UKMT Winterval 2023 - Fisking the Trussay - The Something Awful Forums

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Debate & Discussion > UKMT Winterval 2023 - Fisking the Trussay

fuctifino: Jun 11, 2001

The Perfect Element posted:

I basically have no idea what this means or what the implications are.

It's been impossible to send packages abroad, or letters requiring customs declarations since the royal mail system was hit with ransomware on the 12th.

# ? Jan 19, 2023 09:52

Adbot: ADBOT LOVES YOU

# ? May 26, 2024 18:16

ConanThe3rd: Mar 27, 2009

Sounds like normal day-to-day RM operations to me.

# ? Jan 19, 2023 09:57

DesperateDan: Dec 10, 2005; Where's my cow?

Is that my cow?

No it isn't, but it still tramples my bloody lavender.

Melissa McCarthyism posted:

Hellos friends, I suffer from chronic fatigue...

....Does anyone have any experience with fatigue and how can I manage this effectively?

Thanks

first up, sorry to hear that, it really loving sucks.

my CFS/ME started in '16 after a reaction to antibiotics drat near killed me, took a few years to get diagnosed while they ruled out all the fun stuff like lyme and borrelia

I haven't found any hidden tricks that will drastically affect your fatigue, everything you can do is stuff that helps to a degree but even if you do everything "right" all the time some days you will still end up being able to do nowt while feeling like your arse got kicked and some level of acceptance of that can help a lot- it's no personal failure on your part that it's unmanageable at times

the stuff that helps me most is largely the boring poo poo- sleep hygiene/routine, making sure you eat small amounts often, good hydration, making sure to stay at least a little active on the worst days and not pushing too hard on the best, relaxation techniques, stress management etc- but it does help if you stick with it and it's worth asking your GP if there's an occupational therapy team in your area to run through this poo poo with you, otherwise I can probably scan and send the already poorly photocopied guides they gave me if it helps

I'm a legal medical cannabis user mainly for the pain side of things but it has helped with fatigue management- particularly on helping me get nice solid, uninterrupted sleep- having it from a doctor that regulates/monitors my use and having specific products for specific times/purposes has made it a much different and far more effective thing than my previous self-medication. Its not perfect though- there's constant supply issues, red-tape/incompetence and some clinics exist as nothing other than a blatant pill-mill to give rich folk legal weed with no real medical interest.

# ? Jan 19, 2023 10:14

keep punching joe: Jan 22, 2006; Die Satan!

fuctifino posted:

It's been impossible to send packages abroad, or letters requiring customs declarations since the royal mail system was hit with ransomware on the 12th.

This sounds kinda bad, hope someone's going to fix it.

# ? Jan 19, 2023 10:37

Guavanaut: Nov 27, 2009; Looking At Them Tittys
1969 - 1998; Toilet Rascal

Just keep exporting things and make the people at the other end sort the paperwork out, Glrobal Britan isn't it?

# ? Jan 19, 2023 10:39

Testro: May 2, 2009

Thanks also from me for the fatigue related posts; really appreciating all of the insight, but sorry that so many others have experience of this.

# ? Jan 19, 2023 10:48

Failed Imagineer: Sep 22, 2018

I really wonder about the economic impact, just in the last week I've put off making multiple purchases because I wasn't hosed working out if they would be shipped by RM and end up in the Phantom Zone

# ? Jan 19, 2023 10:48

Melissa McCarthyism: Jan 18, 2007

Gonzo McFee posted:

I can only speak from my own experience with a weakened immune system from cancer surgery, working in mental health for near a decade (HCA/HCSW) and having a friend group that is made up of MH nurses and various other people with hosed up brains.

First up, the little things that can improve focus and combat fatigue. Probably stuff you've already tried, but for the sake of covering bases, I'll give it to you again. If you're struggling to read or focus on work, then do something that can relax your brain a bit. Get up, walk around a bit, talk to a workmate then come back when your brain feels ready to process again. Five minutes of letting your brain relax beats thirty minutes trying to force your brain to comprehend something it can't process right at that moment. You might come back to it and find it easier to deal with if you take that time for yourself. Try and improve your sleep hygiene. Try and go to bed at a reasonable time, avoid caffeine before bed, and avoid high fat foods before you sleep. And get away from the screens. Phones, tablets, computer, TV, anything that gives you the wee dopamine hits that we're all guilty of. Posting is fun, but it ruins reading comprehension. Start reading a book before bed. Mindfulness gets a bad rap because it's basically prescribed as a cure all by the most awful people, but some of it is genuinely useful. Also, try and find out what accommodations your work can make for you. You said that you weren't getting sick during lockdown, so I'm assuming that some of your job can be done from home? Or you could see if adjustments can be made to your work schedule to accommodate you. Maybe you come into the office three days a week once you're fully back to work. See if they can refer you to counselling.

Second, my untrained opinion about antidepressants. Citalopram sucks. Dogshit tier SSRI. Not met many people it worked for. Drugs like Sertraline do the same thing, but better. You might also want to look into Mirtazapine. Not a SSRI and it's great for PTSD, overthinking, obsessive thinking, and it helps with sleep. Just don't stay up 30 minutes after taking it, or you'll eat the entire contents of your fridge. Everyone's body is different, and sometimes it's finding the right antidepressant for you. You did the right thing getting off the weed, its side effects exacerbate everything you're describing.

Lastly and most importantly, remember you're human. It's incredibly difficult to deal with a weakened immune system, or in your case an overactive immune system, and not feel like you're letting people down. Which leads to mental health problems because you start to believe you're not good enough. Which leads to taking more time off. Which becomes a vicious cycle. I know what it's like to work in an environment where you have to be there for people, and you can't do it. It sucks. You have to reassure yourself that you're doing everything your body will allow, and do everything in your power to not add to the problem by beating yourself up. Don't be afraid to lean on the people around you because you're sure as poo poo letting them lean on you. Also remember that I take none of my own advice and nobody else does for themselves. We're allowed to gently caress up our best intentions. You're playing the hand that's been dealt to you, not the one you'd play if your body allowed for everything you wanted it to do.

I hope there's some good advice in this. I struggle with a lot of what you're describing and it's a constant battle. Remember that you're not alone in this and you're doing what you can. I don't know you or the things you go through in your own work but I can almost guarantee that you at 50% is giving more of yourself than a lot of people do who don't have to go through what you do.

Thanks for this. I essentially live the tenets of your first paragraph, and my work is WFH indeed, complex in nature, emotionally charged at times, however I'm excellent with clients so that doesn't bother me so much. Considering the net good of my line of work is what keeps me going.

I've been on citalopram for about two years I think. I've used mirtazapine in the past (15 years ago) when I was a raver - it was commonly used as a 'trip killer'. Would knock you out and you'd be fairly relaxed the next day. Prescription drugs were rife in my town, lot of barheads and blue munchers.

For me, citalopram has been sufficient in preventing major PTSD freakouts and I'm in a much better place mental resilience wise so I'm not sure if there's cause for change there.

I've been doing phased return, my boss is understanding about my condition, but that has a limit which I do not want to test.

They've given me leave for yesterday and today and I have three days of training next week.

There have been repeated issues with my prescription for fexofenadine, an anti allergy medication, since I resumed cfs symptoms. I just found out today from my doctor that each re-up of my meds has been generated then either lost or disposed of since November last year. I'm quite upset about it. Convinced there is a Correlation however nothing is certain with cfs

# ? Jan 19, 2023 11:12

Bobstar: Feb 8, 2006; KartooshFace, you are not responding efficiently!

Guavanaut posted:

Just keep exporting things and make the people at the other end sort the paperwork out, Glrobal Britan isn't it?

Since Brexit took effect, we've been fruitlessly reminding our friends and families in the UK that, while it's very kind of them to send us things for Christmas/birthday, if it comes from UK it will take 3-6 weeks and we'll have to pay a load of money to release it. Yes, even if it's only worth �3. Yes, even if you mark it as "gift".

It's been several years now and they still go "oh it can't take that long", "oh I'm sure they won't charge you just for that".

# ? Jan 19, 2023 11:21

keep punching joe: Jan 22, 2006; Die Satan!

It's because British people are blindly optimistic about everything just working out for them with no effort, because the politicians and media keep telling them how great everything here is and how poo poo everything is everywhere else.

# ? Jan 19, 2023 11:25

Tesseraction: Apr 5, 2009

We have always been at war with Eurasia.

# ? Jan 19, 2023 11:29

Barry Foster: Dec 24, 2007; What is going wrong with that one (face is longer than it should be)

keep punching joe posted:

It's because British people are blindly optimistic about everything just working out for them with no effort, because the politicians and media keep telling them how great everything here is and how poo poo everything is everywhere else.

This is a particularly irritating element of the British psyche, yeah

We're YOLO nation without having the actual skills, psychology or resources to back that up, just a deeply held belief in our own exceptionalism

# ? Jan 19, 2023 11:42

Mega Comrade: Apr 22, 2004; Listen buddy, we all got problems!

keep punching joe posted:

It's because British people are blindly optimistic about everything just working out for them with no effort, because the politicians and media keep telling them how great everything here is and how poo poo everything is everywhere else.

Compared to who? I've heard from foreigners multiple times about how pessimistic British people are in general.
I think we more have an attitude of "that's just the way it is" and nothing can be changed for the better.

# ? Jan 19, 2023 11:46

keep punching joe: Jan 22, 2006; Die Satan!

Mega Comrade posted:

Compared to who? I've heard from foreigners multiple times about how pessimistic British people are in general.
I think we more have an attitude of "that's just the way it is" and nothing can be changed for the better.

Inside the British person there are two wolves. One thinks everything is hunky dory, and the other thinks it's supposed to be poo poo and gently caress off if you don't like it.

# ? Jan 19, 2023 11:53

endlessmonotony: Nov 4, 2009; by Fritz the Horse

Mega Comrade posted:

Compared to who? I've heard from foreigners multiple times about how pessimistic British people are in general.
I think we more have an attitude of "that's just the way it is" and nothing can be changed for the better.

"The British are the best you can be, so anyone thinking it can be done better is a foreign."

# ? Jan 19, 2023 11:59

NotJustANumber99: Feb 15, 2012; somehow that last av was even worse than your posting

Bobstar posted:

Since Brexit took effect, we've been fruitlessly reminding our friends and families in the UK that, while it's very kind of them to send us things for Christmas/birthday, if it comes from UK it will take 3-6 weeks and we'll have to pay a load of money to release it. Yes, even if it's only worth �3. Yes, even if you mark it as "gift".

It's been several years now and they still go "oh it can't take that long", "oh I'm sure they won't charge you just for that".

I haven't had this experience with family in France?

# ? Jan 19, 2023 12:00

Guavanaut: Nov 27, 2009; Looking At Them Tittys
1969 - 1998; Toilet Rascal

keep punching joe posted:

Inside the British person there are two wolves

and a squirrel

https://twitter.com/CryptoNature/status/1613066075834388481

# ? Jan 19, 2023 12:03

Jaeluni Asjil: Apr 18, 2018; Sorry I thought you were a landlord when I gave you your old avatar!

Bobstar posted:

Since Brexit took effect, we've been fruitlessly reminding our friends and families in the UK that, while it's very kind of them to send us things for Christmas/birthday, if it comes from UK it will take 3-6 weeks and we'll have to pay a load of money to release it. Yes, even if it's only worth �3. Yes, even if you mark it as "gift".

It's been several years now and they still go "oh it can't take that long", "oh I'm sure they won't charge you just for that".

Same sending stuff to Egypt. People in the UK think it's wonderful to send gifts to people in Egypt (clothes or whatever) but the customs fees, problems with import, half the country having no mailing address that actually functions, it costs an absolute fortune for the recipient in many cases - many times more than the goods are worth.
Much better to send the dosh so they can buy their own stuff! It's one thing to carry stuff over yourself in your suitcase, quite another to post/courier it. And even then, you can get in trouble bringing eg designer clothes in because companies like Zara (yeah ok maybe that doesn't count as designer but you get my drift) pay a fortune to get licenced to open shops and sell their stuff in Egypt.

It's an issue we have at work, our charity works with partners in Africa, India etc, and people donate old laptops amongst other things, but transporting them out there and the fact they're old anyway, makes it pretty useless. Would be much better to buy whatever the local offerings are because (a) much cheaper to get when transport costs taken into account, (b) keeps locals in jobs, and (c) 'localized' to whatever the local software needs are - eg in non-Latin alphabet countries, and those that go right to left, stuff set up for that.

# ? Jan 19, 2023 12:45

Failed Imagineer: Sep 22, 2018

https://twitter.com/terryfuck45/status/1616031522968014848?t=lYqfY8HKxHXPnkZTmCEG5Q&s=19

Incredible. Every time

# ? Jan 19, 2023 13:11

smellmycheese: Feb 1, 2016

https://twitter.com/LeeAndersonMP_/status/1616005190036987906

(Simpsons Wait for It..jpeg)

https://twitter.com/HotelEcho/status/1616027484541140992

# ? Jan 19, 2023 13:11

Nilbop: Jun 5, 2004; Looks like someone forgot his hardhat...

What I like is how the aristocracy just became the political class and nobody saw a problem with that.

# ? Jan 19, 2023 13:23

NotJustANumber99: Feb 15, 2012; somehow that last av was even worse than your posting

Nice of her boss to organise a public shaming for her

# ? Jan 19, 2023 13:24

happyhippy: Feb 21, 2005; Playing games, watching movies, owning goons. 'sup; Pillbug

https://twitter.com/heeryth/status/1616033977030041600

Its all one big grift.

# ? Jan 19, 2023 13:29

Failed Imagineer: Sep 22, 2018

NotJustANumber99 posted:

Nice of her boss to organise a public shaming for her

Even the best case scenario is "hey check out the financial details of this Zoomer who I'm retaining at slightly above subsistence levels, ergo poverty does not exist". Perfect Tory brain shite

# ? Jan 19, 2023 13:34

Marmaduke!: May 19, 2009; Why would it do that!?

Poor Katy. Hope she gave permission to her boss to doxx her to an extremely hostile audience, wonder if GDPR regs might have something to say as well.

# ? Jan 19, 2023 13:39

Sir Sidney Poitier: Aug 14, 2006; My favourite actor

https://twitter.com/JimMFelton/status/1616020016486559744

# ? Jan 19, 2023 13:41

smellmycheese: Feb 1, 2016

Lee Anderson�s ability to self-own is quite remarkable. Up there with Musk and Morgan

# ? Jan 19, 2023 13:42

forkboy84: Jun 13, 2012; Corgis love bread. And Puro

happyhippy posted:

https://twitter.com/heeryth/status/1616033977030041600

Its all one big grift.

lol this rules. Honestly pretty lovely thing to do to your staffer who you don't even pay the maximum salary of a parliamentary researcher, even if I've got generally little sympathy for people working to make Britain worse. Unless they are working to destroy the union, that'd be the good kind of worse.

https://twitter.com/SaulStaniforth/status/1615766431345565699?s=20

Love my fiscal conservatives

# ? Jan 19, 2023 13:46

keep punching joe: Jan 22, 2006; Die Satan!

Love to publicly shame my staff online, and not even pay them a decent wage for Central London. Hope you like your bedsit Katy, it's where you're going to live ~~forever~~ until dad buys you a flat.

# ? Jan 19, 2023 13:50

Nilbop: Jun 5, 2004; Looks like someone forgot his hardhat...

forkboy84 posted:

https://twitter.com/SaulStaniforth/status/1615766431345565699?s=20

Love my fiscal conservatives

Spoilers: this is almost always how this goes.

# ? Jan 19, 2023 13:58

Bobby Deluxe: May 9, 2004

If there's one thing we know about young people, it's that they always chat with their boss and make it clear when they're unhappy about their material conditions, especially when their boss is an aggroboomer shithead who has made denying the cost of living central to his identity.

Any chance we could get her holding today's newspaper?

# ? Jan 19, 2023 13:59

EmptyVessel: Oct 30, 2012

NotJustANumber99 posted:

Nice of her boss to organise a public shaming for her

Also the "earns less than 30k" implies he's also admitting to paying her what he thinks is a poo poo wage.
fe: beat like a policeman's wife

Guavanaut posted:

and a squirrel

https://twitter.com/CryptoNature/status/1613066075834388481

Heh.
I discovered as a child that by trapping a little pocket of air below my cheekbone and rapidly tapping on it I could make a pretty good impression of the angry "chit chit chit" call some squirrels make. Much hilarity ensued by making it at squirrels in the park. They don't freak out but do get really intrigued, often coming back down from the tree and hopping to within a few feet of me to try and suss out wtf was going on.
Nice to confirm that I was basically yelling "Hey gently caress you!" at them.

# ? Jan 19, 2023 14:08

Sir Sidney Poitier: Aug 14, 2006; My favourite actor

I discovered as an adult what my dog would do if he actually caught one of the squirrels that he chased.

# ? Jan 19, 2023 14:12

Failed Imagineer: Sep 22, 2018

Sir Sidney Poitier posted:

I discovered as an adult what my dog would do if he actually caught one of the squirrels that he chased.

Go on

# ? Jan 19, 2023 14:13

Tesseraction: Apr 5, 2009

Sir Sidney Poitier posted:

I discovered as an adult what my dog would do if he actually caught one of the squirrels that he chased.

sorry to hear your dog's a lib dem

# ? Jan 19, 2023 14:13

forkboy84: Jun 13, 2012; Corgis love bread. And Puro

Sir Sidney Poitier posted:

I discovered as an adult what my dog would do if he actually caught one of the squirrels that he chased.

Did they kiss?

# ? Jan 19, 2023 14:19

Sir Sidney Poitier: Aug 14, 2006; My favourite actor

Failed Imagineer posted:

Go on

Well this was in a park with lots of loose dogs and normally the squirrels would just run up the trees right next to them, this one made the mistake of running out across a field. He (malamute) caught it, shook it, I checked it was dead then put it in the bin. All the while my wife was absolutely sobbing. Dog was very happy and proud though.

He was on a lead after that.

My current dog (husky/akita) has also nearly caught rabbits despite being on a lead. It seems that when a rabbit (or at least these rabbits) notices danger it doesn't run away from the danger, it runs towards its warren - even if the danger is in between the rabbit and the warren.

Sir Sidney Poitier fucked around with this message at 14:23 on Jan 19, 2023

# ? Jan 19, 2023 14:21