Bearly There: An Update

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SarahBear

SarahBear

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I saw my GI today… aaandd…

I'm down to 94lbs.

I haven't been to see him (or any doctor that weighed me) since December or so. All last year I was fluctuating between 103 and 105lbs. 98lbs is my average, and just before my diagnosis, I dropped down to around 91lbs - a cause for great concern.

This wouldn't ordinarily be a big weight loss, but considering how small I am already, it is. And this is closer to my all-time, pre-diagnosis low than my average or my most recent weight.

However, I'm not showing any symptoms I would associate with Crohn's, but I am showing many that would indicate another problem. My GI doesn't think (nor do I) that this is related to my Crohn's, so we're going to leave it for now while I try to figure out what is going on. I go back in three months to check on my weight. In the meantime, my GI suggests I call my GP and push for testing in regards to fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue, and things of that nature. He also prescribed Donnatal to see if that helps with any of the stomach pain I'm having.

So, there's my update. I am so small I am… bearly there. :p
 
I'm glad you're having some things looked into and I hope your GP can shed some light on things. I hope you don't drop any more weight! Anything below 100 lbs is teeny tiny no matter how tall/short you are. How tall are you? I'm 5'8", and at my lowest weight during my illness, I dropped down to about 115 lbs, which was kind of scary for me. My "healthy" weight is in the mid 130s. I hope you can get back up to a healthier weight and that nothing too sinister is causing this drop. I know you've mentioned job stress lately, so hopefully it's just something like that causing this weight loss.
 
Thank you, Cat! :)

I'm only 5'2 - I'm somewhat size-challeneged in the height department as well! So it could certainly be worse!

I'm thinking stress is probably playing a factor as well. In fact, I think stress is what has caused this flare-up of whatever else I have going on, and that causes more stress… so that definitely seems to be a big part of what's going on.
 
If you can believe it, I'm height-challenged too. I'm the shortest one in my family (and the only one with IBD, lucky me). My "little" brother is 6'6"! :p

I hope you can work out the job stuff somehow to get that stress monkey off your back. You mentioned possible fibro/chronic fatigue, so I'm assuming exercise is not really an option? I find working out to be the best stress relief for me, although lately I think I'm flaring too so exercise isn't always an option for me right now either. Anyway, I hope things improve soon and that you can figure things out and feel a lot better. Hang in there!
 
Haha! I'm actually two inches taller than my mother, but everyone else is taller than both of us!

Exercise doesn't generally work out too well, haha. Although my GI seemed convinced that I had been doing some hardcore exercise! I get tired very, very easily and a lot times, physical activity sets off my stomach as well (especially any sort of lifting). I do plan to start trying to take my dogs on short walks a little more often though, and hope that's good for all of us. :)
 
I hope you can find some answers and are able to turn the weight loss around. Just wanted to send hugs your way!!
 
You might want to try some gentle yoga - there are lots of youtube videos and various other free sources to find some good, gentle moves to try. Yoga never upsets my guts (well, as long as I generally avoid the poses that are meant to work on the abdominal muscles) but walking does cause me trouble sometimes (my arthritis doesn't really like walking, plus it sometimes does upset my guts). And of course I like that yoga can be done at home with a bathroom nearby.

And if you do get to feeling significantly better, you may actually want to consider lifting weights! It's done me a ton of good. I had lost pretty much all my muscle mass from being ill and from being on steroids (apparently corticosteroids are the opposite of anabolic steroids in that regard; they steal muscle rather than build it). I started lifting really light weights a couple times a week and it went well, and now that I've been lifting for a couple years, I've regained my muscle mass and then some. My weight hasn't changed but I've gained muscle and I've strengthened my arthritic joints to the point where I had no arthritis pain for like 2 years (it's back now though). Weight lifting is my #1 favorite type of exercise, it just makes me feel healthy!

Sorry for the ramble. I know some folks on the forum are all about diet, and for me I'm all about exercise because it's done me so much good. :) I hope you're able to do some form of exercise, but don't sweat it too much if that's not possible right now. You know your body best so do what's good for you!
 
I hope you GP can find out what is going wrong. I remember your post about all your stress. Have you looked for a new job?

I'm vertically challenged, too. I'm only 5'1".
 
Hope things work out and you can find out what's going on. It's no fun losing weight if you're not meaning to. My weight seems to go up and down like a yo yo sometimes. But, I'm not terribly big myself. Just letting you know that I feel your pain. Sending hugs your way. :hug:
 
I'm sorry you're update wasn't better news. I know how scary it is too lose so much weight unintentionally. I'm 5'6" and currently 77lbs - I had to work that out because I'm used to working in kilos! - and my weight has been lower than this before now. If it's any help I can at least say I've lived the majority of my life underweight and it doesn't seem to have done me any harm so far - certainly not as much harm as food has done in my attempts to gain. If you figure out some secret to weight gain, please let me know!
 
Cat-a-Tonic said:
You might want to try some gentle yoga - there are lots of youtube videos and various other free sources to find some good, gentle moves to try. Yoga never upsets my guts (well, as long as I generally avoid the poses that are meant to work on the abdominal muscles) but walking does cause me trouble sometimes (my arthritis doesn't really like walking, plus it sometimes does upset my guts). And of course I like that yoga can be done at home with a bathroom nearby.

And if you do get to feeling significantly better, you may actually want to consider lifting weights! It's done me a ton of good. I had lost pretty much all my muscle mass from being ill and from being on steroids (apparently corticosteroids are the opposite of anabolic steroids in that regard; they steal muscle rather than build it). I started lifting really light weights a couple times a week and it went well, and now that I've been lifting for a couple years, I've regained my muscle mass and then some. My weight hasn't changed but I've gained muscle and I've strengthened my arthritic joints to the point where I had no arthritis pain for like 2 years (it's back now though). Weight lifting is my #1 favorite type of exercise, it just makes me feel healthy!

Sorry for the ramble. I know some folks on the forum are all about diet, and for me I'm all about exercise because it's done me so much good. :) I hope you're able to do some form of exercise, but don't sweat it too much if that's not possible right now. You know your body best so do what's good for you!
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Thank you, Cat! I've actually been thinking about trying yoga. :)

I appreciate your ramble! It's definitely great information, and so good to know that it's helped you as well!


LindaS said:
I hope you GP can find out what is going wrong. I remember your post about all your stress. Have you looked for a new job?

I'm vertically challenged, too. I'm only 5'1".
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Thanks, Linda! I've been looking for a new job and have applied to several. I got a call today, I assume to set up an interview, but we're now playing phone tag it seems. Hopefully it work out! It would be a job that would require significantly more standing and moving around than I'm used to, but I feel it would be less stressful in spite of that. :)


Cross-stitch gal said:
Hope things work out and you can find out what's going on. It's no fun losing weight if you're not meaning to. My weight seems to go up and down like a yo yo sometimes. But, I'm not terribly big myself. Just letting you know that I feel your pain. Sending hugs your way. :hug:
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Thank you, Cross-stitch! It definitely was startling. And since then I've felt so tiny - like I need to wrap myself up in blankets to make sure nothing breaks me! I know it's not very bad, but it just doesn't make much sense and it wasn't expected at all.


UnXmas said:
I'm sorry you're update wasn't better news. I know how scary it is too lose so much weight unintentionally. I'm 5'6" and currently 77lbs - I had to work that out because I'm used to working in kilos! - and my weight has been lower than this before now. If it's any help I can at least say I've lived the majority of my life underweight and it doesn't seem to have done me any harm so far - certainly not as much harm as food has done in my attempts to gain. If you figure out some secret to weight gain, please let me know!
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Thanks, UnXmas! I'm sorry to hear you're having such difficulties maintaining weight. :( So far, no secret - Prednisone was what put the weight back on before!


Thank you very much, everyone. :) I called my GP's office today and made an appointment for next Tuesday. Hopefully we'll be able to come up with something and get started in trying to pin down what's wrong.
 
I'm glad you have a doctor appointment and a potential lead on a new job. Keep us posted on both! Wishing you lots of luck for the job and hoping the GP can figure things out quickly and non-invasively. :)
 
SarahBear said:
Thanks, UnXmas! I'm sorry to hear you're having such difficulties maintaining weight. :( So far, no secret - Prednisone was what put the weight back on before!
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Before I started taking prednisone, I was almost looking forward to being hungry from it. I don't know what hunger feels like. But it didn't make me hungry. My face did puff up a bit, but I lost weight.
 
Hey Bear!
I know you have no problem eating as you talk about food all the time :p what if you tried to increase your caloric intake?
Bottom line, someone needs to find the source of your pain because its no way to live. I think you need a vacation. You have a lot of stress in your life and a vacation to ease your mind might relieve some of it. You don't have to go for long, maybe just a long weekend. I heard Dallas is nice to visit for the weekend (and I am pretty sure you have a friend there that would love your company, and hey, maybe you could find the lbs that she is loosing through osmosis or something) :hug:
 
Hahaha, afidz!

I haven't made any diet changes to try to put the weight back on yet. I was planning to ask the GP for suggestions when I go in. I'm also open to suggestions from you guys!

A vacation would be absolutely wonderful! Hopefully things will get sorted out soon and I can do that. :) I would LOVE to come see you and absorb some pounds! Hopefully this will happen soon!

Also, just wanted to let everyone know I had my interview today and it went very well. :) There are a few more stages before I know for certain, but it definitely sounded good!
 
I'm so glad the interview went well! I hope this is the start of things getting better and better for you.

I have a soft spot for people who nickname themselves bear, as it is my son's nickname, too. :dance:
 
Hey Sarah,

I can well imagine how you are looking! :ghug:

My Sarah is a tad taller than you and usually sits between 45-50kgs (you are about 42.5). She never stops eating but I think her weight has a lot to do with her diet, vegan, and her resection.

Matt is around 5'10" and is 52kgs. At his worst he was 38kgs and it broke my heart to see him like that. He eats well too and I think his resection also plays a part in his inability to gain and maintain weight.

Any chance of getting onto some of the EN type drinks or loading up with calories via juicing?

What are your other symptoms? (sorry, been out of the loop)

Good to hear all went well with the interview! :thumleft:

Dusty. xxx
 
Thanks for the response, Dusty! :)

I'll look into EN drinks and see what I can find! At the moment through, my primary concern is cost because my boyfriend lost his job about two months ago. Hopefully I can swing a few! I'd love to try juicing, but unfortunately that will have to wait until things settle and I can afford a juicer. We talked about getting one a while back but never quite got around to it. I should've pushed for it! :p

The symptoms I'm currently having are (I copy and pasted this - it goes fairly in-depth):
• Extreme tenderness / pain / sensitivity throughout my torso. It's centered in my stomach, but spreads to my back and breasts. It's not as deep as Crohn's and IBS pain, but it's not on the surface either. I suppose more muscle level?
• Fatigue. I've started sleeping more than normal, and getting tired much, much more easily. Most of my fatigue is physical exhaustion rather than a need for sleep, but both do occur in excess. The physical exhaustion is fairly intense - thirty seconds of walking and I'm out of breath. The last time these symptoms were occurring, I gave up blow-drying my hair because I just couldn't hold the hair dryer up for more than a minute.
• Joint, muscle, and surface pain throughout my entire body that comes and goes. Again, it's mostly centered in my stomach but it does occur everywhere. It's also fairly intense around my bottom ribs.
• Difficulty remembering / focusing. This could certainly be a result of dealing with the other symptoms, though.
• Abdominal pain, nausea, and other IBS-like symptoms. I do have these symptoms normally, but they intensify.
• Morning stiffness and pain. My lower back and sometimes stomach are very tender and painful when I wake up. This only recedes after I've been up and about for a little while.
• Dry eyes and skin. My eyes get very sore throughout the day, and more so at night. Dry skin is normal for me during the colder months, but I've never had issues with it during the summer.
• Chest pain and tightness.
• Rapid and fluttering heartbeat. This usually just occurs when I've pushed myself too far physically, but it does come out of nowhere sometimes.
• Small unexplained bruises on my thighs. These do occur regularly, but they get worse when I feel worse.
• Sore throat and tightness.
• Dizziness / loss of vision upon standing up. It's sort of like I'm about to pass out but it doesn't go that far. I sometimes get dizzy at other times as well, but the loss of vision is only when standing. The further I have to go up, the worse it is - if I were sitting on the floor, I sometimes literally have to stop and hold onto something for fear of passing out or falling. If I were sitting in a chair, it's less intense.

Also, my left knee has taken to hurting in the joint fairly constantly in the past past few days, so we'll see where that goes. Hopefully I just bonked it on something and forgot about it!

:hug: I hope you, Sarah and Matt are all doing well!
 
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Bear, just a few random thoughts from me - you mentioned chest pain and pain around your bottom ribs. I have severe GERD and I'll sometimes get symptoms like that. I also sometimes get pain in my left ribcage which apparently is referred GERD/heartburn pain. If I take some Tums, that pain goes away almost immediately. Do you have GERD? The next time the rib/chest pain happens, you might want to try popping some antacids and see if that helps at all.

I get dizziness too, due to low blood pressure (I'm usually around 90/60, and if it drops lower than that then I get super dizzy). What's your blood pressure like? Low sodium can exacerbate low blood pressure and make it drop further, and my sodium drops fast when I'm having d. When was the last time you had bloodwork done? Do they usually check your electrolyte levels?

As for everything together, you really need to see a doctor. It could be fibro, or with the morning stiffness it could be RA, or it could even be Lupus. At the very least, go get some bloodwork done. They can check your ANA for things like RA and Lupus, and of course they can check your vitamin levels and all that. It sounds like something is definitely amiss and it doesn't really sound to me like IBD is the most likely culprit.
 
Thanks, Cat!

I don't have GERD as far as I know, but I will try the antacids and see if that helps! If so, I'll try to push in that direction.

My blood pressure has always been normal. My mother used to have problems with low blood pressure, but it's never happened to me. I strongly suspect my iron drops at times and contributes to the dizziness, but I don't know if that's what it is now, because it's more consistent at those times. If I'm not on birth control, I'm dizzy and faint the entire week of my period (this would relate to the possible endometriosis).

I'm personally leaning towards fibro because my mother has it and it does have a genetic component. And, it's non-degenerative and a much, much nicer thought than Lupus (which has also occurred to me). I did ask my GP about Lupus last time these symptoms occurred but he dismissed it rather quickly. He seemed to focus solely on the fatigue and credit the other symptoms to my Crohn's, which doesn't really make sense, since I'm in a stable enough remission that my scopes and blood work have been showing absolutely no sign of it ever having been there. Now that my GI is in agreement that this is not being caused by Crohn's, I'm hoping the GP will be more open-minded, and hopefully refer me somewhere for testing. If not, I'll be looking for a new doctor. :p

And since that last update about my knee, my left elbow and shoulder have started to hurt a little bit as well. Hopefully I slept on them wrong?! So hopeful today. :p
 
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Look after yourself SarahBear and take it easy. I know things are tough at the moment but you are a very special person and here's hoping things start to get better soon.

Good news about the interview.

Take care and lots of cool hugs. :rr: (love this smilie)
 
Sarah Bear

Dizziness / loss of vision upon standing up. It's sort of like I'm about to pass out but it doesn't go that far. I sometimes get dizzy at other times as well, but the loss of vision is only when standing. The further I have to go up, the worse it is - if I were sitting on the floor, I sometimes literally have to stop and hold onto something for fear of passing out or falling. If I were sitting in a chair, it's less intense.

this sounds like postural hypotension (low blood pressure when moving from lying or sitting to standing)-- my husband and daughter have it routinely and aren't ill, but it can be a sign of dehydration.
 
I went to the GP today. I weighed in at 95lbs. A bit of a gain, so that's good. Temperature of 98F and blood pressure 101 over 70, so those were both good as well. I printed out a list of all my symptoms and he poked and prodded a bit and decided to schedule a echocardiogram and refer me to a rheumatologist. He also took some blood (I requested that he check my vitamin levels). I should hear back about the referral within three days.
 
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I'm glad your appointment went well. If you've not had an echocardiogram before, it's one of the easiest and least invasive tests there is. It provides a lot of information and will find most heart problems very easily and is completely painless.
 
Can you ask the gp to test you for postural hypotension, it a easy test.

This is how my Sarah was confirmed by neuro, blood pressure taken while sitting, then taken after laying down for 5 mins, and then taken again after standing very quickly (the dr held her arm in case she fainted). In her case it was caused by low body weight and anemia. She also had a echocardiogram.

Feel better.
 
Thanks for your responses!

UnXmas, I haven't had one before. The GP said it's basically an ultrasound of the heart - is that pretty much it? Thank you for the reassurance!

Catherine, I'll bring it up - it slipped my mind while I was there, unfortunately. I go back to the GP in a month and I should know when I see the rheumatologist by next week. I'm hoping it won't be a long wait, but I probably shouldn't get my hopes up on that. :p
 
I agree with UnXmas. If you've endured tests for Cronh's, you'll find the echocardiogram to be a walk in the park!

Can you write down a list of questions, tests you might want, etc? That way, when you get the answers, you can leave a spot to jot that info down, and you won't forget stuff. I know I try to do that (I don't always, though) and it helps when I get home and try to relay my appointment to my husband.

How's your job search going?
 
LindaS said:
I agree with UnXmas. If you've endured tests for Cronh's, you'll find the echocardiogram to be a walk in the park!

Can you write down a list of questions, tests you might want, etc? That way, when you get the answers, you can leave a spot to jot that info down, and you won't forget stuff. I know I try to do that (I don't always, though) and it helps when I get home and try to relay my appointment to my husband.

How's your job search going?
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I wrote out a list of symptoms and ended up giving him two pages. :p I didn't really want to over-do it with lists and such or we'd have been there all day, but next time I'm going to try to do that - especially since he already has the list of symptoms, so we shouldn't need to go over that again. I felt bad for the nurse who had to type my entire list into the computer, though. :ylol:
 
Sarahbear I'm sorry you are losing weight and are already so tiny. Could this be due to malabsorption? I'd imagine your appetite decreased too because your stomach is smaller. Can you have lots of shakes to boost your caloric intake?
 
nogutsnoglory said:
Sarahbear I'm sorry you are losing weight and are already so tiny. Could this be due to malabsorption? I'd imagine your appetite decreased too because your stomach is smaller. Can you have lots of shakes to boost your caloric intake?
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It could be malabsorption, but at this point we're not leaning towards Crohn's being the culprit because my symptoms (while they could all potentially be caused by Crohn's) aren't typical for me when flaring. Also I seem to have flare cycles of whatever this is, and during the last one, scopes and blood work were done and all showed no signs of Crohn's. So I'm honestly not sure what's causing it.

I'm going to look into shakes and things like that hopefully this weekend after I get paid, if I have a bit left over. For now, I'm just trying to eat more frequently and get in as many calories as possible, however I have to do it. I brought pepperoni rolls to work with me today. :p

Thank you for the response, NGNG!
 
It's very hard, I'm trying to put on weight too. My doctor said 3 ensures a day plus meals and snacks. I'm falling way short of that but I guess he wants me stuffing my face as much as possible.
 
Another little update...

I have my second interview next Tuesday. After that, there's a telephone interview. I assume I won't know until after both of these whether or not I have the job. It sounds hopeful, but it's far from being certain.

I did let my boss know I was looking for something else, primarily because the interviewing manager requested to contact him. I also expected he would need as much time as possible to find someone to take my job, considering how terrible the pay is.

It turns out he's already replaced me. This new employee is available to start as soon as the week after next. He is not paying her what he has been paying me - I asked and he laughed a little and said, "No, that wasn't going to work." Clearly not. I'm looking at a job in retail that would start me off at a higher hourly wage, plus commission.

I'm back to being incredibly stressed and frustrated because 1) I don't understand why I'm the only one undeserving of a fair wage and 2) he just put a lot of pressure on me to find a new job very quickly. Obviously I shouldn't have told him just yet, but I was attempting to be considerate.

So, we'll see where things go from here, I guess.
 
I think that all this stress will be worth it in the end. You shouldn't have to work for someone who doesn't appreciate your worth. I hope you find a better paying job, soon.
 
Totally agree with LindaS. Everyone deserves to be paid a decent wage. I really hope that you get sorted soon.
Take care and lots of hugs.
 
Bearly a Bear! D: I'm so sorry Bear. I meant to post a while ago but spoke in private instead. :p Keep us posted on how you're doing. Hope you get the job and that the ultrasound of your heart comes back clear (I've had one before if you have any questions about it). :)
 
It looks like I've got the job. It's cosmetics sales at Elder Beerman. I have to pass a phone interview in order to be hired, but my interview yesterday was pretty much just them coaching me on how to best answer the questions - so I guess they really want me. They said as long as I pass, I'm hired. I'm waiting now for them to call to set up the interview, but they said it would hopefully be sometime this week.

It cannot come fast enough. I've found out who my replacement is, and suffice to say, I'm once again incredibly insulted that this person will be getting paid better.
 
My son is 5' 8" and when he was in the hospital, he got down to 79 lbs. He now weighs 101. He feels tired all the time and can't seem to put on more weight. We're going to add some Peptamen back into his diet, even though it's not SCD legal.
 
That's GREAT news Sarah! Good luck on the phone interview! When is it? I REALLY hope this works out because you need to get out of where you are now. Hopefully they have OK benefits for you as well.

(Bonus: You get free or discounted makeup :p )

:hug:


SarahBear said:
It looks like I've got the job. It's cosmetics sales at Elder Beerman. I have to pass a phone interview in order to be hired, but my interview yesterday was pretty much just them coaching me on how to best answer the questions - so I guess they really want me. They said as long as I pass, I'm hired. I'm waiting now for them to call to set up the interview, but they said it would hopefully be sometime this week.

It cannot come fast enough. I've found out who my replacement is, and suffice to say, I'm once again incredibly insulted that this person will be getting paid better.
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CrohnsChicago said:
That's GREAT news Sarah! Good luck on the phone interview! When is it? I REALLY hope this works out because you need to get out of where you are now. Hopefully they have OK benefits for you as well.

(Bonus: You get free or discounted makeup :p )

:hug:
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Thanks! Not sure yet when it will be. I interviewed with the cosmetics and Clinique counter managers yesterday and neither of them know how to set up the phone interview - the manager who would usually do that is out. So, they're going to get in touch with me when they get it sorted out, but they said it should be sometime this week. The cosmetics manager did mention going on vacation starting today though, so that might put a delay on things. Hopefully someone else will be able to handle it.

There is free make up involved. :p I'll get so much every so often. There are also training classes (usually Cincinnati I think) every three months and all expenses are reimbursed.

Another plus is that Clinique only hires from within the company, so there's definitely room to move up (not having that at this job has been very frustrating to me). Everyone in the company started at the counters. They were still debating on whether to put me with Clinique or Lancome, but they decided Clinique - which is great, because that counter makes a lot more sales than the others.
 
I just called my GP's office to check on the status of the referral to the rheumatologist, and apparently she has denied me because she's not taking any new patients. My GP is apparently calling to try to push it through, so, once again... we'll see how this goes.

But, my phone interview is scheduled for Friday morning at eight. I assume since my boss is so eager to get me out of here, he won't mind me taking the time to do that. :p
 
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Good luck SarahBear for Friday - I am sure you will do really well. Clinique is a good brand. The place where you currently work (and hopefully will be leaving very soon!) will realise what they have lost but that is their problem.

I'll be thinking of you and sending good luck vibes across the pond. 💅
 
Thank you so much, CeeCee! :) I'm pretty excited about Clinique - it's definitely one of my favorites, and probably the brand I have the most experience with, overall.

:hug:
 
Congratulations on the new job! So will you be doing Make-Up tutorials on here once you get started :ylol2:
 
Thanks, Linda! I could do tutorials! Haha. I love playing with make up - in fact, that's what I did with most of my free time while I was on Prednisone... and I had a LOT of free time on Pred, since I stopped going to school and never slept. :p
 
Become a YouTube makeup tutorial sensation! That way you could teach ALL of us! :)

SarahBear said:
Thanks, Linda! I could do tutorials! Haha. I love playing with make up - in fact, that's what I did with most of my free time while I was on Prednisone... and I had a LOT of free time on Pred, since I stopped going to school and never slept. :p
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Ooh, Bear, you could do makeup tutorials specifically for IBD'ers! How to put on makeup to conceal moon-face, how to conceal bags under your eyes, how to cover up ghostly paleness, etc.

The new job sounds really promising. Best of luck with the phone interview!!
 
Ooooo, good ideas Cat!

Actually, just throwing this out there, Benefit's Erase Paste is fantastic for dark circles. But that's not the brand I'm supposed to be selling. :p

And, the rheumatologist's office called! My GP made it happen, apparently! They scheduled me for sometime in October (their first opening) but they put me first on their cancellation list, so I should get in within the next few weeks!
 
The interview went well, but it wasn't as long as I had hoped it would be. I haven't yet heard back about it, but I plan to call soon to follow up.

Also, my echocardiogram is today at one. For some reason, they're having a tech come in from Ohio to do it, and I'm a little confused as to why.
 
Sorry for the delay. A good bit to update on and none of it good, so I've been sort of keeping to myself.

On top of a ton of personal issues, I did not get the new job - and I lost my current job.

In regards to the job I was applying for… they said I would definitely have it as long as I passed the phone interview. They spent most of the second interview coaching me on how to best respond to the questions in the phone interview, presumably because they really wanted me. I did pass the phone interview… and I called them a week later to follow up and was told, "Well, you did pass the interview… but it determined you would be a better fit for a different cosmetics brand." Now they want me to reinterview for that position instead. This doesn't make sense because during both of the previous interviews, this brand was an option - they decided during the second interview that they thought I would fit best with Clinique. It doesn't make any sense that I would need to repeat the interview. It also doesn't make sense that a blind telephone interview that needs only determine I have basic sales skills would specify which brand to hire me on with - or that I could meet with three people in person who say one thing, then the phone interview determines another so the first is completely off the table.

I agreed to the interview, but I do not want the position. I would be earning less than half the commission I would have with the other brand. Considering that standing is extremely painful for me, it hardly seems worth it.

I found all of this out last Friday. My boss was out, so I didn't get a chance to tell him then. Well, I went in to work yesterday and found… my replacement. I was informed by her that I would be leaving after this week. I had to wait about an hour for my boss to come in, then learned that he thought I told him I would be leaving then. I absolutely did not. I never even told him I had the position - how could I, when I didn't know if I did or not? I told him, "I should know within two weeks whether or not I have it," and he apparently took that to mean I'd be leaving in two weeks. That's a pretty far stretch, and definitely something that should have been confirmed if there was even the smallest bit of doubt.

So. There it is.
 
Oh Bear, I'm so sorry to hear it. It sounds like you're better off without this crappy boss, but the rest of the situation just sucks. I hope something better job-wise comes along soon. I know it's like 100 times more difficult to deal with stuff like this when you've got IBD and other illnesses knocking you down too. I really hope things get a lot better very soon. Sending you a big hug!
 

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