My experience with dieting was that after managing to eat less and loose the weight I would always put it back on very fast as soon as I gave in to eating normally again, and I would also put on more. And then stay there, till I was desperate enough to diet again only to end up even heavier than before once again.
My mother has had the same experience for decades. It scares me that my fate is so be like her, always going up and down and never happy. And probably ruining my metabolism in the process.Neither of us are overweight but just really want to loose a few.
I have fell for the being way too strict and not eating enough thing, but i have also tried “bigger” diets with high protein.
Incase this is relevant I work out regularly and burn a lot of calories every day. But obviously I consume loads too, and find that hard to control.

Hi all, so firstly, I haven't been able to see a doctor yet (planning to, more on that below), but about a week ago I randomly woke up with a severe stabbing pain just below my rib cage on the right side, it was probably a pain of 6 for me, I took a Tylenol and just sat in bed breathing steadily. It calmed down after about 40 minutes and I went back to sleep, but woke up with a dull pain in the same spot. That pain continued (burning sensation, could pinpoint exactly where it came from, felt it in my back) and then 4 days later during the evening I felt the pain building up, for about an hour it was like a constant level 5 pain, I decided to go lie down, and woke up an hour later with the most severe pain I've ever felt, it was a full 9 on the scale. I couldn't move, I couldn't speak, I just laid there trying to breath while it felt like someone had shoved a burning pole through me in the exact same spot. I probably should have gone to the ER but I grew up with doctor grandparents and traumatized boomer parents and thus it was grilled into me that you shouldn't go to the ER unless you're spewing blood everywhere. The pain since died down but has not gone away, the same thing as it was 4 days ago where I can feel it, but it never goes away completely.
So, my question is, does this sound like gallbladder attack?
I have no other symptoms except I've been bleching more, my diet has been normal, and my stress has been better than before but not great. I'm hesitant to go to the ER because I don't have the proper health care card for my province, I only moved here 8 months ago and I haven't decided if I'm staying yet, plus I don't want to go only for them to send me back home with no results and nothing farther. I am obese and have anxiety and my experience with doctors is mostly the same "lose weight/your problems are anxiety", I don't want to go somewhere I already don't like if I don't have to, but I'm prepared to do it if the pain happens a 3rd time like it did before. Plus, I'm worried they'll just rush me into surgery and I know it can be an easy recovery, but I have 2 cats (one with a broken leg right now) and no family in the city, so surgery isn't an easy choice.
I think I really just need some advice to calm my worries, any experiences or stories of your own would be much appreciated.

For some years now, acai berries have dominated the culinary scene with their irresistible flavours and impressive health benefits. They’re so popular now that it feels like they've always been a vibrant part of our food experience. But there was indeed a time when these luscious berries were yet to captivate our taste buds and entice our eyes.
Gradually, when word got out about these vibrant purple powerhouses packed with health perks, we couldn't resist the appeal of adding some variety to our diets. And as our indulgence grew with acai bowl ingredients, we stepped up to create an acai bowl recipe that can be made at home from scratch.
Next time when those cravings hit for a delightful breakfast or snack (more like a stunning treat for both your taste buds and your eyes), you'll know exactly how to make acai bowl.

So, i have reached sub 100kg, 99.2kg to be exact since last month. I have been on a plateau since then and wondering why.
So as far as I can see my BMR ~1950 and a roughly intake ~1500kcal a day. But basically by diet alone I eat in a 450 deficit. Which is fairly doable.
But here is where it went a bit wrong did wrong. So based on exercise i try to reach 100k steps a week. Which roughly translates to ~15k steps a day. I dont aim for a daily goal but rather a weekly goal
According to various calculators this translates to 600-650kcall a day to my weight. And i go to the gym 3 days a week. But idk how many calories I burn per session so lets skip that for now.
Lets say 1050kcall a day in deficit. Or roughly 1kg a week.
Now i wasnt losing the weight while I have been counting calories narrowly as i have been doing since october last year for the past 20 kg's 😀. I have to mention that i don't drink alot. Tops 2.5 liters a day.
Against any logic in my mind, a friend who is a nutritionist mentioned to high deficit can have negative effects on your metabolism, vitamins and overall health. It might look good short term but its really harmfull long term.
So my friend basically said i ahould eat atleast 1700-1800 kcall a day. And drink up to 3 liters a day minimum
I did this for a week and crazy enough I started to lose weight. Up to 1.2 kg last week.
So what we can learn from this:
Sometimes it is better to not go so extreme. Going in a to high deficit you will it a plateau aswell. Your body slows down normal functions to be able to preserve energy. Apperantly +1k kcall in deficit is currently to high for me so better to lower it slightly to ~700-800.
I might also mention that my diet consist of high protein foods so i dont really struggle eating at such a a deficit. I still eat chocolate sometimes or a cookie but mainly its lean protein :).
Currently my aim is ~90kg by end of august. And i am confident I will reach it.
Either way. I thought i wanted to share that. Enjoy your day today and keep going with your amazing journey to a healthier life. Take good care 🫡

Hello so i have gone from 80kg to weighing myself today and being 90kg. That happend in around a mounth, i have stopped counting calories I was eating around 1800kcal + what i burned on the bike to lose weight, because i was sick and tyred of it. But I still kept my diet healthy with vegetables and protein, i just was eating when I was hungry and stopped when I wasnt anymore. I know that probbably all the gained weight isnt fat, but its still the weight that stops you from climbing faster. I am wondering if the weight will drop gradualy as time goes on and my body adapts to more food in the sistem.

I've been trying to eat animal based diet for the last 4 months , when I was consuming wheat , rice and other carbs my lower abdomen was always bloated I wanted to see any improvements on my digestion on this diet . Tried lion diet one week after 2 months of AB and my stomach was flat no gerd no bloating . I really love carbs but I don't know what to do anymore every time I try to consume them I am always bloated and retain so much water around my belly like a pregnant woman, I am beginning to fear to eat any kind of carb . By the way I do think that I am metabolically healthy I don't have any weight related issue . Watermelon , oranges , honey(when i eat honey my stomach hurts so much almost like it burns my stomach) , sweet potatoes , mandarin , banana all seem to cause issue . Also my eczema still flares up .

I had all of my stones removed in November of this past year. I’ve done a little better about working more water into my diet but I can’t lie, I still enjoy a coke or sweet tea. It’s been 6 months since my Ureteroscopy and I’m noticing a VERY verrrry dull pain in my left side. Nothing crazy but you know how scary it is to feel that twinge. I also have had cloudy-ish urine, a slight urgency and burning. Urine doesn’t look bloody and I’m not having any obvious signs of a stone. Has anyone experienced this before long term after having your kidneys poked around and a stent?

Listen, ladies. This topic thread has become depressing and we are not doing ourselves any favors by wallowing. I am guilty of it as much as anyone else, but we have to stop this self-loathing and excuse-making.
Not to be harsh, but we can do so much more than what some of these "facts" being spewed are trying to make us believe. I beg you... Do not use lipedema as your reasoning for not trying really hard to get the level of health and activity that you want - the level of health and activity you DESERVE.
Yes, even the wonderful doctors who are doing lipedema liposuction surgeries and the therapists that say we need special massage for the rest of our lives are still just looking to make money off of us. Why would they want to make us believe that we can make a difference with diet and exercise?
Yes, lipedema is painful. But pain is also surmountable. You can push past and beyond pain and live an extremely fulfilling life. Lipedema does not mean you are doomed to become disabled. Pain is not an excuse to stop taking care of yourself. I myself have used it as an excuse to back away from exercise, and it only made things worse for me in the long run. We ALL need to stop. Instead, we need to find ways to make it better, to push each other, and to fight for ourselves.
My background, in case you doubt that I understand how extreme pain can be: I was covered in 3rd degree burns after a motorcycle accident when I was 20 years old. I've been living with progressing lipedema (by now it is stage 3) since I was 11 (puberty). 50% of my skin -mostly on the left side of my body- is thick, fibrous, contractured scar tissue and has been for the last 19 years. In the accident, I also broke my lower back, herniated a disc, ripped off my kneecaps, tore my rotator cuff, dislocated my big toe and several fingers, and nearly severed my pinky finger. I had 9 skin graft surgeries, got 11 different types of infection including pseudomonas in my blood, developed pneumonia, and got a life-threatening blood clot in my left leg from my knee to my groin. Don't get me started on the PTSD, anxiety, and depression.
Bottom line: We CAN overcome lipedema. We CAN gain muscle. We CAN lose fat. We CAN push past pain. We just have to be willing to fight.

Im 15 f and my underarm odor has been my #1 problem for the last 1 & 1/2 year. After doing some research i concluded that i most likely have bromhidrosis because i have good hygiene, shower & scrub 2 times a day everyday and reapply deodorant almost every hour whenever i can. I haven't talked to a doctor yet but am planning to, but has anyone had any solutions that helps control the odor? I've tried using panoxyl (benzoyl peroxide) & glycolic acid, but they just give me bad chemical burns and worsen the smell. I've been trying to cut off caffeine and better my diet. I am also overweight, and wanted to know if anyone else's terrible underarm b.o. problem has lessened after losing the weight, because if so this will definitely encourage me to lose the weight more 😭. Did this also happen randomly to anyone else? I never had any problems with bad b.o. until about 2 years ago, and im confused as before that i did not practice proper hygiene but didn't have any problem with smell. Its been causing me rly bad social anxiety especially with the fact i barely just started high school. Seeing other people with a situation similar to mine & their experiences are making me lose hope especially because their only solution is suicide which i do not want to do at all..

[Run Zero chapter: https://redd.it/1csb71x not every run will have a chapter; it won't be long before there are multiple runs per chapter.]
Portal load: Agility 1, Bait 3, Trumps 1, Pheromones 1, Packrat 1, Motivation 1, Power 2, Toughness 2, Looting 5, Discipline Challenge, 54 of 54 He allocated, 7.8% AP at start.
[This is probably the lowest helium load I've ever done, and sorta keeping my own advice on a recent Reddit post, Bait and Looting are up. Especially Looting, but it's not like I don't always do something like this.]
The human emerges from the glowing green mist and hits the ground. Groans. Pushes against that ground, trying to get back up. I feel really heavy. I'm not that fat, am I? He's got a dark blue button-down shirt on. A uniform? A shoulder patch. Rolls over- Ah, what's that? His shoulder pressed into something hard and metallic, He reaches over and his hand naturally seems to find a folding handle. He pulls it out from under himself and gets it up on his chest, sort of in a semi-comfortable position to hold it up and look at the screen while lying on his back. Some fiddling around the edges gets the power button pressed and the screen lights up with:
"Manual portal activation 1 successful: Void enabled. / 54 He loaded / Discipline challenge active / Total portal activation 955"
"Kakka," its one of his trimps.
'My' trimps? The human sets aside the portal pad and gets up.
Are you the guy? They all seem to be looking at him, as though they have a frickin' huge problem to solve and they need his help to solve it.
32s: First trap.
Do you bite? It doesn't matter much to us. The trimps look hopefully up at him through the trap's grating, We're so friggin' screwed.
I didn't think four of you could fit in there! He opens it and they all start following him around like imprinted hatchling birds. It seems his tactic of making a catch-alive trap confirmed to them that he was 'the guy' to help solve whatever problem...
26m42s: Z2c15, 58 pop, 7.7s RC with Z1/2; 29m44s: Fresh turkimp c25.
"Hey, buddy," he says to his first scientist, "can you speak yet?"
"Shijou?" it says, then it starts writing, "Hi Tightniks."
"Who do you mean 'Tightniks'?" he asks, "I mean, it's not like I remember my own name, but what makes you think it's Tightniks?"
"Tai," it points right at him with one paw.
"Just pointing at me isn't going to answer that," he chuckles.
The trimp's hands are quite prehensile, but it's hard to tell without it holding something, they don't seem able to make their fingers visually distinguishable. [Puchim@s all the puchidoru, although some have big round hands and some have small pointy hands; Takanya is the latter. Probably Final Fantasy Red XIII as well, but I'm not familiar enough with him to be satisfied.] This one starts climbing up his leg.
"Wait, wait," he stops it. It's a challenge to stoop in this gravity, but not as much of one as carrying a trimp. He gets down on his knees and back on his haunches and-
"Tai," it points again to a spot on his chest just left of his heart, then climbs on his lap and grabs his uniform at that spot, "Tai!"
He looks down and sees "Tightniks" embroidered into the fabric above his pocket. "Ah," he sighs, "Well, if that's my name, that's my name."
"Shijou," it gives him a friendly whack on the shoulder.
2h38m55s: Mskel in Z11c3.
"Hey guys?" Tightniks points at his bone box, waving his finger, "Does anyone remember where these came from?"
"Nope," the yellow one says.
"Yeah, there are 12 more in here than we got kills to account for," Tightniks says.
"I've been getting a sense of deja vu about just about everything," the red one points at the metal box on the strap over his shoulder, "That's a big exception. Any clues there?"
"It says it's for something called a DT Experimental Industries Time Portal," the human shrugs, "I have no idea what it's talking about, honest."
3h25m46s: Block PB, 0.3% AP sub-4h, 540 pop, 8.3s RC, no turkimp
That thing is beeping? He takes a look at his TPCS pad and he's got a message saying that he finished the Block in under 4 hours and there's a little attack bonus- Under 4 hours? It's been over 4 days!! Checking the time on the device reveals that the portal times in terms of a "map frame" out there in space, and the passage of time has been vastly dilated on this planet.
4h15m56s: Zone 15, 954 pop, 11.9s RC with Z14/60, no turkimp.
"Tightniks," the yellow one comes back from the second full bin to the filling third bin, watching the human fold up another of his very first inventions, the very first thing he built after jumping through the mysterious green phenomenon exiting the crashed ship, "Why in blazes are you building so many traps?"
The human had finished another and tossed it into the bin, then picked up the now ever-present portal control pad, gets it out of auto-sleep and called up the "Achievement Points" page. "I have this weird hunch," he says.
"Deja vu? That familiar feeling we always have?" the yellow one inquires politely, slightly tilting its head.
"May I?" Tightniks turns up his hand and waves it up and down in a lifting gesticulation, then points at the trap pile.
"Sure," the yellow one understands, "if you'll put me back down after."
The human sets the pad down, stoops at the knees and gets his arms under the yellow trimp scientist's front limbs and lifts it up onto that stack of traps with a grunt; it is an impressive demonstration of his improving strength against the planet's high gravity. Then he picks up the pad again and points at one of the blank purple squares near the bottom.
"You don't know what that is," the yellow one says, "Are we going after that first one that is readable?"
"Yes," the human nods, "it's for finishing something called a Dimension of Anger, whatever that is, before getting something called Bounty."
"Whatever that is," the trimp chuckles.
"No, I know what it is," the human says, "I remember it being access to a resource-rich area on the other side of a green Wall we'll find with our next map route. It doubles our resource production."
"That would be handy," the yellow one says.
"Hmm," he nods, "But all the traps are for this one," pointing at the third square in the top row of the array the pad labels "Feats", the second of three that are purple.
"Oh," a stylus materializes in the yellow one's paw, "Well, all it says is 2.5%. It doesn't say how to get it. Something to do with traps?"
"Something to do with traps," the human chuckles, "that's only convenient to do now."
4h29m46s...
Other trimps can understand the grey one better than the human, "Shijou shijou shijou?" is what a human ear would hear, but it's really asking the yellow one, "You mean he knew it was going to be here?"
"Yeah," the yellow one nods.
"Well, it's gotta be that pad none of us finds familiar," the grey one insists.
"I don't think so," the yellow one argues, "He showed the reason for all these traps to me on the pad, and the information is not yet available there."
"Well, it can't be just a coincidence," the grey one grumbles.
6h23m16s: Our first void map dropped.
"What is that?" The red one asks the yellow one. It grabs a stick and lifts the strange square object up by an edge from as far away as he can.
"I have no idea," The yellow one says.
"It seems to have some sort of cooling effect," the red one says, looking underneath it, having tilted it up with the stick, "Like it's not just cold, but actually cooling down, as though it were the opposite of on fire."
"Shijou," the grey one says, holding a note.
"It's a void map. Grab it with a blanket and put it on the cart please. - Tightniks"
"Shijou shijou," the grey one clarifies, "The new pad said 'void enabled'. Guessing it's that."
10h06m21s: Zone 21, 1975 pop, 19.6s RC with Z20/232, no turkimp.
"Ooooookay," Tightniks growls, "There is something off about this thing."
"Shijou?" the grey one looks at the yellow one with concern about their human starship pilot friend.
The human stoops, picks up the little green gem on the ridge between Zone 20 and 21, looks at it, huffs, and asks, "Any idea where this comes from?"
"Err..." the red one seems hesitant to say, "I think you made it."
"Really?" the human huffs, "How could that be?" Then he tosses it at Red, "See if anything reacts to it. It might be radioactive, so we should take turns to minimize exposure."
"Really?" Red's holding it now, "What makes you say that?"
"Because I'm pissed off for no reason I can figure out," the human says, "I think it's coming from-" he gasps, "Waitamint!" He starts searching for the portal pad.
"Frags," the red one says quickly, "I think it's arranging a route. You're good with maps," it tosses the gem to the grey scientist.
The human has his portal pad up and reads aloud, "You have the Discipline challenge active. Tweak the portal to- yada yada yada. Tiss tiss t- completing The Dimension Of Anger will cause Trimp damage to return to normal." He snaps his fingers, "That's gotta be it."
"Shijou," the grey one says hopefully, and has a map drawn within a few minutes.
12h30m06s: Portal, 45 He, 3.600 He/hr, 2098 pop, 18.3s RC, 1% AP for Portal-before-Bounty.
The last head of the map's boss monster goes limp as one of the fighting trimps' dagger points goes into it, and the huge thing settles on its tail, resting on the package that seems to be the prize of this map. And there's a popping sound, and then something mechanical.
Is that a scroll compressor? Tightniks looks at the package. The deflating monster's lifting envelope material drapes over everything underneath it. "Red, Shijou!" he snaps and points, "roll up that side of it. Keep this part from sucking down on the extractor nozzle!"
All fifty of the scientists jump in, literally, pushing the gas in the bag towards the compressor. Tightniks as well, rolling up the front.
Until he kicks, and nearly trips over, a smaller package that might be the explanation for the reason why the center of the monster's defense seemed to be a little away from the big package he could see. It's in the right place, he realizes. He gets it uncovered and reads stenciled-and-sprayed block letters on it:
"DT TIME PORTAL / THIS SIDE DOWN"
Perhaps the Dimension of Anger is so named because of the rage suddenly rising up in Tightniks' throat. It isn't so much as the free-floating aggression suddenly has an answer, there is definitely a fresh batch of rage and anger as he grips the nearest Dagger V, Mark 2 with both hands- ...I must have gotten used to destroying it at some point. He lets go of his weapon with his right hand first and dangles his left arm while holdi-
Refocusing on surviving the next few seconds, the pilot turns on the radar for the final approach and takes a last look around, then straight ahead at his forward camera and primary flight display...
He crouches, sets the dagger down gently, then starts clearing the debris from the box's grab iron. He tries to lift it- Damn, this is heavy!
Surprised at this turn of events, his two oldest scientists, Grey and Yellow, rush to either side of him and help out. They get it flipped over and read the other side of the device, Tightniks chuckles a bit at its predictability:
"DT TIME PORTAL / THIS SIDE UP" There's a square cutout in the middle of one side of it, with a sliding cover at the bottom of it.
"Thanks," he pats his scientists, "but back off, please." He gets the cover unlatched, and slides it open to see, first a big rainbow-colored wide data cable and card edge connector, then several fluid ports. "There's something missing," he says aloud as he gets the cover completely off and onto the grass, "this connects to some-" he's got the wide flat cable up in his hand, realizing what it plugs into. He looks at his scientists, lips trembling, "G-g-g-get the pad."
The grey one already has the survival data pad and offers it to him.
"No, the other pad," Tightniks clarifies, "The big one. The big one," he picks up wide flat rainbow cable and its edge socket in one hand, "It goes here," he points at it with the other. "It must have come with me end of the last cycle."
Both the yellow one and the red one bring it, one on each side.
"Thank you," the human takes it, gets its hinge lugs on the trunnions at the top of each corner of the cavity, then gets the cable connector on the card edge in the pad's base recess, "See, that's where it came from." It comes on:
"12h30m05s: You have completed the Discipline challenge, unlocking a new memory-enable coolant loop and restoring your trimps to normal combat discipline."
"Do you have any idea what that's about?" the yellow one points at the edge of the left side.
"That's-" Tightniks examines it, then suddenly realizes, "It's gotta be for the void map."
He's got a port cover open, and the bottom of it says, "NULLIFIUM/VOID HEIRLOOM INTERFACE"
"Shijou?" the grey one brings the blanket-wrapped void map.
The human clears an edge of the map; doesn't seem to matter which one, and then gets it into the slot. It disappears and the blanket settles down while the environment goes deep blue and suddenly goes super cold. "Hoe Lee!" he shivers, wrapping the blanket around himself, "I hope this isn't too much of a Napolean-Hitler Maneuver!" He glances around, but all the trimps don't seem to discomforted by the sudden cold.
12h35m24s: Void 1, 55 He, 4.369 He/hr, 2098 pop, 18.3s RC, first void AP 1% and 0.3% AP for 100 He simultaneously, we got a rare shield, but it's lame with attack, storage, and empty.
As the environment around them return to normal, the trimps cheer over the deflated corpse of the- ...whatever, who give a hoot? Tightniks finds a flurry of messages on the portal screen, two regard APs, one is about having recovered 10 He units, and the big one was about a "shield". Through the touchscreen, he enables it, and gets the status effects that it's talking about.
"Where to now, boss?" the yellow one asks, Tightniks can feel the draft off the cold trimps. They seem to be extraordinarily robust ectotherms, unlike him.
"Let's go back to that friggin' Wall, where it's warmer," he shivers, "We got that AP and could use the resources." As he leads them to the L15 route, he thinks, Maybe I did that void too early. It takes on the level of our most recently entered Zone, and the resources probably go up accordingly. [I did for character reasons after seriously considering running it at Z25 or 30.]
12h49m37s: Nursery unlocked.
"Four hundred thousand gems!" the human squeaks, "Are you kidding me?"
Grey and Yellow glance at each other, the former says "Shijou?" and starts doodling a real answer.
"I'm not sure if you've noticed, but young trimps have special diets for healthy bones," the yellow one explains.
"You eat gems?" the human gasps.
"Shijou," Grey says with a shit eating grin just above a little sign that says, "Babies eat aluminate, and gems are the best!"
"Do they like the taste?" Tighniks tosses a gem from the helium compressor in the direction of the nearest house.
"Uh-Uuuuh!" after it bounces off a paving stone, a yellow juvenile with red head fur jumps into the air to catch it in its mouth. [Puchim@s Yayo. Liek seriously, she jumps after pennies.]
13h32m59s: Zone 25, 84 He, 6.199 He/hr, 2217 pop, 52.6s RC with Z24/568, no turkimp.
It has an unusually light colored body, dark head fur that lies flat, and for trimp tails, wide and not all that prehensile, reminds Tightniks of a- ...he remembers what the animal looks like, but not that his home planet is called Earth nor that the animal is called a tanuki raccoon. Just the tail, the rest of the trimp looks like a trimp for the most part. Oh yeah, the mining foreman. [Puchim@s Yukipo] He turns to Red and asks, "What's wrong with it?"
"It's in a bad mood," the red one answers.
"I can tell," Tightniks glares angrily at the red one for a moment, cools off, takes a breath, and asks kindly, "Why is it in a bad mood?"
"We've never been out this far," the yellow one offers, "...well, with the portal captured at least. Now, it was in a good mood before it got near the cart after we started this zone. Something new on the cart?"
Tightniks approaches the mopey mining foreman and asks it, "What's the matter, little fella?"
It sighs, then starts struggling to climb [see 1x6] onto the compressor cart. Tightniks helps it up with a lift, then it goes to the portal pad and turns it on, opens up the coolant page, the challenges tab there, and sort of sighs and looks questioningly at him.
"Metal challenge:" the pad reads, "Tweak the portal to bring you to an alternate reality, where the concept of Miners does not exist..."
"Oh," Tightniks realizes, then huffs, "That explains the bad mood." He sits down with the mining foreman trimp and brushes its tail, "Don't worry, my friend. You'll be back after one cycle, and I'm sure I'll miss you and your miners. These guys," he nods at the scientists, "we're scared they wouldn't be back when I first used it on purpose, but they came back. If there's a 'Science challenge' later on, I'll have you and not them-"
The scientists flinch.
"It'll be okay," he assures the mining foreman he hasn't yet realized has fallen comfortably asleep in his lap, "It'll be okay, buddy."
16h11m02s: Gymnastic Z25 taken and gyms rapidly increasing now.
The 710 fighting trimps are majestic with their new gymnastic skill and nearly impossible to hit. Only occasionally did the gorillimp do damage. They took it down easily.
Then the dragimp they faced next blew them away with a fireball that made Tightniks flinch. It took him a second to get the dragimp back in his bee nickels. The next group was all ready to relieve their fallen comrades before they went down, even without the welcoming traps for the wild volunteers (of which Tightniks has just started into the 41st bin of ten thousand.) The dragimp can do nothing to them; anything that hits gets deflected by their V-8 shields; they never got sufficiently blindsided.
[Funny: V-8 is a veggie drink similar to clamato juice I can't find anymore, but it's really five-eight, which just happens to be the squadron number of the cast in Space: Above and Beyond. Herp-a-derp!]
19h11m12s: Spammed some random biome maps...
"Tai?" the grey one looks up at the human holding a little sign, "Last couple zones, you've been mapping a lot of random biome routes we never used. Is there any point to that?"
"Stats," the human says, fitting another one together, "Oh, and this," he tosses the trimp the completed forest route map."
As it registers in the portal system, the pad starts beeping and flashing its screen.
"What?" Tightniks sneers incredulously, "There's an AP for that?" He checks and sure enough, there's a 5% Achievement Point for making a 'perfect' map, by a full notch the biggest AP so far.
The yellow one was relaxing on the corner of the latest filled up trap bin, the 49th, notices, and leans back, "Yarey yarey..." shaking its head.
19h13m28s: Uberhouse taken.
"Shijou," the grey one stands at Tightniks feet holding a small book.
Tightniks takes a brief break from his trapmaking and stoops for his oldest scientist.
"Shijou," the grey one bobs the small book in its hands to offer it to Tightniks.
"Flush toilets and septic systems?" Tightniks reads, "You do this yourself?"
"Oh, don't you wish," the red one snickers, "No, it was in that perfect route you mapped up."
20h39m26s: Zone 30, 161 He, 7.794 He/hr, 4656 pop, 20N, 74.5s RC with Z29/1735, no turkimp, 2.5% AP for sub-60 He Z30 start...
"Oh?" Tightniks has an Ax V-3 over one shoulder and screws the helium hose connector to the portal system with one hand. He grunts, sounds kinda disappointed, sets the ax down and continues working on his massive pile of traps; he's almost finished the 55th of, he just learned, 100 huge bins.
The mining foreman had struggled up onto the cart to see, and just looks baffled. It usually looks a bit lost just as part of its demeanor, but this time it looks really quite confused, and makes rather bemused sounds too.
"Oh, what is this?" Red jumps up on the cart, sounding like it's gotta be silly.
The mining foreman climbs back down and spots a purple ore vein, makes a happy sound and pulls its shovel out of its back pocket to start digging into it.
[OC: This is not even close to an exaggeration vs. OG Puchim@s Yukipo who, in 1x2, just pulls out her shovel from nowhere and digs a hole through Project 765's indoor tile-and-concrete office floor to have a nap in the cold open of a 137 second long cartoon episode. Never run out of mushroom boxes! Also, 2nd season Golden Week gold medallion, she and Yayo dig into a volcanic island and hit an oil gusher ...you don't need to know much geology to realize...]
"Really?" Red groans, "Sheesh."
What's on the pad? "Hoarder: Have over 1 million traps at once, 2.5% damage."
20h48m06s: Gateways.
"Hmm," Tightniks pauses from his trap building and gazes over where they came from.
"Thinking of something?" the yellow one asks from the stack he's building under his feet as he puts the most recent trap on the pile.
"Yunno, we have a lot of territory back there that should be pretty pleasant to live in," Tightniks says, "You'd think we should be able to just map an enemy-free route that trimps can just sit down and live peacefully in. I'd love to be able to do that."
"Shijou," the grey one is at his feet with a massive shit-eating grin, not really "hiding" a big piece of documentation behind its back. Obviously it's not so dumb as to realize that it isn't concealed. It then pulls it out and offers it to the human, "Shijou."
"What's this-" the human gasps, "Are you kidding?"
"Shijou."
"Well?" the yellow one prompts, "Let's friggin' try it, shall we?"
21h34m53s...
For some odd reason, that quiet little mining foreman is on the trap pile, fiddling around. Seems to be trying to arm one, has the spring catch on-
"Hey, buddy!" the human notices, "What are you-"
SPROING and it goes flying through the air. Does a few flips and turns, and then sticks the landing, strikes a pose, and makes a happy sound. [op cit. 1x57]
"What the-" Tightniks says, scratching his head, I wonder how much more damage the fighters could avoid if they could do stuff like that.
"Shijou," the grey one is carefully copying out the trimpese from a tattered and dusty scroll.
"What is that?" Tightniks asks.
"Where mining buddy learned that flip," Yellow says from the cart with feet playfully dangling, "another gymnastic book we picked up a few NMEs back. Probably another chapter from the same book, actually. It seems to have been torn apart and scattered."
"Is that right, bud-" the human looks around, can't seem to find the mining foreman, "Buddy, where are you?" It can't move so fast as to get out of sight this quickly!
"Po-wee!" it cheers from the bottom of its latest hole, which is beside a pile of rich bluish-greenish copper ore, onto which another shovelful flies out of the hole onto it.
22h44m17s: Zone 32, 205 He, 9.016 He/hr, 9548 pop, 30N, 37.7s RC with Z31/2712, no tkp.
"You should probably go," Red whispers.
The exhausted human has just sat down for a nap after tossing yet another trap into the huge bin stenciled "61".
"Really, I mean it," the red trimp scientist gently sets a paw on the pilot's shoulder, "Listen to sense please. Charge all this helium and use the portal; it'll make us so much stronger."
"Only 392 thousand to go," Tightniks sighs, "All the ones I've made go to waste if I use it now. I know it's only a two-and-a-halfer, but if I go now, I'll never be in de-" his head slumps into the nodding-off of post-all-nighter fatigue, "moo."
Red and the mining foreman help the snoring human gently down onto his side. The former quietly asks the latter, "Do you think he's doing the right thing?"
The mining foreman makes a particularly delighted squeak, grabs its latest flask of leafy-flowery infusion, which is just now cool enough not to punish such a maneuver with a nasty burn, and upends the whole thing in a couple seconds. It then bounds off joyfully towards the big pit mine over there. It does not often lead the general laborers because of the gymnastic and shield driven block fight, which needs wood, but it happens to be doing so today.
Yellow stands next to the grumbling unhappy green lumber foreman trimp, who is standing on the head of its dual bit ax with its chin on the end of the haft sticking up from the head on the ground. "Cheer up!" the yellow scientist gently prods it in the elbow, "There isn't a Lumber challenge."
1d00h20m05s: Zone 33, 229 He, 9.410 He/hr, 10120 pop, 50N, 40.8s RC with Z32/3390, no turkimp.
"It's a familiar smell," the human says.
"There's no way we've been out this far since whatever it is that shtfed Trimp civilization," Red grumbles. [Word based on acronym SHTF, which stands for "stuff hits the fan" in its G-rated version. Long time ago, similarly derived "nsfw" was a kerbalese cuss word.]
"I think it's from before that," Tightniks clarifies, "from before the time loop stuff."
"I'm worried our fighting group is nearly a third of our population," Yellow sighs.
"Casualties bother you?" Tightniks asks, "I thought we talked about that."
"It's taking forever to breed up new groups, and these things, *snap* ow," Yellow didn't quite touch that one the right way, "you've got 661 thousand of are too small to help. If you don't go now, this will probably be our last Coordination and we won't be able to finish the next zone."
1d06h52m14s: Gymnastic Z35 finally away.
"Did you know it was there?" The red one asks the human as they watch the grey one transcribe another lost chapter of the Gymnastic book.
"No," Tightniks huffs, in a few minutes' break from his trap building, "But I'm not surprised, I hope it gets us Zone 36. In any case, as soon as I finish that millionth trap-"
The mining foreman makes a mournful sound.
"Don't worry, buddy," Tightniks pats it on the head, "I'll brush your tail again last thing before I go." He's working on bin #88.
1d08h00m10s: 12802 pop, 80N, 43.7s RC with Z34/5298, down from 27.4s; '31m00s...
Tightniks, wearing wool-lined leather gloves mixing shimp and bovimp ingredients, plugs the void map that they got from earlier in the zone into the portal, bundled up against the expected cold. He hopes that the fresh Gymnastic Z35 and Coordination Z34 will get them through it.
1d08h33m03s...
"Do you think you can get it back out of there?" Red asks the shivering human as he reaches for the portal.
There are a pair of ejector levers beside the void map slot which clicked when he inserted it, but the void map disappears, so it remained an open question as to whether they could get it back out. Making sure not to have his hands over the void map slot, Tightniks gets a thumb over each one and there's resistance like something is in the empty slot. He grunts and pushes down until they suddenly snap down, the ejected void map rematerializes. "Well, that's a relief," he sets it down and the starts doffing his coats and sweaters to let the warm air of the normal world reach him.
"Try again later?" Yellow asks.
"Yes," the human says.
"What, are you kidding?" Red scoffs, these things level up with the zones!"
"Later on in this zone, obviously," Tightniks grunts with a huff, and then turns to see the grey one holding its little sign with those exact words on it, can't help but smile.
1d09h08m09s: Snimp in Z36c74...
Having just finished yet another trap for bin #95 of the hundred that he needs for the million-traps AP, he tosses it in and looks to the front. There's not much left of that snimp, but it just killed a third fighting group. "The training bonus from running ten laps in an on-level map route doesn't transfer to the void, does it?"
"Shijou," the grey one says with a note of confirmation.
"And I'm getting close to done this pile of traps we need for that 2.5% AP damage bonus."
"Shijou," it says again.
1d09h08m21s: Snimp in Z36c75...
Tightniks sighs, "...and there's another one. So much for that void map with its heinous critically accurate fast voidsnimps and ugly boss fight." And he returns to building traps.
1d10h14m08s: Trying again...
"NULLIFIUM/VOID HEIRLOOM INTERFACE," Tightniks tightens the stuff around himself and then finishes getting the void map inserted with his gloves, and his fingers come together as it puffs out in a brief blue mist in the void environment.
"Timba timba," Tightniks hadn't even noticed that the lumber foreman was up on his head, pats him on the head, wants to get back to work. [No Puchim@s resembles the lumber foreman.]
"Oh, there you are," the human says, "Sorry, I wanted to finish the run with the mining foreman in charge of the resourcing workers. I don't know what's about to happen to it when I hit the Metal challenge."
"Who the devon talked you into into trying this thing again?" Yellow grumbles, looking up at the indigo sky and mysteriously shrunken and dim sun, hands- ...forepaws on its waist, not discomforted by the cold, but bothered by the re-attempt. [This cuss-word after Disturbed song "Inside the Fire".]
"Shijou," the grey one grins above a Rosetta-stone-like sign it's holding with "It was me." in forty-seven languages both human and trimp.
"Zone 37 is hopeless in the time it'll take me to finish building the traps," Tightniks says.
"Won't the cold slow you down?" Red inquires, "It seems to get to you for some reason we don't get."
"Timba timba," the lumber foreman confirms from its perch on Tightiks' jacket hood.
"Yeah," he huffs, tightening it down, "but it slows down the portal clock by the same amount, so who cares?"
1d10h38m48s: Voidsnimp in c12...
Even in the void, Tightniks has gotten used to the sounds of the combat and trimps dying en masse, but when he heard that voidsnimp screech, which is similar to a "drill" robot from an Earth video game he has almost totally forgotten called Descent (Interplay 1995), he almost involuntarily turned to see, Even way back here, they can damage us despite all that gymnastic training? Then it landed the critical hit and wiped them out, as all critical hits do on this void route. He still finished the trap he was working on before going back to the portal, "Forget this, we're just getting the zone blimp." He pops the map from the portal's void slot, and starts getting his void gear off. His uniform long since wore out, so he's wearing something much more cave-manny. [I picked that sound because that sucker was dangerous and terrifying and carried the nearly hitscan Vulcan cannon. There was no Descent II equivalent, but the Thiefbot was pretty annoying.]
1d10h45m30s: 1M traps AP for 2.5%. 1d10h47m36s: Zone 37, 345 He, 9.916 He/hr, 13120 pop, 100N, 33.6s RC with Z34/5298, 2774 pop short, no turkimp.
Tightniks had nearly finished the long procedure for loading and configuring the portal, then sat down with the mining foreman to brush its tail like he promised.
The scientist trimps tried to hit the portal's activation plunger, but it refused to travel the full distance closed for any of them. Quite tired themselves out trying. The only one not exhausted into total silence was the grey one with its exasperated "Shijou..."
The mining foreman refused to go to sleep, and watched intently as Tightniks finally reached over and set it home with one hand. Its last nervous little sigh was the only thing he remembered-
The ship is without power, and Tightniks can't run the radar much without draining the batteries...

6'2 male, 34 years old. Disclaimer: I'm seeing my doctor for a proper diagnosis. He isn't willing to order T3, reverse T3, or antibodies. I'm seeing an ENT later this month after my thyroid ultrasound revealed nodules. His office confirmed he will order my tests if he deems it necessary.
In the meantime, does this sound like a thyroid disorder?
Symptoms: three years ago I started feeling exhausted, couldn't stand the heat, felt like my body was shutting down or overly stressed. Sex drive went down, stamina went down. I would wake up in the middle of the night with a sickly feeling (overall body, not stomach, thought I was diabetic) and many times needed to eat in order to fall back asleep.
This started in spring 2021 after I started an intense obsession of eating two bars of dark chocolate (85%) per day that lasted six months. By summer I finally found intermittent fasting which almost completely got rid of my symptoms.
Two years ago (spring 2022) my symptoms came back.
By this point (May 2024) my symptoms are severe I would say. I'm exhausted much of the time. I live in Florida and have my entire life, but with the condition, the amount I sweat in the summer is beyond any kind of normal. My skin feels like it's burning. If I drink a coke with caffeine, my condition goes into overdrive. My sweating becomes way more intense. I feel hyped up and over stressed. I can't stand the heat, especially in a car or small room. Caffeine, fried foods, sugar, all exacerbate it.
I almost have zero feelings at all except anxiety, apathy, and depression, and it isn't psychological! I have plenty of social support and reasons to be happy. I'm very body aware; I know this is hormone related.
If I don't sleep well I'm not just a little tired- I'm exhausted. No sex drive still. As a 34 year old, fairly good looking male who has historically grabbed life by the horns, it's really odd having no ambition or deep happiness. The sweating, extreme body heat, lack of energy, lack of drive, and inability to focus are probably the top five symptoms. Additionally to make it six, since two years ago I've gained 80lbs. I'm almost 300lbs at 6'2. This is ridiculous.
If anyone has remitted their symptoms with diet and lifestyle, please let me know. If I have to give up coffee I will. I only drink one weak morning cup but I know it isn't helping me. Quit alcohol a week ago. Up until then I was drinking about five nights per week, up to 14 beers per night. Was eating two bars of 85% dark chocolate a few days a week and eating a lot of fried food. I still eat the fried food, but no chocolate. Occasionally break down and have coke and candy.
I'm getting my APAP machine (similar to a CPAP machine) tomorrow.
I really, desperately need to fix this. Yes the ENT will help, but I don't want to take meds unless my life depends on them. However realistically I know diet plays a huge role.
I need to get my life back. I want to get back into dating and I need to be able to focus on my job.
Also, just to make it clear: for six months prior to any symptom onset I was eating two 85% dark chocolate bars per day and drinking at least a 12 pack most nights.

Howdy folks, I ran my first ever full (but most certainly NOT my last) marathon yesterday and wanted to share my experience! I signed as kind of a spur of the moment impulse after running 18 miles for the first time last October. I’m SO glad I did, because it was an amazing and eye-opening experience. I never thought I would have the time, energy or stamina to do a full marathon, but a good friend of mine who has done several gave me good advice last year that really changed my perspective. Anyway, on to the report, and I’ll try to keep it brief!

Race Information

• Name: Cleveland Marathon
• Date: Sunday, May 19, 2024
• Distance: 26.2 miles
• Location: Cleveland, OH
• Website: https://www.clevelandmarathon.com
• Strava: https://www.strava.com/activities/11448481433
• Time: 3:48:20

Goals

Goal	Description	Completed?
A	Finish	*Yes*
B	Sub 4:00:00	*Yes*
C	Sub 3:45:00	*No*
D	No walking	*Yes*
E	Miles 20-26 faster than 10:00	*Yes*

Splits

Mile	Time
1	8:24
2	8:16
3	8:01
4	8:15
5	8:00
6	7:59
7	8:19
8	8:25
9	8:10
10	8:17
11	8:24
12	8:26
13	8:18
14	8:27
15	8:35
16	8:19
17	8:35
18	8:58
19	8:36
20	8:53
21	9:21
22	9:17
23	9:21
24	9:24
25	9:55
26	9:10
27	8:28

Training

For several months now I've been focusing on intervals and ever-increasing distances for my long runs. Regarding intervals, they were tough at first, especially since my first time doing it it was pouring rain and standing water in a lot of places I was running. But in spite of that, I enjoyed it. After doing them for a few weeks, I noticed I could run faster with less exertion, and generally recovered faster from my harder workouts. As far as distance running is concerned, I had previously ran 15-18 miles quite a few times, and generally felt very good during and after each of those runs. I have ran a half marathon at least once a month, each month, for over a year now, and always felt very comfortable doing it. Then, about a month prior to the race, I set out to attempt my first ever 20 mile run... and failed, (I posted about it here actually in one of the daily questions thread) only making it 13 miles. But to be honest, I knew the reasons why I didn’t have it in me that day, shrugged it off, and went out 3 days later and accomplished it. That cemented in my mind that I was likely “ready” and “able” to do the marathon.

Pre-race

Without going into details, through a small series of humorous events, I ended up signed up for 4 races in a row, each one on a separate weekend. Two half marathons, followed by a 5k, then the full marathon. I was a little worried that this would mess up my marathon, but fortunately there were two full weeks between my last half and the full, with only the 5k in between. So I just took it easy on the 5k and week following it, made sure to follow a healthy diet (for example no alcohol for basically two weeks prior, as well as higher carbs the days prior), and tried to get to bed earlier.
Fast forward to the morning of the race, and because of an issue with parking in downtown Cleveland (we had a spot reserved and paid for at a lot, which ended up being full, which really pissed me off), we were running out of time and my wife had to drop me off and go off on her own to find parking (she wasn’t running, but wanted to be at the starting line to watch me take off). Fortunately, she managed to find a spot within minutes and made it on time! After dropping off my bag at the gear check and finagling my way to a port-a-potty for a last minute number two, I got a little lost trying to find where I was supposed to enter the corrals at, but finally made it in with about 3 minutes to go til the race started. So I was a little nervous but very excited to be there.

Race

I started in corral B, and during the first 3 miles or so was getting passed by a fair amount of people. But every time I checked my watch I was pretty much on pace for where I wanted to be at that point in the race, and also sticking just behind the 3:40:00 pacers, so I just ignored it and kept plugging along. I’ve done enough half marathons and other races to know some folks come out of the gate a little too fast and burn out, and I would likely end up catching up to and passing them several miles later. Honestly, none of that really matters, as I’m not out there to compete against anybody but myself, but a constant stream of people passing you can have a psychological effect even if you don’t want it to.
The support along the route was phenomenal! It was the largest race I’ve been a part of, with the Columbus Half a close second. I imagined however, that after the halfway point, the support would significantly drop off, since the vast majority of the runners were doing the half marathon. While the support did drop off, there was a surprising amount of support on the “back half”, even though miles 14-26 took us quite a ways away from downtown, all the way out to Edgewater Park via several neighborhoods. But even in the neighborhoods, there were so many local residents sitting on their porches and balconies, cheering us on, and quite a few with their own little refreshment stations set up, handing out water, electrolytes, fruit, granola bars, even pickles. I’ve never been so happy to eat an orange in my life! Others had their sprinklers or hoses out to help us cool off as we ran by (which I took advantage of EVERY time haha).
Around mile 15, I ended up having to backtrack about 30 yards because my medical dog tag came off my neck; DOH! At mile 16 I was bummed to see a young guy convulsing on the ground, but fortunately the paramedics were there and no doubt taking good care of him. At mile 17, the rear-most 3:40:00 pacer caught me and ran with me for a bit before he mentioned he had to catch up to the group further up the road. I said no big deal and he moved on. At mile 19 or so, I saw a long hill that formed part of the final stretch and remembered that most of the elevation was in the last few miles, but I just shrugged and put it out of my mind. After mile 20, I definitely slowed my pace; in part because that was the farthest I had ever run before, in part because of the increased elevation changes, and in part because it’s mile 21 and that’s when you hit the wall, right? Well I never felt I “hit a wall”, I just felt like I was starting to get tired. But I had kept a steady routine of consuming a gel every 45 minutes or so, and grabbing a water and electrolytes at every station, so I was confident that I had the reserves to keep going without having to stop to walk. Then I hit mile 24, which was that hill I had seen earlier, and it was a bit of a struggle. It wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be, but I did notice my pace dropping below 10:00, so I refocused on my breathing, skipped to a motivating song (Rage Against the Machine: The Ghost of Tom Joad in case you’re wondering) and kept on trucking. I managed to finish that mile at 9:55, just under my goal of keeping miles 21-26 at under 10:00... PHEW! At mile 25, the next pacer (3:50:00) caught up to me and another guy going across a large bridge. We got to chatting, asking him about his experience as a pacer, and sharing our story, and it turns out the other guy was doing his first marathon as well. That little chit chat gave me a boost to hit it hard on the last half mile.
At the end of the bridge was a huge group of people cheering everybody on, and the music was so great I paused mine and just soaked in the experience. At the last turn, I could see the finish line, about a quarter of a mile away. I have this thing where I always want to sprint the last stretch before the finish line, but wasn’t sure if I would be able to for a marathon. But I felt pretty good, so I went for it and ended up hitting a 4:49 pace! That surprised me, because while I’ve hit sub 5:00 pace quite a few times doing intervals, and can maintain that speed over a 400m distance, I didn’t think I would be able to do it after running 26 miles. So it felt great to know I still had “gas in the tank”. I crossed the finish line, heard my name and shouted “that’s me!!!”, after which I immediately looked for the banana haha.

Post-race

After crossing the finish line, I did feel somewhat disoriented and clumsy. So I sipped on some water and chocolate milk, found my wife (or rather, she found me), unlaced my shoes and then waddled over to one of the grassy areas and laid flat on my. I took advantage of the free beer and massage tables, took some pictures, took in the atmosphere, headed to the car and then home. I spent most of the rest of the day on the couch haha.
To be honest, I felt great after the race, and even the rest of the day. I didn’t have any discomfort or pain, and my right ankle which has a tendency to get really tight after a race felt completely normal. I chalk it up to good preparation, the shoes I used that day (actually used my “recovery run” shoes instead of my race shoes), making sure they weren’t laced too tight, making sure not to overdo it with my pacing, and immediately unlacing my shoes afterwards.
I spent most of the rest of my day reflecting on what I love about races: the camaraderie. The sense of unity amongst thousands of people from all walks of life, who might not have much in common, but at least share an interest if not a love for running. To me, both the participants and the people who support them, be them event volunteers or local residents, give me a glimpse into what people are capable of. Races bring out the good in us, the sense of belonging and acceptance, and is a humbling and encouraging experience. This was my first full marathon, but it won’t be my last!
Also... sorry... I tried to keep it brief... and failed haha.
Made with a new race report generator created by u/herumph.

Note: I do not own Howl’s Moving Castle, so all rights go to Studio Ghibli. Monetization is allowed, just send me a link to the finished audio, credit me, and ask before you make any changes (this includes gender swapping of any kind). Even though I do use “They/Them” a few times in here, I use that so I don’t have to write she/he every time. Just wanted to explain in case anyone was confused.
Note: Around 1203 words
(Talking to self) Alright, I got the snacks, sodas, tea, blankets, plushies, pillows. Am I missing anything? Right! My wonderful partner, the movie, and our fuzzy pajamas. Ordered these specifically for our movie night. They’re gonna love them!
(Talking to listener) Babe! Everything is ready for our movie night!
….
Yes, I even set up a pillow fort on the couch. We’ll be nice and comfy while we watch the movie.
….
Of course Rocky is gonna watch with us! It’s not a movie night without our favorite pupper! He’s even wearing the Calicifer dog collar I got him for Christmas.
….
You got a surprise for me? That’s very sweet of you, honey. I always love your surprises and I actually got one for you too.
….
[Chuckles] Sweetie, if I told you it wouldn’t be a surprise. Come down when you’re ready and we will give each other our surprises. Does that sound like a good plan to you?
….
Excellent! I’ll be down here getting the movie set up on the TV.
….
Alright, now what is this surprise you have for me?
….
A Calcifer plushie!? I love it! Thank you so much, baby! [Kisses Cheek] You’re way too sweet to me.
….
[Chuckles] Yes, Yes. I’ll give you your surprise now. Remember when you were doing some online browsing for Howl’s Moving Castle Pajamas last week?
….
Well, I ordered them last week and they just came in today. Also, got myself some too, so we can match. I know it sounds cheesy, but I thought it would be cute. [Sheepish Chuckle]
….
Phew! I’m glad you think it’s cute, despite it being somewhat cheesy. The pajamas I bought for you say “May all your bacon burn.” Thought it fit you, since you say that exact same line every time I make bacon. Also, I somehow managed to find a set that was decorated with pictures of Howl’s bird form. There was only one pair left in my size and I took that as a sign from the universe to buy it. They were also on sale, so that helped a bit.
….
Of course the plan was to watch the movie while wearing these! Me, you, and Rocky can all match! Let's get changed so we can look cute and comfy?
….
Alright. I’ll meet you here in a few. Can’t wait to see you looking all cute and cuddly
(Time skip)
Babe, I’m ready when you are. (Talking to self) Gotta rearrange the pillows to make it perfect. Wanna make this as comfy as possible.
….
[Talking to listener] You look so adorable! It's almost too much for me to handle. I might die from cuteness from overload.
….
Please don’t hide your face, darling. I’m just telling the truth. You’re already so adorable, these pajamas just make you that much cuter.
…..
You think the same for me. Well then….
…..
No! I’m not blushing! [Thinking to self] I just got called cute by the most adorable person on this planet! And I’m dating them! I’m the most lucky person in history!
….
Huh? Oh, I’m alright. Just zoned out for a second there. Now, how about we begin our movie night. Already have the movie, snacks, and pillow fort all set up.
….
Yeah, yeah, I’ll scoot over. Or…. (Flirty) You could just snuggle on my lap? I’m sure I’m much more comfortable than the couch.
….
Lovely, you just make yourself comfortable and I’ll start the movie.
(Time skip)
…..
I agree. Sophie honestly should have had a better position. I didn’t really like Fanny because it always seemed she took advantage of Sophie’s kindness. At least Lettie was nice.
….
Yeah, I also noticed they didn’t add the third sister, Martha. Guess they wanted to slightly change the plot direction. They sometimes do this with movie adaptations of books.
….
Howl will soon make an appearance, don’t worry.
….
Glad to see I’m not the only one in this house that thinks Christian Bale did an excellent job as Howl. His voice really did the character justice.
….
Yes! Especially when he has his epic freakout sesh. I swear that man is a five year old in an adult body. He’s even worse in the third book.
….
I won’t give away spoilers, since you haven’t read it anyway. However, I will say that you will laugh your head off when he makes his appearance.
…. (Time Skip)
You alright there, honey?
….
Seeing the Witch of the Waste’s blob monsters scared you? You wanna snuggle into me for comfort?
….
There you go. And no, I won’t laugh at you for being scared of them. I will admit they can be very creepy, especially when they are masquerading as humans.
….
Sorry for the subject change, but I like how Miyazaki can make characters that are instantly recognizable. Like, you can take one look and know that either it's from Ghibli or from a company that employs former Ghibli animators. They just have a certain look and feel to them.
….
Yeah, Mary and the Witch’s Flower is a good example. The film was made by Studio Ponoc, which had animators who previously worked at Ghibli. Even the director was previously from that company.
….
Oh, you want some snacks? Alright, which one would you like? I got chips, cookies, an assortment of candy, and some moon pies. I also tried to make some Calicfer themed cupcakes to make it a bit more fun.
….
Alright, you want a cupcake, some chips, and a Diet Coke. Gotcha.
….
I’m glad you like cupcakes. Wanted to make sure I got their cute little faces just right. For a first attempt, they didn’t turn out too bad.
….
(Talks to dog) Rocky! No you silly pupper, you can’t have a bite of the cupcakes. They have chocolate in them.
….
No, the literal puppy dog eyes are not gonna work on me.
….
Here, just chew on your bones and toys. There you go, good pupper.
….
(Talks to Listener) Right, we should get back to the movie. And yes, I’ll make sure Rocky doesn’t steal anymore food. Honestly, I can see him try and do one of those complicated thief plans from the movies. You know, the one where they crawl into a ceiling duct and suspend over the target on a cable?
….
Knew you would find that funny. Ok, let’s start the movie up again.
…. (Time Skip)
Why does Miyazaki always know how to make people cry? I mean, seeing Sophie embrace Howl in his bird creature form is so beautiful. I always tear up at this heart wrenching scene. Anyway, I have a stupid question for you: Would you still love me if I was a bird hybrid creature like Howl?
….
Awww! You’re so sweet! It's nice to know if I started to sprout feathers, you’d still love me.
….
Of course I’d still love you if you also started to sprout feathers as well! You’d always be the same beautiful person I fell in love with, with or without black-blue feathers.
…. (Time Skip)
Now that was a wonderful movie. I’ll never get tired of seeing it with you. I do have something important to tell you.
….
Instead of a small fire demon holding my heart, you are the one who holds it. The moment I gave it to you, I always knew it would be safe in your care. I love you so much [Kiss] never, ever forget that.
….
And yes, I’ll never forget that you love me too. Now how about you and I get some sleep. Goodnight sweetie.

I was on the AIP diet for 12 days. Things were fairly okay for me. Dry eyes and mouth weren’t that bad.
Then I switched to potatoes, eggs, etc. and today, 10 days later, my eyes are burning and my mouth dryness got worse.
I’m trying to understand if this is just a coincidence, or if I actually have SS and this was a direct correlation.
My question to you is — let’s say you eat a wrong food item (outside your personal AIP), how fast does your body flare up / react to it? Please be specific, and detailed if possible.
I really appreciate your help. This community is keeping me sane..

Link to earlier post
On March 28, 2024, Aaron Smith-Levin, the self-professed "Sitting Behind a Computer Tough Guy" posted a video called "Scientology Criminals. We are coming for you." A clip of this surfaced recently outside of Aaron's YouTube echo chamber and the responses were emotional and damning. People on this Reddit channel were outraged at what they were seeing.
It began with a cocky declaration of war. "Scientology criminals, ya' done messed up. It is time for war."
He went on: "There's a certain type of criminal who has sailed off into the sunset. Tried to lay low. Tried to play nice, to stay in Miscavige's good graces...They don't do everything they can to expose and provide testimony and evidence and cooperation to law enforcement and plaintiff teams in various lawsuits about the very real Scientology crimes that can be prosecuted and that would have a big impact in getting Scientology's tax exempt status revoked."
My ears perked up. Was he finally going to be coming clean after all this time?
I was crushed with disappointment when he then named a former Sea Org recruiter named Brandon Faust and later name-dropped a former Sea Org registrar from Flag named Hy Levy, who spoke out to the press about Scientology abuses before his death. Faust was the arch-criminal that Aaron said he was going to expose and turn into "a star of SPTV" by pressuring him and people like Faust into talking to law enforcement about all the child abuse and crimes they surely are sitting on? And he said that it was open season on any former regges, ethics officers, fund raisers, OSA staff and others who weren't speaking out.
In short, if you are an ex-Scientologist and Aaron doesn't think you're doing enough for the cause, he's going to Fair Game you on his channel until you do.
Who does this guy think he is? Talk about being drunk on his own Kool-Aid.
But after watching all that, my real burning question to Aaron is "What about your wife?"
It's time for more truth to be told because in the quotes above, Aaron is describing his own wife almost perfectly.
Heather Smith-Levin, nee Tozser, was a CMO staff member in Los Angeles, so she was in the highest-level management organisation at the PAC Base and was privy to sensitive public and staff information. During this time, Heather was told about and knew to be a fact that Danny Masterson had raped women and the Church had acted to cover it up. Of course, she did not report this to law enforcement because Scientology policy forbade it.
But that doesn’t answer why Heather then later refused to help law enforcement in the Danny Masterson police investigation. By that time, Heather was out of Scientology and married to Aaron and raising daughters of her own. Some questions that come to mind:

• Why did she have to be talked into providing information that could help the Masterson victims when they asked her for her help?
  
• Why didn't Heather want to talk publicly about her departure from Scientology? Could it have something to do with the absurd hope that even though she is married to a suppressive person, she didn't want to be seen committing a "high crime" by publicly departing Scientology? Yes, to her distorted way of thinking, that is a very likely possibility. It's not wrong to want to stay connected with family. It is horribly wrong to think you can be married to Aaron and think the church is going to turn a blind eye when it comes to you.
  
• Why did Heather also refuse to be filmed for Scientology and the Aftermath? She was married to Aaron, living in the same house while a film crew was there. But to her way of thinking, if she wasn't "public" then she would still be able to have a connection with her Scientology parents, while everyone else was being Fair Gamed and shunned by their Scientology families for speaking publicly.
  

Aaron Smith-Levin never called her out. Still hasn’t.
Such big talk about everyone else.
How about Aaron's mother? She hasn't come out even once to speak about Scientology, yet she's the one who raised a family in Scientology while working on staff at Philadelphia org, watched her boys go on staff and one of them died in connection with Scientology. Where's her statement against the Church? Where is her interview with the FBI exposing all the crimes she must know all about?
Two of the biggest ex-Scientology "criminals" Aaron knows about are his own family members. Both of them fit the descriptions I quoted from Aaron's declaration of war.
Aaron said "It's easier to cooperate than it is to keep your mouth shut." I guess he would know from intimate experience.
Maybe if this information were to get out to the SPTV community, we could look forward to seeing Aaron's family become "stars of SPTV."
While this is all bad enough, Aaron is not just some random YouTuber. He is the President of the SPTV Foundation. On their website, it reads "We're here to empower people who want to leave Scientology and those who have already left by offering support during their transition into mainstream society and beyond." I'm waiting to see when they are going to add the caveat "...so long as you agree to speak out on SPTV and take a cab ride with us to the local FBI office."
Also, how would Aaron even have the slightest idea who has gone to the FBI or given testimony or given over mountains of evidence to law enforcement? Such things are done confidentially for so many reasons. The thing I am positive of as I write this is that not one person is under any obligation to "report compliance" to Aaron Smith-Levin or his SPTV crew. I personally know of four ex-Scientologists who have given evidence and testimony to the FBI that no one on social media has ever heard of. The last person any of them are concerned about impressing is Aaron Smith-Levin.
But speaking of people who are trying to impress Aaron, isn't it interesting that Aaron's friends also get a pass from him when he should be calling them criminals?
His buddy- a newcomer to the Aaron-nettes is, Sterling Tompkins. Sterling is another one, who for years refused to speak out publicly because he didn’t want to be fair gamed by Scientology. Where's his Walk of Shame? Why doesn't he have some kind of price to pay for daring to live his life outside of Scientology but not speak out? But more importantly, now that he has started speaking out, has he admitted to anything he did while in the Sea Organisation? I'm only hearing crickets.
What about their friend, Jaime Mustard, who from the behind the scenes has been egging everyone on? No shaming of Mustard? Well, don't worry, if Aaron won't go there we'll have a future instalment about Mr. Mustard and what he's been up to.
You see, these tough talking "in your face, We-Don't-Lie-We-Multiply" so-called courageous truth tellers are guilty of everything they accuse everyone else of. They are no different than the Church they supposedly are fighting, but actually are just empowering these days. As I mentioned before, there really is no difference between SPTV and STAND League posts. Go ahead and compare the titles and content and see if you can tell them apart.
Want to know what those in SPTV Inc. are doing to others? Just listen to what they accuse everyone else of doing to them.
Word is getting out but it's going a little slow. Just like Scientology, the SPTV Inc. brand is becoming synonymous with unhinged activities and dishonesty on a level that is pathological. Just like Scientology.
And it's no wonder that the targets of SPTV remain mostly silent and just getting on with the job of fighting Scientology. Who has time to address the lunatics on YouTube when the lunatics in Scientology are still abusing real people in the real world? It would be a full time job refuting the madness and no rational person wants to spend their time doing that.
I am merely putting some facts out there for every 10 videos this group does. And I don’t make money from this undertaking - unlike the Aaron Smith-Levin pyramid scheme.
Not one of Aaron's followers commented negatively on the war declaration video, by the way. Not a single person. Apparently they're completely okay with Fair Gaming ex-Scientologists who don't meet Aaron's standards of "activism" which just goes to show how mad they have gone.
Let's compare that audience to the dozens who have spoken out at great cost over the years, showing incredible courage and integrity in the face of Fair Game campaigns the likes of which Aaron has never seen or experienced. Kind of odd, isn't it, that Aaron is so ignored by the Church of Scientology? I wonder why.
You're going to hear more from me about those who have spoken out, because they stand in such stark contrast to the blather that SPTV has become under Aaron's leadership. Let's make no mistake, he has taken control of the "anti-Scientology narrative" on social media and it has become ugly, divisive and incredibly mean-spirited, at odds with the good will and care of previous times. Let's hope this worst-possible-timeline we are in right now is a short-lived and much regretted phase of the bigger effort. Believe me, the ex-Scientology movement is not and never has been defined by what Aaron Smith-Levin thinks or does. This is all just a blip and not a very pleasant one to look at. As the truth continues to get out there about what this crew is really about, I hope people realise there is a lot more going on outside of YouTube and the real fight is out there.
More to come.

I've (27f) been a vegetarian for the last 11 years because as a teenager I struggled with digestive issues and thought I found a fix. Now I am dealing with gastritis and GERD (among other health issues...)and struggling. It never crossed my mind to address my health issues with an animal-based diet. However, the gastritis is so bad it has me scouring the internet. There are so many suggestions of bone broth and/or collagen consumption to heal the stomach lining and I want to so badly heal my stomach (symptoms are a constant burning in my stomach and acid reflux)! I feel so conflicted emotionally and so it occurred to me, perhaps, I could try a collagen supplement (haven't yet). I then found this community and have been reading of others' health changing for the better once they reintroduced meats and such. Over the last week, more frequent thoughts are coming to me that I might have to start eating meat again and it conflicts me.
Do I want to get better? Of course! I just feel scared or just unsure how to feel or even transition if I did. I love animals so much and is a reason I kept my vegetarianism for as long as I have; but, I want to feel healthy again. It crosses my mind, "What if you eat meat again and you don't even get better?" So, I'm feeling strange lately as I never thought I would ever contemplate leaving the vegetarian lifestyle.
I guess I wonder how to navigate this predicament I'm facing. I feel conflicted and would love some advice. Thank you!

Just curious if there is anyone out there with similar symptoms to mine and if there is some kind of diagnosis that might line up, something I haven’t thought of or don’t know about. I’m not yet diagnosed with anything, but I’ve suspected autoimmune issues for a few years now, and I’m waiting to get into rheumatology again. I began having symptoms come in “flare ups” after I had my first child 4 years ago. It started with me developing postpartum thyroiditis about 3-6 months after giving birth, and I was also anemic. Lots of crazy symptoms. I felt horrible for months. I tested ANA positive with a titer of 1:320, so I was sent to rheumatology as well as endocrinology. They only found thyroid and parvovirus antibodies (I had gotten really sick a week before having my child, turns out it was parvo b19). Said it’s possible something is brewing, come back in a year. I never did, and the thyroiditis ran its course, I made a full recovery. But I continued to have “flare ups” of the same symptoms, and I developed a ton of GI issues. The symptoms I experience include fatigue, low grade fevers, random flushing in my face/ears, occasional flushing or blotchiness in my legs/feet when showering (sometimes my feet turn red and burn/itch), dull headaches, and general malaise and body aches (no specific joint issues). I just have days/weeks where I don’t feel good and don’t have energy, no stamina, and then it goes away for awhile. Continuing down the timeline, I got pregnant again. Had my second child, developed PP thyroiditis again. Ran its course, recovered. But once again experiencing the same symptoms and tons of GI issues. GI went nowhere. I was diagnosed with IBS and GERD, despite not having them most of my life. EGD and colonoscopy were normal, no h. pylori. I accepted that my body just changed since having kids and I manage the symptoms of that. But continue to have these other issues, and now new issues with my menstrual cycles. Going through a rough patch now with all of these things, I asked my primary for bloodwork. I’m iron deficient again without any clear reason, and ANA positive at 1:320 still, speckled. And my CRP has been moderately elevated for 3 years now. No lupus, arthritis, or sjogren’s antibodies. Now I’m waiting for rheumatology to call and set up an appointment. What are the chances my positive ANA doesn’t mean anything and all my symptoms are just from the stress of a busy life? I live a relatively healthy, active lifestyle and I have a better than average diet I’d say, and I’m only 27. All I know is ever since I had kids, I’ve not felt the same, not felt entirely healthy.