Monday, July 23, 2012

Movie Monday 7/23

Ahhhhh...what's that sound?  It's silence.  Our sons are off for a week on their grandparents' sailboat, along with their cousin, and Ken and I are enjoying a little down time.  I had a very quiet, solitary day which was just lovely!  Life is pretty easy with just the two of us.  And tonight we're going out to dinner to one of my favorite restaurants to celebrate my birthday.

I was planning to take advantage of this quiet week to actually go OUT to a movie theater, but there is nothing playing right now that I want to see!  It's all kids' stuff or superhero stuff (i.e. that the boys want to see) or just plain stupid stuff.  So, we will probably rely on DVDs for entertainment this week, as usual.

Last week was very busy, but we did have plenty of time for a movie after we got home from dropping off the kids this weekend:
  • We watched Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy, based on a John Le Carre novel, last night.  Ken thinks he might have read the book years ago (but didn't remember it). It was a good movie but  very complicated and sometimes hard to follow.  It was actually perfect for watching alone in the family room together instead of in a theater because we could pause the movie and discuss it: "So, is that guy...?" and "Do you think this means that...?"  It's your basic Cold War spy movie, but it does have a sort of slow, meandering feel to it.  It's a good story, though, and the plot kept us guessing.
  • Ken and I have been watching episodes of The Good Wife on DVD (from season 1) and are enjoying it.  And Jamie and I discovered a new show last week before he left: Perception starring Eric McCormack (past star of Will & Grace).  He plays a brilliant neuroscientist professor with expertise in neuroforensics who struggles with schizophrenia.  We only watched the first episode, but it looks very good so far.  Oh, and with the kids gone today, I enjoyed catching up with Smash while I ate lunch!
Have you seen any good movies or TV shows this week?

(If you are also interested in what we have been reading, check out the Monday post on my book blog.)

4 comments:

Renee said...

Joel and I have watched Perception too...fascinating show. Otherwise the same ol stuff....The Closer, Rizolli and Isles, White Collar, Covert Affairs, and reruns and some American Pickers which Joel likes. No movies...infact I did not see TV for 3 days :)while at my daughter and son in laws...tv is in the basement....when I tried to see the national news on Joel's phone I was scolded..Ha!

Sarah Dawneé said...

A very happy birthday to you, Sue!

I hope you have a lovely time celebrating. =)

Anonymous said...

Hello! I recently discovered your post about POTS and your two sons a few days ago. You said that your 2 sons started taking florinef and saw a massive improvement in their symptoms. I, a 15 year old teenage boy, was recently diagnosed with POTS and am interested in taking florinef to help my symptoms until I am done with puberty. I have a few questions for you:

1. Have your son's symptoms returned?

2. Does florinef stunt growth? Has it stunted the growth of your sons?

3. If I take florinef, when my POTS disappears, will I be able to wean off florinef with no issues? Does it prevent POTS from naturally going away?

4. Do your sons take any other medications for their POTS?

5. Do they have any side effects?

Sue Jackson said...

Sorry for the slight delay - I was out of town.

Both of my sons still use Florinef to treat their Orthostatic Intolerance - they both have POTS and also NMH, Neurally-Mediated Hypotension. Sounds like you only have POTS and not NMH or CFS? That is a slightly different situation than my sons.

Both boys have been taking Florinef for about 7 years and it still works for both of them.

Florinef does NOT stunt growth - it is not in the same class nor used in the same doses as other types of "steroids."

You can stop Florinef at any time, but you are supposed to wean off it gradually.

I don't know anything about POTS "naturally going away" - that's not the case for people with CFS.

If you take Florinef, you also needs HUGE amounts of salt (sodium) and fluids, so both of my sons take Thermotabs (salt tablets). You should also be taking a prescription potassium supplement because Florinef can cause potassium depletion.

My sons have had no side effects from Florinef. If you are lactose-intolerant, request Florinef made without lactose (let me know if you need a source).

Some people with POTS also use midodrine, if Florinef alone isn't enough. Others take beta blockers for POTS.

It can take a while to get up to an effective dose of Florinef - start low (with a half tablet), and go up gradually (add a half per week) if there are no adverse effects. You may not notice any improvement until you get up to a higher dose.

Good luck! I hope it helps you -

Sue