Hello to all our new members! We have had some new bobs this month, so I'd just like to welcome them to our community by tagging them in this thread: @Macaria @th967 @Bubbles99 @Turtle22  ... View more

Group assignments can be so stressful @hunginc. :( I personally prefer individual assignments because like you, I usually end up doing all the work by myself when the other people don't. I really hope you get that extension and that the equity learning services at your university end up being helpful. Fingers crossed for Monday! :) ... View more

Hi everyone! It's time to announce some more Friday Fives! :) The first Friday Five is for @cicadas, who shared their hobbies. Leaving something interesting for kids to find is such a great idea! The second Friday Five goes out to @WheresMySquishy ( ) for 'doing a bunch of amazing work in continuing to build our RO community and keep things fun and supportive'. Thank you to whoever nominated me! This Friday Five goes out to a whole bunch of people! @xXLexi_Lou122Xx  @StarGirl101   @featuringme   @November13   @Hannah-RO  and @MB95 have all suggested some helpful study tips in this week's GR! Next up is a Friday Five for @Saltwaterdreamtime for posting lovely messages of thanks and support to members of our community. Last but not least, a Friday Five for @Bananatime04 for coming back to the forums to let us all know that they are doing well and that things are improving for them. Well done everyone! Have a happy weekend! :) ... View more

Hi all! Today, we had the meeting with my sister's hospital. They are looking into other psychological services for her. One of the things that they're looking into is an inpatient psychological admission at another hospital which apparently has people that know about FND. As her carer, I think that this is a good idea. The only problem is that it's far from our house, and we're not sure if they will accept her. Nothing has really been decided yet. The hospital agrees that she needs to be treated by a team that is experienced with FND, but no one can tell us where their own FND psychiatrist is or why she can't be treated under her, which is frustrating. We feel that we're being snubbed by her and we don't know why. My sister may need to be transferred to yet another hospital to have dental work done under anaesthetic due to her seizures. We told her hospital about and they gave us some recommendations, but we haven't contacted them yet. The hospital wants us to continue with the in-home professionals we have found and gradually reduce her pain medication over the next few months. She is still in a lot of pain, but we were told that this is linked to her emotions and that once she learns psychological strategies, her pain will reduce. They told us they were glad we found a clinical psychologist with experience in FND and has worked with them, but I can't understand why she was not recommended to us before or why the hospital has been so slow to arrange other supports. We told them about some of her symptoms and were told that they had seen them in other FND patients. In other news, my grandma is settling into her nursing home. She has been saying some weird things and wants to go home, but the other day she went for a long walk with a frame with the physios and they were really happy about this. Her fracture has healed and she's been able to mix with the other residents. Visiting times are still limited, but her room looks really nice. I think the limited visiting could be a good idea because it might help her get to know everyone in the home and settle into a routine, especially as she was dependent on us for so long. We have been advised by the nurses to tell her that she is not going to be able to come home so that she stops asking, but at the same time they were concerned that she would get emotional. ... View more

1. Are there any habits you have that you feel don't add positively to your wellbeing? Are there any ways to change these? I tried tracking my symptoms, but I stopped recently. I didn't feel like I was learning anything new by doing so, it was taking up too much of my time and I honestly feel that logging times when I'm in pain makes the pain worse because I am focusing on it. Now I just track my mood and what made me feel a certain way. 2. Is there anything you want to incorporate into your routine? How might they be beneficial? What steps can you take to make this happen? I want to do some of the physio exercises I was doing before because I find that they help when I get tight muscles. I used to do them at certain times of the day so I would remember to do them. Every day for the rest of my life, I also have to put a warm cloth on my eyes and massage it, and I've been neglecting to do that lately. It's supposed to help my eyes. I've tried using a habit tracker, but I still forget. 3. Do you have a random habit that isn't positive or negative, but you always do? e.g. some people always have the correct earphone in the right ear, or always bite the head off a chocolate frog first etc. I always eat the ears of chocolate bunnies first! This is going to sound weird, but I have a dermatofibroma on my leg and I sometimes try to pinch or rub it. I also have to finish the song that I'm listening to before I leave the room. ... View more

This is such a great topic! I tend to ruminate on things and when someone makes me mad, I don't forget about it easily. Today, I coincidentally saw someone who inconvenienced me in the past (such a small world), and they didn't remember me but I definitely remembered them. When I'm angry about someone or something, I often write it down. It helps me reflect about why I am angry and let out my emotions. My grandma has a stress ball that she uses all the time when other family members are annoying her. ... View more

Goodbye @Saltwaterdreamtime! You've made such a big contribution on here and will definitely be missed by a lot of people. I've really enjoyed chatting with you. I wish you the best of luck with your business and a happy early birthday. :) I'm happy for you that you're growing your family and work is picking up again. ... View more

Hi all! Here's our next question: What are your top study tips? ... View more

@MB95  I can relate to that! I used to feel as though as I had to go to tutorials and on-campus things. During my degree, we did a lot of interesting practical things and group work in class. I wonder what people who are taking science-based classed are doing. ... View more

I'm a bit late to the party, but this is an awesome thread! Something that has helped me is watching live events and doing some internet-based activities that I haven't done before. For example, I've made a few penpals, done virtual museum tours, a few online courses and tried out a lot of new apps. This channel is making a comeback if anyone's interested! I watched it a lot. Here are some interesting websites if you like learning new things: Google Arts & Culture  Coursera  Atlas Obscura  HowStuffWorks  Google Podcasts  The Sky Live Another thing I have done a lot more this year is journaling on paper. I like the idea of having a book to look back on when this year is over. ... View more

Fear tastes icy. Fear smells like... sweat? Fear looks like darkness. Fear feels like tingling. Fear sounds like an alarm going off. Confidence ... View more

Hi @xXLexi_Lou122Xx! It's great to catch up with you again! That's so scary that you fainted at school. :( It must have been so confusing to wake up in hospital with no idea how you got there. It sounds like a long time to have been unconscious. I hope you're feeling better now. I had another near-fainting episode when I had a blood test recently, but luckily I wasn't alone at the time and didn't actually end up fainting. I'm glad you got all your assignments handed in and you're on holidays now! I'd love to see that picture when it's done. :) ... View more

I've never played the cello. Never have I ever forgotten my bag somewhere. ... View more

Hare ... View more

AMN 1 GUHJ 6TYZ3W2EINM GH N Behold my pitiful attempt I tried turning on caps lock, but then I couldn't turn it off. ... View more

That's so cool you're working from home @cicadas! I hope you end up enjoying the course! :) What are you planning to study? We'll be posting questions every weekday on this thread. It's up to you whether you want to reply to them and answer them. :) ... View more

Tagging some people who have been online recently and might be interested in this GR: @Tiny_leaf   @xXLexi_Lou122Xx   @MB95   @Remi @Bingo1234  @sunnygirl606 @wanderingwasp @celestialdreamer @Mayour @ameliaj @meganjane14 @Abderian @Guitarman97 @marlee @funnyusername @A_Friend @Ezle @LeapofFaith @FluffyDog @h0peful @hellofriend @featuringme @cicadas @Jimh @Vuyo @Sharnaayheey @StarGirl101 @JasminH @indieinsanus @StormySeas17 @November13 @sapphieandelfie  @JullyBean  @squiggly  Sorry if I've missed anyone. It's okay if you don't want to participate. :) ... View more

I love this thread! Here are some fun facts: - There are more trees on Earth than there are stars in the Milky Way. - Sharks are older than trees. - A fungus is the largest living thing on Earth. - The word 'bed' actually looks like a bed. - The unicorn is the national animal of Scotland. ... View more

Hi @Vuyo! Welcome to the forums! That sounds like such a complicated, difficult situation. :( I can't really give you any advice, but you're definitely not the first person who has experienced something like this. Plenty of relationships between parents don't work out, and even if you do end up breaking up with the new girl, you can still have a respectful relationship with her and your child. There isn't an easy way out of this, but would you and the new girl be open to having a chat about your future together? Maybe it would help if someone else mediated the discussion, and it might also help to write down your options and the pros and cons of them. ... View more

Hi @Sharnaayheey! Welcome to the forums! Alcohol can affect so many aspects of our lives, especially if drinking is a regular habit. :( It sounds like you're feeling trapped right now. But I really admire you for wanting to have a healthier relationship with alcohol. So many people don't even get to that stage. :) How would you feel about using coping cards as a strategy for times when you go out drinking? You could include warning signs that you're going to drink, your reasons not to drink, things that you can do to distract yourself and people you can talk to. Here are some other resources that you might find helpful: A BeyondBlue factsheet  Counselling Online  ... View more

Hi @Jimh! Welcome to the forums! I think it's really brave of you to share your story with us. :) I agree with @Bre-RO that you have already taken the first step, which is reaching out to others about what you're going through and recognising that you want to make a change in your life. You've been going through this for a long time, so I'm not surprised it's taken a toll on your health. If you have a look around the forums, a lot of other members have also struggled with drug and alcohol use. Have you considered contacting professionals that specifically deal with alcohol and drug use? Counselling Online offers a service like this.  I've also found this Beyond Blue resource helpful. ... View more

Great thread @wanderingwasp! :) It's so cool that you're into filmmaking. I also want to be more active. I'll try to go for a walk after volunteering later on in the week. I hope you get accepted into Honours! :) I had to wake up early because my sister had a home neurophysio appointment. Whenever the neurophysio tried to move her legs she screamed. But I went back to sleep afterwards. We also played the Super Mario 3D All Stars Collection and watched a movie. My sister loves Mario so we convinced her to do some things in Super Mario Sunshine. She can play a bit with the controller, which is good because she has problems with one of her hands and we're trying to get her to use it more. I think it's because Mario is a familiar task for her and the game distracts her. My grandma had an appointment today and everything was good! :) I'm looking forward to some things I have planned later on in the week. ... View more

@wanderingwasp  This is such a great thread! I also used to experience these things. I still have feelings like I'm outside my body which is a bit scary but I've found that mindfulness and grounding techniques help. Some apps I use for meditations are Youper, Insight Timer and Medito. My sister has non-epileptic seizures and some neurologists believe that they are a form of dissociation. I've tried to do sensory awareness things with her, but when she is focusing on her body, it triggers the seizures. Here are some other techniques I read about on a website: - Count backwards from 100 to 0 in sevens, "100, 93, 86, 79" or fours "100, 96, 92 etc" - Pick up a magazine and start reading it - Talk to someone - Try playing a computer game on a mobile phone or some other device - Try singing a favourite song - Remind yourself that you are safe - Feel something rough or textured - The five things game ... View more

@Hozzles  I don't have a lot to add, but I hope you get better soon. It all sounds like a lot to deal with. :( It's scary that the GP thought it was multiple sclerosis. I really hope that the doctors can get to the bottom of your symptoms and work out how to treat them. The volunteer role sounds so cool! I think you would be great at it. :) I'm also glad that your mental health has been improving and I love how you're so optimistic about the future, despite all the stuff that's been happening for you right now. Thinking of you. ... View more

@Maddy-ROThanks for the lovely message of support. I agree! The hospital had a meeting in February and they decided that due to her seizures, they could not proceed with a readmission because they were getting in the way of physio. I feel like they should at least focus on getting her to learn psychological strategies to help with the seizures and try to get them to stop happening, but they have not shown us any strategies or mental health services for her to see at home, so we have had to find our own (they recently put us in touch with a mental health service in the area, but we spoke to them and they knew nothing about FND or non-epileptic seizures and we don't know if they will be able to treat her yet). We were told that she would be readmitted when the seizures improve to allow physiotherapy and rehabilitation. We were also initially told that the seizures will stop quickly on their own. But it's been about a year and she still has the seizures. I've watched some neurologists on YouTube and one of them has said that he theorises that non-epileptic seizures become a learned response to help deal with pain and distress, so they don't often go away on their own. To me, it makes no sense that they would go away without treatment at this point. Another FND neurologist we have spoken to from interstate says that people don't often get better with non-specialist treatment. We also coincidentally met one of her nurses from when she was an inpatient a week or so ago and she was angry that the hospital had left her like this. I know it is not all their fault because they were only admitting patients with EDs to her ward due to COVID-19 but they have not done much for my sister all year and they could have at least referred us to people who treat FND as outpatient instead of us having to find them ourselves. At the moment, she has a tooth abscess and might need a root canal, and we have had to find our own dentists to look at it and organise treatment (she might end up having to go to another hospital to have it done under anesthetic due to her seizures making treatment difficult). I can't help but feel that her complex health issues would be better addressed as an inpatient, although she doesn't particularly want to go back because the staff were rude to her last time she was there which resulted in her seizures getting more prolonged. I feel like the hospital and FND psychiatrist she used to see have just put her in the 'too hard basket' category. It is hard for other family members to see her have the seizures, so some of them don't visit often, but at this point I am used to it. It was very scary a few months ago because she started throwing up when she had the seizures, but luckily she hasn't done that in a while. But it is hard realising that she is still like that. The nurses in the hospital would also do some of the caring, so it was a source of respite for us. At the moment, she doesn't have a lot of coping strategies other than distraction. When she is playing games with us, her seizures happen less often which is good. I've also been focusing more on my hobbies, journalling and self-care. I write down a lot of my frustrations as well as good things that happen. I've installed a bunch of mental health and meditation apps and they've been a big help. ... View more

Right now, I'm excited to play some games! :) ... View more

Thanks for all the support everyone! I just wanted to let you all know that my grandma was finally moved to the nursing home yesterday. The staff say that everything is okay. Today, they sat her outside with some other ladies. She is walking with a walker. We're not allowed to visit this week, but the guidelines are going to be updated soon. My dad has to come with her to a hospital for some scans on her back next week to see how the fracture is healing and interpret for her. He decided to just put her as respite for 4-6 weeks to see how this home treats her and if it is a good fit for her. We were considering some other homes, but at the moment we can't visit them due to COVID cases in the area. I've never visited this one, but it seems good and the other residents look well taken care of. I'm happy that she's in a place where we can have peace of mind about her safety. As usual, my sister's FND psychiatrist still has not contacted us or referred us to any mental health services or people who treat FND as an outpatient. But the hospital is holding a meeting next week to decide the next steps. ... View more

I'm sorry that you're feeling so bad @Tiny_leaf. :( All of those things happening at the same time is such bad timing. I hope you feel better soon! What have you been doing to look after yourself during this time? ... View more

Hello all! It's time for another round of Friday Fives! The first Friday Five goes out to @Saltwaterdreamtime for sharing some positive things that are happening in their life. A Friday Five for @StarGirl101 for trying things to make themselves feel better, despite being in a difficult situation. Next up is @Turtle22 for sharing some great mini pizza ideas! @indieinsanus   for sharing their own playlist on an awesome new thread! Finally, a Friday Five for @SD2247 for sharing how they practice self-care, along with a beautiful quote. Have a lovely weekend everyone! ... View more

Walking barefoot on grass or at the beach? At the beach as long as the sand isn't hot. What's your favourite flavour of jelly? Probably lemon or lime. Do you prefer to hand write notes or type them up on a computer? I prefer to hand write notes. I remember things better when I write them down. I type up notes for some things though, such as when I need to show someone else or want a checklist. Can you curl your tongue? My sister can but I can't. :( I'm jealous! Do you have any music guilty pleasures? I like listening to Nightcore. Next 5 questions! 1. When was the last time you did something for the first time? 2. What's your favourite snack? 3. Do you think with your head or your heart? 4. Name a historical figure you'd love to meet if they were magically alive again. 5. Would you rather be able to talk to animals or speak all human languages? ... View more