# This is what she does



## Mark Parrott (Oct 21, 2016)

Just had to capture this. Wife on the laptop falls asleep whilst typing.  She often does this. Just flakes out without warning.


----------



## Martin Canty (Oct 21, 2016)

If that were my wife then my life expectancy could be measured in seconds..... She does not even like having her photo taken when awake.....


----------



## mikeyB (Oct 21, 2016)

Change sex, change computer to iPad, and that's me, that is


----------



## Amigo (Oct 21, 2016)

Ooo you're a brave man Mark. At first I thought the dog had jumped on her knee and snuggled in but it's a cushion. Hope you had a nice cuppa ready for her waking up


----------



## Mark Parrott (Oct 21, 2016)

Ooh, yes, nice cuppa.  That's a good idea.  Oh, she's awake!  She knows nothing of this!  SSSHHH!


----------



## AlisonM (Oct 21, 2016)

mikeyB said:


> Change sex, change computer to iPad, and that's me, that is


Change back, make it a siren red Lappy and there I am.


----------



## Diabeticliberty (Oct 21, 2016)

*MRS PARROTT, MRS PARROTT...............GUESS WHAT YOUR MARK DID.........GO ON GUESS. NAHHHHHHHH NEVER MIND LET ME TELL YOU *


----------



## Rosiecarmel (Oct 22, 2016)

She might not know, but that puddy cat in the background does and is judging you


----------



## Mark Parrott (Oct 22, 2016)

Oh no!  I'm rumbled!


----------



## Jonsi (Oct 22, 2016)

*NEWSFLASH* 
Cambridgeshire Police are investigating how a man in his mid Forties came to be staggering around on the public highway with a laptop shoved up somewhere where the sun don't shine. 

The man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was reported to only be able to repeat the sentence "who's not a clever boy?"


----------



## Lilian (Oct 22, 2016)

I used to do that, I also used to fall asleep in the middle of talking to someone.   My problem was a thyroid one.


----------



## Mark Parrott (Oct 22, 2016)

She thought it could be a thyroid problem but it came back ok.


----------



## Lilian (Oct 22, 2016)

Mark Parrott said:


> She thought it could be a thyroid problem but it came back ok.


Yes, so did mine except it was not OK.   Most people feel best at 1 but if it is high but within range, or if not on thyroid medication they even leave it to 10 and say it is OK.   Believe me there are thousands of people in the UK with the same trouble.    At the moment there is a petition in front of the Scottish Parliament about this.


----------



## Mark Parrott (Oct 22, 2016)

Thanks for that info, Lilian. Looks like we need to investigate further.


----------



## mikeyB (Oct 22, 2016)

I think you need look no further than medication side effects, to be honest. After my afternoon nap I've only just woken up


----------



## Mark Parrott (Oct 22, 2016)

You could be right.  She is talking Tramadol, Co-codamol, Adcal, Gabapentin, Sertraline & Prednisolone.


----------



## mikeyB (Oct 22, 2016)

Blimey, I'm surprised she's ever awake


----------



## Mark Parrott (Oct 22, 2016)

She rarely is.


----------



## Lilian (Oct 22, 2016)

Mark Parrott said:


> You could be right.  She is talking Tramadol, Co-codamol, Adcal, Gabapentin, Sertraline & Prednisolone.


They are pain killers - which are just plastering over the problem.   Pain is part of hypothyroidism as well.    However here is a list of signs and symptoms of hypothyroidism.   There are many because the thyroid does regulate everything in the body.   She does not have to have all the symptoms, but if it looks like a duck, quacks like a duck, walks like a duck it usually is a duck.     http://www.thyroiduk.org.uk/tuk/about_the_thyroid/hypothyroidism_signs_symptoms.html


----------



## Amigo (Oct 22, 2016)

Lilian said:


> They are pain killers - which are just plastering over the problem.   Pain is part of hypothyroidism as well.    However here is a list of signs and symptoms of hypothyroidism.   There are many because the thyroid does regulate everything in the body.   She does not have to have all the symptoms, but if it looks like a duck, quacks like a duck, walks like a duck it usually is a duck.     http://www.thyroiduk.org.uk/tuk/about_the_thyroid/hypothyroidism_signs_symptoms.html



Gracious Lilian, that covers almost every symptom anyone could ever suffer. I think I'll need to get mine checked!


----------



## Lilian (Oct 22, 2016)

You said her instincts think she has a thyroid problem.    Never ignore a persons instincts as they are often right.


----------



## Lilian (Oct 22, 2016)

Don't forget these symptoms are more extreme than the normal.   For example MikeyB had a nap in the afternoon.   No problem there, he probably got up afterwards and got on with his business, feeling refreshed.     Someone with hypothyroidism whether they want a nap or not would just fall asleep.   Would wake up unrefreshed, would find it difficult to go about their business and want to go to bed in a couple of hours after and still not feel refreshed in the morning.    So when it says tired, it means tired constantly.    When it says constipation, it does not mean not going every day, it means not going for days on end until you are so uncomfortable.   But if doctors had their way they would rather prescribe a drug for each symptom, such a drain on the NHS.  The pharmaceutical companies pay the medical schools and who pays the piper calls the tune.
So when you look at the symptoms they should be more debilitating, but also just one symptom does not mean hypothyroidism, you would need to have several although not all.  And yes the thyroid runs the whole body.


----------



## mikeyB (Oct 22, 2016)

Have you got shares in thyroid therapies Lillian?


----------



## Lilian (Oct 22, 2016)

Amigo said:


> Gracious Lilian, that covers almost every symptom anyone could ever suffer. I think I'll need to get mine checked!


_
I had 70 of those symptoms_


----------



## Mark Parrott (Oct 22, 2016)

Thanks for that, Lilian. That really does give her some ammunition for her next doctors appointment.


----------



## Amigo (Oct 22, 2016)

Worryingly I have a very high number of those symptoms too Lilian but I suppose the problem is so many of these symptoms are attributable to other conditions too including diabetes. 
It's always best to have the tests done but not reassuring if they're reporting false negatives.


----------



## Lilian (Oct 22, 2016)

mikeyB said:


> Have you got shares in thyroid therapies Lillian?



Ha ha - no I don't, what I did have was hypothyroidism so bad I was near suicidal.   The walking dead had more life than I had.    I do not want anyone else to go through that.   I was slowly dying and all the doctors wanted to give me was an anti depressant and drugs for every symptom.    However when I got the right medication I am better - I have a life.   As I once told a doctor who told me it was all in my mind and I was depressed, a person who is depressed does not want to do anything, I do want to do things I am just not physically or mentally able.  I could not even read a book as by the time I got to the second paragraph I had forgotten the first.   I could not even decide whether I wanted a cup or tea of a cup of coffee when asked.   It was a major overwhelming task and could get me in tears.   If I got the strength to make myself a cup of tea I no longer had the strength to drink it.    My hands and arms had pins and needles and went numb which nothing I could do to get rid of it.   Burning feet at night, I would put them in a bowl of cold water, not dry them and just leave them out of the covers - in winter.   I was hot when everyone was cold and vice versa.    I lost all my body hair (that was a bonus), I would not be able to go to the toilet for four five days and then have a day of diarreah (sp).  Hair falling out which fortunately just went thin.   Someone I know actually went bald (female) until it was discovered she had hypothyroidism but the hair never came back.   This is but a few of the 70 symptoms and signs that I had.   In fact I might as well have been dead the time I spent in bed.   I have diabetes and pernicious anaemia but I have suffered the most with my thyroid.   My sister's marriage broke up because of her hypothyrodism and it has made my marriage nothing but a piece of paper.   Then miracles happened, and I ended up getting the thyroid medication that I need.   It took a year to get me 90% better, I do not think I will ever be 100% but that is fine.   I sleep at night, I am awake all day, I can think about my meals and able to control my diabetes.    Before I could not do anything about it because of the brain fog.    My bowels are normal, I no longer have burning feet and pins and needles and numbness in my hands and arms, the NHS gave me a hearing aid for my deafness which I no longer need because my hearing is fine and so on and so on.
Because I was so ill and the doctor kept telling me it was not my thyroid because the TSH was normal I did a lot of research and reading about it.   I joined forums (fora?) to get as much information I could.   If hypothyroidism goes undiagnosed or under medicated it can cause a heart attack.   My systolic blood pressure was very high but my diastolic was about 55.    Since being medicated properly the systolic has gone down to a more normal number and the diastolic has gone up.    Cholesterol has gone down naturally that I am able to go without statins although doctor wants all diabetics to be on statins regardless of their cholesterol.   What more can I say - it would take pages.


----------



## mikeyB (Oct 22, 2016)

And this has got to do what with Marks wife's sleepiness? She's up to the eyeballs in sedative drugs. Keep your horror stories and hobby horses to yourself, thank you.


----------



## Lilian (Oct 22, 2016)

Amigo said:


> Worryingly I have a very high number of those symptoms too Lilian but I suppose the problem is so many of these symptoms are attributable to other conditions too including diabetes.
> It's always best to have the tests done but not reassuring if they're reporting false negatives.


_Yes some of the symptoms can be diabetes and pernicious anaemia which I also have.     I did pay for a private blood test which encompassed all the thyroid tests.   It found out about my PA as well.    However the test showed that my thyroid was not functioning properly.    I went to a private doctor who prescribed the right medication.   As I was improving on it, then it could only have been the thyroid.    But most definitely I did not just jump into it and it cost me more money than I could really afford but it was so very worth it.    I love my life now, enjoy life and want to live forever, unlike before when I was constantly thinking death would be a better option._


----------



## AlisonM (Oct 22, 2016)

It has to be said that, while thyroid issues are a possibility, they are only one of _*many*_ such. There are any number of reasons why someone might fall asleep at odd moments. My pain pills knock me out, high blood sugar levels knock me out, as do low levels, even some allergic reactions do it (strawberries), so does the exhaustion caused by constant pain, so does depression. Mrs P is on a LOT of pills and it's very likely that there are drug interactions which could easily be a cause for falling asleep. It would not make sense - IMO - to concentrate on only one possible cause to the exclusion of all the others and I hope Mrs Ps GP is awake enough that s/he's considering _*all*_ the options.


----------



## Amigo (Oct 22, 2016)

AlisonM said:


> It has to be said that, while thyroid issues are a possibility, they are only one of _*many*_ such. There are any number of reasons why someone might fall asleep at odd moments. My pain pills knock me out, high blood sugar levels knock me out, as do low levels, even some allergic reactions do it (strawberries), so does the exhaustion caused by constant pain, so does depression. Mrs P is on a LOT of pills and it's very likely that there are drug interactions which could easily be a cause for falling asleep. It would not make sense - IMO - to concentrate on only one possible cause to the exclusion of all the others and I hope Mrs Ps GP is awake enough that s/he's considering _*all*_ the options.



I'm not meaning to be intrusive but that hefty cocktail of meds Mark's missus is on would knock me sideways! Sometimes GP's just load on additional analgesia and the interactions can be debilitating. Has your wife been referred to a pain clinic Mark?


----------



## AlisonM (Oct 22, 2016)

Amigo said:


> I'm not meaning to be intrusive but that hefty cocktail of meds Mark's missus is on would knock me sideways! Sometimes GP's just load on additional analgesia and the interactions can be debilitating. Has your wife been referred to a pain clinic Mark?


I've learned the hard way to ask whenever a new med is added what interactions are likely/possible and to discuss the pros and cons before agreeing to take whatever it is. The Amytriptiline is a case in point, 1 pill on top of all the others and I lost three days in a fog.


----------



## Mark Parrott (Oct 22, 2016)

Amigo said:


> I'm not meaning to be intrusive but that hefty cocktail of meds Mark's missus is on would knock me sideways! Sometimes GP's just load on additional analgesia and the interactions can be debilitating. Has your wife been referred to a pain clinic Mark?


Not yet. GP would not refer her to pain climic until she had physiotherapy. Only they could refer her to a pain clinic if physiotherapy is unsuccessful.  Sounds odd to me.  At the moment, she has been diagnosed with fibromyalgia & possibly 3 types of arthritis.  Osteo, rheumatoid & PSA.


----------



## Lilian (Oct 22, 2016)

AlisonM said:


> It has to be said that, while thyroid issues are a possibility, they are only one of _*many*_ such. There are any number of reasons why someone might fall asleep at odd moments. My pain pills knock me out, high blood sugar levels knock me out, as do low levels, even some allergic reactions do it (strawberries), so does the exhaustion caused by constant pain, so does depression. Mrs P is on a LOT of pills and it's very likely that there are drug interactions which could easily be a cause for falling asleep. It would not make sense - IMO - to concentrate on only one possible cause to the exclusion of all the others and I hope Mrs Ps GP is awake enough that s/he's considering _*all*_ the options.



Well that is common sense really.    I am not saying everything else should not be investigated, just saying if everything else is negative, to investigate further and giving pointers what to do and how to.    The same as if someone said they were thirsty all the time, tired, etc.  I would suggest diabetes but diabetes is not the only condition which makes you very thirsty and tired.    But it could be they have a diet of kippers so obviously one would rule out eating kippers making them thirsty first.    But just because they are eating kippers does not mean that the thirst has to be that even though it is more likely to.


----------



## Amigo (Oct 22, 2016)

Mark Parrott said:


> Not yet. GP would not refer her to pain climic until she had physiotherapy. Only they could refer her to a pain clinic if physiotherapy is unsuccessful.  Sounds odd to me.  At the moment, she has been diagnosed with fibromyalgia & possibly 3 types of arthritis.  Osteo, rheumatoid & PSA.



This new craziness around 'all roads lead to physio' is just that, crazy! They kept sending my hubbie to physio without initial diagnositics and it was absolutely useless. Transpired he had a fracture in his pelvis and should never have been receiving physio! 
I can't see why pain relief should be dictated by a physio anyway.


----------



## AlisonM (Oct 22, 2016)

Amigo said:


> This new craziness around 'all roads lead to physio' is just that, crazy! They kept sending my hubbie to physio without initial diagnositics and it was absolutely useless. Transpired he had a fracture in his pelvis and should never have been receiving physio!
> I can't see why pain relief should be dictated by a physio anyway.


It's a long road, that's for sure. I've been to the physio who said they can't help with the pain without making the ME worse. Now I have to wait for an appointment with the rheumatologist - again. I seem to be stuck in a loop. We don't have an ME clinic anywhere near.


----------



## Mark Parrott (Oct 22, 2016)

Exactly, Amigo. It's a complete waste of time.  Just fits in with the NICE guidelines, apparently.


----------



## AlisonM (Oct 22, 2016)

PeeEss. Checked the spelling of Amytriptiline and got the offering of 'pantyliner'... Eh?


----------



## Lilian (Oct 22, 2016)

Mark Parrott said:


> Not yet. GP would not refer her to pain climic until she had physiotherapy. Only they could refer her to a pain clinic if physiotherapy is unsuccessful.  Sounds odd to me.  At the moment, she has been diagnosed with fibromyalgia & possibly 3 types of arthritis.  Osteo, rheumatoid & PSA.



If you look at the list of symptoms I sent, you will see fibromyalgia is one of them.

This is worth a read then:-   https://www.verywell.com/the-thyroid-fibromyalgia-connection-3231681
and this
*RA and Your Thyroid Function *
Rheumatoid arthritis and hypothyroidism often occur together. Researchers don't know why autoimmune diseases travel in packs, but they can be successfully treated.


----------



## mikeyB (Oct 22, 2016)

Hang on a minute. The GP refers to physiotherapist as a fellow professional for an opinion as to whether it would work. The physio assumes all appropriate investigations have been done. If the physio can't help, then the onward referral to a pain clinic happens. That's the order it should be in, GPs know sod all about physiotherapy. But that is the ideal, and it more than occasionally fails. The fault usually lies with the GP.


----------



## Amigo (Oct 22, 2016)

mikeyB said:


> Hang on a minute. The GP refers to physiotherapist as a fellow professional for an opinion as to whether it would work. The physio assumes all appropriate investigations have been done. If the physio can't help, then the onward referral to a pain clinic happens. That's the order it should be in, GPs know sod all about physiotherapy. But that is the ideal, and it more than occasionally fails. The fault usually lies with the GP.



Never used to be like this Mike but in this area there are 'spinal teams' now and you think you're getting to see a specialist and usually see a specialist nurse or a physio. At one time physiotherapists wouldn't suggest therapy without the investigations having been done but GPs seem to be referring straight there without the necessary scans etc. You must agree it's bloody crazy sending somebody with a fracture for physio? A friend of mine had persistent groin pain and was sent for physio. He had prostrate cancer which spread to his bones and was only detected by the physio after it was clear nothing they were doing was helping.
My point is let's get the necessary diagnostic testing done first or it's cart before the horse.


----------



## mikeyB (Oct 22, 2016)

Yes Amigo, that's what I meant. No proper investigations before referral is crazy, I agree. It's one area where 'saving money' could be disastrous. NICE provide the guidelines, NHS managers think they know better.


----------



## Amigo (Oct 22, 2016)

Lilian said:


> Ha ha - no I don't, what I did have was hypothyroidism so bad I was near suicidal.   The walking dead had more life than I had.    I do not want anyone else to go through that.   I was slowly dying and all the doctors wanted to give me was an anti depressant and drugs for every symptom.    However when I got the right medication I am better - I have a life.   As I once told a doctor who told me it was all in my mind and I was depressed, a person who is depressed does not want to do anything, I do want to do things I am just not physically or mentally able.  I could not even read a book as by the time I got to the second paragraph I had forgotten the first.   I could not even decide whether I wanted a cup or tea of a cup of coffee when asked.   It was a major overwhelming task and could get me in tears.   If I got the strength to make myself a cup of tea I no longer had the strength to drink it.    My hands and arms had pins and needles and went numb which nothing I could do to get rid of it.   Burning feet at night, I would put them in a bowl of cold water, not dry them and just leave them out of the covers - in winter.   I was hot when everyone was cold and vice versa.    I lost all my body hair (that was a bonus), I would not be able to go to the toilet for four five days and then have a day of diarreah (sp).  Hair falling out which fortunately just went thin.   Someone I know actually went bald (female) until it was discovered she had hypothyroidism but the hair never came back.   This is but a few of the 70 symptoms and signs that I had.   In fact I might as well have been dead the time I spent in bed.   I have diabetes and pernicious anaemia but I have suffered the most with my thyroid.   My sister's marriage broke up because of her hypothyrodism and it has made my marriage nothing but a piece of paper.   Then miracles happened, and I ended up getting the thyroid medication that I need.   It took a year to get me 90% better, I do not think I will ever be 100% but that is fine.   I sleep at night, I am awake all day, I can think about my meals and able to control my diabetes.    Before I could not do anything about it because of the brain fog.    My bowels are normal, I no longer have burning feet and pins and needles and numbness in my hands and arms, the NHS gave me a hearing aid for my deafness which I no longer need because my hearing is fine and so on and so on.
> Because I was so ill and the doctor kept telling me it was not my thyroid because the TSH was normal I did a lot of research and reading about it.   I joined forums (fora?) to get as much information I could.   If hypothyroidism goes undiagnosed or under medicated it can cause a heart attack.   My systolic blood pressure was very high but my diastolic was about 55.    Since being medicated properly the systolic has gone down to a more normal number and the diastolic has gone up.    Cholesterol has gone down naturally that I am able to go without statins although doctor wants all diabetics to be on statins regardless of their cholesterol.   What more can I say - it would take pages.



Clearly the medics failed you Lilian and I'm very relieved to hear that you had the sense to pursue what the doctors failed to do on your behalf. 
Whilst it may or may not relate to Mark's wife situation, I don't blame you for alerting her to the possibility.


----------



## grovesy (Oct 23, 2016)

The Physio before referral is not new I had to see one first before been able to see an orthopedic surgeon for knee pain, over 10 years ago. My GP explained if I had not seen the physio first , the orthopedic referral would be refused!


----------



## Amigo (Oct 23, 2016)

It's totally mad! They're now viewing physio as the panacea to all ills because it's a cheaper option. As a result the physios are stretched beyond all capacity (mine looks more knackered than me!).

This trend of sending largely undiagnosed conditions for what is essentially manipulation without the benefit of scans and imaging is hazardous but if you don't go along with it, they discharge you from the system!


----------



## Carolg (Oct 23, 2016)

Mark Parrott said:


> Just had to capture this. Wife on the laptop falls asleep whilst typing.  She often does this. Just flakes out without warning.
> View attachment 2124


I would be doing time if you did that to me Mark.lol


----------



## Carolg (Oct 23, 2016)

Diabeticliberty said:


> *MRS PARROTT, MRS PARROTT...............GUESS WHAT YOUR MARK DID.........GO ON GUESS. NAHHHHHHHH NEVER MIND LET ME TELL YOU *


You are a clipe  DL....


----------



## Rosiecarmel (Oct 23, 2016)

Amigo said:


> It's totally mad! They're now viewing physio as the panacea to all ills because it's a cheaper option



Fun fact: I got referred to a physiotherapist for my mental health. This was a number of years ago now and I remember being just as confused as the physio about it as I didn't even know I'd been referred!

Physiotherapists do amazing work with people who need physiotherapy but not everybody does so I agree that they're being over worked!


----------



## Lilian (Oct 23, 2016)

I had both shoulders frozen and underwent weeks of physio (mainly on the rack or is it wrak) before she finally decided physio was just not working and I needed to have them manipulated under anaesthetic.    After I had them done I had physio and exercises which did help towards a complete recovery.    Mind you I loved it on the rack.    It was a lovely stretch.   I was hoping they could have made me taller lol.


----------



## mikeyB (Oct 23, 2016)

I was hoping they could make me a couple of inches taller when they stick a new hip in. I don't mind wearing a rising shoe on the other foot till they do that hip. Bet they won't


----------



## mikeyB (Oct 23, 2016)

Just thought, from a sleeping woman to mediaeval torture in 50 posts. Now that's what I call thread drift


----------



## Northerner (Oct 23, 2016)

mikeyB said:


> Just thought, from a sleeping woman to mediaeval torture in 50 posts. Now that's what I call thread drift


You've obviously never encountered our '5 word epics'


----------

