The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Community => Coffee Lounge => Topic started by: Nickie on January 08, 2013, 04:48:33 am
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I could very well be imagining this so please be honest!
I'm trying to fight off my second bout of flu in about a month. The fever broke yesterday morning & I was expecting to start feeling a little better, but I'm not.
I usually buy the tissues with balm in them as I have very delicate skin, but when I last did my shopping they didn't have any of my normal ones so I got some with menthol in. I've been using these this time around. Feels like I've had one permanently in my hand or against my nose for 3 days!
Anyway, to the problem. It feels like someone has ripped the lining from my ears, nose, throat & lungs. My tubes are so sore I can hardly to breathe. It's taken a while to work out but it seems worse when I suck a strepsil or put a tissue or anything that's been in contact with a tissue anywhere near my face. The pain is slightly soothed if I suck or pineapple chunk! I'm also getting chest pains.
Is the fact that I spent most of sunday asleep & yet haven't really slept since playing tricks on my mind? Anyone got any ideas what is wrong with me & whether it will right itself?
I seem to have contaminated everything with these blasted tissues, pockets, throws, dressing gown, bedding etc. I am currently sat on the sofa with scarfs tied around my nose & mouth as I can no longer smell the menthol & it seems to be everywhere. My hands are impregnated even after scrubbing several times. Still I have a pineapple chuck in to soothe my woes & can breath better (still very sore, but better) than I have for over 24 hours - go figure!
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Oh no :hug:
I don't know what's wrong other than it sounds like real flu as opposed to the colds we often claim as such.
You take care of yourself :unwell:
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You sound really run down :unwell:
If , like me, you have delicate skin perhaps your skin is too delicate for Vicks or impregnated tissues. I place a tiny bit of Vicks in a near bowl or in-between a layer of clothing but never on my skin otherwise my skin hurts almost like it has been bruised and airways block more severely reacting to the aroma. I can use the balm tissues ( a blessing in disguise) but the inhalant impregnated ones are too much for my skin.
Hope ou are feeling much better soon. Keep going with some or sips, you poor soul :bouquet:
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Thanks guys.
I feel so rough I'm finding it hard to tell whats real & what isn't at the moment.
If I didn't know better I'd say that the tissues have seeped into my airways & stripped the lining away, the pain is almost unbearable. It hurts most when I try to make it feel better, which has me even more confused. Every so often my heart just seems to race for no reason then it feels like someone is squeezing it.
I know it's only flu & some people are dealing with much worse on a daily basis, but I guess I'm so run down currently that it feels like the end of the world. I'm still fighting off a nasty yeast infection that hurts like the devil.
Can I blame the weather. I've never been so unhappy. I'm crying all the time I'm confusing the horses & dogs. For a split second I even thought about ending it all yesterday. Just feeling sorry for myself of course, but that was a black moment.
Still, only another hour & I can go out & do all the livestock again & the forecasted wind & rain, I'm sure that will help!
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Sounds like what you need is a few days in bed. Flu is not "just flu", it's a serious condition, and shouldn't be taken lightly! If you've got it the second time in a month, that means you obviously didn't take it seriously enough the first time round... So look after yourself. (Yes, I know, animals come first...) If you are feeling emotionally down, that will of course make it more difficult to recover. (Been there, done that!)
And as to tissues - I don't even use normal paper tissues as they seriously damage my skin. Far too dry and rough. Nice soft cotton only - and washing them the good oldfashioned way. Maybe you are even allergic to menthol?
Get better soon! :hug:
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Have you no-one to help you? Whereabouts are you? Any TASers nearby to lend a hand?
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No, you're not going nuts, and you haven't had flu. You may have had a very bad cold, or possibly more than one, or one that eased slightly then came back. I have had more colds this year than I can care to count. I live in an isolated area, so I gain little immunity, while my kids go to school, pick up slight colds, then give them to me, but worse. While they hardly sniffle, I get ill, but have to carry on.
You HAVE NOT HAD FLU. Whatever anyone else says, unless they have had it themselves. The ONLY similarity is that it sterts the same, with sniffles, coughs and a slight fver. REAL FLU goes much further. With real flu, everything hurts, you can't move, eat or control your temperature. You can be freezing cold, covered in 3 duvets, and still sweat. You can't even move enough without pain to go to the toilet. You can only do that with help, whether you go there or the toilet comes to you, and that depends on your care and how often someone is there. Whilst you can't eat, for some reason you still need to empty your bowels, and more often than when you are healthy, even tho' you haven't eaten in days. Symptoms can be similar to Meningitis. It is agony to move your head, and light and sound hurt. You may spend part of the time completely unconcious to the world around, but suffer monsrous nightmares whilst in this state, andyou will not wake from them as in normal sleep. And No-one can wake you. I was a 25 yr old owner of a pet shop and Dog Groomer, who also ran a livery yard at the time I had FLU.I was a very fit person, having been a body-builder, competitive swimmer and sprinter and rider/groom from my early teens, and I was unable to even feed my own dog, or let him out for a wee. I couldn't take myself for a wee. The day you get FLU, you will know it. Everything else that feels like it is a very bad cold.
The feelings you are having can be eased by:-
Take an antihistamine and see if your symptoms ease. If they do, there is an allergy to be traced.
Open windows in your house to allow fresh air in, especially if you have not been out for a few days.
Wet towels and put them on every radiator in the house to increase humidity. It will soothe mucous membranes whether cold or allergy. Menthol may help then, if you put a tissue within each towel so that it's benefits are diluted by water vapour. A drop or 2 of lavender oil on each wet towel, particularly before bedtime may calm and soothe not only your mind, but your body with it, reducing any coughing fits.
Apparently, Echinacea and/or vitamin C help to fight colds, although it is better to take them before you get the cold, they are reputed to help you fight it.
Neither a cold nor Flu can be cured with medicine from the doctor. But you can be vaccinated for flu each year. Flu can kill the healthiest people. Colds very rarely kill anyone, and cannot be vacc'd against.
Treatment is similar for both. Fresh air, paracetamol, aspirin or ibuprofen for fever and/or pain, and perhaps decogestants. These work better for colds than flu. If you can convince your Doctor to vaccinate you for flu each year, then do so. If you dostill happen to get it, it will not be so severe. I get my jab as I am the only possible carer for my boys, having no living family availlable to help if I was to become so ill again.
I hope I have been of some use to you. I do not mean to belittle your symptoms, but true flu is seen rarely these days,and colds can linger long and be very debilitating, but can be eased a little, and apparently, even prevented to some degree, but I need to take the tablets more regularly before I would swear to that!
Since I am such a slow typist, and lost the last message I tried to send, more have been posted. It sounds as tho' you are very down, and perhaps alone? Exhaustion, and depression, along with trying to fit too much in will make any illness worse. When did you last have a break? Trying to get this in now before you go to your critters.
You post after to let me know how you are?
Ruth
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poor you, :hug: , I was told years ago that those nasal sprays are not good to use too often as they basically strip your nasal passages, they are OK for the odd unblocking thing if needed, so, I suppose the tissues are too strong for yo as well, all you need is plain men ones.......Not toilet roll as that breaks up and can irritate you, mind you, how many of us do use toilet roll :innocent:
I also doubt it's flu, I was hospitalised with flu , nothing like a cold, only at the start, mine turned to pneumonia.
my neighbor has a bad cold and said he feels like all his mucus passages have been stripped, so maybe it's just the amount of blowing and coughing.
on a positive note, it will go and it will soon be spring........I had the snots for the first time in years, felt a little rough but not as bad as you seem to be, try some hot lemon, honey and cinnamon, that helps...a lot. :hug:
I just had to go over this again as my I pad changed a lot that I put......hope you can get some rest, keep wrapped up but fresh air is good, plenty of fluids!!!!
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Oh, God, I feel so pompous! No you don't have flu, but you have a serious case of depression that makes everything feel worse than it is. I know nothing about your circumstances, but I have the impression that you are on your own with only your critters for company. And going out in this weather at feedtimes, it isn't even dawn when it should be! And hasn't been truly light for more than a day since Nov. No light, no vitamin D, animals moulting at the wrong times (I groom dogs!). Everything is wrong for everyone at the mo, but you musn't think those thoughts. Everyone does, at some point, I believe (or kinda hope, else we're both totally out'a kilta!), but I think that once you vocalise it (or type it for all to see), you have either declared a decision or are asking for a little help. From what I can see of this site (and others like it, we have pet rats!) there are a lot of caring, friendly, people out there. My kids and then getting the rats has helped me. Please, Any God, give us some Sun this yr to grow the veg and let us all cheer up a bit! I believe wholeheartedly in SAD, and every creature's need for sunlight, at least a whole weeks worth for the yr and don't believe that any amount of artificial vit D can make up the shortfall. But, in the mean-time, good friends can help with those really bad feelings. I'm still up and lonely, not been to bed as lack of daylight affects my sleeping, along with the lack of critters to see to regularly. Now I've seen the boys off to school, I'll go to bed as no dogs to groom till tomorrow, and it is unseemly to drag my dog out choking in the rain when he doesn't want to go! House tidy, washing done, paperwork avoidable and no good books to read till next in series comes into library. Not looking at Thomson and Morgan till got more pennies, have baked and cooked the freezer to busting, and can't finish putting up greenhouse till land less sodden so I can level the base! With horse on loan, what's left to do but sleep at stupid times? At least when it p's down at night, I don't feel guilty for wasting waking hrs!
No, you're not going nuts! If you are, then so am I and thousands of other people. Not Flu. A lack of a decent growing yr for far too long, leading to apathy whilst you wonder whether it is even worth ordering any seeds this yr. Lots rotted in the ground last yr, and those that dared poke up their heads got rotted in constant cold and damp. When the sun did come out, it shocked others into shying away, or trying to fruit too soon. I'm just glad I'm not a farmer, relying on my own and other crops to pay my way and feed my livestock.
I think you have a seriously bad case of nothing to look forward to except bad, bad, bad. Bad germination, Bad grow rates, Bad yields, billions of slugs, midgies, no wearing shorts n t-shirts in the gardens or stock pens. ANOTHER COLD, WET SUMMER!!
Just feel that you're not alone. Plenty people must feel like you n I, but perhaps can't say so. So be proud that you had the guts to say how you feel. Just getting it out should help, and it will help others to say hoe they feel, as well as gaining you some support, however distant. Mayhap we should ask Dan for a 'Friendship' bit, where we can just talk as friends with no questions asked (as in 'smallholding questions.)
Anyway, I'm off now. I'll be banned by tonight as I've never shut up since I registered and have prob upset loads of people! I'm quiet for months on end, but when I do talk I seem to save everything up, then get it all out at once and upset everyone! That blanking option I read about earlier will mean I never get comments read, which is prob a good thing!
I wish you all the best, and hope I have not been so insensitive in my sincerity as to upset you too much.
(my Dad is coloured, and we have always joked about my propensity to call a spade A Spade!) Perhaps I need to learn to call a spade a shovel!
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I have to say i agree with a lot of what gardenjeannie says, you sound very down in the dumps, which has exacerbated your cold syptoms which i think have been made worse by a possible allergy to your new tissues. The current time of year and climate aren't helping either.
As she says dump the tissues, take an antihistimine, keep warm and drink plenty of fluids, orange juice is good full of vitamin C.
Have you a pal that can come over and spend some time with you to cheer you up or help out? Maybe theres a TASer nearby who can lend a bit of tea & symapathy.
This WILL pass, you WILL come out the other side, think good thoughts and about the good things you have to look forward to this coming year, there must be something even if its only sunshine.
Take care
all the best
Mandy :hug:
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When we feel low we see all the things that need doing and it makes us feel worse, try to get out for a while.....as I said, do wrap up and keep your chest area warm!!!!
I think these dull dreary wet days make us feel the same, dull and dreary....I am off to try and make myself look and feel a bit better, a hot shower, some clean clothing and off I go!!! :wave:
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First off - according to her profile, Nickie is in North Wales, if anyone is nearby?
Secondly - whether it's flu, a really bad cold complicated by other things, or flu with complications, I couldn't say. But in my view, feeling as you do, having the thoughts that you do, chest pains, and trying to cope with it all on your own, CALL THE DOCTOR. She/he may be able to do nothing to help except confirm what over-the-counter meds you should be taking, but I think you could use that confirmation and the peace of mind it would bring.
(You don't necessarily need to get the doctor to visit - you could talk the symptons through on the phone, or maybe there's a District Nurse could come and check you over. )
Thirdly, for that yeast infection - natural biothingy yoghurt - inside and out. ;) Full of friendly, competitive bacteria.
Well done you for speaking up and asking for some help :bouquet:
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When we feel low we see all the things that need doing and it makes us feel worse, try to get out for a while.....as I said, do wrap up and keep your chest area warm!!!!
I think these dull dreary wet days make us feel the same, dull and dreary....I am off to try and make myself look and feel a bit better, a hot shower, some clean clothing and off I go!!! :wave:
Sandy, when we are ill or just down in the dumps I think there is a tendancy to to not bother getting washed and dressed, leave our hair in a mess etc but you are right. A nice shower or bath and some clean clothing definitely helps to lift the mood.
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I dont want to steal anyone's thunder, but I feel very low today too. I had a very bad night which started with the goats not wanting to go to bed. I then had a stuffy nose which woke me up every hour on the hour until 3am, I also had to have 2 wees, then Henry decided it was play time and was fighting with Tabitha. I shut him out of the bedroom, then Tabby wanted to go out. By the time I got into a deep sleep, it was time to get up. To top it off, Freddie is limping but wont let me look at him. For the first time since OH was in hospital, Im feeling very sorry for myself. Its 16 days today, with a 50mile round trip to see him every day (apart from the day I was really poorly) and he is getting more and more bored and fed up. His blood test wasnt good yesterday, so he may not be allowed out tomorrow either. Even having control of the telly remote hasnt been compensation!!
Really hope you start to feel better soon gj. Im sending you positive vibes from France! :hug:
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:hug: A lot of us need cheering up and this weather is not helping at all!
Lets hope things improve :fc:
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Thank you. No offense taken to anything said by anyone. The support has made me blub more but not offended. I did need a kick up the arse to bring me back to reality, so well done. That's exactly how I felt on Sunday, I lost the day, almost in a coma state. Every fibre of my body hurt, even my teeth & hair roots, never known anything like it. But that feeling did only last 24 hours so probably not true flu. Anyway, whatever we call it I don't like it one bit!
Please rest assured I'm not on my own. Well I am during the day as OH works, but he does exist! He helps where he can, but he's a typical man & doesn't want to talk about stuff he can't fix & looking after the animals is my job as he leaves & arrives back in the dark. He did do Sunday for me.
I rang the doctors as soon as they opened & she recommended paracetamol & fluids, if not better in a couple of days to ring back. I've just taken a couple of antihistamine & salvaged the manuka honey out of the horse's first aid kit & mixed some of that with lemon juice & hot water to sip whilst i'm on here.
I've done the bear minimum with the animals & come back in to rest. The dogs are stir crazy but they'll survive. A neighbour will come up this afternoon & walk them with her dog if it brightens up a bit.
So sorry I just kind of dumped on you guys this morning. I don't normally wallow in self pity, it just all got a bit much. What a big girl's blouse!
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Atta girl that sounds heaps more positive :thumbsup:
mandy :pig:
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Nickie
Please contact your doctor and explain how you feel ... not just the viral symptoms (does it really matter whether its technically a cold or flu!) . You sound really depressed.
I suffer from SAD .... have a light box and take antidepressants from Nov to March .... without this I feel like totally hybernating ... sleep late in morn and go to bed when it gets dark. ... eat too much .. find doing anything really difficult, can't concentrate or think clearly etc etc etc! With this year being so grey I suspect a lot of marginal sufferers are being severely affected for the first time.
Sorry I'm not closer or I'd be straight round. If you want someone to talk to I've Pm'd my number
Linda
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Nickie (http://www.accidentalsmallholder.net/forum/index.php?action=profile;u=2387) I bet all of us get like that at some point, support is great and it sounds you are getting some :relief: ,
Like I said, when you feel crap is the time you see all you need to do, you will soon but up and running on all pistons :thumbsup:
I keep seeing the links for Cinnamon and honey and its actually nice to put on porridge, worth a try.....glad things are on the brighter side...
I am not sun worshiper and do not mind the rain too much but still notice how much better I feel when its bright and dry!!! :bouquet:
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Chin up, girls, the weather and the year has turned. You'll all feel much better soon. :excited:
So far I have escaped the dreaded lurgies - but if they get me you can bet your last penny I'll be on here asking for sympathy too. :innocent:
Look after yourselves peeps, you are all precious. :love: Plenty of warm drinks, paracetamol and ibuprofen, and TLC from OHs if you have any - wish I had!
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Glad to hear things are a bit improved, Nickie, and that you've had a chat with the doc. Also very glad to hear there's an OH :relief:, even if he isn't so hot on the "there there"s!
I would encourage anyone who feels as bad as Nickie did to tell someone - the mind can be a funny place, and it's good to shout out when you're very down, while you can be reached and hauled out of your hole if necessary!
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Its not easy Nickie when you feel horrible and having to carry on with looking after your animals. Every little chore seems to take twice as long. Taking care of yourself is important. what we all need, sunshine, dry weather and warmer days. Winter always gets me down, joints are sore and some days I get the feeling that there is no point to anything and would stay in be but for the fact animals need feeding .Even a bad cold leaves you feeling drained so do hope you improve over the next few days. have you tried steaming yourself ? I find that a help. :hug:
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Hi Nicky,
:hug: ....Sorry you are feeling so rough ,if you have had a second bout of the cold/virus it must have really pulled you down . There are some really nasty viruses about at the moment and some very debilitating..... so rest and be kind to yourself.
Hope you feel better soon -but if you don`t, GO BACK TO YOUR DOCTOR
Tilly
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Flu , cold , whatever.
Once your immune system is down from a bout of f or c , you are not in a position to fight off another virus or bug . However , not wanting to scare you . But carbon monoxide poisoning can give exactly your symptoms !
Carbon monoxide fills a room/house from the top down . Hence many people being found dead in bed with cm poisoning .
So if you use a fuel type heating system , ie wood , coal , gas or oil , get the system checked , and get the doc to check you for cm poisoning too .
It most likely is just a cold or maybe flu , and you are run down . But worth getting things checked out , just in case .
The reason i mention this is that a couple near me died of cmp , and they thought they were going down with flu all the time .
Please don't panic about this ! If you think there is a chance that it is cmp , ventilate all rooms ie open a window , especially in bedrooms . Get a cm detector , like a fire alarm .
Get your heating system checked .
Get yourself checked .
Others who live in the house may not get as much cm , if it is that , as they may spend more time away from the house , hubby at work , kids at school etc .
You could feel ill , go to bed and thus get more cm in your system , remember , cm fills from the top down .
I have known a few people who live in caravans get cmp , it is very common .
Again . Don't panic please , get things checked though .
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Nickie,
I hope you start feeling better soon. Whether it is a cold or flu, pretty much impossible to tell on the internet ;) and whichever is making you miserable. Follow the advice of your GP practice and if still feeling dreadful after fluids, paracetamol and a day or two (and maybe a dram of whiskey - it helps me) call you're GP back. Although flu rarely kills healthy people, superimposed bacterial infections do and swine flu is an exception and really hits the younger population.
Sending best wishes and wish there was something more practical I could do to help.
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I think we're all solar powered. :hug: , Nickie, hope you're feeling better soon. And everyonelese on here with colds, flu, lurgies of all sorts and sunshine deprivation :hug:
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Rosemary - I know you've got a load of solar panels and are very pleased with how they do - but surely they can't generate all the energy you use for heating and cooking, can they?
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I'm solar powered too!
Hate this weather and time of year even if feeling fully healthy! Just need the sun to be truly full of beans. :excited:
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Nickie, I'm glad you were unable to off-load on here. It does do you good to get it all out and folk on here are so good at saying the right things (as I know). I think Russ does have a point. There's been a story line on Corrie just recently about someone who had CM poisoning and her symptoms were like yours so it is worth getting things checked if you have gas appliances. If it is a cold or flu then you're doing all the right things. I think a lot of people are depressed atm and this weather is enough to get anyone down as it's been so unremitting. Done a fair bit of crying this year myself since being diagnosed with a severe illness that has left me disabled but we've had a few goodish days weatherwise and it has helped me no end so the constant rain must be part of it.
I'm reminded of the poem Desiderata (although I don;t usually 'do' poetry) and I've copied part of it here.
Take kindly the counsel of the years, gracefully surrendering the things of youth.
Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune. But do not distress yourself with imaginings.
Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness. Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself.
The whole poem can be found at http://www.cs.columbia.edu/~gongsu/desiderata_textonly.html (http://www.cs.columbia.edu/~gongsu/desiderata_textonly.html)
Hope you feel better very soon. Take care of yourself and get back on here and off-load if you need/want to. Or PM me if you like. :hug:
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Thanks for all the support. I'm feeling a little better today. I managed to get some sleep yesterday & most of last night, only just managed to pull myself out of bed, so running a bit late today.
I can breathe easier & although it still feels like i'm swallowing razor blades, i can at least swallow! I've lost my voice, but that's no bad thing! I feel a bit less wobbly on my feet & my heart is settling down.
Rusty, thanks for the concern. I'm sure it's not CM poisoning, but it wouldn't have crossed my mind so thanks. We have a newly installed wood pellet boiler which is located in an outbuilding I don't spend any time in & has a CM reader by it. We also have 2 wood burners but I've not lit them since I started feeling bad as I don't have the energy to keep them stoked etc so I've been led under throws with the dogs as radiators - works for me & they like to be useful, although the lab can be a bit heavy!
Anyway, thank you guys. I'm so sorry I was such a drama queen. I think I may have let everything to get to me & could see a way through.
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:thumbsup: :wave:
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Very glad that things are improving, albeit slowly. Take care :bouquet:
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Glad you're feeling a bit better. No one thinks you're a drama queen; we all have times when we feel like you are feeling. Keep those dogs busy. It saves on fuel apart from anything else. ;D