Lori Alexander 45: Sensoring and Sensibility

[Sarah92]

Yeah I read that it is possible to get them from walking barefoot and aren't that uncommon but I wonder if Lori even got them treated properly, had actually tests, or just assumed? 

Also can we talk about her recent post quoting good ole Rush regarding hateful feminists when Lori allowed a woman to post hateful comments on her blog about most women just being average and good for nothing but popping out babies? Who's being hateful? And being angry at years of mistreatment and being put down isn't a bad thing. Men are allowed to be angry, rage machines but women aren't apparently. 

Yeah, I get a little angry when random men on the internet say I can't possibly be a Christian because I'm a feminist. Because apparently they're allowed to dictate what I believe.  Or when some rando at a coffee shop tells me to smile when I'm trying to survive school, running on little sleep, experiencing anxiety like never before, and half of my family is experiencing medical related issues. And then I'm furious with myself for smiling on reflex instead of screeching at him like a velociraptor and saying fuck you. Anger is okay, its what you do in your anger that becomes the problem. But screeching like a dino at randos? That's always okay in my book.  

[Shiny]

Gah! Sorry, I really didn't think I'd have so much to say about parasites. Lol! 

Another component to the whole parasite thing, is our perception of what a parasite is. I think most people think of a tapeworm, or maybe a nematode (roundworm) when talking about parasites. But I don't think many people think of protozoa like Crypto and giardia and (I think...) coccidia. Crypto is responsible for a large number of deaths from parasites. Then there are things like Swimmer's itch, which while it is a parasite, it doesn't last very long and I don't think has long term consequences. 

Also, nearly every animal parasite is zoonotic. Meaning if your dog can get it, so can you. This even includes heartworms, although rare. 

 

Ok, back to Lori.  I'm done with geeking out. 

[Melissa1977]

34 minutes ago, jerkit said:

Excellent communication, guys. Really, top notch.

My husband tries not to worry me and sometimes doesn't say he's not feeling well. BUT I always know, because there' s something in his eyes. That's how non verbal communication works. 

I know there are people who, despite being compassionate, have difficulties recognising non verbal language. But when people are raised in violence and obedience and fear, and forced to suppress their emotions, it's difficult to recognise other people feelings or even their own feelings. And it's not good when you marry someone and it easily leads to mental problems (anxiety, depression or rage). 

 

 

[Don'tlikekoolaid]

To bad there is no rapture. I would love for all these fools to disappear.  All the homeless folks can have all their stuff.

I know the bible says to call no man a fool, guess who doesn't give a crap.

[SilverBeach]

2 hours ago, Shiny said:

A huge percentage of US people have or have had parasites.

Not me or anybody I know, thankfully. I'm 62, born and raised in urban USA.

[cara]

Alyssa has hinted at bouts of anxiety and depression in her past, as well as struggles with body image and food, so I don't know where Lori's getting her 'none of my kids have mental illness' from. What is mental illness in her book?

If Lori and family have never felt down or need to complain, bully for them! They're wealthy, white and privileged. They have good careers, live in a beautiful , peaceful part of the world.  Lori thinks she's trained up a family of 'warriors', riiiiight. 

[Koala]

Yes, Lori is very self congratulatory.

Sep. 2013 

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I was a great mother. Even in my sickest of days, I would have healthy meals on the table, took the children to their games and ballet, and made sure that AWANA was a weekly priority. I kept the house clean with some help, and did the laundry. I cooked healthy meals from scratch, paid all the bills and was a good manager of my home. I went to church and Bible studies faithfully. I taught my children the Word of God from the time they were small and even home schooled them some years.

Of course, the "cooked healthy meals from scratch" bit was brought into question by Ken, when he claimed that Lori fed the kids salads, and then when he got home, they begged for the food he cooked.

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Many nights Lori made her big salads which the kids loved, then they came running for daddy’s food that I cooked. Remember, most of these years Lori lived with a sick stomach and other health issues, so I had to fend for myself many days and nights.   

If Lori was cooking healthy meals from scratch, then why was he cooking himself, and why were the kids hungry when he got home?

[WhatWouldJohnCrichtonDo?]

4 hours ago, Shiny said:

Anyway, apparently I am passionate about parasites. I guess that 2 year training in vet school actually made an impact! 

The second veterinarian I worked for would let me see the fecal flotation slides sometimes. It was always interesting! One time I found liver flukes all by myself, and I was ridiculously excited. 

3 hours ago, Shiny said:

Ok, back to Lori.  I'm done with geeking out. 

It's an interesting topic.  If I were in a situation where several doctors told me all my problems were psychological, and then I found a doctor who had a physical diagnosis, I would be pestering her for details.

Parasites?! What kind? What kind of life cycle do they have? What is the most likely way I got them? And on, and on. I can't imagine just letting it stand at "parasites".

What a small and incurious mind Lori has. 

[Curious]

My problem with Lori's "parasites" is the vagueness.  Just like her "illness."   Maybe it's just me, but when I talk about medical issues I try to be as detailed as I am comfortable with and frankly I'm pretty comfortable with telling people everything because if my story can help one other person then it's worth it.

I'm sure there are people walking around with a worm load and handling it just fine.  They are hard to find in dogs sometimes, so I imagine the same would be true for humans.

You can usually tell when a puppy has a worm load because their little tummies are HUGE and distended. So even if a fecal float comes back negative, you still worm them with a general wormer.

Even as you are talking about them, @Shiny, you are using specifics as to what type of parasites there are.

Lori never explains how she finally found out she had "parasites."   Did she finally find a dr. that tested and treated for them or did she find some kind of woo that matched her symptoms and buy the equivalent of black salve for them and was magically cured?  She says for 2 years drs told her it was in her head...maybe it was.  She strikes me as someone that placebo effect would work on, given she thinks she healed her broken arm by dipping it in ice in her sink for 2 weeks.

Years ago we had a elderly dog (14) that started doing poorly.  He was losing weight, picking at his food, just generally not doing well.  We had him to our vet a bunch of times and nothing appeared wrong.  His bloodwork was amazing for a dog his age, xrays didn't show anything.  We did pretty much every non-invasive test we could and we were resigned that we were going to lose him before Christmas.  My vet was as distraught as we were.

A few months later, our old guy was still hanging on, by sheer will it seemed like. Around that same time we either had gotten a puppy or had a foster though the house and found out it had giardia.  So we ran a course of wormer on all our dogs as a precaution (and it was cheaper than testing everyone).

IIRC, we did 3 rounds of womer a week apart.  About a week after that, our old guy was starting to perk up.  He was eating better and just seemed to generally feel better so we ran him in to the vet for a check up.   Apparently, he'd had a bolus of worms somewhere in his intestine that wasn't creating a full blockage, but was bad enough to make him feel poorly.

We ended up putting a whole pound back on him (which is tough in an elderly dog) and he lived until he was 17.

[mango_fandango]

Oh god, worms... it was always my brother who seemed to get them, meaning we *all* had to have Ovex. Thankfully we haven’t had to have it for years, but I still remember the weird, crumbly, almost dusty/fluffy way it used to dissolve in the mouth.

[delphinium65]

How long does Lori claim to have had these parasites?  That's what I'd like to know, not how she got them-these things happen, but how long did she have them, and why?  

[ViolaSebastian]

56 minutes ago, Curious said:

Lori never explains how she finally found out she had "parasites."   Did she finally find a dr. that tested and treated for them or did she find some kind of woo that matched her symptoms and buy the equivalent of black salve for them and was magically cured?  She says for 2 years drs told her it was in her head...maybe it was.  She strikes me as someone that placebo effect would work on, given she thinks she healed her broken arm by dipping it in ice in her sink for 2 weeks.

Lord help me, she blogged about the story and I remembered it because it was...well. ew. 

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I went to gastroenterologists and infectious disease specialists.  The infectious disease specialist at UCLA told me it was in my head.  The one at UCSD told my I looked like I came from a concentration camp and just needed to start eating.

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After another horrible night, Ken took me to a family doctor several blocks from our home.  He asked me if I'd ever had a stool test.  I told him, "No."  I took the stool test and one of the best infectious disease specialist in the country told my dad that he'd never seen someone so full of parasites.  Most people have three to four per oil field.  I had ten per oil field.

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Thus began a long journey of a cocktail of drugs that resembled chemotherapy.  Just enough drugs to kill the parasites, but not kill me.  It was horrible.  After the stool tests showed I had no more parasites, I was still so sick.  Thankfully, I found Dr. Marshall. {You can just email Jana here instead.  She will answer all your questions and she's great!}

Also this...

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Cassi had to leave her freshmen year of college, because she was suffering from stomach problems.  I put her on the same protocol and her gut is so much better today.  It doesn't happen over night, but with persistence and discipline, it will get a lot better.

http://lorialexander.blogspot.com/2012/02/problems-with-parasites.html

Also, presented without comment:

https://www.merckmanuals.com/professional/psychiatric-disorders/somatic-symptom-and-related-disorders/somatic-symptom-disorder

[feministxtian]

IF the drugs "resembled chemotherapy" (which it really was chemotherapy - chemical therapy), they had to be prescription drugs...how did she "put Cassi on the same protocol"? The kid had to have gone to a doctor first. 

I know I've been told certain things are "all in my head" too...until I could find a doctor who would listen. In my experience, doctors treat women like shit. Its worse if you're overweight and on Medicaid. 

[Koala]

2 minutes ago, feministxtian said:

IF the drugs "resembled chemotherapy" (which it really was chemotherapy - chemical therapy), they had to be prescription drugs...how did she "put Cassi on the same protocol"?

That's a really good question.  If a doctor discovered the parasites, then a doctor would have prescribed the medication to treat it.

If Lori "prescribed" the same treatment to Cassi, then that means it was likely some crap from online.

[ViolaSebastian]

Lori said that the "almost chemotherapy" drugs didn't work, but low and behold, " Parastat, living on kefir, and taking HCL" cured it! What a miracle!

And apparently it didn't cure Cassi, because in November 2012, Lori talks about Cassi starting the Whole30 diet because of her digestive troubles. 

[littlemommy]

6 minutes ago, feministxtian said:

I know I've been told certain things are "all in my head" too...until I could find a doctor who would listen. In my experience, doctors treat women like shit. Its worse if you're overweight and on Medicaid. 

I've been told the same thing, ESPECIALLY when they were related to pelvic pain. Yeah, no. My male OBGYN went so far as to carefully suggest I just wanted to avoid having sex (again, no, I was having sex quite regularly...and painfully) and then told me I should go buy some dildos from a sex shop to "loosen things up". I left that appointment more than a little shellshocked.

At least after I ended up getting a hysterectomy he did sort of apologize about not believing me the whole time. Small victories!

[Koala]

Okay, so here's Cassi's account of the parasites.

http://liverightbehealthy.blogspot.com/p/an-abridged-version-of-my-health.html

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My health journey began at a young age, well actually before I was even of age and still in my mother's womb. My darling, loving prone-to-sickness/injury mom had parasites when I was born. 

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 Anyways, eventually I was diagnosed with parasites {we believe I had them for many years} and it took over a year through all natural means to finally gain my health back. 

So it sounds like they were both diagnosed by doctors, but decided to treat it the hard way (all natural).

Why would you spend a year doing what could have probably been done in a week or so?  That makes no sense at all.

Which brings me to my next point.  Look at this blog post:

http://lorialexander.blogspot.com/2013/07/shes-flying-coop.html

Lori looked...so pretty.  She does not look like the person in that picture.  Her face was much fuller, and she looked so much healthier.  Look at her skin!  She had a glow- such a stark contrast from the pictures we see now.

I know it sounds crazy, but I swear it's like the meaner she became, the more unhealthy she looked.  Wow.

[SuperNova]

7 minutes ago, Koala said:

Lori looked...so pretty.  She does not look like the person in that picture.  Her face was much fuller, and she looked so much healthier.  Look at her skin!  She had a glow- such a stark contrast from the pictures we see now.

I know it sounds crazy, but I swear it's like the meaner she became, the more unhealthy she looked.  Wow

That's because...

Spoiler

 

[ViolaSebastian]

I’ve had my own issues with doctors saying things are all in my head, too. After my first spinal fusion-rod placement at 14, I kept having tons of lower back pain. My parents took me back to the surgeon, who told me the surgery went perfectly and that I needed psychiatric help. After my parents’ divorce, my mother took me in for a second opinion after I lost strength in my left leg, and low and behold, I had a spondololythesis that was obvious on x-ray. My father refused to help my mother pay for the second surgery to correct it, but when the time came, it was much worse than originally thought. It still messes with my head, honestly, and I tend to ignored pain and symptoms for too long until they knock my ass out because it’s caused me to doubt myself and the way I physically feel. I do think I was treated badly because i was a young girl. 

All that said, Lori makes me suspect. It isn’t right, but she does. 

[Curious]

5 minutes ago, ViolaSebastian said:

  Quote

I went to gastroenterologists and infectious disease specialists.  The infectious disease specialist at UCLA told me it was in my head.  The one at UCSD told my I looked like I came from a concentration camp and just needed to start eating.

1

Thanks for finding that (or remembering it.  I don't ever recall seeing this before).  A couple things stood out to me though.  First, the bold.  So we know she's likely had disordered thinking about food for a very long time.   Her timelines are so wiggly that it's hard to tell where she was in her child raising at the point she acquired "parasites."

Because we know I don't trust Lori, I tried to look up the average parasite load per oil field and unless my google fu is broken tonight, the only places that come up with that particular phrase (oil field or oil immersion field) is related to maleria.  

Why is her "one of the best infectious disease specialists in the country" talking to her dad about her parasite load?

I'm going to guess this is the dr. marshall she eventually found: http://www.totalhealthsecrets.com/ENGLISH/catalog/collection_display.php?product_collections_id=35

I can't find anything to suggest that patients of a syptomatic parastitic load is given anything like a "cocktail of drugs that resembles chemotherapy."   In fact, several of the drugs are the same ones they use to treat worms in dogs and I guarentee if they suggested I gave any of my dogs a drug that resembeled chemo (after having a cancer dog and seeing what chemo does to them), I would be asking them to find a different way.

We have wormed a lot of dogs over the years given our pack numbers when we were actively doing rescue (we had 10 permanent residents at one point, plus any fosters) and the only side effect we have ever seen is a day or two of diarrhea in puppies with a hugely distended tummy (and if we have one of those puppies, we know it means we are going to be dealing with diarrhea for a couple days so we are prepared).

 

 

[Leftitinmysnood]

Parasites! Degreed medical professional with almost 20 years of experience here, including pediatrics. I have seen patients "stuffed full of parasites." I remember one who had an intestinal blockage from massive numbers of pinworms. No amount of slimy salad and eikorn bread would have fixed it. There were fascinating colonoscopy images, though. I've cared for several cases of brain parasites from undercooked pork, which my dad used as justification for Gothard's dietary laws, and I have actually seen Giardia lamblia, retrieved from a human, swimming around happily in Lori's own despised UCLA microbiology lab. That was the most awesome field trip ever. Lots of helminths and protozoa to look at. I've also taken care of patients undiagnosed by doctors because it was "all in their heads".

That being said, "the gut" is a huge thing among woo vendors right now and Lori is a big fan of buying woo. It's just as way to make herself feel superior to everyone else. She is also not a reliable narrator. At some point, I bet she starts confusing things she's read on the internet with what has actually happened to her.

[Hisey]

Cassi's dress does not meet Lori's modesty standards.

[feministxtian]

25 minutes ago, littlemommy said:

I've been told the same thing, ESPECIALLY when they were related to pelvic pain. Yeah, no. My male OBGYN went so far as to carefully suggest I just wanted to avoid having sex (again, no, I was having sex quite regularly...and painfully) and then told me I should go buy some dildos from a sex shop to "loosen things up". I left that appointment more than a little shellshocked.

At least after I ended up getting a hysterectomy he did sort of apologize about not believing me the whole time. Small victories!

I started having gall bladder problems when I was pregnant with my youngest (told y'all that kid was a royal pain). It was suggested that I was suffering from anxiety, that I was drinking, that I didn't want to take care of my children. I went thru 5 years of that bullshit until the day I drove myself to the urgent care (my x also thought it was all in my head) and proceeded to vomit bile all over the doctor's silk tie. They tossed me in an ambulance, I was admitted for 3 days of re-hydration and tests and had my GB removed the 4th day. We won't discuss what my husband went through with pancreatitis. Let it suffice to say I have a VERY LOW opinion of pretty much the entire medical profession, with very few exceptions. 

[Curious]

1 hour ago, ViolaSebastian said:

Also, presented without comment:

https://www.merckmanuals.com/professional/psychiatric-disorders/somatic-symptom-and-related-disorders/somatic-symptom-disorder

Thanks for this link.  Sometimes I wonder if stuff is really just in my head because I do have a lot of fears about having to have another surgery (which was never an issue until i died) or that my fusion will have issues (since my surgeon died) and stuff like that. 

I saw a therapist (the kind that can script drugs.  I can never remember which is which) and he assured me that it was normal to worry about stuff like I do after things have been very traumatic for me and it may get better the further out from the trauma I get, but it might not and that's ok too.   He did put me on Lexapro and it was miracilous for me, but my pain dr wants me on either cymbalta (cuts my nerve pain to almost zero) or the Lexapro (makes my brain stop punking me).   My brain hurts a lot less than the nerve pain so I said goodbye to the lexapro and hello again to the weird thoughts.

Reading that like though makes me pretty sure that the fact I am aware of the fact that it might be all in my head, means it's not.

It does sound a lot like someone else we all know though....

56 minutes ago, littlemommy said:

I've been told the same thing, ESPECIALLY when they were related to pelvic pain. Yeah, no. My male OBGYN went so far as to carefully suggest I just wanted to avoid having sex (again, no, I was having sex quite regularly...and painfully) and then told me I should go buy some dildos from a sex shop to "loosen things up". I left that appointment more than a little shellshocked.

At least after I ended up getting a hysterectomy he did sort of apologize about not believing me the whole time. Small victories!

I have, in Lori terms, a GYN sent from heaven.  GYN appts are the 7th level of hell for me.  Before I could lay flat it was a real nightmare and stirrups...bitch please.   My dr. is SO patient and he understands I can't always do things the "normal" way and he works to make me as comfortable as possible and not to dilly dally once I'm set up.

He knows me well enough now to know that I will ok whatever he wants to do so if he does a pap and then decides he wants an endrometrial biopsy (I have to get them routinely because I have endrometrial hyperplasia), he just does it and then has me sign the paper work afterward so I am up and off the table as fast as possible.

I love him even more because he cross-stitches 

58 minutes ago, Koala said:

Lori looked...so pretty. 

She's aged 20 years in the 5 years it's been.  Holy crap

[feministxtian]

@Curious my regular depression med is Lexapro. That shit works wonders. My pain doc had me on Cymbalta and it didn't do anything for me. I have another pain doc appointment on Monday and I think I'm going to ask him to write me scripts for the Cymbalta and Flexeril (muscle relaxer) and see if they work better now that I'm back on the Lexapro. My psychiatrist explained to me that the depression can make the pain worse and the pain can make the depression worse...so the cycle needs to be stopped. I'm doing really well back on the Lexapro so hopefully the Cymbalta and Flexeril will help even more. 

I am going to ask the pain doc and the shrink to write me a schedule A letter, stating I have a disability. It would give me an advantage for applying for city/county jobs...the disabled folks go on the non-competitive list. Fingers crossed.