Monday, September 19, 2011
Too much booty in the pants?
I took my first 5mg of Lexapro this morning and will be decreasing my Paxil tonight to 10mg. My first decrease to 15mg began last Tuesday (Sept 13). I reported in my first post on Thursday night that I was starting at 177 lbs -- actually for a long time I always lingered around 179 or 180 and was kind of surprised to see myself at 177 lbs on the second day of weaning. I attributed it to weight fluctuation and not to the weaning, but, maybe I am seeing results already because I weighed myself today and now I am at 175. No matter how hard I worked or how strict I kept my diet while I was on 20mg of Paxil, I could never get to 175! And, what's more, is that although I have been exercising, I haven't been as strict about my diet. Sure, I eat pretty healthily anyway, but, I treated myself to some fancy chocolates over the weekend -- something I wouldn't do if I were being strict on myself (only sugars I would have would come from fruits). I also had some delicious three cheese semolina bread -- another thing I would have avoided if I were being strict (I would keep it to only high fiber sprouted oat breads). I'm looking forward to seeing this weight come off while being able to enjoy treat foods again!
Thursday, September 15, 2011
Transitions
I have decided to say farewell to paroxetine (Paxil), a serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) I have been taking for a year and a half for panic disorder (anxiety). A quick search on the Internet will find you all sorts of negative rants about this drug but I am truly grateful it exists, despite my decision to wean myself off of it.
My only real complaint about Paxil is weight gain. I am a pretty active person in my late 20s and yet I have gained approximately 40 lbs since taking Paxil. Though all SSRIs affect everyone differently, Paxil is notorious for weight gain. It could be because it makes it easier to sleep a lot more. It could be because it has the tendency to increase appetite (although even with strict dieting I cannot seem to lose weight). It could even be because this medication affects how carbohydrates are metabolized. Whatever the reason, many people gain weight on this drug. Is this a reason to avoid it? No. Your psychological health should come first.
Paxil helped me through the worst time of my life when my panic disorder became so unbearable that I became incredibly agoraphobic--I could barely set foot outside my house. I'm not saying this drug will make everything better, but it definitely brought my anxiety down enough such that I could benefit from the other crucial component of recovery, therapy. It also made it possible for me to once again sleep soundly at night, something I had had a problem with since I was panicking all day and all night. It really mellowed me out during a time which I constantly felt I was coming out of my own skin.
Now, however, I feel that, although I have yet to make a full recovery (lingering agoraphobia issues when it comes to longer distance traveling out of my home city), I feel I have gained some helpful tools from therapy that will allow me to deal with this disorder without allowing it to overwhelm me entirely. I will admittedly be taking Lexapro (a similar medication) once I have weaned off of Paxil. Lexapro is a lot less likely to cause weight gain and many people who make this switch do see the weight they gained while on Paxil come off.
Weaning off Paxil can be difficult as you can experience withdrawals from this class of medication. I had been on a pretty low dosage (20mg--10mg is the smallest pill) so I am beginning by going down to 15mg (with consultation with my prescriber) for one week. Tonight is night 2. I will continue to reduce by 5mg every week. This is a pretty slow wean but I just want to ensure that I get little to no withdrawal symptoms. So far I feel fine. I will begin with 5mg of Lexapro once I am down to 10mg of Paxil. I will consult with my prescriber once I've been on 10mg of Lexapro for a month to see if that dosage is therapeutic for me.
I plan to document my experiences and any weight changes I might experience here for any others who are contemplating such a transition. Again, I am quite active (go on long distance bike rides, commute by bike, hike, jog, and participate in aerobic and strength training classes at my gym regularly) and eat healthy (lots of veggies, lean meats, beans, nuts, seeds, multigrain high fiber breads and cereals, etc). I am 5'6" and currently weigh 177lbs, when I used to weigh 137lbs. I'd be quite content to weigh 150lbs.
My only real complaint about Paxil is weight gain. I am a pretty active person in my late 20s and yet I have gained approximately 40 lbs since taking Paxil. Though all SSRIs affect everyone differently, Paxil is notorious for weight gain. It could be because it makes it easier to sleep a lot more. It could be because it has the tendency to increase appetite (although even with strict dieting I cannot seem to lose weight). It could even be because this medication affects how carbohydrates are metabolized. Whatever the reason, many people gain weight on this drug. Is this a reason to avoid it? No. Your psychological health should come first.
Paxil helped me through the worst time of my life when my panic disorder became so unbearable that I became incredibly agoraphobic--I could barely set foot outside my house. I'm not saying this drug will make everything better, but it definitely brought my anxiety down enough such that I could benefit from the other crucial component of recovery, therapy. It also made it possible for me to once again sleep soundly at night, something I had had a problem with since I was panicking all day and all night. It really mellowed me out during a time which I constantly felt I was coming out of my own skin.
Now, however, I feel that, although I have yet to make a full recovery (lingering agoraphobia issues when it comes to longer distance traveling out of my home city), I feel I have gained some helpful tools from therapy that will allow me to deal with this disorder without allowing it to overwhelm me entirely. I will admittedly be taking Lexapro (a similar medication) once I have weaned off of Paxil. Lexapro is a lot less likely to cause weight gain and many people who make this switch do see the weight they gained while on Paxil come off.
Weaning off Paxil can be difficult as you can experience withdrawals from this class of medication. I had been on a pretty low dosage (20mg--10mg is the smallest pill) so I am beginning by going down to 15mg (with consultation with my prescriber) for one week. Tonight is night 2. I will continue to reduce by 5mg every week. This is a pretty slow wean but I just want to ensure that I get little to no withdrawal symptoms. So far I feel fine. I will begin with 5mg of Lexapro once I am down to 10mg of Paxil. I will consult with my prescriber once I've been on 10mg of Lexapro for a month to see if that dosage is therapeutic for me.
I plan to document my experiences and any weight changes I might experience here for any others who are contemplating such a transition. Again, I am quite active (go on long distance bike rides, commute by bike, hike, jog, and participate in aerobic and strength training classes at my gym regularly) and eat healthy (lots of veggies, lean meats, beans, nuts, seeds, multigrain high fiber breads and cereals, etc). I am 5'6" and currently weigh 177lbs, when I used to weigh 137lbs. I'd be quite content to weigh 150lbs.
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Ortum
Summer was nice but it is back to work! I'm working at the Language Acquisition Resource Center and it is basically one of those situations where you go, "Wow, I can't believe I get paid for this." Best job, ever.
I am also now an officer of the Linguistics Student Association, claiming a place as the IT specialist by revamping and managing the website and creating and establishing a presence on Twitter.
My classes this term are awesome and challenging--Intro Speech Processing, Artificial Intelligence, and a Machine Learning & Parsing seminar. I am also taking a conversational Farsi course online. It is the first time SDSU has offered a foreign language class in this format. I am lucky to be able to be on both the administrative and student end, as the LARC manages the computer and Internet resources that we use in the course, e.g. Moodle and Byki.
The Farsi course requires me to record myself speaking Farsi at least once a week, so I am thinking I will upload my assignments here so that we can document my vocal progress.
I am also now an officer of the Linguistics Student Association, claiming a place as the IT specialist by revamping and managing the website and creating and establishing a presence on Twitter.
My classes this term are awesome and challenging--Intro Speech Processing, Artificial Intelligence, and a Machine Learning & Parsing seminar. I am also taking a conversational Farsi course online. It is the first time SDSU has offered a foreign language class in this format. I am lucky to be able to be on both the administrative and student end, as the LARC manages the computer and Internet resources that we use in the course, e.g. Moodle and Byki.
The Farsi course requires me to record myself speaking Farsi at least once a week, so I am thinking I will upload my assignments here so that we can document my vocal progress.
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
Quinoa pasta
Many people consider pasta a comfort food, but, really, unless it is mac 'n cheese, I'm not all that nuts over pasta. My boyfriend, however, could live off of pasta if I let him. It's not the most healthful thing to be addicted to, so I have been searching for a more healthful food that would satisfy his pasta desires.
Enter quinoa pasta!
Quinoa has been becoming more and more popular, but, for those of you who do not know, it is a grain that is particularly nutritious, boasting about 8 grams of protein per cup, cooked. 
Quinoa pasta feels substantial, unlike, in my opinion, regular semolina flour pasta. I made a lovely dish using it tonight. The pasta was accompanied by a tomato basil sauce, mixed with sautéed (in blood orange olive oil) tomato, herbed tofu, zucchini squash, eggplant, and garlic.
Enter quinoa pasta!
Quinoa has been becoming more and more popular, but, for those of you who do not know, it is a grain that is particularly nutritious, boasting about 8 grams of protein per cup, cooked. 
Quinoa pasta feels substantial, unlike, in my opinion, regular semolina flour pasta. I made a lovely dish using it tonight. The pasta was accompanied by a tomato basil sauce, mixed with sautéed (in blood orange olive oil) tomato, herbed tofu, zucchini squash, eggplant, and garlic.
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
Mo' money; no probelmz.
I have been unemployed for about one year now. I have been fortunate enough to rely on student grants, loans, and financial assistance from my father to survive. For luxury spending, such as clothes or eating out with friends, I've been relying on credit. I am happy to announce that, soon enough, I will be able to pay off my debt!
This summer, I will be grading papers and tests for a course in Language Acquisition. I am so pleased. Once the new academic year begins, I will work as a research assistant with SDSU's Language Acquisition Resource Center--a lab dedicated to second language learning and assessment. I even already got assigned a small programming project! It won't be until July that my employment actually begins, however, so I was excited when I received an e-mail in my inbox yesterday from someone needing his dissertation proposal proofread. He was referred to his wife, who was referred by my future employer at the LARC! How awesome is that? Someone's really watching out for me. Things are certainly looking up! I am extremely glad that I held out for work that is actually relevant to my goals--work I can actually enjoy and feel good about!
Oh, yes, and the party mentioned in the previous post was quite the success! The social experience was so enjoyable, that I organized a group to go see The Complete Metropolis at the Ken Cinema last Saturday. It was amazing. They have restored the film so well that most parts looked as if it were filmed recently! So crystal clear! I tried to watch the older copy I own, and simply cannot due to its inferior quality. I cannot wait until they release it on DVD. Next week, the Ken is showing Evil Dead, and the following, City of Lost Children! Looking forward to seeing those on the big screen with my friends.
This summer, I will be grading papers and tests for a course in Language Acquisition. I am so pleased. Once the new academic year begins, I will work as a research assistant with SDSU's Language Acquisition Resource Center--a lab dedicated to second language learning and assessment. I even already got assigned a small programming project! It won't be until July that my employment actually begins, however, so I was excited when I received an e-mail in my inbox yesterday from someone needing his dissertation proposal proofread. He was referred to his wife, who was referred by my future employer at the LARC! How awesome is that? Someone's really watching out for me. Things are certainly looking up! I am extremely glad that I held out for work that is actually relevant to my goals--work I can actually enjoy and feel good about!
Oh, yes, and the party mentioned in the previous post was quite the success! The social experience was so enjoyable, that I organized a group to go see The Complete Metropolis at the Ken Cinema last Saturday. It was amazing. They have restored the film so well that most parts looked as if it were filmed recently! So crystal clear! I tried to watch the older copy I own, and simply cannot due to its inferior quality. I cannot wait until they release it on DVD. Next week, the Ken is showing Evil Dead, and the following, City of Lost Children! Looking forward to seeing those on the big screen with my friends.
Sunday, May 23, 2010
...and we're back
Hello there, Cyberspace (that seems to be a severely underused word these days)!
It has been a while since I have posted, as things got a little hectic at school. But, I have survived and managed to pull in A's! I am particularly proud of the final project I put together in Language and Cognition--a research design with a goal to uncover the spatial categorizations that peoples with different native languages implicitly possess. The design improves upon our class study by avoiding a preference for English-like romanized forms, implementing a well-established artificial orthographic system and lexicon--Klingon! If interested, you can read my paper. My friend, Omara Kurtzdorfer, converted the original video stimuli (used in the class study) to Flash animations that make it more clear what parts of the actions to focus on. She's amazing!
I am planning on expanding this paper into my M.A. thesis and so I'll be working on that to some extent this summer. I will also be working on improving my Python programming skills and reviewing Japanese, since I plan on picking it back up at SDSU next semester! I am super excited about that. I am reviewing the textbook that they use as well as practicing with Rosetta Stone. I also enrolled in an evening Voice class at a local community college just for fun (and to improve my Rock Band top score)!
It's summer now and I've started out by finishing a game I had started near the beginning of the summer--Indigo Prophecy (also known as Fahrenheit pretty much everywhere else besides the States). It is an original XBOX game and the spiritual sequel to Sony PS3's Heavy Rain. Now that I am done with IP, I wish I weren't so poor so I could acquire a PS3 and Heavy Rain. I am hoping to find a summer job, but I've decided not to settle for a job that would just make me miserable. I went around school during finals week and gave my C.V. to anyone who would take it, applied for a retail position with Rosetta Stone, and applied to be a summer day camp aide with the City of La Mesa. Hopefully one of those will contact me, but, if not, I am thankful that I have the resources to survive and take it easy until the fall semester starts, when there are more employment opportunities for grad students at the Uni. I am hoping there will be more money in the budget this upcoming academic year, so we grads can pretty much all become employed in the department.
It's graduation time and quite a few of my linguist buddies have graduated. Congratulations to all of them! I missed out on the ceremony since I had plans of my own, including my mom coming into town, but rest assured that I am quite proud of them.
I will be throwing a party next weekend in celebration of what will hopefully be a great summer. It will have been the first party I have thrown, and I like to think of it as a belated house-warming party, being that we moved in at our current abode about one year ago!
Oh, last, and definitely not least, my pal Holly has re-joined the school gym so now I have a regular gym buddy! We plan on going pretty much every day and also hitting up the Aquaplex. My favorite cycling instructor is teaching a water aerobics class every Sunday morning this summer, so I am looking forward to that.
It has been a while since I have posted, as things got a little hectic at school. But, I have survived and managed to pull in A's! I am particularly proud of the final project I put together in Language and Cognition--a research design with a goal to uncover the spatial categorizations that peoples with different native languages implicitly possess. The design improves upon our class study by avoiding a preference for English-like romanized forms, implementing a well-established artificial orthographic system and lexicon--Klingon! If interested, you can read my paper. My friend, Omara Kurtzdorfer, converted the original video stimuli (used in the class study) to Flash animations that make it more clear what parts of the actions to focus on. She's amazing!
I am planning on expanding this paper into my M.A. thesis and so I'll be working on that to some extent this summer. I will also be working on improving my Python programming skills and reviewing Japanese, since I plan on picking it back up at SDSU next semester! I am super excited about that. I am reviewing the textbook that they use as well as practicing with Rosetta Stone. I also enrolled in an evening Voice class at a local community college just for fun (and to improve my Rock Band top score)!
It's summer now and I've started out by finishing a game I had started near the beginning of the summer--Indigo Prophecy (also known as Fahrenheit pretty much everywhere else besides the States). It is an original XBOX game and the spiritual sequel to Sony PS3's Heavy Rain. Now that I am done with IP, I wish I weren't so poor so I could acquire a PS3 and Heavy Rain. I am hoping to find a summer job, but I've decided not to settle for a job that would just make me miserable. I went around school during finals week and gave my C.V. to anyone who would take it, applied for a retail position with Rosetta Stone, and applied to be a summer day camp aide with the City of La Mesa. Hopefully one of those will contact me, but, if not, I am thankful that I have the resources to survive and take it easy until the fall semester starts, when there are more employment opportunities for grad students at the Uni. I am hoping there will be more money in the budget this upcoming academic year, so we grads can pretty much all become employed in the department.
It's graduation time and quite a few of my linguist buddies have graduated. Congratulations to all of them! I missed out on the ceremony since I had plans of my own, including my mom coming into town, but rest assured that I am quite proud of them.
I will be throwing a party next weekend in celebration of what will hopefully be a great summer. It will have been the first party I have thrown, and I like to think of it as a belated house-warming party, being that we moved in at our current abode about one year ago!
Oh, last, and definitely not least, my pal Holly has re-joined the school gym so now I have a regular gym buddy! We plan on going pretty much every day and also hitting up the Aquaplex. My favorite cycling instructor is teaching a water aerobics class every Sunday morning this summer, so I am looking forward to that.
Monday, April 19, 2010
We all get the slip sometimes every day; I just keep it to myself...
I found out quite recently that the lab at which I am currently volunteering--the one at which I was hoping to secure a paid position--is shutting down some time in this June. It is pretty much the only active participant-based research laboratory in the Linguistics department. There is always corpus or computational based research to be done, but I quite prefer getting data from real live people!
I decided to branch out and contact some of the research faculty in a different but related department--Speech Language and Hearing Sciences. There are quite a few labs that do psycholinguistic or cognitive science (mind-brain relationship) research. So far the two professors who run the two labs that are tied as my first choice have scheduled to meet with me. I am excited! I would be pleased to simply work for experience as I am now, but boy would it be nice to get paid.
I decided to branch out and contact some of the research faculty in a different but related department--Speech Language and Hearing Sciences. There are quite a few labs that do psycholinguistic or cognitive science (mind-brain relationship) research. So far the two professors who run the two labs that are tied as my first choice have scheduled to meet with me. I am excited! I would be pleased to simply work for experience as I am now, but boy would it be nice to get paid.
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