Wrong Turn

Doctor put me on alliprinol and that did the job but I had to take it daily.....Thinking about reducing the daily dose to half a pill or 150mg.

My potential problem with Allopurinol.

I got a prescription from an American doctor in South East Asia.

He told me to start with 100MG for a week, and then increase it to 300MGs.

After starting the 100MGs, for a week, I got a gout attack. I stopped taking the Allopurinol, as you're supposed when you have an attack.

Then, I waited 2 weeks and started taking 100MGs of Allopurinol again. After a few days, another gout attack.

I stopped again.

I've read that this is common - that when you first start taking Allopurinol it may trigger an attack.

Did any of you ever have this problem?

TIA.

.

BTW, many western Doctors are not prescribing Colchicine any more, but if it works and doesn't give you a case of the screaming shites...go for it. :-)

I am a chronic gout sufferer. I visited the US about 1 1/2 years ago and was given a colchicine prescription.

Why is it NOT give anymore?

Side-effects? A recent study that showed negative results?

Thanks chuchok.

The 1996 series USD $100 is one of the most counterfeited notes as it seemed to be to do. Hence the changes to the USD notes over the last 10 years.

I have went to exchange booths with the 1996 $100 USD notes and had them refused.

The lady at the exchange look at it very carefully. She quinted. Rejection. Hand it back. Not accept.

Another time, an exchange teller, after looking closely, took at a marker/pen, put a mark on it, and they quickly handed it back to me. No talking. Refuse to answer.

Said, "no."

The bill had a water mark and felt real. I got rid of it somewhere else.

My advice. Don't accept 1996 USD bills, and if you get stuck with one, dump it as fast as possible. Also, it's now 12 years old.

The doctor started me on 100 Mg a day and if I still had attacks to increase the dosage. The one 100 Mg does the trick and I have not needed to increase the dosage.

Did you ever have a blood test to find the right dosage?

This sounds like "hit and miss."

I suffered from gout and was prescribed allopurinol. I did my own research on the Internet and was a bit surprised that it also prevents kidney stones. That's a side affect that I welcomed. My gout is well controlled and I have had no kidney stones.

Brief off-topic - apologies.

Gary A, what is you daily dosage on Allopurinol? I started taking it twice and believe it actually started gout attack twice, so I stopped taking.

I never got a uric acid blood test. Dr. told me to start off at 100 mg per day for 1 week and then go to 300 MG per day.

I'm confused.

Allopurinol won't stop a gout attack. It reduces the uric acid and prevents attacks. I used to have to take colchicine to stop the attack. Colchicine seriously upsets your stomach and you better not get too far from the toilet.

The doctor started me on 100 Mg a day and if I still had attacks to increase the dosage. The one 100 Mg does the trick and I have not needed to increase the dosage.

Gary A, thanks, much.

I understand Allopurinol reduces the uric acid to prevent attacks. I'll go back to 150 MGs per day when I heal up in a few days.

Yes, I use Colchicine. With moderate doses (1 MG per day, only with a meal) I don't have problems. Maybe more than 1 MG per day is needed, but that's when going to the restroom becomes a problem.

Thanks for the info. Cheers.

I suffered from gout and was prescribed allopurinol. I did my own research on the Internet and was a bit surprised that it also prevents kidney stones. That's a side affect that I welcomed. My gout is well controlled and I have had no kidney stones.

Brief off-topic - apologies.

Gary A, what is you daily dosage on Allopurinol? I started taking it twice and believe it actually started gout attack twice, so I stopped taking.

I never got a uric acid blood test. Dr. told me to start off at 100 mg per day for 1 week and then go to 300 MG per day.

I'm confused.

I love to eat thai food and especially the area i am at have plenty of things to eat.

I dont wanna be fat but i want my stomach to be filled or in short dont wanna be hungry or tempted to eat other stuff.

Is there any thing that people would recommend that would fill stomach and gain no weight.

i mean you would fell less hungry by eating those kind of meals.

I also love Thai food.

But you seem to eat out a lot, like a lot of people (see bold:

I've often had an issue who how much sodium, MSG, bad cooking oils, and fat were in my food.

It sounds like you don't cook at home, but that's an option.

This was a new one to me. A couple months ago, I started getting small cuts in the corners of my mouth. They would scab over, bleed, open back up when I ate, it was painful and Very unsightly!

After a month, I went to the Doctor and he immediatley said, no problem, its just a vitamin B2 deficiency. He said it rarely happens in the West as we get enough B2 in our diets.

Sounded weird to me, but I looked it up on the web and it was confirmed. The internet said B2 should be taken with equal amounts of B6. Anahoo, problem solved.

Doc said it would be a good idea to supplement my diet with B2 to prevent recurrance.

I hope this will help someone else if they find themselves with the same problem.

Tom

I wonder what foods in Thailand were lacking? In other words, what foods in the West give us B2 that foods in Thailand don't?

I take a vitamin B-complex every night.

I take full B-complex pill, break it in half, and take it while drinking beer. I feel a lot better in the morning.

The other Bs are important also.

B1 - for the thiamen and the other Bs.

I get many mosquito bites every night. I have tried to burn oils and use an electric tennis raquette swatter. I am trying to avoid spraying with chemicals. Any suggestions on things I can do?

I noticed a decline in bites when the air-con is on. Other than that, nothing else seems to work, me thinks, sorry.

Mosquitos cannot fly in certain temperatures.

A/C will work when it's turned on cold.

I suggest that the thread on drinking be read. Not a very healthy lifestyle described by the OP.

I agree, it's not a healthy lifestyle. I'm getting older now. I love my sudz and pub conversation. But moderation is what I needed for many of the medical reasons.

Thanks for all of the replies. I'm currently taking a break from the sudz for a couple of days. I am following the thread. Thanks.

I have lived in South East Asia for 7 years.

I know that we sweat (at least I do) when the fan is off and/or A/C is off.

But why do people who drink sweat at night, or when they take naps?

I drink about 5-7 big Tiger beers per night. 640 ML bottles.

What does this sweating mean?

I don't sweat every night, but I do sweat sometimes.

Also, when I wake up, and lay in bed without moving, but am awake, the sweating stops.

Anyone with info on this and what it's about?

Thanks in advance.

I see nothing wrong with encouraging Americans to buy American

But what does the US make today?

Very little.

And, there are not cars that are completely American. So buying an "American" car is not really buying American.

nam pla is often used to replace salt in thai dishes,.....therefore the amount of salt using nam pla is likely to be minimal,...compared to adding salt itself,....proceesed foods are the ones to avoid,...i.e tinned and packaged,....on supermarket shelves,....ect

Yes, one thing about living in South East Asia is that I rarely - if ever - buy canned food or processed food (e.g. processed meats) in the Supermarket.

These items have a lot of sodium in it. You cannot taste it, but it's there.

I'm curious to know how many members think it's worth putting locks on luggage to deter thieves/drugs.

I don't use a suitcase, just a backpack/rucksack and didn't use any locks on my previous trip.

I always use mini-padlocks oare the twisty-ties.

I've learned the hard-way. prescription glasses stolen, and other items at times.

Thanks for the replies, Jaidee and John Doe.

Yes, I've heard about Manila and I'll be leaving it asap, straight from the airport. And Sadada does sound beautiful and unspoiled.

Dealing with the food and stomachaches is part of the gig, but I'll be as careful as I can.

Thanks for the responses.

My brief background is that I have travel experience throughout South East Asia and several other countries.

I like to move on the ground with the locals, and travel with a small bag. Guest house, and local food.

I am planning my first trip ever, to the Philippines.

I have 3 weeks so I'll only focus on the northern parts of Luzon, and save the Visayas for another trip in the future.

Yes, I've read about Bagui, and also the hanging coffins north of there. And even some beach/surf in/near La Union. I'll only stay in A.C. for a couple of days.

What other beautiful places are in the nooks and crannies?

If anyone has any advice I'd appreciate it. I read a lot, but advice from members is as good as gold.

TIA, thanks in advance to anyone who responds.

Khun Jean and nouf,

Thanks for the reply and FYIs. I also bookmarked that site.

As for the US real-estate (owner-occupied housing) I see it as still over-valued if you look at the median income.

Hopefully in 2009 housing will continue to decline, even though 1/6 homeowners owe more than their house is worth (that is 16% of all homeowners.)

I am thinking of returning to the US for a few months, but have my doubts about doing this.

It means the end of the dollar.

I am reading a lot of proven experts claim the US dollar may significantly decline in the next year or two.

Can someone (Khun Jean) tell me what will be the result of this decline or collapse.

I'm a neophyte on this, TIA.

Looks as if Gold will be on of the few investments to be positive for 2008 , where will it be this time next year $1500 or $750 ?

That's a wide spread.

And it goes to show that nobody - nobody - can predict.

If you're serious, buy pieces of gold at a time and consider it a long term hedge and/or investment.

Many seem to be on the gold bandwagon now , with a fair amount of guests on CNBC and other places recommending Gold as one of the few places they would feel comfortable investing , with a view that as and if the dollar declines gold will rise .

Lots of sheep out there.

It's not rocket science.

When times are uncertain and tumultuous, people shift to gold.

Santika Club at Ekamai was on fire during the New Year celebration - early reports have at least 50 injured, and up to 50 dead.

I could see the flames from my window - needless to say they were fierce.

Where is Santika located in BKK?

bye bye pensions.

Alex Lah:

These really are some of the folks I feel the most for.

No not because I am one of them as I have no pension.

I have been self employed all my life.

But these folks put their nose to the grindstone & never looked up.

They believed the hype work hard save retire be happy.

They did not even realize as that is not their expertise that their pensions

were invested in risk. Most assumes a almost savings like account.

Sad really personally I would be pretty mad.

Very profound statements, Alex.

And also, quite true.

I started traveling at the age of 23, and am now 38. I've save funds into 401ks and IRAs in the US, but I fell behind my peers back in the US a long time ago, as I valued experiences more than the Puritan work ethic in the US of, work-work-work and save a little.

I used to doubt my decisions and wonder if I was missing out on a decent future financially.

Now, I realize that I have no doubts, as I look at the financial situation and long-term prospects of my friends and classmates who only worked, and never looked up.

As this thread is all about GLOOM, and if you have some spare time up your sleeve, you might like to search through this site which is guaranteed to add to your pessimism.

Ah, yes.

Economicrot.

I check it out everday.

I think the charts, and youtube videos are chosen well.

I think some of the writings are done well also.

It's a good site. I've learned from it.

The nature of work will be altered significantly within a single generation

VegasVic,

Did Mark Mobius say this, or write it?

I clicked on both links and didn't find the above quote or topic.

Can you expand on this?

It's in interesting concept for me.

Very good thread. Unfortunately this must be thought about.

If a pension fund has reduced funds because of fraud/theft, declining markets/investments, then the pay-outs to the current and future recipients are reduced, and in some cases not even honored.

Lots of worthy posts above.

Yes, there could be unrest, suicides, etc, if somebody worked for 40-45 years (or even 20-25-30) to find out there is enough, or isn't anything there.

That would break people.

401Ks are not only declining a lot, but companies (e.g. FedEx) are ending matching to save funds.

Not looking good for many people.

Govt. employees seem the safest.

And as for military pensions, remember, that Ronald Reagan reduced military pensions, half way through, and he is still despised by many career military people during the 1980s for it.

Let others take your money and promise to do the right thing, and reimburse you when you are old and need it?

I'd rather do it myself and take the risk and be responsible for it myself.