Congested eyes

Just found this subreddit and would love some advice. My baby got a cold from daycare and I got it from him. I thought it just the typical cold, some congestion, sore throat. By end of day 1,(Tuesday) I was shivering from a fever and my throat hurt like crazy. Ibuprofen helped the fever and after a couple days my throat got better. However the entire time I had the worst congestion I've ever had. I have to blow my nose every ten minutes, sometimes even less, and it's always lots of thick yellow green mucus. I've been taking mucinex and chugging water. It's now Saturday night, so five days, and the congestion has not gotten any better. I'm surprised at how much mucus comes out each time I blow my nose and it's still the yellow green color. There's even some pressure under my eye even though it doesn't look swollen. Does this mean it could be bacterial? I'm so miserable and baby is still sick, I feel so bad I have no energy to take care of him the way I would if I wasn't sick. My husband has been doing everything.

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I just got her back from the hospital a few hours ago. Maybe instead of writing this post I should make the most of my time with her...
So my cat is a rescue, I've had her for over two years and then shelter said she was two at the time. She has a (likely congenital) heart murmur, along with some other health difficulties.
A few years ago we lost our family dog to congestive heart failure, due to dilated cardiomyopathy. The dog was also a rescue, with a high grade congenital heart murmur. Yesterday was the sixth anniversary of the family dog's passing, and yesterday we noticed my cat was breathing kind of fast, with a weird crackly sound. We took her to her vet immediately, and got referred to a 24/7 vet hospital where they could keep an eye out on her overnight. They haven't echoed yet (since it's a stat holiday weekend here) but it's very likely due to hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. Their first priority was to stabilize my girl and she's home now, with some meds to get her through the weekend before we go back to follow up, and then I have an option to get that echo to see what exactly is going on.
This is all right after she had a drastic and sudden personality change, where last week she randomly attacked my other cat, myself, and my boyfriend. She's normally a very sweet girl, and loves my other cat, so it's been a distressing week as we have had to move my other cat to my boyfriend's to keep them separated. We had these plans to slowly reintroduce, but with the heart failure I don't know how much time she has -- if it's only a few months like it was with my dog, is it right to stress her out through the reintroduction? I also don't know if I should go ahead with the echocardiogram. They're gonna have to sedate her for it, and she always reacts weirdly to that. My family has also been quite insensitive to the ordeal, telling me the vets only want my money and they don't care about my cat. It's just very overwhelming.
I don't know what to do. I wish I could at least have both my girls home, but it's very likely that they may never see each other again...

Usually my seasonal allergies to pollen, ragweed, mold etc. manifest in the usual sneezy, runny nose, itchy throat and eyes, etc.
One day I woke up and felt like I couldn’t get a full breath in. I happened to check the pollen count and it was extremely elevated, and it’s been extremely elevated ever since that day. It’s been going on for a little over a week.
I’m not congested or sneezy in my nose whatsoever, my eyes aren’t itchy. I just feel like im not inhaling all the way. It’s been making me dizzy and lightheaded. I’m also experiencing extreme fatigue to the point it interferes with my daily functioning, and headaches almost every single day. The headaches border on migraines, and it’s a full head headache if that makes sense. It hurts my entire head, it’s not concentrated to just one part of my head. I’m also experiencing almost daily nausea. I’ve been taking Zofran and Ibuprofen daily.
Could this be allergies? Or should I get this checked out?

Hello, everyone. I’m posting here as I’m becoming desperate to find help or some answers.
I’m a 27 year old male. Toward the end of last year, I began having severe issues with the vision in my right eye that led to a traumatic cataract diagnosis. Around 15 years ago, I was shot in the right eye with a BB gun.
In January of this year, I called the University Hospital regarding the loss of vision and pain in my right eye. I was rushed in, as pain is a big concern and they wanted to make sure everything was okay. I was told I have a cataract and scheduled an appointment with a surgeon for the removal. When I asked about the pain, they told me that cataracts do not cause pain, but it may be what the cause is.
Over the course of the next 3 months, I went through phases of pain in my eye. One night, It was severe enough for me to visit the ER, from which I wasn’t given any real help. I was also incredibly sick with influenza B and congested, which seemed to make the pain even worse.
I was given an MRI and went through several different tests. Ended up getting home around 2am. Around 6am I noticed 5 missed calls from the hospital, asking me to come in right away as they may have seen something on the MRI and need more imaging.
After the additional imaging, I was told nothing seemed to be wrong, and they were at a loss in finding the cause. At one point, the ER doctor said chicken pox may be a possibility (I don’t know why). Then they told me it’s just neurological.
I spent the next few months with the pain coming and going, up to my following surgery appointments. When I brought it up to my surgeon, he didn’t know what could cause the issue either. He mentioned the cataract was so old, it had become soft.
The surgeon then explained to me the procedure, risks and benefits. I was told that I may or may not need glasses after the surgery, which I was fine with. I was told they’re standard procedures, simple and short recovery periods. I agreed and the surgery was scheduled.
Fast forward to the day after my surgery, and I begin to notice the difference in clarity of my vision. It was honestly crazy how clear my far sight vision was, but very disappointing how little I could see close up. I’m now unable to read my phone or see any detail closer than 5-7 feet away, but I was told glasses will correct the issue. No problem, I thought.
This is where my problems really begin. At night, I started noticing these incredibly intense visuals from light sources. So intense, I wasn’t able to go outside at night, or be in a dimly lit room for weeks. I am 1 month past my surgery and I am still unable to drive in the dark and struggle immensely with sitting anywhere dark with acute light sources. The best way to describe the visuals are halos, but not just like glowing street lights, I’m talking about psychedelic looking, hallucination type halos. They disappear when the light source is covered, and move in all directions, side to side and back and forth.
The best way to describe them is that they are perfectly circular and very sharply defined. Sometimes, there will be a slight ray type effect inside of them. They are present around every light source in a dark space. On the street, sometimes it’s so bad that there are dozens and dozens layered on top of each other. For weeks, I could literally feel my pupil swelling and sort of “popping”, as it adjusted to the lights. Immediately after, it would begin adjusting again, and the halos would come back. The lights go away when very bright light sources become present (like incoming headlights) or when equally disbursed. Better nights make the halos become more blurry, less defined outside of the circle.
I’ve tried to design this image to explain what I’m seeing to my doctor and others. I’ve also included a picture of how my right pupil looks in most dimmer lit, inside spaces:
https://imgur.com/a/o7vxpo3
Furthermore, I am experiencing a shadow casted around the outside of my vision in my right eye. Feels almost as if I’m looking through a tube, and seems that I have lost a fair amount of my peripheral vision. Some new floaters and flashes of light starting appearing around week 3, but not as drastic as it was with the cataract. I’m used to floaters in both eyes.
I showed this image to my surgeon and tried explaining the problem. He really didn’t seem to understand what the problem was, saying the eye looked good and halos are common. But I never knew that it would be so debilitating. He was at a loss, and mentioned that if my pupil is over dialating, it may be extending beyond my IOL, causing this issues. He’s been doing cataract surgeries for 2 years now. He also kept saying “well typically patients are older…” and then continued to explain protocol and experiences with older patients, not really considering my case individually, or offering to refer me to someone else.
At my post 1 month checkup, I asked him if there are different sizes that should have been used, only for him to say “well most IOLs are a certain size, but some are slightly bigger.” And then explained that my pupil dilating past the lens, causing the visuals. This makes sense to me, as the visuals do seem almost “prism” like. I was also told the lens was acrylic, and not as perfect as the normal lens, but I’m pretty sure there are different lens material types.
This confused me. It still does. I told him about my pupil being larger than the other before my surgery, and he saw it as well. Was this not a considering factor in my lens choice?
Additionally, I told this surgeon that back in 2013, I was diagnosed with optic nerve swelling, but he said that he had no idea what that was regarding and simply disregarded the diagnosis.
I’ve spent weeks trying to research the subject, but honestly, it’s causing me to become severely depressed and frustrated. I feel that my concerns have been totally disregarded, as I was told to wait another 3 months for my next appointment. I actually had to suggest treatment I read online with eye drops that cause the pupil to stay smaller. He agreed after my suggestion and said he would prescribe me these.
Unfortunately, they have not submitted the medication to my insurance for the past week, so I haven’t been able to try it. I hope it helps.
I really could use some help or advice. I’m writing this in the middle of the night and once again suffering from a headache from my eye issues. These visuals have not gotten any better since the night of surgery. Recently, they just go away, and some nights are better than other. Sometimes, artificial tears seem to help and other times they don’t. Sometimes losing the tension in my neck helps, sometimes moving my head down makes it worse.
I was also severely congested a few nights ago, and the halos were terrible. Decongestant spray seemed to make them totally disappear. I was told in the past I have a deviated septum, and on my right side I believe (not sure if they can be correlated)
If anyone’s has a suggestion as to what type of doctor may be able to help, or what I should expect my recovery to be like, I would be very grateful. I’m starting to feel hopeless and that people don’t believe or recognize the struggle I’m having.
At this point, I feel like I may have permanently messed up by opting in for this surgery, and I’m afraid I’ll never be able to drive or do things at night again. I understand that the damage the accident caused in my eye may be repairable, and that I probably will just need to adjust to new vision, but I really don’t think I can live with the issues I’ve been having at night. I feel as though I may never get to watch movies in theaters or watch events in dark spaces without severe visuals and head pain.
Let me know if there’s any additional info I can provide to help. On Monday, I am going to try to have my primary care provider help recommend me to someone else (insurance requires this for a second opinion).
Thank you for your time and help.

I am known to have pretty bad allergies, however it doesn’t feel like it’s affected me too bad this season other than what I’m experiencing now. Usually i’ll get very congested and it will go away after a couple days.
I have been experiencing tension headaches, weird feeling in temples (sometimes painful), ear fullness, sides of neck fullness/pain, always hawking a loogie (clearish) and dissociation/dizziness for almost 2 weeks now. The weird pressure feeling from my temples feel like it creeps its way to my eyes which makes my eyes feel weird too. Occasionally I will feel tired, eyes and head will feel heavy. Haven’t had a fever or night sweats or anything. Have had some blood when blowing nose out of left nasal cavity.
My doctor put me on 2 nasal sprays which seem to help get rid of the morning crud in my nose but that’s about it. Other than that my nose is clear the most of the day. When i try to be active i get head pressure, ear fullness, and a little dizziness. I have an ENT appointment in 6 days.
My concern is that it’s not a sinus problem. Has anyone experienced this and have found the ‘cure’? I can’t get myself to do anything because i’m so anxious about it.

So..last week wendsday I started with a sore throat.. Thursday I woke up all messed up and I went to the ER.. cough sore throat bad bad dizziness 2 days later I severely congested bad eye pain and a weird feeling like pressure in my ears moving my eyes around made me feel dizzy that has slightly gotten better then I experienced bad headaches around day 3ish, those haven’t eased up I thought they did but yesterday and the day before night I had this horrible headache on top of head plus eye pain to the point where I think I have a nerve problem in my eye due to the pain and bc in my eye socke I feel something like a vein feeling thing buldging out Yu can’t see if but you can feel pain there and stuff I rubbed my eye so hard prior to that idk if I irritated it or something anyways.. anyone’s eyes hurt I’m on day 8 they hurt when I wake up but then the eye pain stops for only the eye socket and eyebrows to hurt fyi I did have bad sinuses bc my allergy’s and respiratory infection ganged up on me my ears where clogged for like.. 1 week and yeah

Okay so...
I've had sinus problems and TMJ flare ups for years.
My TMJ comes up mostly during really bad times of stress where I end up grinding my teeth in my sleep. Usually happens from nightmare/stress dreams that pop up during this time. The pain is always in my left cheek, usually giving me an eye headache and ear pain.
My sinuses are year round and sometimes have similar symptoms along with the typical runny nose/congestion.
I am going through a stressful time right now, and none of the sinus care I'm trying is helping at all. I'm still in severe pain around my left eye, radiating to my ear. My nose feels clogged up too. My upper teeth are hurting like during sinus pressure. But its been so long since I had a TMJ flare up that I'm questioning what's wrong.
From your experiences do you think I'm dealing with TMJ or a sinus infection?
[And yes I will be seeing a DR regardless, I just want to hear from other sufferers]

Age 32
Sex female
Height 5’3”
Weight 140
Race Caucasian
Duration of complaint 6 months
Location sinus
Any existing relevant medical issues dx MS, Long QTS
Current medications 500ml rituximab 2x/yr, 20mg propranolol 2x/day
Had this infection since November 2023; recurring symptoms of cough, congestion, red/congested eye(s), fever, body aches.
I had Covid before thanksgiving ‘23, then got “regular sick” about two weeks later. I’ve been treated for sinus infections and pneumonia and have been on amoxicillin, augmenten, cefdinil, doxycycline, and am currently on clindamycin since November with varying strengths and lengths of time. The infection would go away while on antibiotics, but always come right back 3 days after stopping them.
I got sinus surgery and I finally got a culture that came back as haemophilus influenzae. I’m currently on clindamycin, which I’m reading HI is resistant to. My infection symptoms are beginning to come back and I am been taking clindamycin 300mg 4x/day for a week, with three days left.
I’m at a loss and I’m sick of being sick. Looking for some advice and ideas. Is my body just resisting antibiotics at this point? And if so, how do I go about fixing that?

I finally got my kit (Resmed Airsense 11 with the AirFit N20 nasal mask) two days ago and I was very enthusiastic about it, especially since I met other CPAP users should said it changed their life with better rest and more energy.
The first night took some getting used to, but I finally fell asleep about 1.5hrs into it. However, I woke up with a lot of pressure, between my right nostril and my right eye, and a congested stuffy nose. If I moved my head a lot, then I would feel a headache. I also was not able to open my right jaw all the way without pain. I was hoping it would just go away throughout the day. It did not and it caused a lot of discomfort. I actually ended up feeling really tired and stressed by the end of the day and noticed bags under my eyes once I got home from work.
I tried to sleep with the CPAP again last night, but it felt like it was exacerbating my congestion and I felt so suffocated, so I took it off and slept through the night without it. I woke up super tired and I still have that pressure pain on my face and congestion.
Is this common and how do you deal with it?

I (F33, 5’3” 170lbs) was diagnosed with sinusitis last Saturday after a weeks worth of congestion and very yellow mucus. The treatment course includes 7 days of doxycycline, Flonase 1 spray per nostril per day, netipot rinses, using a humidifier at night, staying off of decongestants and antihistamines, and using 800 mg of ibuprofen every 8 hours for 3 days and I have been following it very thoroughly except I have skipped some doses of the Flonase as I have had some bloody mucus come out during nose blows and the netipot sessions-I thought maybe it was drying me out? I have seasonal allergies as well and just got my allergy shot on Wednesday this week but I had very little reaction and no increase in mucus production or congestion. So this morning I went to do my netipot session, and I blew my nose and had some small blood clots come out. I then decided to proceed with the netipot because I was curious if it was a bloody nose or just some blood clots from my sinus cavities. I did throw netipot-no more blood came out after the first initial rinse and blow. I have some mild face pressure above my eye brow but otherwise I’m feeling ok. When I googled my symptoms the internet told me to contact my dr. Does this seem correct? I feel like I’m under reacting to this but also don’t want to over react to a couple of blood clots over the span of my treatment.

Hi. I own a house with my sister. But because since we cannot see eye to eye for many reasons, I usually stay with my kids father instead. I still pay the mortgage and come and stay a few times in the year for a month or two. Anyways, she has a friend that she let live here as a roomate.
My issue is that they BOTH want to have this house like a freezer every single day. I hear that one sleeps better when it cold blah blah. Fine I get that. I sleep with a quilt. But I also have two children. A toddler and baby. They both hate blankets. I try to put it on them regardless every night but they refuse it. I try to dress them warm as much as I can. The 3 of us have been waking up congested. Now I have a full blown cold. The kids too. My room is the coldest room in the house even when I have my vent off. Sometimes I will go and turn off the ac or I’ll raise the temp to 69 or 70f and it makes such a difference. They like to keep it at 67-68. So there’s this back and forth of us turning it up and down all day long. On and off.
I turned off the AC one time at 4 am because I couldn’t take it anymore. My throat was hurting. That morning my sister was fighting with me because she said she cannot continue to sleep like this. She said she was soo hot and couldn’t sleep mind you she sleeps with a fan on and the window open but it’s not enough. If she could she would sleep with the ac and fan on. I explained to her it’s way to cold for my kids and I and we’re now sick because of the dry air blasting every night. I have to use saline on my kids every day and use and electric snot sucker. My baby is coughing and it really breaks my heart seeing her not being able to breathe properly.
And yes I have tried to use a small humidifier. But still….
I am so tired of this fight I just honestly want to sell this house and never share a space with anyone besides my kids ever again.

Hey, so you ever get a birthday present that's so not your style, but you really can't return it because it'd be really awkward? Normally it's like, I dunno. Shoes, or shirts or something like that, right?
For me it was four fire-breathing horses.
Okay, so I should clarify. My dad didn't really give me four fire-breathing ponies to keep. It was more of a test for him to treat me like his son again.
See, I just recently got out of a Styx oath that would have led me to eternal damnation if I didn't fulfill it. It's a long story, but to keep it short: I swore an oath on the Styx to be a brave hero by my eighteenth birthday when I really should have just pinkie promised. But yeah. My dad, God of War and dad of the year took it well. …In that he pretty much said that I was a waste of space, disowned me and he'd personally hand me over to the Styx for eternal damnation.
Nice guy. Really should get into motivational speeches.
The night before, after riding the high of not having the threat of being sent to Super Hell I had a pretty bad dream. I mean, it wasn’t the normal David nightmare. It wasn't me killing endless hordes of monsters while my dad laughed at how pathetic I was.
Well, half of that. It was just my dad. To be honest, rather I’d take the monsters.
He was laughing at me, with that smug face of his, in that all-leather biker outfit with the shades that made him look even more like an asshole, as if that's hard to believe.
Oh, sorry. Didn't mean to cuss. Anyways yeah. Me and my dad. Not the best relationship, even by demigod standards.
He gave me a toothy grin, like a shark’s as he circled around me. I instinctively stood up straight, at attention. As much as I hate my dad, ticking off a god is a pretty dumb thing to do. Plus, I was pretty dumbfounded to see him here in my dream of all things.
“Well, color me surprised. To be honest, boy, I thought I'd end up taking care of this myself. So, congratulations on that front. But, sorry to burst your bubble, it might be good enough for ol’ Styxy but…it’s not good enough for me. But, you know, I'm a generous guy! Prove me you're a warrior. Do that, and I'll welcome you back in the family with open arms. I even got the perfect way for you to prove yourself.”
Without warning, he tossed me a set of keys with a miniature boar-headed keychain and a really big switchblade on the end of it. I fumbled with it before slipping it into my pocket.
“An oldie but a goodie. Used to let my sons prove themselves to me all the time with this one. Now, I'm sure once you see what I got planned you'll know the rules, considering you're a fuckin’ nerd. But in case you forget…”
He lowered his shades, revealing balls of fire as he glared right at me.
“Sundown. My temple. Don't be late or I'll toss you in the Styx myself. Well! Have fun, yeah? I'm looking forward to watching you fail this one, like your last quest. Now, get up. Clock’s ticking after all…”
“Gaah!”
I snapped my eyes open, falling out of my bed and onto the hard floor under me. As soon as I hit the floor, I could hear one of my many siblings start to stir from their sleep. Immediately, my sister Tiffany started to sigh as she shot up from her bed. I could see her pastel pink sleep mask perched on her head as she glared into the darkness of the early morning. She groaned in frustration, her words cutting through the quiet of the dawn.
"What the hell are you idiots doing?"
To be fair, I could see why she’d think that. Most of my siblings were fond of pranking each other every now and then. The chaos of the Ares cabin was unmatched from most cabins, except maybe Hermes. But, when you cut off her beauty sleep, the threat of an angry Tiff was usually was enough to make nighttime a truce. Usually.
My sister rubbed her eyes and looked down at me. I sheepishly gave a smile as I rubbed my head, still sore from when it hit the floor.
"Seriously, David?"
Tiffany got out of bed and silently made her way to me. She wordlessly held out a hand and I grasped at it as she pulled me up.
"Thanks Tiff. I had this dream, where Dad called me a nerd and was talking to me about testing me now that my Styx Oath is..."
I felt something hard and metallic poke against my leg, from my sweats pocket. I pulled out the unfamiliar object and to my surprise, there were the same keys from my dream. My eyes widened as I realized that my dream was a little bit more than usual demigod stuff.
"Oh. That...wasn't a dream."
She raised an eyebrow as she looked at the keys that sat in my hand. I played with the accessories, absentmindedly feeling the boar head and the switchblade knife. She leaned in, peering at the keys as the dawn started to rise.
"What the hell are those for?"
She looked to the keys, then back at my face, and then the keys again. She looked at me as if I just said that Kronos was about to come back and throw an ice cream party courtesy of the Titans.
"You're telling me Dad gave those to you or something? You're joking. Have to be."
I shook my head, but I could see why she thought so. I was pretty sure I was near the bottom, if not at the bottom of his list of favorite kids. If I was being honest, I was pretty sure he wanted me dead more than a few times.
"Tiff, you know that I'm not exactly Dad's favorite by a long shot. Why would I say something like that and risk him getting even mad more mad at me because of my lying? Dad disowned me, remember? He mentioned something along the line in my dream that if I pass his test I'd be treated as one of his sons again but he didn't mention what it..."
The gears started turning as I looked at the keys in my hands.
”A test…keys…sundown…oh no. Oh, no.”
I immediately pocketed up my keys and started putting on my shoes. No time for pants, sweats would do just fine, I just had to make sure to take my wallet with me, considering I was going to New York now. I had to be quick or this test was over before it even started.
"No. I...I think I know what it is. But if I'm right, then shoot I gotta get going then! Before our brothers take it."
In hindsight, I probably should have told Tiff a bit about my thoughts. But, the more I delayed the more issues that could have cropped up. I just had to make sure it was safe.
"Take what? Where the hell are you going?!"
I burst out of the cabin, staring at what was in front of our cabin. I felt a bit of nervousness bubble up as my thoughts were proven true. Tiffany was close behind me as she walked outside our cabin. I looked at her face and caught an expression of wonder as whatever she was going to ask me was forgotten. Parked in front of the cabin was a red and gold Harley. The seat was white leather and gave a sorta…humany vibe to it that I did not wanna think about. Only one thing came to mind, something I knew instinctively from the moment I saw it. Dad's War Chariot.
Or as the god of war would call it, his chariot.
"I...I think dad wants me to take his ride for a spin."
I ran my hand over the cold metal, and I realized what Dad meant about the “oldie but a goodie.” A while back, before the Second Titan war ended, and all of the children of the gods had to be claimed, there was a ritual all sons of Ares went through. It was something all my brothers did at fifteen. Drive around his Chariot and return it before sundown. It wasn't easy, my Godly siblings, Phobos and Deimos both loved to mess with whoever was in charge of the chariot at the time. And you had to deal with monsters too, but overall when it came to demigod stuff it wasn’t the most dangerous around. I dunno if that says a lot about how dangerous this life can get though.
But, shortly after the then-counselor Clarisse La Rue became the first girl to do it, Dad pulled the plug. I dunno if it was good ol’ sexism, someone totaling it, or dad not wanting to let all of his kids drive his ride, either way it wasn't super common nowadays. It wasn't like he stopped, but it was something given, not a right. Dad letting me do this was him at least giving me a chance to prove myself to be one of his kids, which was more than I expected to be honest.
I took a breath as I looked at Dad’s ride, feeling a pit of unease in my stomach as I started to climb in. If it wouldn't end up with me being tormented for the rest of my short life, I'd tell him no and go back to sleep. But, telling a god no, especially my dad is a neat way to be turned into a rodent. Or a fine red paste. Or a rodent that would be turned into said paste.
Tiffany's brows furrowed as she processed my words, a layer of disbelief on her face as she chewed over it.
You? He wants you to drive it? I...that...what the hell?"
I fought off a wince as she looked at me, then the ride, then back at me again. I could tell she was a bit annoyed. I mean, yeah from her perspective I was singled out by dad to do something she probably wanted to do for a while. I felt a pit of guilt in my stomach, it wasn't fair, really. But at the same time I had to do this.
"I mean, seriously? He must be out-"
She cut herself off. Calling my dad crazy was another way to get turned into a rat that would then be turned into a fine paste. Actually a lot of things carried the threat, my dad is kinda a jerk. I sighed, figuring I might as well tell her about why Dad was doing this. I didn't wanna hide it, but it's not like I like to talk about the fact that I've been disowned for two years. She knew, most of us did. But it's not something I like bringing up, because yeah. It sucks.
"I read a bit about previous Ares campers. He used to do this more often, at first only his sons did, but later his daughters could. I dunno why he stopped but, this isn't really like he's doing it because he's proud of me. I'm sorta disowned, remember? He said if I can drive the chariot, he'll take me back as one of you guys again. It's...more of a test to earn myself back into his good graces, I think.”
Tiffany listened to my explanation, not saying anything for a bit She looked a bit bothered about the fact that I was chosen to drive the Chariot, which again, not surprising.
"Ugh, I guess that makes sense."
I could hear the frustration in her voice as she crossed her arms. I winced again, preparing for her to resent or hate me. But to my surprise, I heard her add more in a softer voice.
"Well, don't get yourself killed trying to pass this stupid test, I don't want to have to explain to everyone why you're not coming back."
Her icy tone defrosted as she looked back at me with a bit of concern in her eyes. She seemed less annoyed and more worried about me, which was sweet. Not that I'd let her hear that. I hoped that maybe, dad would let her give it for a spin later down the road. If anyone deserved it, it would be her. I gave a nervous laugh as I took the keys out of my pocket.
"Of course, I passed my Styx Oath, didn't I? It'd be really dumb of me to die right after barely avoiding that, right? Oh, yeah. If Ellie asks for me, tell her about dad's little test he has for me. Hopefully it won't be too long but you know how it is with godly stuff. I should be back in time for us to hang out for the rest of my birthday once I do this for dad. I'll bring back something cool!”
I felt my trepidation fade away as I prepared to drive. Lots of my siblings dreamed of piloting the chariot. It wouldn't be right to reject the opportunity when it was given to me. And, who knows? Getting back in Dad's good graces (or as much as one can get in them) might help me out. At least I would have one less target on my back. As I sat down in the white leather seat, I put the keys in the ignition and instantly it began to morph.
OOC:Read this while listening to whats coming up
The front split apart into one steel horse that slowly split into two, and then four cream-colored horses that looked around with a cruel intelligence. The seat dipped, and warped before it became a horse-drawn chariot I was now standing in. The chariot was gold and blood red, adorned with the lovely images of people dying gruesome deaths, because Dad's taste in decor is somewhere between military surplus and serial killer, apparently.
“Okay…so, I need to get to Dad's temple before sundown. I don't know New York highways though, so how can I…oh hey! A gps!”
My fingers brushed against a touch screen set up on the chariot and punched The Intrepid into the coordinates. I gave one last wave to my sister before I lashed the horses and they immediately took off. I led them out of camp easily enough, but as we reached the highway they sped up to an impossible speed for a chariot. Their speed was even faster than any cars on the highway, rivaling the time that Aphrodite camper drove us to the beach once. I pulled back on the reins, trying to get them to slow down. Instead, they gave a rebellious snort and went even faster.
I would like to say that I embraced my inner Ares kid and relished the challenge. But I'm not going to lie, when you end up going past 80 MPH in a chariot, you tend to think you're going to die, fun fact. I screamed for most of the way, yanking and pulling at their reins so we could bob and weave through traffic.
It's a bit of a drive from Camp Half-Blood to New York City, I know it well, it’s a pretty common place for me to go for some monster slaying. But, up until now, I've been in the passenger seat while Argus drives. The speed of the horses really made the time go by faster. As we entered the city, the horses started to slow down and I felt a ray of hope as I started to steer them through the city. I gave a triumphant laugh as I looked down at my ETA. It was surprisingly quick, considering how congested New York can get. And I didn't see hide or hair of either one of my godly brothers, so I felt pretty good, all things considered.
“Huh. That's weird. There's not many cars today…my luck must be turning around!”
“Traffic update: Incoming Monsters. Rerouting. Cannot reroute.”
“Huh?”
Immediately, a massive boar the size of a garbage truck burst from a nearby alley way behind me. Behind the massive pig, two armored bank cars recklessly merged into traffic. One leaned out, revealing a gray-skinned human in body armor brandishing a shotgun.
“Of course! I had to open my big mouth! Is there anything that I’m going to have to deal with?”
“You are on the fastest route!”
“Well that’s just GREAT! Now I can be on the quickest way to the underworld!”
”Rerouting to: D.O.A. Records, Los Angeles.”
“Woah, woah, woah, no! Keep me on The Intrepid! The Intrepid!”
Seeing all these enemies together though, I started to put a thought in my head. They all had something in common, now that I saw them all in front of me. A boar was sacred to Ares, Spartoi too came from a dragon sacred to him. I put the pieces together as I saw the monsters come out of the woodwork and all to me. Now things made sense. The lack of Phobos and Deimos, the sacred beings to Ares, the lack of mortals on the street.
I didn't see my siblings because Dad wanted to mess with me personally.
Even now, I don't know if he wanted to test me in a Spartan way, or if he just wanted to get rid of me without kinslaying. Either way, I couldn't back down now. Not when I was so close. I snapped on the reins and the rebellious horses continued on their path, bickering and weaving left and right as they snorted and whinnied.
I heard the wiz of something traveling through the air and quickly moved out of the way. A metal feather hit the chariot, bouncing off the hull and onto the ground. I looked up and saw a few birds. They were black and crow-like, but their feathers had a metallic sheen, like iron. Their wings flapped and I heard the sound of metal on metal as they soared above me.
“Dad called in feather-shooters too? Come on!”
I steered left and right as I evaded the metal feathers shooting at me. The newcomers behind me quickly gained as I bobbed and weaved. I had to figure a way out of this, and fast. Problem was, I was quickly outnumbered and outmatched. I wasn't the best at archery, and my sword could shoot a blast of force, courtesy of the then Forgemaster. Main issue was it took a bit to charge, and I couldn't take them on so high up.
I couldn't run. I needed to fight out of this. But even if I could fight the two Spartoi and the big pig, the problem was the birds. I didn't have a ranged option…or did I? I looked to the horses, breathing embers as they huffed and pulled the chariot further on. Ares kids couldn't talk to horses, but these were godly horses. They seemed smarter than your average horse. Maybe I could talk them into behaving, the same way I got some of my siblings to listen to the plan during Capture the Flag.
“Hey guys, are you bored? I'm sure Dad and my brothers take all the good fights, huh? You know, if you guys continue fighting each other, I might lose this and you guys will miss out on a good fight.”
At first, I thought it fell on deaf ears. But then, they stopped their jostling and started to take a more unified path as we raced along the streets. Like I thought, they enjoyed a good fight as much as their owner did.
“That's what I like to see. Look, we're pretty surrounded right now. What do you say we rampage a bit before I take you guys home?”
An evil-sounding whinny came from the horses. I couldn’t really speak horse, but I took that as an okay and pointed at the birds above us. Did I feel stupid? Kinda. But as long as it worked, I couldn’t complain.
“See them? All yours. I'll cover you guys from the ground forces, and in exchange, you guys fall in line. Alright?”
A burst of fire came from one of the horses in response and I heard a loud squawk as it engulfed one of the feather-shooters. I breathed a sigh in relief as the rest of the birds started to scatter. They veered left and right in an attempt to avoid the flaming streams that were now sporadically being fired in their direction.
“Alright! Good job, I'll leave it to you!”
I gave a smile as I turned behind to my land-based foes, quickly gaining on me. I could hear the occasional woosh of fire as the horses fought the birds. One of the armored trucks caught up to my right and one of the spartoi leaned out of the vehicle. They aimed down the sights and pointed their shotgun at me.
“Sudden traffic in your area. You will be delayed by…five minutes. You are still on the fastest route!”
“Woah, that’s not fair! Come on Dad! A gun? Really!?”
I felt a tug in my stomach. It wasn’t something I could do a lot in a row without being exhausted, but I had some sorta pull when it came to weapons. When I gave a command, they were able to fall right out of their owner’s hands.
“Alright, let’s even the playerfield shall we?”
I held out my hand and they dropped it, the gun fell onto the ground, crushed by the wheels of the car. The second caught up to my left and once again, a spartoi leaned out of their car, weapon in hand.
“Another one!? Come on! How am I going to…”
I was jerked to the side as the horses suddenly veered right. At first, I thought it was the horses misbehaving again, but then a monstrous squeal came from behind me, rushing forwards.
Crash
I heard the sound of steel groaning as the boar rushed past the truck, pushing their truck out of the way as they aggressively charged forward. It was a good thing I managed to get out of the way, or else I would have been in trouble. I could see the spartoi shaking their fist as they spun out, their car massively dented with a massive gash in the armor. Now that I had to deal with two enemies, I decided to use the boar’s momentum to my advantage. I pulled back on the reins and the boar kept barreling on, too fast to stop as I made the chariot suddenly stop and then take a sudden turn away from the temple. The boar ran straight into a brick wall, seemingly dazed but otherwise okay.
”Rerouting...”
That temporarily took care of two of my enemies. Now that I had one to worry about, and my horses were pretty steady, I could start this fight in earnest. I kept one hand on the reins as I grabbed my Miku keychain. I unclipped it, and the keychain turned into a katana, with said keychain still on the bottom. It was my sword, Anime (I want to clarify, my friend Jules named it, not me). One of the Spartoi readied a spear and lunged at me. I parried it with my blade, and stabbed at their chest. I felt my blade plunge into their body. I pulled away at it, slashing at it again to tear it apart. To my disappointment though, the monster quickly reformed.
I don't know what I expected, to be honest. They wouldn't be much of an immortal soldier if they died after the first hit. But it bought me valuable time as we pushed forward. Almost as soon as its bones knit back together, it struck at me. I guarded once again, my sword starting to glow brighter and brighter with each strike. Our blades clashed and separated again and again for, I don’t know how long to be honest. I was putting up a good fight, but I just couldn’t gain the upperhand in that fight. For starters, if it was a monster or even a demigod it’d be ten ways to Tartarus at the moment. But, no matter how I sliced or diced it, the immortal soldier kept on coming back. Also, I just wasn't used to multitasking like that, I held on as tightly as I could, but the brief times I practiced Chariot combat with my friends Jules and Cel, I was either driving or fighting. Both at the same time was hard, and I was lucky that the horses were so cooperative.
I heard the whinny of one of the horses ahead as I looked back to the front. No sign of the birds meant that there was a few extra-crispy feather-shooters along the road somewhere, which was good news. But then, I looked out in front and realized that there was a big problem. One of the trucks we left behind somehow got in front of us, blocking the road with their car. Five spartoi were standing outside of the car, swords and spears drawn as they headed the chariot off.
At this moment, I knew I was screwed. I was too fast to just stop. And, even if I did stop, I’d have to deal with all the angry skeleton men chasing me down. I just winced, bracing for impact. But then, I heard a neigh as the horses pulling my chariot started to turn into steel and combined once more. The chariot started to shift, the creak of metal folding and turning. I quickly sheathed my sword as the reins turned into chrome handlebars which I gripped like my life depended on it. The chariot continued to morph until once again it was a motorcycle with flame patterns. I veered as left as I could, narrowly avoiding hitting the side of a nearby building as I sped past the skeletal blockade. I braked, motorcycle now turning back into the chariot form as I turned back and watched as the car that was chasing me slammed straight into the other.
The now pissed spartoi stumbled out of the wreckage and started to scream undead obscenities to each other. I couldn’t speak ghost, but whatever they said seemed to be pretty rude, because both sides started to unsheath their swords and get into an all-out brawl. One of the spartoi sliced the other in two, and they didn’t reform this time as their essence slid into their black sword.
Huh. Well, that was one way to deal with them.
“Whew! Good horses.”
I turned, ready to snap the reins once again, but I stopped as I saw what was waiting for me at the other end of the road. The boar, still very much on my trail stood in front of me. It pawed at the ground in front of it, and my horses started to do the same. I stared at the boar, unsheathing Anime once again as we stared off.
“Keep straight for…500 feet.”
The thing about boars is that they can be pretty deadly. They’re brutish and aggressive, and they go down fighting. You know the crossguard that’s near the pointy end of a spear? That’s so the animal doesn’t run up the spear to take you out with it. You don’t think them being that dangerous, but there’s a reason that dad’s symbol is a boar.
I had to make this quick, and efficient or I’d end up maimed, or worse. I snapped the reins one more time, and the horses started to dash down the street. The boar squealed as it barreled to me. I could see it get closer and closer. I grit my teeth, holding my blade in my right hand as it started to shine more and more brightly. My hand held onto the grip tightly, bracing for my next action.
I’d have one shot at this.
I miss, I’m dead.
I hesitate, I’m dead.
I don’t hit the vitals, I’m dead.
Time started to slow around me as I watched the boar rush at the chariot, enraged as it reached the point where there was no stopping it now. I could see the powerful muscles push and pull, the beast using all its power in an attempt to off me for good. I felt heat coming from the front as all four horses breathed a stream of flames at the swine. The boar kept on charging forwards, through the fire as the flames engulfed it. An angry squeal erupted from the inferno as it lept up from the sea of flames, still on fire as it used its strong legs to clear the horses and go straight for me.
Breathe in
I felt a sense of calm wash over me as I pulled my sword hand back. My blade shined brilliantly, even in the May sun. I watched it fall ever closer to me, the flames still eating away at the flesh. I stared into its ever-angry eyes, burning brighter than the flames surrounding it. I don’t falter. I’ve faced monsters that have crushed my bones. I don’t feel fear. I’ve fought creatures that could have killed me in five seconds. This is it. I need it to be perfect.
Breathe out.
SHING
I swung my blade and a rush of air followed it, making an arc that flew to the boar. I don’t doubt my skills. I simply watch, confident that this will end the monster once and for all. The blast, charged from my fight flew unimpeded. The beast’s chuffs turned into surprised squeal as it sliced the boar cleanly in two, bisecting it from the snout down. I sheathed my sword and put both hands back on the reins, eyes on the road as I barely watched what came next. The flaming boar started to fade into dust, still falling through the air until only a tusk was left. I held out my arm and caught it with my right hand.
“Oh hot, hot!”
I juggled it a bit with one hand before placing it down on the chariot floor. I grinned triumphantly as I realized what happened. Dad tried to test me, to see if I was “worthy” or he genuinely tried to kill me. Either way, I beat him this time, proving to him that I was more. That he underestimated me when we first met, that I was a brave warrior all along. In the end, I proved to him that I could fulfill my Styx oath even past what was expected of me. I laughed as I sped up, I felt pretty good about my victory. I wondered how his face would look, or if I could read his expression past his dumb sunglasses.
But as I rounded the corner, a terrifying sight came to my face as my glee turned to sorrow. I watched with horror as I realized Dad’s influence on the fight kept a more dangerous foe than any before at bay. Now that the fight was over, he had no reason to keep it around, and for once, I wasn’t sure if I could get through this unscathed. I gulped as I put my hands on the reins, not ready to face the impossible challenge alone. I hoped it wouldn’t break me as I prepared what little I had to fight this foe.
”There is an unusual amount of traffic in your area today.”
“Now you tell me…”
None other, than New York traffic.
I’d like to say that I did something else. Like I defeated an army of drakons on my way, or managed to fight off crazed demigods sent by my dad…but no. It was pretty much just traffic the rest of the way there. It was long and arduous, but I managed to make my way over to The Intrepid. After that traffic,I had to say, the amount of crazy drivers was almost San Francisco bad. I’d have taken as many spartoi and boars as dad could throw at me, if it meant I wasn’t drowning in the sea of cars. I drove down Pier 86, feeling a sense of relief as I got closer and closer to the aircraft carrier turned museum. As I got within eyeshot, I realized that dad said to take it to the temple, but not where to drop it off at.
It would be really stupid to end up failing just because I wasn’t sure where to leave dad’s ride. I got off the chariot, and was eyeing the prices of a ticket.
“Adults are thirty-six, Seniors and College Students…thirty four… Oh hey! Children of Ares get in free! Now, how do I wheel dad’s chariot through the front…”
Suddenly the side gate opened, lights flashing and clanging as it automatically retracted. The person standing in the booth waved me over and I hopped back onto the chariot, driving it by cautiously. They were dressed like a security guard, shades covering their eyes as they looked down onto their phone that they were absentmindedly playing with. Eyebrow piercings peeked out from behind the shades. They were tall, looked about early twenties, and seemed like your average bored museum guard, if not for that sorta godly aura I got from them.
“Take the chariot this way, Lord Ares will be at the end of Pier 86. Can’t miss him.”
I eyed the godling suspiciously. They seemed like one of those myriad younger and minor gods I saw when I was on Olympus. Not anyone I’d know, but if they wanted to stop me, it’d be annoying to get past them. They didn’t seem to be that dangerous, at least right now. But when you were a demigod, you learned to be wary of free handouts.
“Uh…look man, I’m going to be honest. I just got through some hellish traffic to get through here. So if like, you’re leading me into a trap or if my godly brothers are going to show up to try and take this, can you just start the fight and save me the trouble? It’s been a long morning, and I just wanna get this over with.”
I stared back at my reflection through their mirrored shades. Growing up, I always thought of myself as gangly and awkward. I could see my messed up hair, tousled from the wind. I stood tall, and although I wasn’t the buffest Ares kid around, you couldn’t call me skinny anymore. I looked almost heroic as I held the reins atop the chariot. Was that how I looked now? The godling shook their head as they chuckled, putting down their phone as they looked at me in the eyes.
“Kid, even for a god like Ares who likes conflict, you don’t do something like that in a temple. You can’t just attack his kid on his own grounds. Plus, it's part of the rules of war to respect neutralized zones. Trust me, you’re home free.”
“Oh. Um, thank you.”
He nodded and went back on his phone. I snapped on the reins and the chariot trotted along, even fire-breathing horses had to follow traffic laws apparently. I was on guard, not taking the godling’s words at face value. Mortals in a daze parted around the chariot, a few snapping pictures at me. I freaked out for a split second before I heard the tourists being in awe at what I heard to be a “vintage bomber”. Dumbfounded, I stopped for a brief second. It didn’t even have wings! But, I could see the mist shimmer around me and for a brief moment, see the silhouette of the plane around the chariot. It was an old fighter, a single propellor with flaming horse art on the nose.
“P-40B Warhawk? Alright, guess we’re working with that.”
I frowned a bit, trying to think if I knew that before this, from a school project or if it was more demigod shenanigans. I was never into fighter jets, but when you’re a demigod sometimes your parent’s godly influence shoves itself into your head and it’s always confusing when it does.
I drove the “plane” to the end of the pier, where I could see my dad sitting down on a barricade, blocking off a massive plane above him. It wasn’t used for war apparently, because I had no clue what type of plane it was. Looked cool though, it was really narrow around the nose end and the wings were all near the back end. He had a big wicked-looking combat knife in his hand that he used to clean his nails. He looked up at me, disinterestedly, before going back down to the knife.
“You’re alive.”
I couldn’t tell from his tone if that was a good or bad thing. It seemed… neutral. Like he was stating the sky was blue. But, overall I’d take that as a good thing, considering our last meeting. I spoke a bit warily, not sure if he was in a good or bad mood considering my victory.
“Uh, so Father. I’m finished with what you-”
“No. You’re not.”
“I’m not!? Do I need to do anything or-”
A moment of panic snuck up into my chest. For a brief moment I was afraid he was going to pull a twelve labors on me, but then he whistled and held out his hand.
“Not until you give me the keys kid, then it’s done.”
I hopped out of the chariot, the reins in my hand turning into keys as the horses went back into their motorcycle form. I somewhat clumsily tossed it to my dad, who grabbed it. He pushed himself off his perch, first making sure his motorcycle was unharmed. Then, he turned to me, eying me up and down as he circled around where I stood. I stood still, at attention as I felt my heart racing in my chest. I felt like a deer, cornered by a wolf just waiting to strike. Yet, the first pang of anxiety soon settled down. If he wanted to take care of me, he would have done so already. Or sent something more dangerous like a Drakon at me when I was driving. I felt my heart leap up into my throat as he clapped a big hand on my shoulder. The gesture wasn’t hostile, if anything, the motion seemed friendly. But his grip was anything but. His hand, like the claws of a tiger dug into my shoulder as he grinned at me.
“I have to say, I thought you were a lost cause, but look at you kid. Took you long enough, but I guess you have enough of me in you after all. Well, a late bloomer is better than being completely useless, but man! You were one of my most pathetic kids when you took that oath. I don’t think I had a kid as wimpy as you in a long time. Well, I’m glad my little nudge helped you keep that oath up after all. It would have been a waste of a perfectly good warrior if you didn’t shape up.”
I looked at him, dumbfounded. He helped me? He didn’t do anything! I wasn’t stupid enough to point it out, but I guess he knew what I was thinking as I felt his grip tighten as he growled.
“Come on, don’t give me that look, kid. Oh, don’t look so surprised. Tip of advice: don’t dip your toes into cards. You have a horrible poker face. Your mom was the same way. But, yes. I helped. Not that kids these days would understand. Parents these days are too soft, including most of us gods. Back in Sparta, we’d leave our kids to fend for themselves. Just give them barely enough food and let them hunt or steal the rest. If they end up dying in the hunt or starved, well that’s fine. They were too weak to do anything of note anyway. You should consider yourself lucky I was generous enough to just turn my back on you.”
He chuckled low, and my blood ran cold as he shook me. I shook my head, fighting off a wave of dizziness as he threatened to take off my arm.
“Oh, but that’s in the past! You passed your agōgē period, all by yourself. Now that is true strength.”
His evil grin widened as he gave me the closest thing to an approved look he’d ever given me. I furrowed my brow as I shook my head. This credit, it wasn’t mine to take, was it? Before I could think, I spoke what was on my mind.
“I’m sorry, but I didn’t do this by myself. Everywhere I went, I had someone to help me out. If it wasn’t for the help from my friends, I don’t think I would be standing here. I didn’t-”
My dad’s good mood instantly soured as his grin warped into a snarl. His grip, although somewhat friendly now seemed dangerously tight as he frustratingly interrupted me.
“Oh for the love of! I’m complimenting you, kid. Look. I don’t care about those other twerps one way or another. Allies are fine enough in war, as long as you don’t make them do all the work. Kid, you’ve gotten strong all on your own, like a true son of mine. Don’t deny you and me the kleos you rightfully deserve ever again. Shut up and just take the honor.”
“I…uh…yes, Dad.”
I was surprised that all it accounted to was a mild scolding. My dad, too seemed to calm down after I agreed with his words, as he went back to a smile. He put his hand back into his pocket as he started to walk up to his chariot. He ran his finger across the chrome finish, taking out a cloth and cleaning off my fingerprints from the metal.
“About your joyride. Not bad, not bad at all. It took you a bit to embrace your birthright, but you ended up not even scratching my ride. Nice. Nice. Saves me the trouble of buffing it out. Now, if you could only stop complaining at everything that opposed you. You’re a man, aren’t you David? Start acting like it. If you think a bag of bones and a pig are hard, just wait until your future. The stronger a warrior gets, the stronger their foes get. Make sure you’re strong enough to stand up against them before you end up a stain on the pavement.”
I heard the engine rev as he got into the seat. He threw a bag at me that I clumsily fumbled with before I fully caught it. I opened it, and a few golden drachmas shined back at me.
“Since your agōgē finished up, consider yourself un-cut off. Even I’m not heartless enough to leave a son of mine stranded in New York. Keep the rest. Feel free to hang around my temple, and help yourself to the gift shop if you want, it’s on the house, happy birthday and all that. Just don’t go overboard.”
He turned the motorcycle, wheeling it around so he could leave the pier. He turned around, giving me a few more parting words he shouted over the roar of the engine.
“Don’t think you’re done yet, David. You got a lot more to grow. Especially now that you can receive my blessings again. What, did you think that taking a good hit was all you can do? You’ll see sooner or later. See ya kid! Don’t disappoint me.”
He revved his engine one more time and took off, leaving me behind on the pier. As I watched my dad leave, I realized that with that resolved, the last of what made my Styx Oath so suffocating was finally finished. A part of me felt that I’d always keep the consequences of it with me. Either dad would continue to disown me, or I’d be horribly injured from my jobs. But, to my surprise, everything worked out alright. I worked as hard as I could, and now everything was over, truly over. I…wasn’t sure how I felt about it. I mean, like obviously I didn’t wanna have them with me for the rest of my life. But, for all of my oath’s lifespan I had the deadline looming overhead, and my expectation was that something would happen to me as a result. I was glad to have it over with, but I never felt that I could relax until now. The feeling of not having the anxiety of my imminent demise was something I wasn’t familiar with, and to be honest I still have trouble relaxing. As he disappeared into the afternoon traffic, I realized that, so too did my previous life.
Maybe…maybe I could afford to enjoy my life now after all.
OOC: And there we have it! The final David storymode relevant to this storyline! I meant to have this yesterday but I didn't see the modmail that gave me the okay until literally an hour ago oop. Which means that yes, the Chariot and Ares both are approved from the mods.
Big thank you to Tiffany's writer, angelspoint for helping me with her parts, I had a blast working with them! Hope you enjoyed David's Victory lap!

So first of all, I'd like to thank this subreddit for getting me acquainted with Kult and all the discount codes and restocks updates. Love you guys for that!
Here's the review:

1. CosRx BHA Toner (10/10): The pores on my nose and surrounding skin were so big, I was convinced you could see it from the moon. Blackheads, sebaceous filaments, you name it I had it. Literally after using the toner for the first time, I could see the difference when my nose was cleaner and softer than a baby's bottom (maybe not as cleaner as the baby's bottom on hindsight lol). If your skin is congested, definitely recommend 100%.
   
2. Advanced Snail Mucin (10/10) : If I had a baby, I would exchange it for this lovely product (please kult bring it back😭😭😭) The gleam on the skin is so good, I don't use filters on my pictures no more. Even on oily skin, it creates a blissful magic.
   

3.Dr G foam cleansing face wash (8/10): I received it as a freebie, so it might be a placebo when I think it really good for my skin. Doesn't strip your skin at all. As an ill informed teenager, I used to think the more stripped your skin feels after face wash, the better it is,so my skin barrier is fucked but this facewash has been good.

1. Huda beauty creamy kohl eyeliner (10/10) : My eyes are really glossy, and no eyelinekajal has remained intact after 30 minutes. Even after using a multitude of baking/caking technique, the running kohl made me look as a strong competitor to monjolika, but Huda goddamnnnn. Even after 5 hours, it stays above my waterline, the pigment glides on my eyes and I couldn't be happier.
   
2. Too Faced Maximum Lip Plumper (9/10) : My lips are medium sized with my bottom lip heavier than the top,so naturally I had to get it cause people were raving about it. As soon as I applied it, it stung like hell. It felt like two red ants were fornicating on my lips, even the menthol wasn't helping much. For a moment I thought I was having an allergic reaction but gradually the pain started decreasing. When I saw my lips in the mirror, they were giving Ms. Kylie Jenner, Bella Hadid who???
   
3. Minimalist Vit C (4/10) : didn't like it at all, it caused purging from the moment I applied it on my skin. Even though I followed it with sunscreen, but eventually the bumps became too much that even Hellen Keller wouldn't read that braille on my face.
   

So that was my review inspired by a post from u/No_Society_4065 . Hope it helps and I'd like you guys to share yours so we can all make better choices.

Hello everyone. I hope you’re staying well and healthy because sickness while pregnant can be really hard.
I’ve been to the doctor today because I have a fever and flu symptoms (headache, my eyes hurt and swollen, nasal congestion but without runny nose). And the issue was addressed as: Fever and acute non-recurrent pansinusitis.
I have no problem with the symptoms I can live with that but not with the fever. I’m 12 weeks pregnant and I’ve been taking Tylenol for 3 days to lower my fever. The maximum my fever reached was about 38.6 C (~ 101.5 F) but most of the time it’s 38 C (~ 100.4 F) and these numbers before taking Tylenol.
I’m freaking out. They told me it’s okay to take Tylenol every 6 hours and to drink a lot of liquids. I’m freaking out because of what I’ve been reading about fever and Tylenol during this stage of pregnancy.
I’ve never had fever that goes this long with taking medicine. My midwife told me this could last for 5 days.
What can I do to lower my fever? Please if anyone had a similar issue with a positive experience in the past share it with it me because I’m feeling down. I’ve been avoiding medications my whole life I can’t believe I’m taking them in pregnancy.

Hi. My 17 month old has recently decided to go for the gauntlet of diseases that started with what we thought might be pink eye but now everything is draining, she’s teething, she’s got congestion from the drainage, randomly got hives this morning, and when we went to the drs they said her ear was a little pink too. Fml. (Also now I’m sick, thanks bebe😅) SO I have like 4 different medicines to give her throughout the day plus eye drops. The only problem, well not only but the biggest, is she doesn’t like juice. She doesn’t really like anything sweet. I mean come on man you’re really telling me you don’t like apple juice?! No milk, chocolate milk, koolaid, pudding, apple sauce, nothing! We just took a month of every thing under the sun to fix her constipation because every damn thing the drs. recommended revolved around juice or sugar water. (Thank you miralax) and now I just can’t do it again. There has got to be another way. I’m exhausted. Help please!

19 (20 early July)
Female
5’1 1/2
124lbs
White
Mostly the last few years but especially the last 4 months.
Colorado
I (F) turn 20 at the beginning of July and was vaguely diagnosed with something called ‘CCOA’ or also known as Complex Clinical Overlapping Autoimmune Syndrome. So far, I exhibit a multitude of symptoms that overlap with many different conditions. Rheumatoid Arthritis is one that is at the top right now. I just started a combination of Prednisone and Methocarbamol. I have meloxicam for after I finish the Prednisone. Majority of my blood work has ruled out many things and has been normal. I had a low C4 level, fluctuating levels with some things relating to kidney function, and consistently low Vitamin D. My symptoms include folliculitis with no bacteria (diagnosed through skin biopsy after a month of a terrible rash), swollen lymph nodes consistently along with constant upper respiratory symptoms such as coughing/swollen throat/congestion, along with consistently always being sick and getting really sick, migraines, gastrointestinal issues but I had a colonoscopy/endoscopy over 2 years ago and they only found mild inflammation and biopsy was normal and my endoscopy showed my throat was swollen so they dilated it. I have experienced a mild malar rash on my face multiple times, my hands and legs are unsteady and I get muscle spasms, my hands and joints swell and burn and hurt, I have had two episodes of scleritis (once in each eye) that lasted a month each time, my hair is thinning on my scalp and has some noticeable bald spots when I put it up (at least to me), I also have POTS with the added symptom of bad hypotension. I get reoccurring UTIs and infections that most of the time antibiotics are ineffective for long term because my upper respiratory symptoms never seem to really go away. I have tried antihistamines too. My pain has gotten out of hand this year and is impacting my ability to function. I am sick and fatigued all the time and the fatigue makes me so tired I have to sleep or rest no matter where I am. The Prednisone is working for the inflammation but I am still achy. I am at a loss. I have a 14 month old daughter and a partner who need me and I feel scared that I will continue to get sicker and sicker as I already am. I am crossing my fingers desperately that this third referral to a rheumatologist gets approved since some recent results came back abnormal.

I (F) turn 20 at the beginning of July and was vaguely diagnosed with something called ‘CCOA’ or also known as Complex Clinical Overlapping Autoimmune Syndrome. So far, I exhibit a multitude of symptoms that overlap with many different conditions. Rheumatoid Arthritis is one that is at the top right now. I just started a combination of Prednisone and Methocarbamol. I have meloxicam for after I finish the Prednisone. Majority of my blood work has ruled out many things and has been normal. I had a low C4 level, fluctuating levels with some things relating to kidney function, and consistently low Vitamin D. My symptoms include folliculitis with no bacteria (diagnosed through skin biopsy after a month of a terrible rash), swollen lymph nodes consistently along with constant upper respiratory symptoms such as coughing/swollen throat/congestion, along with consistently always being sick and getting really sick, migraines, gastrointestinal issues but I had a colonoscopy/endoscopy over 2 years ago and they only found mild inflammation and biopsy was normal and my endoscopy showed my throat was swollen so they dilated it. I have experienced a mild malar rash on my face multiple times, my hands and legs are unsteady and I get muscle spasms, my hands and joints swell and burn and hurt, I have had two episodes of scleritis (once in each eye) that lasted a month each time, my hair is thinning on my scalp and has some noticeable bald spots when I put it up (at least to me), I also have POTS with the added symptom of bad hypotension. I get reoccurring UTIs and infections that most of the time antibiotics are ineffective for long term because my upper respiratory symptoms never seem to really go away. I have tried antihistamines too. My pain has gotten out of hand this year and is impacting my ability to function. I am sick and fatigued all the time and the fatigue makes me so tired I have to sleep or rest no matter where I am. The Prednisone is working for the inflammation but I am still achy. I am at a loss. I have a 14 month old daughter and a partner who need me and I feel scared that I will continue to get sicker and sicker as I already am. I am crossing my fingers desperately that this third referral to a rheumatologist gets approved since some recent results came back abnormal.

Just curious if anyone else experiences this, and if anyone has an explanation. During the allergy season, I’m in rough shape. Congestion, itchy eyes, the whole nine yards. As far as the congestion goes, I’m only congested when I’m indoors. When I’m outside I can breathe perfectly fine. Why is this?

Hi all. 27, Male, 5'8", 193Lbs, White
The Backstory:
Starting early March, I started getting extremely lightheaded at the gym. I knew there was some expectation of lightheadedness since I train relatively hard (powerlifting + heavy body building sets, frequent train to failure / RPE 10 if you're familiar with those terms), however, one particular day mid-set, my vision went completely blurry, I smelled blood/iron (although it could have literally have been the bar that was just in my hands) and went ice cold. I was 100% confident I was about to pass out but I completely came to, and with some dizziness and jitteriness, I was able to calm down and leave the gym. I went back home, was feeling better, a buddy invited me out for late lunch/drinks and I started feeling better once the drink hit. I took a break for the gym, and went for another gym session about a week and a half later, and something similar but not as serious happened on a high-rep, low weight bench press set. I think it was a final back off set of 95lbs until failure, which ended up being around 25-27 reps. Once I sat up from the bench, I was completely lightheaded and dizzy, and had to go sit down as I felt like I was about to pass out again. This was St Patricks day, and I went out with my buddy again, but this time I was feeling fine and enjoyed the rest of the day. I took a longer hiatus from the gym at this point.
Starting Mar 23rd, I started feeling "off" on my drive out to a car show. Once I was there, after about a 4 hour drive, I started experiencing dizziness inducing anxiety. I couldn't really describe it, but it was something I had experienced before so I recognized it as anxiety. Most common trigger was a face-to-face interaction with a person. No idea why this was a trigger, but it's happened before. On Mar 26th, the symptoms got way worse and the resulting anxiety caused tremendous panic attacks. I started feeling off mid-day at work. I started my drive home where something felt so out of place, but I couldn't put my finger on it. I was driving tremendously slow, and a panic attack started settling in. With my previous gym experience, I was considering low blood sugar. so I made it to an urgent care. Once I got there, and this may have been a result of the anxiety, but I couldn't think straight or form any sentences properly. I was completely forgetting words and stuck in a brain fog. They gave me a finger stick and it came back normal (99). They ended up doing a full blood panel and everything came back normal with the exception of elevated triglycerides (202mg/dl). I ended up leaving my car at the urgent care, and after I was feeling calm, I got a ride to go get my car. During this car ride and driving my car back, I felt extremely dizzy. I still felt out of place, super dehydrated, heavy eyes, and head pressure. The few days leading up to the 26th, and for a week or 2 after, I was chugging water like no tomorrow. I normally am very bad at keeping myself hydrated, but I was knocking down almost 3L per day as if it wasn't enough.
First stop after this was seeing an ENT. I've had BPPV in the past, so some sort of vertigo was my first guess. The ENT said I had no congestion and showed no other signs, i.e. perfectly healthy. He recommended a neurologist. I then saw my PCP and he recommended SSRI's. I did not take the SSRI's, but he did also prescribe me 30 days of 0.5mg xanax, which for a short time I was taking up to 0.25mg max per day as needed. He also recommended a neurologist. I went to the neurologist who ordered a brain MRI, which came back normal.
One extra bit of information, in the first week of March, I purchased a used mini fridge for my bedroom. Around early/mid April, I got a whiff of refrigerant after opening the fridge for the first time in about a week or 2. I used a refrigerant leak detector and it picked up a leak, so I discarded the fridge entirely. It seems symptoms started to improve after this, but it's been about a month at this point.
As well, prior to this, I was taking supplements. I am now taking none of this. They were:

• 150mg KSM-66 (Ashwagandha) - Per Day (I've heard of people having anxiety spells after stopping KSM-66)
• 5mg Creatine - Per Day
• 5000IU D3 - Per Day
• 1000mcg B12 - Per Day
• Multivitamin (Vit A 450mcg, Vit C 67.5 mg, Vit D 25 mcg, Vit E 15mg, Niacin 16mg, Vitamin B6 1.3mg, Folate 400mcg, Vitamin B12 6mcg, Biotin 3 mcg, Zinc 5.5mg, Chromium 35mcg, Fish Oil 227mg) - Per Day
• Daily caffeine intake 200-500mg (via monster energy drinks)

In Summary:
I can't drive as a result of some sort of dizziness. Some days are perfectly normal, but most days, the dizziness often triggers anxiety. If there's no dizziness, there's no anxiety. I've been working from home since Mar 26th, and stopped my 2nd job of driving uber eats. Sometimes I can drive myself to the gym and have a lighter workout and it sets the tone for a better day and have been able to drive. Otherwise, I'm usually a passenger to do what I need to do. Some days that have felt better, I've gone for 20-30 minute trips, just for the next day to not be able to make it up the block without a dizziness inducing panic attack. Sometimes it just feels like general anxiety and taking the xanax as mentioned before does help, but sometimes it has little to no affect. I've had the "off" feeling but the xanax made me simply not freak out about it.
Despite the ENT saying there's no congestion, I had been feeling constant congestion. I started using flonase to clear my sinuses and feel like I can breathe. However, even with that, I still feel a pressure in my sinuses and forehead, dry/heavy eyes, and what seems like a breathing restriction, as like I'm breathing through a straw. I can take deep breaths through my mouth just fine.
I'm feeling that my dizzy spells are either related to sinuses or lack of oxygen of some sort, and I'm running out of ideas because my life has been completely flipped upside down. I was feeling good yesterday, but as of this afternoon, I had wanted to go grab lunch but I had the super heavy feeling in my head, and once I got into my car, even before driving, the dizziness started kicking in so I ended up ordering in and writing this post instead. It sounds like the simple answer is "it's just anxiety", but I genuinely feel something else is wrong, and I'm running out of places to check.
In terms of the sinusitis symptoms, I have had consistently:

• Fatigue (I started off by sleeping a LOT more, knocking out at 4/5pm, now regardless of fatigue I can't sleep or can't stay asleep)
• Headache
• Pressure in the face/behind the eyes/heavy eyes
• Nasal stuffiness

Occasionally:

• Cough
• Sore throat

I also had COVID for the first time in December '23. Home test showed the faintest line, so I went to urgent care where rapid came back negative and PCR came back positive. I had no symptoms, I only tested due to a request of elderly visiting for Christmas. I am not vaccinated.

Hi, I've (20F) recently had a spinal fusion surgery 2 months ago. I've been living with my grandmother who is a nurse as I've needed help with doing some things.
I've been feeling very unwell since the surgery. I've told my grandmother and said that I'd like to see a doctor but she just gives me reasons for everything saying that I'm anxious and having panic attacks or allergies or being affected by the anaesthesia still.
Some of the things she tells me might be correct but I'd like to see a doctor because the symptoms that I've been having don't seem normal.
I've been feeling better since I stopped taking pain medication, anti inflammatory and muscle relaxers (about a month ago) but I'm still not feeling normal. I don't remember everything I was taking, but it included norflex, palexia, valium, endone, tarjan, and some others I can't remember.
I've been having nosebleeds frequently, they don't last for very long usually but they happen once or twice a day.
The skin around my nose feels very dry and peeling, it feels like that all through my nose, eyes and sinuses. When I wake up my vision's blurry because my eyes won't focus. My eyes hurt a lot. I'm more pale than usual.
I've lost weight even though I'm eating significantly more than I did before the surgery. I would eat 2 small meals usually before and weighed 44kg, now I eat 3 larger meals with snacks, I'm hungry all the time and I weigh 41kg.
I feel dizzy a lot and like my hearts beating really fast, it's gotten better since about a week or 2 after I stopped the medication. Before when I would stand up sometimes I'd feel the room spinning really fast, my vision would go weird, my heart would beat fast and hard and I could feel it in my stomach, my chest would feel tight and I felt like I couldn't breathe and I'd feel like I was about to drop.
When I would stand up for too long I'd start getting a painful tightness in my chest and when I'd breathe it hurt like it was being restricted and I'd feel short of breath, I'd have to stop whatever I was doing to lay down and it would stop after a few minutes.
I've had flu like symptoms, a wet cough feeling like im coughing something up from my lungs, runny and very itchy nose, congestion, sore ears, mouth, nose and throat, the skin around my mouth and nose is dry and peeling.
I've had some acid reflux, nausea and feeling like my throat is swollen.
I was having trouble urinating at the same time as the breathing problems, it was very slow and would take about three times as long as usual.
I'm feeling better than I was, but I'm concerned that I'm still feeling unwell even though I'm not taking any medication anymore. I'd like to see a doctor but any time I tell my nan about any of the symptoms she acts like it's nothing and tells me to take vitamins or avoid stress and relax (I don't feel stressed at all). I've said a few times about wanting to see a doctor and she says it's just anxiety and doesn't do it.
I've always had problems with dizziness and my heart rate and low blood pressure but it's felt a lot worse since I've had the surgery. I've had an ecg and halter monitor in the past and they said that I had an idiopathic arythmia but that it's common for girls my age and I shouldn't be concerned about it.
Edit: I should mention that I was having these symptoms since I got out of the hospital, but they got worse (especially the breathing, heart rate and extreme dizziness, trouble urinating) after I stopped taking the medications (I did it gradually advised by my surgeon).
The surgery was for scoliosis.

I have never been to NY, so I cannot say one way or another about that city. I am from SW Ohio, but my husband being military, we have been all over.
Just the way she gushes about it, claims many times the city is her boyfriend, when Big is leaving for Napa, she says"Aren't you just going to miss it?" with a starry eyed look on her face.
But from what I have read about and seen on shows and TV, I can tell you NY would not be for me. Too many people, too congested, loud, trash all over.
Are you "in love" with your city? Sometimes when I am driving, the day feels rights, everything is great and I feel how lucky I am to be here.. this is home .. born and raised and retired here. I have lived in California, the coast of Mississippi, Virginia Beach, twice in eastern North Carolina, Northern Florida, Texas, and came back to SW Ohio to retire. How about you all?