lambshankredemption

I did a confirmatory test to make sure there’s really no STI. PCR test came negative for all seven bacteria. ln addition the doctor suggested a PCR test that checks for 33 different viral infections. This one came back positive for Rhinovirus. I understand that’s basically the common cold. Is it possible to have that chronically? It’s been 6 weeks with this and it doesn’t feel like your common cold. I feel and inflammation in the right side of my neck, a dry throat (no pain at all), not much mucus, and a little bit stuffed nose (almost not noticeable).

It’s definitely possible. I just don’t understand why it doesn’t go away once the dog is gone. I have this for almost six weeks now. The dog stayed with me a week before it started and two weekends during the six weeks. Would it be expensive to test for dog allergy specifically (instead for several different allergies)? And would they need the dog (or his fur or saliva) or can they test without that?

Would you have a recommendation for a specialist who could test for allergies (including dog allergies)? It seems the STI test was a false positive: 1) Culture 1: nothing found 2) PCR 1: Gonnorhea and Trich 3) Took treatment for Gonnorhea, not for Trich 4) PCR 2: Mycoplasma Hominis (no NG and no TV) 5) Culture 2: nothing found 6) PCR 3: Nothing found No sexual activity between the tests. No other antibiotics taken. Cultures can be unreliable, especially in the throat, so I’ll ignore those. Gonnorhea is a common STI in the throat. Trich seems to be so uncommon in the throat, CDC actually says it’s impossible to get it but I found one case report in a medical journal. But if that first PCR was correct, how would Trich suddenly disappear despite no treatment, an Mycoplasma Hominis randomly show up despite not sexual activity in between? Looking at the timeline of my symptoms, they started shortly after I had my friends’ dog stay with me for a week and sleep in my bed. A dog allergy would be odd because my ex has a dog and he would always sleep in the same bed on the other hand we didn’t spend much nights together and I also heard an allergic reaction can depend on the specific dog/breed. I cleaned my bed room and turned my HEPA filter on highest setting and thought my symptoms slightly improved and got slightly worse when the dog stayed over again but this could as well be a coincidence or my imagination. Anyway I thought I should check it.

Can you recommend a doctor in Bangkok who I could talk to about antidepressants and who would be able to prescribe an antidepressant if warranted? In particular looking for someone who: 1. Can perform a psychological assessment first before prescribing anything — especially want to avoid doctors who just hand out antidepressants like candies; 2. Knows different types of antidepressants so he can help find the right one; 3. Monitors the process of starting the antidepressant so that he can potentially switch to a different one if warranted

So I ended up getting a throat PCR for STI myself since I’m sexually actively (but most unprotected oral sex) and it came back positive for two pathogens. I’ll go to a hospital now to get treated (and hope the two antibiotics I started didn’t cause resistance). It seems I really got the flu from going to the hospital on that day. Guess I should have checked for STI directly instead of going to the hospital. in fact, that was actually the reason I went to the hospital in the first place but the infectious disease docs weren’t available so they transferred me to a general practitioner who suggested I should try that antibiotic. Bad luck.

Not really much of a diagnosis. The main reason was “you have sore throat for two weeks now”. The only examination performed was to look into the throat and into the nose (throat slightly inflamed and nose stuffed).

@Sheryl so I went back to the doc because I still feel a swelling at that right side of my throat and an inflamed throat but also stomach issues. The doc said the lymph nodes are fine and referred me to the ENT. The ENT looked in my throat and prescribed one week of Levofloxacin. Now I know a bit about antibiotics and this class of antibiotics in particular. I also know a bit about how Thai doctors tend to hand out antibiotics like candy. Is this really warranted? I know it’s like a the nuke option but I’m reluctant to take such a strong antibiotic without a test confirming (1) a bacterial infection and (2) susceptibility to this (and only this) class of antibiotics. But I also know that a throat swab isn’t always reliable. After I shared my concerns the doc now changed to Augmentin but I’m still wondering whether I should just empirically take an antibiotic for a week. The first time I came to this hospital they already wanted to send me away with Levofloxacin and it doesn’t make me feel good.

What oncologist would you recommend?

Thanks. Saw an infectious disease person at my regular hospital today and she thought the lymph nodes aren’t too swollen anymore and given the fact they don’t hurt she thought it’s the aftermath of the flu (post viral syndrome). Will give it another week otherwise I’ll go see that specialist.

Can you recommend an ENT specialist in Bangkok? Focus on throat. I developed swollen and painful lymph nodes on one side of the neck and a bit of an itchy throat. Covid and influenza test negative on that day and doctor sent me away with an antibiotic. Three days later I developed fever and tested positive for Influenza A (ATK and in hospital). Doctor told me to stop the antibiotics half way in. Four days of high fever and a couple of days to recover but I still have what seems to be swollen lymph nodes. The neck muscle feels like it’s swollen. Difficult to tell the size because it’s difficult to distinguish from the neck muscle. Not painful anymore but noticeable and feeling a bit uncomfortable. I’m wondering if it’s a co-infection or if it was something completely different to begin with (and I shouldn’t have discontinued the antibiotics) and I only caught the flu when I visited the hospital to check the lymph nodes issues (there was a guy in the waiting room who was coughing as if he was about to die). anyway wanna have it checked.

Can you recommend a couples therapist for a western couple?

I’m looking for a psychiatrist in Bangkok to prescribe an antidepressant for depression and anxiety that Ive been suffering from for too long without acting on it. Any recommendation out of all the hospitals in Bangkok?

I understand both procedures would require dye, just a different type. Whether they bother my kidneys I don’t know tbh

They did a stress test (though I didn’t feel much stress on the treadmill, can’t compare that with my usual workouts) and echo cardiogram (if that‘s the ultrasound of the heart before and after the treadmill). All was unremarkable. I never had issues with the heart before but I don’t do enough Sport and I have slightly elevated blood sugar and cholesterol showing up on my annual health checkup. Doctor then suggested MRI which I couldn’t do. So he switched to CTA which apparently is faster and not a tunnel but a donut. If CTA is ok for this, I would probably do this and not keep looking for an MRI.

PS: Any MRI machine in Bangkok that works feet first and head out?

I started to get pressure on my left chest that radiates into the left arm around three weeks ago when my gf and I broke up and I started to do therapy. So I believe this could be stress related. I also barely ate for two weeks. it’s not actually painful but more like pressure or tightness. Maybe 1-4 on a scale to 10 depending on day and activity; it can be uncomfortable and worrying but it’s not actually painful. I went to the ER three times since then; one time I thought I had a heart attack (I don’t know how a heart attack feels, it just felt getting rapidly worse and something bad is about to happen, including shortness of breath, dry mouth/throat and feeling like I’m fainting). They ran their usual tests (blood work, ECG, blood pressure, pulse, even X-ray and stress test ECG and ultrasound of the heart) and all came back unremarkable all three times (stress test and X-ray was only done once). I stayed in the hospital one night and the ECG and blood pressure throughout the night were fine. The muscle relaxant/pain killer helped with the chest discomfort. I feel ok as long as I sit or lay down and don’t do much. When I walk too much I get shortness of breath and feel like fainting. I went jogging on a good day and boom, the chest pressure came back and I started to feel really bad again, shortness of breath, feeling of something bad about to happen.. It also seems that anxiety/stressful thinking increases the symptoms. Not sure if an MRI is warranted here but that’s what the doctor suggested. I believe it’s stress related (and maybe panic attacks) but it worries me that it gets worse with exercise. I’m 40M without known underlying diseases. I had Covid in November last year. I believe I had depression/anxiety even before the breakup with my gf.

That wasn’t on the radiologist‘s menu. I was also a bit surprised that they would go to full anesthesia with no other option. I am now scheduled for a CT scan instead because that one, apparently, has a bigger opening. But I’m wondering if it’s as meaningful.

Doctor suggested I should do a heart MRI. When I tried the machine I could barely make 10cm in before getting claustrophobic. They said anesthesia would add another 40-60k on top of the 40-50k for the MRI itself. So I’m looking for an MRI in Bangkok that either a) is much bigger than this one (I think this one is 50cm) and/or b) is cheaper than 100k incl. anesthesia

What seems to help many men (and women) is physiotherapy, both external (stretches in particular) as well as internal (yes, the PT goes into your anus or vagina to massage internal trigger points). It’s widely understood as a muscular issue, where trauma (such as frequent infections, frequent sitting, clenching your muscles because of frequent stress etc.) has causes muscles to tighten. It’s referred to as UCPPS these days, Chronic Pelvic Pain Syndrome. Unfortunately there don’t seem to be any PTs in Thailand specializing in this. You can find stretches on Google and buy an “internal wand” to massage the insides of your pelvis yourself. Download the book “A Headache in the Pelvis”.

Thanks for sharing this. Do you remember how long it took and what tests he did? His website outlines a test protocol that seems rather comprehensive, and I’m wondering whether he does all that, especially that computer based test.

Can anyone recommend a psychiatrist who can examine an adult for ADHD? I saw that most hospitals seem to refer to children mostly, not acknowledging that adults can have undiagnosed ADHD. I also stumbled upon a westerner practicing in Bangkok (Eric Mason / Lighthouse Human Services) whose testing approach seems rather comprehensive as far as I can judge as a layman. Not sure if anyone has experience with him and can recommend him?