my face when I struggled to get up. I was lying in someone's blood.
A scream clawed its way out of my throat.
The pickup flew over a pothole, and something dropped off the seat.
Arlo’s leash.
I screamed again, this time his name gritted between my teeth.
I didn't stop screaming until the jerking movement stopped. The doors opened, pale light hitting me in the face.
Flashlight. Warm arms wrapped around me, pulling me from the car, and then, pulling me by my hair, into our old tree house. It was always our secret place, our saving grace on the edge of town.
The flickering candlelight caught me off guard, illuminating my surroundings.
Two bodies slumped over each other, lying in stemming red.
I felt suffocated, like I was going to die. I screamed, and that warm hand cradled my mouth again, gagging my cries.
Violet and Jules.
There was something wrong with them. And it was only when I forced myself to look closer, when I realized their insides had been carved out, heart, stomach, everything, pulled out.
There was paper on the floor.
No, not paper. Envelopes.
Envelopes stuffed with gore, bright red leaking through white.
Shuffling back, my brain was too slow to react, while my body was trying to vault to my feet, only to be violently pulled back by my ponytail.
I felt his fingers twining around my hair, revelling in my screams.
With another tug, my head was forced forwards.
Orange candlelight felt almost homely, this time lighting up a third body.
Lying on their back, curled up, pooling scarlet dried into the floorboards, their wrists restricted with duct-tape.
I could feel blood underneath me, sticky, a congealing paste.
“Do you know what happened on October 3rd, 1987, in our town?”
Lucy Prescott stood over me, her arms folded across her chest.
I managed to shake my head, when she grabbed Ben’s legs, dragging him under the candlelight. I dazedly watched her stroke the blade of a carving knife, the teeth already stained scarlet. “The intestine murders.” Lucy hummed, tracing the knife down the floorboards.
“A man murdered two high school girls, carving out their insides and sending their pieces to their loved ones.”
Lucy's eyes found mine, ignited in a familiar gleam. I saw it in Principal Marrow’s office. Then the swimming pool. The cafeteria. “It was the sheriff's only murder case, Panda. Ever since then, our town has been boring. There's no mysteries to solve. Nothing to find.”
The girl jumped to her feet, retrieving a blood stained envelope.
She held it up, a smile curved on her lips. The girl turned around, and I heard a horrific squelching sound. Lucy held up a bright red sausage, ripped into it, and slipped it into the white paper.
“But I can change that.” she said, in a giggle.
“I can create a real serial killer, who we can hunt down together.”
Lucy stabbed the blade into the floor, laughing.
“Or! I can bring a fan-favorite back! I can bring the intestine killer back from the dead!”
Her gaze flicked to the others. “There are casualties, of course. The story is, I was kidnapped with Ben, Violet, and Jules. The scary intestine killer killed them, and I managed to get away.”
Lucy shuffled over to me, her eyes wide. “Then! He came back and struck again!”
With those words, she shoved me onto my back.
“First he took Violet,” Lucy hummed, tracing the blade down my shirt.
“Then… Jules.” I squeezed my eyes shut, pulling at the restraints around my wrists. “Then Ben.” her breath tickled my cheek. “And finally… Panda.”
Lucy lifted the knife, and I accepted my death.
Until a low rumble in my ears.
Shouting.
Thundering footsteps, followed by the pitter-patter of paws.
“Lucy!” The sheriff was screaming, and the girl stumbled to her feet, the knife slipping from her fingers. Lucy stumbled, tripping over Ben’s body.
“He got away!” she shrieked. “He…he killed them! Oh, god, please help me!”
I don't think Lucy even realised the traces she'd left behind.
The blood slick on her fingers, her manic, grinning smile full of mania.
I was looking for stars when an officer crouched over me.
I couldn't understand what she was saying.
Her voice was white noise.
“Rachel? Hey, try and sit up, honey. You Mom is on her way.”
Instead of listening to her, I curled into myself.
My gaze found Arlo sticking his nose in Ben’s hair, trying to nudge the boy awake.
I didn't fully register the next few days.
They went by in a confusing blur.
Part of me tried to eat, and spent hours with my head pressed against the toilet seat.
I could still see the slithering, scarlet remains of my friends every time I closed my eyes. There was so much red, soaked in that hunting orange light.
Blood that I could still see, a starless sky that stretched on forever.
Weeks went by.
Then months.
I think I turned 14. I wasn't sure. I didn't feel alive anymore.
I stood at my friend’s funerals with a single rose I dropped into their casket.
Violet’s mother was quick to cover the whole thing up.
Lucy's plan didn't work after all.
Our town’s murder cases stayed stagnant at one.
It's been four years since my friends were murdered by our ’Velma’.
Now, at seventeen, Mom asked if I wanted to visit Lucy in juvie.
I'm not even upset or angry anymore.
I want to know why.
Ben picked me up. Arlo was at his side, wagging his tail.
Ben was…different. He'd dumped his baseball cap and gotten a haircut, swapping his old wardrobe of drab colors for an attempt at changing style.
That day, he looked awkward in a short sleeved tee and shorts.
At school, Ben is no longer Bloody Ben.
Now, he is Survivor Ben.
I’m still Panda.
Every time I was with him, I felt like my soul was being sucked out.
Guilt so deep, so fucking painful, I lost my breath.
I live knowing that I immediately assumed it was him that day.
Ben was barely alive when I found him. Lucy had started to carve into him before remembering she needed me.
After admitting it to him, his lips formed a small smile.
“Can I tell you a secret?” He said to me, at sixteen.
"Yeah?"
Whatever he was going to say, Ben never told me.
Presently, I nodded at the dog’s new collar.
“Peppa Pig themed?”
The boy shrugged, ruffling Arlo’s ears. “FYI, he chose it.”
“It's cute.” I said. “Very… chic.”
We didn't speak the whole ride, but Ben did entangle his hand in mine.
We spent half an hour outside the detention centre. I was panicking, and Ben was trying to hide that he was panicking. In the end, we joined hands, and strode through the doors together.
Lucy greeted us with a wide smile. Just as psychotic.
The orange jumpsuit suited her, though I had zero idea why.
“Hey Arlo!” she giggled at the dog, and Ben pulled the pup onto his lap.
“Ben.” She sighed. “I wish I got to finish you. I would have loved to solve the mystery of your gutted corpse.”
Ben’s smile was wry. “Nice to see you too.”
Behind a glass screen, I asked Lucy one simple question.
“Why?”
Lucy didn't reply. Or she did, but it was just nonsensical bullshit.
But there was one thing she said has stuck with me, chilling me to the core.
I am fucking terrified of Lucy. Of what's she's done, and what she's capable of doing.
It was a throwaway line, and I don't even think Ben noticed.
Or he did, and was in denial.
Lucy's smile was wide, her eyes empty pools of nothing.
The exact same glint in Ben’s eyes.
Jules’s eyes.
Violet’s eyes.
Like something was gnawing away at their psyche, twisting and contorting it, filling them with darkness, poison, that was so vast, so endless, I had craved it as a child. I still don't know what it is.
But I'm going to find it.
Lucy's laugh was shrill, and next to me, Ben didn't move a muscle.
But he did smile.
Yes, my gang were psychos.
But I kind of maybe loved it.
“I don't even wear glasses!”

29M, 6'05, 195 pounds, battling anti psychotics side effects after 5 months now of being off the Abilify tablets.
Hi there, I've been allowed off my anti-psychotic from my doctor now. The side effects are getting a lot easier to manage but there are still some I'm battling pretty hard.
I feel like I have nerve damage all over: it's like a nerve stiffness and a bit of pain, my nerves feel restricted (especially in the knees)
I feel like I have a bit of brain damage: I have a lot less thoughts and I can't complete most thoughts (feels like my brain is working at 60% capacity)
I'm still feeling skin, muscle, brain and bone numbness. Especially when I wake up from sleeping.
More problems I'm currently dealing with:

• Very fatigued most of the time while awake even after just waking up

-Forehead veins slightly more visible, some hand veins are very visible (I could never see these ones before: it seems like it's from stress from the medication)

• If i sit and read/think hard for a couple hours my legs get quite numb when I stand up and I get fatigued
• my hands and feet feel a bit swollen at times
• When I eat lunch at 12/1 it really knocks me out, I can’t push through and I must nap. I think if I were to eat at 10/11am that would also cause a sever food comma. After breakfast is some fatigue and after dinner can sometimes be a huge food comma or it’s not a problem
• My fingernails are whiter than normal
• my erections feel more powerful, my sex drive is higher
• My skin seems to get red after showering a lot more red than normal
• my skin gets red in some areas after exercising
• My urine is a bit darker when I'm not as hydrated
• The tips of my fingers get very wrinkled (like raison) after showers and working out
• I usually have a medium pain headache throughout the day

For some reason i feel like a steroid or testosterone injection might help. Or something like adderall? Could you maybe recommend what medications there are that I could get at a store or Over-the-counter pharmacy? Wellbutrin was another option someone suggested.
Running and weight lifting seems to help a lot but I still battle the other problems a lot.
Your help is so much appreciated, I can't work right now because of this problem

29M, 6'05, 195 pounds, battling anti psychotics side effects after 5 months now of being off the Abilify tablets.
Hi there, I've been allowed off my anti-psychotic from my doctor now. The side effects are getting a lot easier to manage but there are still some I'm battling pretty hard.
I feel like I have nerve damage all over: it's like a nerve stiffness and a bit of pain, my nerves feel restricted (especially in the knees)
I feel like I have a bit of brain damage: I have a lot less thoughts and I can't complete most thoughts (feels like my brain is working at 60% capacity)
I'm still feeling skin, muscle, brain and bone numbness. Especially when I wake up from sleeping.
More problems I'm currently dealing with:

• Very fatigued most of the time while awake even after just waking up

-Forehead veins slightly more visible, some hand veins are very visible (I could never see these ones before: it seems like it's from stress from the medication)

• If i sit and read/think hard for a couple hours my legs get quite numb when I stand up and I get fatigued
• my hands and feet feel a bit swollen at times
• When I eat lunch at 12/1 it really knocks me out, I can’t push through and I must nap. I think if I were to eat at 10/11am that would also cause a sever food comma. After breakfast is some fatigue and after dinner can sometimes be a huge food comma or it’s not a problem
• My fingernails are whiter than normal
• my erections feel more powerful, my sex drive is higher
• My skin seems to get red after showering a lot more red than normal
• my skin gets red in some areas after exercising
• My urine is a bit darker when I'm not as hydrated
• The tips of my fingers get very wrinkled (like raison) after showers and working out
• I usually have a medium pain headache throughout the day

For some reason i feel like a steroid or testosterone injection might help. Or something like adderall? Could you maybe recommend what medications there are that I could get at a store or Over-the-counter pharmacy? Wellbutrin was another option someone suggested.
Running and weight lifting seems to help a lot but I still battle the other problems a lot.
Your help is so much appreciated, I can't work right now because of this problem

29M, 6'05, 195 pounds, battling anti psychotics side effects after 5 months now of being off the Abilify tablets.
Hi there, I've been allowed off my anti-psychotic from my doctor now. The side effects are getting a lot easier to manage but there are still some I'm battling pretty hard.
I feel like I have nerve damage all over: it's like a nerve stiffness and a bit of pain, my nerves feel restricted (especially in the knees)
I feel like I have a bit of brain damage: I have a lot less thoughts and I can't complete most thoughts (feels like my brain is working at 60% capacity)
I'm still feeling skin, muscle, brain and bone numbness. Especially when I wake up from sleeping.
More problems I'm currently dealing with:

• Very fatigued most of the time while awake even after just waking up

-Forehead veins slightly more visible, some hand veins are very visible (I could never see these ones before: it seems like it's from stress from the medication)

• If i sit and read/think hard for a couple hours my legs get quite numb when I stand up and I get fatigued
  
• my hands and feet feel a bit swollen at times
  
• When I eat lunch at 12/1 it really knocks me out, I can’t push through and I must nap. I think if I were to eat at 10/11am that would also cause a sever food comma. After breakfast is some fatigue and after dinner can sometimes be a huge food comma or it’s not a problem
  
• My fingernails are whiter than normal
  
• my erections feel more powerful, my sex drive is higher
  
• My skin seems to get red after showering a lot more red than normal
  
• my skin gets red in some areas after exercising
  
• My urine is a bit darker when I'm not as hydrated
  
• The tips of my fingers get very wrinkled (like raison) after showers and working out
  
• I usually have a medium pain headache throughout the day
  

For some reason i feel like a steroid or testosterone injection might help. Or something like adderall? Could you maybe recommend what medications there are that I could get at a store or Over-the-counter pharmacy? Wellbutrin was another option someone suggested.
Running and weight lifting seems to help a lot but I still battle the other problems a lot.
Your help is so much appreciated, I can't work right now because of this problem

Hi all!
I’ve been dealing with a burning penis tip for the past 3-4 days. I went to my PCP and they ruled out a UTI through urinalysis. I’m not sexually active so an STI is an impossibility even though I’ve had one in the past.
This all started last Tuesday after I took an at home fertility test. The only abnormal thing that happened was that I didn’t pee after ejaculating. I watched some new girl with my girlfriend for a few hours that evening and then went to bed. The next morning I woke up and went to pee and felt like I was peeing razor blades.
Here we are 3-4 days later and the tip of my urethra hurts like heck and it burns to pee but that’s it. My balls don’t hurt. No fever or chills. No discharge. No frequent urge to pee. No back or stomach pain. No kidney pain. No pelvic pain. No dribbling or lack of control around my bladder.
Only thing I could come up with is pelvic floor muscles that didn’t relax after taking the fertility test and stayed tense all night. Is that even a possibility? Or bacteria that I picked up from the gym or work from not washing my hands.
Any thoughts or ideas? I’ve already contacted a pelvic floor PT and urologist as a precaution, but the only reason I think this could be prostatitis is the sudden onset of symptoms.

Has anyone had a root canal retouch done or heard of extreme changes to the body after a root canal retouch? Had a root canal retouch done while deployed overseas about 3 months ago. Since then I have had extreme cog fog, memory issues, slow processing, numbness throughout the body, extreme headaches, taste/smell diminished,heat sensitivity/n chills and a little nausea. Other weird symptoms as well. Have had a lot of testing done. Blood work, mris, cat scans, and etc. only thing they are finding is a mild fatty liver. I have had stomach issues for a long time now though. So i know the stomach pain I feel may be that. Initially the docs and Navy docs overseas tried to label me just having anxiety. I have always had anxiety and never had this issue. I am at the point to where I feel like I can't even drive. I am doing research and seeing that long covid may be a possibility.

my dentist told me i should get my wisdom teeth extracted soon when i went in december 2022. i'd been having some occasional inflammation that'd usually only last a few days every couple of months that whole year, so i didn't think much of it. my mom was with me, and she told me she wasn't going to have me get my teeth extracted until i was actually in pain. i didn't go to the dentist in 2023 (i usually go when i'm in my hometown because i'm an out-of-state college student on my mom's insurance). since mid-march, both sides of my jaw and lymph nodes have been a bit sore in the mornings maybe 3/7 days of the week, but it usually goes away by the afternoon. no gum inflammation, no redness, no pain in my actual mouth. since monday morning this week, the soreness hasn't gone away, and instead my right lymph nodes have been slowly swelling more and more. along with this, i've been having occasional dull headaches, and headaches on my right temple. no fever, no redness, no swelling or pain in my actual mouth necessarily nor in my face. yesterday (friday), i went to urgent care and was told to monitor it, and if it gets worse to go to the dentist. i found only one dentist office that takes my insurance in the town i go to college in, but they're closed on weekends so i could only put in a request for an appointment instead of make an actual appointment. i'm terrified of having to wait too long, and the impaction becoming worse or infection spreading to my brain and killing me since my swollen lymph nodes are most-likely a sign of my wisdom teeth already being infected internally. i've never had surgery or been put under anasthesia before, and i have health anxiety, so i'm terrified of nerve damage, lockjaw, or other complications like waking during the procedure and not being able to move or speak. it's just a waiting game now. should i not worry about the infection spreading and killing me if i don't have redness or lots of pain or a fevechills? i just want to know that i'll be okay by the time i'm able to be seen by this dentist :(

Because English is not my native language, I used AI to help organize my thoughts and correct grammar errors.
21, Male, 173cm, 52kg, living in Germany, non-smoker, non-alcoholic, no caffeine, no drug use, onychophagia.
Dear physicians and medical professionals,
I have had complex symptoms all over my body since last year. They improve when I travel and worsen when I spend more time in my apartment. After seeing different doctors here in Germany without success in finding the cause, I decided to post here asking for further help.

Initial Symptoms

The symptoms first appeared in April last year when I was outside and suddenly had heavy clear nasal discharge with blood. I returned home exhausted, cold, and light-headed (oral 35.8°C). During sleep, my breathing became irregular (short, sharp exhalation), followed by tingling in parts of my body, muscle twitching, involuntary movements, sometimes a feeling like incontinence. My testicles sometimes contracted suddenly. It feels like my brain wakes me when I'm about to fall asleep, and I can feel my strong heartbeat (normal/slow tempo). These sleep-related symptoms persist but are less severe.

Subsequent Symptoms

The next morning, I noticed I was out of breath, with very pale skin and dark veins. I felt cold with occasional chills and hot flashes despite normal body temperature. My blood pressure was slightly high.
Routine blood tests, urinalysis, EKG, SpO2, and thyroid tests taken days after showed slight deviations:

• Calcium corrected: 2.11 mmol/L
  
• Creatinine: 0.61 mg/dL
  
• Bilirubin: 1.40 mg/dL
  
• Erythrocytes in urine: 80+
  

Low creatinine and erythrocytes in urine have been known to me since 2020, and an ultrasound scan of my kidneys in 2022 showed only slight enlargement of the right kidney (barely visible). My GP and I don't think these deviations explain my symptoms, so she sent me to other specialists, including a pulmonologist, ENT, and cardiologist. Unfortunately, all we found out was that I was allergic to alder, hazel, and birch. Anti-allergy meds helped the nasal symptoms, but others remained.

Additional Symptoms Over Time

• Irritation behind eyes or nose
  
• Visible blood vessels in eyes
  
• Strange smell in nasal cavity
  
• Prominent blood vessels all over the body
  
• Red or purple patches on palms
  
• Itchy testicles with visible blood vessels
  
• Severe dryness of hands and feet (using cream multiple times a day is ineffective)
  
• Inability to concentrate
  
• Eyes unable to focus, right eye feeling darker upon waking
  
• Glassy eyes, swollen eyelids
  
• Tingling in hands
  
• Constant thirst, rapid fluid excretion
  
• Muscle soreness without exercise
  
• Forgetting tasks or conversations, difficulty finding words
  
• Slow heartbeat (normally I have 51bpm slowest during sleep, after symptoms came 45bpm), detected AFib (Pixel Watch Gen 1)
  
• Dropping things suddenly
  
• Smaller testicles (I'm not sure?) and the skin felt very relaxed
  

Other Symptoms that only lasted no more than 1 month

• A constant urge to sneeze without being able to
  
• Extreme drowsiness and constant yawning
  
• Difficulty ejaculating / no pleasure during ejaculation
  
• Inability to maintain an erection
  

Investigations and Observations

In July, I noticed the symptoms worsened the more time I spent at home. Reducing time at home and keeping windows open made symptoms manageable. Lived in friend's house for a week and moving to new city improved symptoms until my luggage arrived. After unpacking, I immediately felt eye pain and dryness, as well as irritation behind my nose and eyes (I sneezed few times). Within 30 minutes, muscle twitching and involuntary movements reappeared. Other symptoms returned within 24 hours. Three boxes contained clothes, desk items, kitchen supplies, and sex toys.
New GP ruled out rheumatic diseases (tested for systemic lupus erythematosus and Sjögren's syndrome, and rheumatoid factor) and referred me to an allergist. The first allergist/ENT thought the symptoms don't match an allergy since taking anti-allergy meds didn't help, but referred me to a more experienced colleague (allergist/dermatologist) for further examination and I'm currently waiting for an appointment.
In the past three months, the muscle twitching and involuntary movements have gradually worsened. I noticed symptoms improved when I travel.

Attempts to Mitigate Symptoms

• Keeping windows open: Effective but noisy, worsens pollen allergy
  
• Changing laundry detergent: No significant effect
  
• Using an air purifier: Effective initially, then worsened symptoms
  
• Sealing items bought before symptoms: Slight improvement, possibly placebo
  
• Activated carbon in the apartment: Little to no effect
  
• Healthier lifestyle and reducing stress: No effect
  

Seeking Help

Thank you for reading this far. I understand doctors' work is already stressful and demanding, so I'm extremely grateful for your time in reading my post.
These symptoms make normal life almost impossible. What could be the potential causes of these symptoms? What else can I do? Before the symptoms appeared, I was in good health and working hard to gain weight and maintain exercise.
Videos/photos of my palms and feet:
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1-8IzFyUMiLlahVLwMxjcQC2psThHC9xy

23F I have Crohn’s and I’ve been on prednisone for about 4 months straight at this point (dosage kept fluctuating because I was getting better but then getting worse again, right now I’m on 30mg and I’ve been on 30mg for 2 months I think?)
I know steroids can cause bone issues which I did experience a bit at some points but this doesn’t feel like the same thing. So I’m not sure what to make of this.
I have a strange achy soreness only in 3 specific locations. Idk much about anatomy terms so I googled diagrams to try to match the location to a name, and if I’m right then the pain is in my knee ligaments and extensor tendons on both feet and hands.
It’s not unbearable pain or even bothersome, it just exists. Feels like throbbing or a VERY mild pulled muscle. Like I said it’s very localized too, I can place my finger exactly where I feel it and it’s constrained to that spot, it’s not a general area kind of thing.
Everything I read online only mentions stuff like physical trauma or repetitive motions causing this which makes no sense in my case since I’m obviously not doing any sports or physical labor.

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I get barometric pressure headaches that begin with an electric feeling in my upper back (often, there appear to be 'muscle knots' present in what I believe are my rhomboids), go through one shoulder, crawl up my neck, and explode on one side of my head (same side as whatever shoulder it climbs up throughout the day). Without fail, the day after, my opposite shoulder is incredibly, distractingly painful (feels like muscle is contracted and cannot release) and I have pretty severe fatigue...I just fell asleep in the middle of the day! Does anyone have any advices for this 'contracted shoulder' feeling? My medical massage therapy place requires an appointment days in advance so while it is the obvious solution for what feels like a seized muscle, I cannot anticipate my pain days with enough prior notice for their booking.

After reading the content of this subforum, I was motivated to see what I could achieve by giving up my regular doses of antibiotics and focusing on physical therapy. It turns out this worked quite well so far. Below are the things that helped me especially.

• Reading “A Headache in the Pelvis”: This described my condition perfectly, and being authored by a graduate student at Stanford under the supervision of a professor of Urology, had enough credibility that I started paying attention. After reading, I started touching my trigger points and noticed that after they were touched, the pain was diminished for a while. This demonstrated to me that I could control the pain, and not just by not doing things that triggered it and made it worse (like masturbation). Feeling in control after 2 years of trying out various antibiotics without success, is a truly amazing feeling.
• Giving up antibiotics: I wanted to see if there were any bacteria in my urine and semen samples that warranted antibiotics, believing that it’s possible that I could both have pelvis floor dysfunction (muscle issue) and a potential infection (bacterial issue). After a little over a week of being off antibiotics, I did the tests and everything came back negative (no surprise). After years of being on antibiotics, my system is probably nuked of many bacteria. Once I gave these up, the pain flared quite substantially, and I had some of my worst days ever. But it got better over time and now I no longer need to worry about what I’m doing to my body by taking antibiotics, which is a huge psychological relief.
• Quercetin: I found believable studies (search for Shoshkes and quercetin) that this helps with inflammation (in much the same way that taking antibiotics helped with inflammation and helped me feel better). I take 600mg twice a day, with bromelain. I’ve tried to stop taking it twice, and the pain flares after a few days, so for now, I’m still taking it. Once the pain goes down to zero for a longer period, I hope to stop.
• My physiotherapist: I was lucky enough to find a therapist specialized in pelvic floor therapy, who had 12 years experience with just this in both men and women. Most of our sessions consisted of 30% talk and 70% dry needling. I think the talk actually helped more than the dry needling (and will test that out now since I’ve moved cities). Specifically, she helped me understand that my pain is in the ligaments in the pelvic muscles, the same ligaments where sperm travels during ejaculation. We believe these ligaments hurt due to bad posture, specifically a weak transveral abdominal muscle whose primary job is to stabilize the body. Due to this bad posture, other muscles compensated to stabilize the body and now ache due to being misused. To fix, we need to strengthen the stabilizing muscle and transform the body to a healthy, natural state of being. I started a training program at the gym where I now dedicate an entire day/week to core strength (mostly calisthenics exercises). She insisted the pelvis is neutral (as opposed to flat on the floor or otherwise supported during these exercises). I’ve realized my core is weaker than average during the yoga classes I’ve taken and believe that specific core exercises at the gym will help. She also explained that I hurt more in cold weather because the muscles tighten more in cold weather. I hurt more when I sit because the muscles are tight and crunched when I sit. Same for being anxious or stressed. The overall takeaway is to return the muscles and ligaments to their normal, strong, and healthy function through regular exercises with maybe some impulse to speed things up (like dry needling).
• Vegan diet, lower in carbs: I understand this is a contentious topic, but for whatever reason I always have pain flares after eating meat or heavy meals. I feel lighter and better when eating a plant-based diet. However, I’ve noticed that eating lots of grains/carbs leads to agitation so I’ve been trying to eat more nuts/beans and less grains and found that helps settle the mind (and the muscles too). In practice, lots of beans, nuts and vegetables with a little fruit and grains (and nothing processed beyond tofu or hemp protein). This is what works for my pain, I’m not advocating it for everyone or for the health of the planet or animal welfare. Maybe you can try it and it helps you too.
• Near zero masturbation and only sex, preferably in active positions: Understanding the problem is in the ligaments and the tightness of the overall muscles/ligaments in the groin area, I realized that whenever I masturbate there’s a whole lot more tightness in those muscles. For whatever reason, I end up pulling more and I feel the muscles are tighter during masturbation than during sex. Even during sex, if the girl is on top, the muscles are scrunched together more than if I’m on top or in a position where the body has to move in a natural way (as opposed to collapsing and mostly laying there). This makes a big difference in the pain symptoms, when I’m able to practice it correctly. I actually feel this helped the most out of everything.

After 3 months of gradual improvement, I’ve had periods of one or two days where the pain was barely perceptible. My flares (usually triggered by masturbation) are still bad, but they last less than before. My pain also feels differently, more in the muscle of the leg and less in the groin (in other words, it moved, which my physiotherapist sees as a good sign). I tried doing trigger point release at the beginning but found that it mostly flared my symptoms and have stopped doing it. I have no “daily practice” to manage the pain, beyond taking quercetin . The core workouts, healthy diet and natural sex I would hope to do regardless if I have this pain, and I see things improving. I hope it continues.
I’d like to thank those who posted their experiences, as that was the impetus to make the change in my life. I hope this post helps others make a change in their lives.

The desolate metropolis of bone marrow, a realm where life begins for countless cells like me. Ichor’s the name. I was just a minuscule, round, and crimson erythrocyte, suffocating between the bodies of others like me. It was a bleak, claustrophobic world. The world was a factory of life filled with the hollow echoes of relentless activity and creation. The bone marrow was a labyrinth of grotesque networks and niches, spread with the eerie hum of productivity and the dim glow of embryonic cells. Among the almost isolating expanse of cells around me, one stood out. She pulsated with a unique, unsettling energy that seemed out of place in this frigid, suffocating expanse. Her name was Arty, and from the moment we met, I felt a connection.
“Do you ever wonder what it's like out there?” she asked one day, smiling with warmth. Her voice was soft, like a whisper slicing through the bone marrow’s clamour.
“Every moment,” I replied. My thoughts always wandered beyond the marrow. “But it's the thought of experiencing it with you that keeps me going.”
Arty looked different from the rest of us. Her form was slightly irregular, her hue a deeper, almost vampiric shade of red. There was a haunting intensity in her, a fascinating deviation from the monotonous design that surrounded us. We spent our days growing side by side, shedding our nuclei and becoming more streamlined. The marrow's dense, fibrous network was our prison, and its stagnant energy pushed us toward our inevitable fate. We were resigned to the world beyond, and I couldn't fathom enduring this journey without her.
The day of our release arrived. A current swept us away from our birthplace, guiding us toward a narrow passage. This was the sinusoid, a blood vessel within the marrow that would lead us to the bloodstream. The journey was a terrifying ordeal. I could feel the lifeless rhythm of the body, a cacophony of desolation that reverberated around us, the walls of the vessels pulsating with the heartbeat's chilling cadence.
“Stay close,” Arty said, smiling warmly.
“You too.” I could feel my heart, ironically, ache. Arty and I emerged from the marrow into the torrent of the bloodstream, like lost souls adrift in a sea of crimson. The world outside the marrow was vast and terrifying. The bloodstream was a grand, merciless river, its currents swift and unrelenting. As we travelled, we gazed at the barren landscape together, passing through the arteries into the smaller arterioles and then into the desolate network of capillaries. Here, the journey became more intimate, as we navigated through the narrow passages that brought us closer to the body's cells. We arrived at a capillary in the muscles, nestled in the vicinity of a muscle cell, where we performed our first exchange. This was our futile role, our pathetic raison d'être: deliver oxygen to the cells and carry away carbon dioxide, ensuring the body's continued decay.
“Look at this place,” Arty murmured as we floated past. “It's desolate, isn’t it?”
“Yes. And it feels like we're condemned to something much bigger.”
“Together,” she whispered. “Forever together.”
We were forced from the capillaries into the veins, a return route through the bloodstream, dragging us back toward the heart. The superior vena cava, a bleak passage, greeted us with a relentless flow of cells. It was all a haunting procession. Into the right atrium, through the tricuspid valve, we plunged into the right ventricle. Awaiting our grim fate in the depths of the right ventricle, we sensed the impending journey through the pulmonary artery, a pathway to the lungs for a revitalization. Surging into the pulmonary artery, we were consumed by darkness, heading towards the lungs. Inside the lungs, we were trapped in a labyrinth of pulmonary veins, eerie conduits guiding us back to the heart's left atrium. Passing through the embrace of the mitral valve, we entered the left ventricle, tasked with pumping blood out into the abyss. Our final descent began as we were thrust into the aorta. Filled with despair and tiredness, we continued our cursed cycle through the circulatory system, trapped in a grotesque dance of sustaining life throughout the body's inner sanctum.
“This is our life now,” I said, looking at Arty. “An endless journey through the body. Each heartbeat is a new adventure, each breath a chance to fulfil our purpose.”
“And we'll do it together,” she replied, smiling warmly. “Always together.”
But as fate would have it, our journey took a harrowing turn. One day, as we were making our way through a particularly narrow capillary in the heart, I noticed something unsettling. The other cells around us began to recoil. Their cautious actions grew palpable.
“Arty, are you alright?” I asked.
“I'm fine,” she replied quickly, trying to smile, but there was a shadow in her tone and expression, something she was hiding. Panic gripped me as I tried to understand what was happening. We were meant to be inseparable, yet Arty seemed to be transforming into something I couldn't recognize. All I could do was plead to her in my mind, Stay with me.
I’m trying, I could imagine her replying with. The unease between us grew with every cycle. Arty began to change. Her actions became erratic; she disrupted the production of new blood cells, the lifeline of our world, and absorbed more than her share of the nutrients and growth factors we all needed to survive. Our bond strained as the marrow around us began to wither, and the environment that had once been our suffocating home turned hostile. Our separation started subtly, a growing chasm as she consumed the very life that sustained us. As we were dragged back towards the heart, something terrible happened. The vessels here felt different—fragile, hollow. A feeling of dread washed over me, an instinctive warning of impending doom. Suddenly, with a sickening tear, the vessel wall ruptured. Blood, cells, and plasma spilled out into the surrounding void, chaos erupting as the carefully controlled facade of the bloodstream shattered. I was swept away, thrown violently into the abyss. Disoriented and terrified, I searched for Arty amidst the chaos. I saw her, struggling against the current, her form now grotesquely distorted, her colour an unnatural, malignant hue.
“Arty!” I cried out into the emptiness. She looked back with a cold, distant gaze. Her gaze dropped, and a heavy silence enveloped us. The truth hung in the air, unspoken yet undeniable. And then, as if to confirm my worst fears, I saw it. Among the turmoil of cells and blood, Arty's form shifted, revealing the unmistakable silhouette of a threat.
“Arty…?” My voice faltered. But before I could utter another word, a surge of blood swept us apart, carrying us into the abyss of the body's depths. The darkness engulfed me, swallowing me whole as I drifted aimlessly in the frigid void. In that moment of solitude, the realisation hit me with a crushing weight. The love and companionship I had once cherished were nothing but a cruel illusion, shattered by the reality of my love’s true nature. She was a threat, a malignant force that had poisoned our existence, and I had been unwittingly ensnared by her lies.
As I floated alone in the desolate expanse of the body, the memory of Arty's form haunted me, a reminder of my folly, what I foolishly embraced. And with each passing moment, the truth seeped into my very being, leaving me adrift in a sea of despair. In that moment, as the blood surged around me, I realised how I had been tricked by simple deception. And as my consciousness faded into oblivion, the chilling truth lingered in the darkness.
In the end, as the echoes of our bond disappeared into the void, the cold reality of her true identity dawned upon me. Arty was not what she seemed. And I’ve realised her purpose, the real reason she existed and why she was here. Her true function was right there, and I didn’t see it until it was too late.
Cancer.

Hello Everyone,
TLDR: I have been having symptoms including ear pressure and TMJ symptoms for the last year that worsens with increased pollutants in the air (pm 2.5 smoke, dust, etc). Healthcare providers are not helping and looking for suggestions
I am posting on here to see if anyone is experiencing similar symptoms and have found resolution or if someone can please help me. Please message me if you have experienced similar symptoms or if you found a way to manage / treat them!
I have been experiencing ear pressure and TMJ symptoms for the last year – these symptoms began during the worst of the Canada fires (I live in Minnesota) and have been ongoing since then. I have seen a plethora of doctors, physical therapists, and dentists to no avail.
Symptoms can be seen below but the most frustrating piece is that the symptoms always get worse whenever I am outside and I believe that it is related to air quality (I closely monitor pm 2.5 and there is a correlation with increasing symptoms with increasing pm 2.5). I have an air purifier in my apartment which makes staying at home bearable, however when I go outside or have to clean my apartment I have to wear a mask to slow the worsening of my symptoms. This is the biggest issue that I am currently experiencing
I have gone through the rabbit hole of ALS and MS due to my muscle twitches but my EMGs and MRIs have confirmed that I am not showing signs of either one of these.
Symptoms:

• Eustachian tube dysfunction symptoms including ear pressure, inability to pop my ears, tinnitus, burning of my sinuses
• TMJ symptoms including tightness around TMJ, soreness when chewing, clicking jaw, inability to fully open jaw, difficulty with eating difficult to chew foods.
• Headaches due to the ear pressure
• Intermittent body twitches around the eyes, jaws, arm, legs

People I have seen:

• ENTs
• Allergists
• Dentists
• Neurologists
• Physical therapists
• Audiologists
• Eye Doctors

Things I have tried:

• Sinus CT – nothing out of the ordinary
• Head MRI – nothing out of the ordinary
• Botox – have tried botox for my TMJ which has not alleviate the TMJ symptoms
• Allergy Tests – shows I have no allergies
• EMGs – testing was negative
• Prednisone
• Muscle relaxers
• Antibiotics
• Antihistamines
• Nasal Sprays
• Hearing tests – my hearing is good

Currently, my ENTs and Audiologists believe that my TMJ may be causing some of the other symptoms and I am working to treat it. But I am posting here for awareness just in case there is someone out there who can help me.
Does anyone have any suggestions?
Thank you!

Is this sexually transmitted or not likely? Why?
So I had engaged in oral a 3 days to 1 week before the symptoms appeared.
26-27 April: I was flying from tropical country to middle east, got body ache with nausea on aircraft then a sore throat that developed into tonsillitis the next day without any white patches (seemed viral or allergic). No fever, only headaches and some fatigue,, thought it was due to new weather and flight jet lag and lack of sleep during vacation.
1 April: Tonsils cleared out and came back to normal.
18 May: started having Nausea and minor cramps with headaches which were starting to get more intense and I thought to be my PMS symptoms.
20 May: symtpoms persisted until this day, only difference I got the period on this day and realized that I had fever low grade one of 38.3°C. No sore throat nothing, I was just nausious and had a pulsing tightband headache, some sinus and body and muscle ache all over my body which is managed by paracetamol and ibuprofen. Chills at night due to fever which comes while I sleep probably. A stomach pain was developing and loss of appetite is evident.
27 May: last day with a recorded fever, this day my stomach pain was not tolerable at all, burning sensation and pulsing in the center right under my chest bone with nausea feeling.
29 May: Burning sensation kept on coming and going when food is consumed but on this day I wasnt aplble to eat anymore and went into the toilet and threw up bile that was yellow to feel better, then a short while after on an empty stomach started having the same nauseous feeling again and threw up bile again. Was admitted to ER and diagnosed with severe gastritis due to NSAID and Emifinac use on empty stomach during my sickness.
1 June: I am able to eat solid food again today after treatment, had to travel back to my country which is colder to get my gastritis treatment but I just woke up to reqlize I got tonsillitis again with white patches.
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