This Redhead's Baclofen Thread

[redhead77]

This Redhead's Baclofen Thread

The rainbow chili isn't too exciting, but I created the name for my kids. It was to entice them to eat it. I like to put extra veggies in my chili for extra nutrition, of course. I was chopping veggies and they were asking one day (years ago). That's what I named it. It sounds kind of magical. It breaks down to this:

1-2 lbs of grass fed ground beef (mine was from TJ's ) brown

32 ounces or so of black beans (really however much, or whatever beans you like.) black

A large can of tomatoes (I like Muir Glen). You could also use your frozen garden tomatoes at this point too. I also use a can of tomato paste (again Muir Glen). And a smaller can of fire roasted tomatoes (Muir Glen to go with the last of my garden tomatoes :upset. red

Chopped yellow and green peppers (jalapenos too if you like spicey). Yellow and green

A large purple onion. Or whatever onion works. Purple is a version of indigo and violet, right?.

A chopped sweet potato (yeah, I know sounds weird, but you can't even tell, and it packs some extra nutrition in your chili!) orange

4-5 (at least) cloves of fresh garlic (yes, we like garlic. We don't care how we smell. It's good for us!)

Tons of chili powder and cumin to taste. Kosher or sea salt to taste. I'm wondering if I'm forgetting anything. I don't do recipes well. I've never followed a recipe in my life. I adjust everything. Cooking is a form of chemistry, right? :H But my kids love it, it's always a hit around here.

Ne, you could make it vegetarian by adding more beans and veggies and forgetting the meat.

Anyway, I can't talk too much about what's going on with me tonight. My son has an appt at Pfeiffer tomorrow. I don't know if any of you read what I wrote about Pfeiffer on the Relief with Ritalin thread, but they are supposed to help people with ADD, mental illness, ect. with vitamin and nutrient therapy. I'm really excited to finally be going. I do have to admit, however, that I kind of dropped the ball. The health questionaire (which is supposed to be filled out and mailed or faxed before the visit) well, I just filled his out (tonight and it was in depth). My printer was broken and I forgot as always. I mean it's been in the back of my mind, but it wasn't until recently that I started really thinking about it, and then I realized it's tomorrow! If they turn us away, I'm lucky enough they are very close to me, so we can reschedule. Unlike the people who come from far away. I hope that doesn't happen. I'm just going to explain that I have ADD too! And I'm overwhelmed with everything. Cross your fingers they'll take us tomorrow.

I luckily have a renter now who lives in my basement. He loaned me his printer, so I could get this health questionaire printed. He's someone I've known for quite sometime...my brother in law. He's separated from his wife, well that's a long story and it's late. He has the same issues as my ex (and on top of it, he's bipolar, but finally on meds.) He's been very good around here, though. He doesn't infringe on my space, and he's now organized and cleaned my basement. He'll live here for three months or so, and it seems he's working it out with his wife. We'll see! It's always so complicated.

Sorry again, if this isn't what is expected. It's not my fault this time. I didn't bring my thread up. (Taw!).

xxoo,

Redhead

EDIT: Oh, I know what I forgot. The modafinil! It rocks, but I only got it a week ago. I seem to get my sh*t together when I take it (big time!). I've also only taken it three days this last week. I'm scared to waste it, it's so expensive. I could use it everyday, need it everyday. I just love it folks!!

[redhead77]

This Redhead's Baclofen Thread

OK. One side effect of modafinil appears to be insomnia. It is used for narcolepsy, so I guess I'm not surprised. I took my first dose today very early in the morning. It worked great, but then I felt it wore off later in the day. I took another dose very late in the afternoon (4:30 still had much to do) and now I'm having trouble. It's 1:30am here and I'm still not asleep (and not even feeling close to it!). I've taken to chewing up some Xanax. Yes, I took .25 orally with no relief, and now I'm chewing up half tabs at a time to hopefully knock myself out! No worries, I took Xanax for years. I've taken well over a milligram at a time, but I'm hoping it wouldn't take nearly that much now. This is ridiculous! So, tomorrow (or whenever I decide I need to take it next) I'll have a new plan. Maybe I'll try 200mg at once again, rather than trying to spread my dose. 100 mg earlier and then 100 mg later. It's just plain no good that way. (for me )

Love ya's again.

Hopefully, nighty night soon.

Redhead

[Ne/Neva Eva]

This Redhead's Baclofen Thread

It is, as always, really great to hear about what's going on, Red.

Sorry about the insomnia.

The chili sounds great. I'm going to substitute sweet potatoes for a couple of dishes that call for white potatoes this week. I think I've fallen in love with sweet potatoes.

As to the insurance info: I am pretty sure that they'll be happy to see you either way, you know? But you'll find out soon enough...

As much as I hate to admit it, and am reluctant to continue it, it looks as though this whole nutrition thing I'm on is making a really big difference in my energy level and ability to focus. It's too true! ugh. And I'm also pretty sure I'm dropping lbs. (or kgs, as the case may be.) Nice bonus, that.

Let me (us) know about the results of your testing, will you?

And where are you with the bac and the SEs?

:l

[SlipperyPete]

This Redhead's Baclofen Thread

So what's the pot of gold at the end of dinner, red? Sounds great, and I love spiciness. I douse a lot of my food in Dave's ghost pepper hot sauce, the hottest sauce in the world. I don't even notice the heat anymore. My tolerance is downright sickening.

redhead77;1245423 wrote: I don't do recipes well. I've never followed a recipe in my life. I adjust everything. Cooking is a form of chemistry, right?Agreed. Measuring stuff is too much work, and takes you out of the moment, ya know? When doing something as primal as cooking, it's best to stay focused You gotta show us pictures of it, with sea salt of course. Quit picking on Taw, though:boxer:

Ne/Neva Eva;1245534 wrote: The chili sounds great. I'm going to substitute sweet potatoes for a couple of dishes that call for white potatoes this week. I think I've fallen in love with sweet potatoes.

Me too, with some pastured butter :h You can imagine my disappointment when I discovered that Costco didn't have humongous bags of them.

Ne/Neva Eva;1245534 wrote: As much as I hate to admit it, and am reluctant to continue it, it looks as though this whole nutrition thing I'm on is making a really big difference in my energy level and ability to focus. It's too true! ugh. And I'm also pretty sure I'm dropping lbs. (or kgs, as the case may be.) Nice bonus, that.

That's exactly right. With Paleo, my energy levels have skyrocketed, my mental acuity is sharper than ever, I'm never hungry, and I'm incredibly in tune with my body. And the fact that my body is looking crazy good is just that, a nice bonus

[redhead77]

This Redhead's Baclofen Thread

I finally fell asleep the other night, but it was late. Well after 2am. The modafanil works great, but I'll never take it late in the day again!

I'm glad you're feeling better on your cleaner diet, Ne. I think if I made the chili vegetarian, I'd use all kinds of different beans. To give it texture and even more color. I'll bet you're dropping lbs. That's the good part of diets like these.

SP, I'm not trying to beat up Taw. I dig Taw! She rocks. Where is she, btw? If I took pictures of my chili while cooking it, this would definitely fall under the definition of a blog! :H

We were able to get in to our appt. They didn't give me a hard time about not having the health history faxed in. The meeting with the doctor was comprehensive...about an hour. My son will be going on a casein free diet first (SP, there's no butter allowed on a casein free diet :upset and then he will add in a gluten free diet after about 2 months. To make things easier for him (he almost started crying in the office, he loves pizza and she mentioned that we are often intolerant to what we crave the most! :H) I've decided we are all going to be on the same diet. He won't feel left out that way, and I tend to eat a diet that's similar, but with butter! He'll also be on a hypoglycemic diet (no simple sugars, frequent high protein snacks).

Ne, insurance won't cover the treatment there. It's considered alternative medicine. It's $800 upfront, and I knew this ahead of time. I've put the money aside for it. I can't complain about the cost too much. They see patients from all over the world. Turkey, Italy, China, many, many countries. They see patients from Cananda nearly every day. The cost these folks must come up with for travel to the clinic, lodging, lab costs (since we wouldn't take their insurance, and this is the only thing my insurance will cover), and missed time from work. It's worth it though. They have amazing success rates. She told me the only thing they can't improve at this point is OCD. OCD is resistant to vitamin therapy. I think for parents especially of autistic children, ones who don't speak, engage, and rock in a corner, the parents are willing to travel to the ends of the earth for help. They do, and they usually get it there. They continue to work with these folks. People from other countries can order their supplements long after the visit. They've been doing this for 30 years, and have research on thousands of patients.

My son had a huge battery of blood work. Some of it I was familiar with and there were some tests I wasn't. I meant to take a copy of the lab req to look them up, but I then forgot. I'll know when I get the results. Some will take some time. She already suspects he may have pyroluria. This is a condition that causes major zinc wasting in the urine. Patients that have it sometimes need a couple of hundred milligrams of zinc a day. They also need large amounts of B6. He gave a urine sample that will test for kryptopyroles in his urine. If he has it, then he got it from me, so I'll know I have it too. He's also being tested for levels of zinc and copper in his blood. Along with vitamin D. There is a large body of research at this point that indicates vitamin D deficiency is linked to depression and other things. It will be interesting to see since he's never been an alcoholic...yet.

After his initial lab work she wanted him to start on a few supps. The rest will be added once the results are discovered. He is going to take a multi that is made by them called Primer SD. It consists of C, E, B6, magnesium, zinc, and manganese. He'll also take GABA 500 mg two times a day. I mentioned I didn't think oral GABA crossed the blood brain barrier well, and she said, yes, it's true, but increasing blood levels seems to work. She also told me that we need zinc to make GABA. Patients with low zinc can't make adequate GABA, and they won't make as much serotonin either. I thought that was a very interesting tidbit, since I'm taking high amounts of a drug that affects GABA. He'll also be taking Evening Primrose Oil. A gram a day. I found out that it is just as easily absorbed if rubbed in the skin as it is taken orally. The only oil based supp that isn't is fish oil. But who wants to smell like a fish anyway?

I was trying to decide if I should write about this here in my thread, or under the Relief with Ritalin thread. I decided on here for now. And maybe Beatle will read it. I know she'd be very interested in this. Sorry to not respond to your last question to me, Beatle. I know you don't come around much, and I should have responded. Yes, to the phosphatidyl serine. I took it every day.

This might be strange language and not particularily interesting to some of you. It's what's on my mind at the moment, and I'm sure anyone with ADHD or other issues will be interested in the results, and the other effects of the treatment.

I'm going to post my list of supps soon, and come back to answer your question about where I am with bac too, Ne. But I'm out of time for now. And I don't want this to get too long.

Have a good day or evening everyone!

Redhead

[Ne/Neva Eva]

This Redhead's Baclofen Thread

Nice job, Red. He's a lucky kid and you're a force to be reckoned with. Thanks for the info. I'm riding his (your) coattails for awhile...
Which I suppose means I can stop feeling like I'm betraying myself when I have a piece of complex-carb bread. And instead can transfer my angst to the lovely block of parmesan, et. al. in the special place reserved for fine cheeses.
'cause seriously? Casein? Why did that have to mean cheese??? (I had to come home and look it up.)

Anyway, back to you...

[SlipperyPete]

This Redhead's Baclofen Thread

redhead77;1246583 wrote:
If I took pictures of my chili while cooking it, this would definitely fall under the definition of a blog! :HDa Nile is more than just a river in Egypt, Red

redhead77;1246583 wrote: (SP, there's no butter allowed on a casein free diet :upset

If Is were around, she'd push her CO agenda on you (which would actually be a great replacement for butter in a lot of things).

redhead77;1246583 wrote: And I don't want this to get too long.

How long can your...err.."posts" get?

[Bruunhilde]

This Redhead's Baclofen Thread

Hey Red!

I have all the symptoms of pyroluria too, I know we've discussed this in the past. My only difference is I'm low in copper, when pyroluriacs are high typically. I didn't get the pee test because all they do is supplement you which I do. I'm on 100mg of zinc and 2mg copper plus B and other stuff.

I'm interested to hear how this progresses for you and your son. !

[Bruunhilde]

This Redhead's Baclofen Thread

PS. Don't take zinc unless you've got a full tummy. Makes me sick!

[redhead77]

This Redhead's Baclofen Thread

Oh, my "posts", or should we call them chapters can get longer, SP! :H Yes, if Isolde were here she'd be reminding me of coconut oil, which is a great alternative.

The clinic gave us lists of alternatives. They even gave us names of where to buy things. It's mostly TJ's and Whole Foods. Spreads made with expeller pressed oils (such as safflower). It'll be okay. My grocery bills though, I can't even think about it. :upset: When I told the nanny about this, you should have seen her face. She didn't look happy (I've taken to buying things I never would because she lives here). She seems to be onboard now. It's either that or quit, I guess. Not that I would be okay with the latter.

Bruun, 100 mg of zinc is a lot! Are you feeling better since you started taking it? Do you notice a difference? Thanks for the tip on taking it with a full tummy! I'm just taking 25 mg a day, which I was worried about doing until I get tested. Supplementing zinc has always made me nervous. Even though I'm almost positive I need it (maybe a lot of it!).

[RudyB]

This Redhead's Baclofen Thread

red, and everybody, hii!

i am trying to get myself to sleep here, amidst a daily-changing world which keeps the z's at bay all too often, and i find myself on your thread. i wanted to chime in and say 'well how-dee-doo-dee red!' good goin' on your taking care of your son! it's a lot of work to be a good parent, especially when a child needs special attention, and it looks to me like you're doing a whole world of justice to your offspring. good idea to have you all on the same diet. amazing the research and investigation it takes you to figure out how to do right by your little one's brain and general chemistry! good for you, dear.

your story resonates with me especially tonight, since this afternoon i met w the folks at my son's school who wisely counseled me to seek professional input about how to settle the custody dispute i now find myself in. there are so many avenues to take in our various challenges in being a mom. may we always have the strength to take one that may have required extra legwork, but to take one which, in the end, serves our children best. good golly miss molly, it ain't a job for the faint of heart, this mothering!

i betcha anything that your diligence in serving your son will pay enormous dividends in his overall, life-long happiness and health. (your nanny might even learn something in the process, and take it back home to oklahoma with her!)

good you have a decent familial tenant. funny you should mention that; i'm ready to ready my house (once i occupy it again, if not -by some trickery- before then) for a roommate. a few hundred bucks a month through that avenue will go a long way toward paying off the refinancing i'll be doing to get out of this mess of a marriage. amazing what we can do to make do, huh?!

okay, i'm off out! i'm sure there's much more i'd like to say, but i'll leave it at this for now. just thinking of you, red, and rooting you on.

xo rudy

[Bruunhilde]

This Redhead's Baclofen Thread

Hi Red,

I'm on and off AL so much its hard to tell what ANY supplement does except the heavy duty B complex for my hair/skin/nails.

Right now I'm off AL but I'm experiencing the wonders and challenges of AF which means anything I say about zinc will be colored by my AFness. I'm not very in touch with my body when I'm drinking and alcohol so overwhelms any other good or bad feeling, there's no info to share there.

I just popped a pill, and yesterday I was struggling to focus on some training, we'll see how I do today with the rest of it. If I feel completely different in an hour than I do now, I'll figure its the zinc but it could be the B which I popped half an hour ago. Duh.

Sorry I'm not much help!

Ru, silver lining for the refi issue is the rates have never been lower. I'm thinking of refi'ing yet again... 15yr for 3.2? That would shave off 1.5% for me.

[LadyLush]

This Redhead's Baclofen Thread

Bruun,
Refinancing too! All time low. I have only 8 years left on my loan but will knock off $600 plus a month if I refinance for 15!
Where are the men looking for us women with credentials? I got a house, a job, etc..

Hey Ru! Glad you are okay! You can get through this sweetie!

Red, You are really awesome no matter what... with your kids. Really awesome!

(My mom is okay!)


Love all you guys
LL:l

[taw]

This Redhead's Baclofen Thread

Just read to get caught up....geez I need to read here more often! First I am glad Red you and your son are good! He is very lucky! Bruun, same boat here! Ne, I need that healthy diet! LL, always good to see you.... SP, liked that song! post another!

Red, so glad you are keeping your thread alive! I know the pain and angst of foreclosure....but there are ways to help now that I did not have....or did not know about! I hope we can find a way to help you keep your house.

Hope you are feeling better and everything else has settled down!!??

I need some advice on supps and healthy eating/cooking! Any words of wisdom?

Hope your son is adjusting well!! keep posting! inquiring minds want to know!

[redhead77]

This Redhead's Baclofen Thread

Hi Everyone!

My thread is just a bustle of activity! I worked a bunch the last couple of days, and I was going to try to pop on here last night after work. It turns out we got a snow storm. Luckily, I leave work well after rush hour, but it was still a mess driving home. It took me much longer than usual. Then I make it here and realize my driveway is full of snow. I decided to try to pull in anyway, I wouldn't want to leave my car on the street with the plows. I could barely get in it! My neighbors saw me struggling and told me to back out and they'd snow blow it for me. So that's what happened. They snow blowed me out, and I just shoveled the walk and the area up by the garage. I have a snowblower too, but I didn't have the foresight to make sure it was gassed up and ready. I'm glad the universe delivers kindness when you need it!

Ru! I'm glad you popped in. Yes, mothering a troubled child is tough work. I feel it takes much of my free time and that I have little of to begin with. It will all be worth it, I hope. I hope he has a life free of what I've experienced. That's my goal for him. The other reason I couldn't get on here last night is my nanny wanted to talk. She's both nervous and excited about our upcoming diet changes. She's young, but does suffer from a few problems herself, and she's wondering if these diet changes might help her too. We talked a lot about the plan last night. We are today going as a family to buy alternative milks and cheeses. That's where we'll start. Everyone will go to Whole Foods and explore. I am going to buy a bread machine (and she's an excellent baker, where I am not) and start to experiment with flours (this will save me from spending $5 for a small loaf of bread). I already have alternative grains, so today we take inventory and then start to stock up. We are going to try to make a weeks worth of menus and then spend one day a week prepping for everything. It's important to make this diet as varied and interesting as possible, so everyone enjoys it.

Ru, I'm not sure what you mean by professional input, but if you mean counseling, I don't think this would be bad advice in the least. I had to do the same thing when I separated. It wasn't for a custody battle (he knows he doesn't have guts to raise 3 kids), but it was for my sanity. My son also had some counseling. He unfortunately witnessed some things he shouldn't have (so I know about your worries with what your sons been through.) It was the best thing I ever did for myself. It was my first step towards recovery. It allowed me to finally start thinking about how to get off the alcohol. I'm rooting for you too! I can imagine with all this going on, that things must be very confusing for you.

Bruun, I think the zinc/B6 method can take months to help (although some people notice almost instant relief.) It depends on how severly you are deficient. So hang in there. I'm not sure in this case if popping a pill will ever tell us a difference right away. I think it eventually gets where the days are just better in general. That's what they told me at the clinic. That vitamin therapy requires patience.

LL, good luck on your refinance (you too Bruun if you decide to go that route and not sell). Six hundred a month is a ton of money. I'm glad your mom is doing okay. I'm sure there are plenty of men who like a women with good credentials. Just don't pick one who actually needs your credentials because he doesn't have his own.

Taw! There you are! I am feeling better. I'm back to normal. I would say just start slow if you're going to change how you eat and with supps. I would start with a good multi vitamin if you don't take anything now. There are many brands to choose from. Some people take All One around here, but that's a powder and you might not like how it tastes. Some good brands of supps are Now, Carlson, and I've always liked Life Extension. The clinic really likes Now and Carlson too. And Nordic Naturals for fish oil. There are other brands too, and your local health food store is probably very good with recommendations. Maybe that's something we could do together...If you eat a lot of processed food then maybe pick one thing to change. Say if it's frozen pizza then try to find a pizza with whole grain and veggies on top. Just to develop your palate and learn to like healthier options. It's hard to do, but oh so worth it.

This post has taken me over an hour. My kids miss me, I don't see them when I work. I leave before they wake up and return after they're in bed (except sometimes I can say goodnight to my oldest). They are not accepting me ignoring them right now! I've let my nanny sleep in, so I'm on duty. I've got to get busy, and I'm wondering with all the changes how much I'll be able to post. But maybe I can drop by the campfire tonight. There's some very interesting talk there that I would love to comment on!

:l Redhead