Confession Time! ((ABSOLUTELY NO JUDGEMENT))

16476486506526532259

Replies

  • Rabbit914
    Rabbit914 Posts: 246 Member
    MoHousdon wrote: »

    We'll take any and all suggestions. We'll have 7 days to explore and do touristy stuff.

    I live an hour SE of Orlando. There is so much to do and see in Florida. If you like amusement parks go to Universal Studios Island of Adventures or as a Disney fan I love all of the parks. Go to the beach for sure. There's lots of water parks. The historic area of St Augustine is amazing. In Orlando they have dinner mystery shows you can do and the nightlife is amazing. Visit Kennedy Space Center. If you're into gambling there's a casino cruise boat that goes out of Port Canaveral all the time. There is so much to do here!
  • Lefty1290
    Lefty1290 Posts: 551 Member
    My mom was out with my grandma and brought me home McNuggets. Let's just say I am going to work my butt off and enjoy them. They are definitely not pre-workout food. lol

    I bought these white chocolate macadamia nut energy bars from Aldi. They're a glorified candy bar (22g of sugar) but they're so good! It's nice to have 250 calories and 37g of carbs ready to go if I don't feel like making something before I workout.
  • tulips_and_tea
    tulips_and_tea Posts: 5,741 Member
    MoHousdon wrote: »
    BZAH10 wrote: »
    MoHousdon wrote: »
    spamarie wrote: »
    Caught up!

    I'm not too worried about this parenting thing. I'm worried about the nitty, grittiness of sleep deprivation and exhaustion that comes with the early days, but beyond ensuring the kid's physical well-being, I feel like the actual 'parenting' part will be okay. I'm a decent person. My husband is a decent person. My parents were decent people and my siblings and I turned out fine. Not a lot of drama, not a lot of scares and we all put up with one another to varying degrees. Sure I expect there will be arguments and frustrations and bumps in the road, but I'm not aiming for perfection as I think that probably doesn't exist.

    Am I being too blasé about the whole thing?!

    Nah. I will say though that based on nothing but my time on pregnancy message boards (tip: do not go to a pregnancy message board, the craziest people spend all day there) most first babies seem to be easy. That's how they trick you into having another one. My oldest was the easiest baby in the world. I found myself thinking "why do people complain about this?". Five years later when I had my daughter, I found out how bad it could be. My daughter has also taught me to be a lot less judgmental about parenting styles. I parented her in the same general way as my son, and she is ?

    I feel this exact way about my 4th child. She can be so sweet sometimes, but EVERYTHING is a damned battle with her. I cannot possibly convey how mule-obstinate she can be about the smallest things. It doesn't help that the older three (one of whom has to share a room with her) have figured out how to trigger her demon rages.

    All her teachers love her though, so I am occasionally "grateful" she saves her insanity for her father and I mostly.

    This is spot on my daughter too. My husband are always getting how sweet and polite and well behaved and helpful she is. That's awesome, FOR YOU. You should see her at home. Not helpful at all unless she feels like it which is almost never!

    Yesterday I just want to punch her in the face. She was going to an end of the year school dance and changed into shorts. It was 50 degrees outside and I told her she'd freeze if she wore shorts. She said, "You've never been to one of our dances and I am always hot." I argued with her back and forth then finally said word for word, "FINE! Freeze your *kitten* off, I don't care! Get out of my house!" Yesterday was NOT the day to come at me. Not my best mommy moment, but I didn't feel bad either.

    Oh, kids. Something I was told a long time ago helped a bit when the kids were little: from day one kids are told what to do, how to do it, when to do it, what to wear, what to eat, etc. by EVERYONE around them. By rebelling and lashing out they are simply trying to make a decision for themselves. As far as the example of the shorts, depending on age, don't even start with the word "no" (kids automatically tune out after that). Just say, "Do you want to wear these jeans, these red pants, or these blue sweats?" (or whatever is appropriate) Doesn't always work but by frequently giving them an option to make their own decisions the other battles subside.

    Give them options of what they can eat; give them options of when they can do chores or homework. All within your own boundaries of course, but presenting them options gives them a sense of control over their own lives. Calms down the inner rebellion monster somewhat.

    I will try to keep "no" to a minimum. Never thought about it that way before, thank you.

    Those are all really great points and I try to give her choices and she usually says, "I don't want to do any of those", to which I reply, "Well, those are your options so you have to pick one." Don't get me wrong, she's a GREAT kid. Spunky, witty, funny, sweet, loving, compassionate, responsible, and a lot of other great adjectives, but there are just times when I can't stand to be around her. Yesterday was one of those days. I didn't really want to be around anyone yesterday. My husband even asked me if I was depressed last night before bed. I don't think I am, I'm just pmsing and missing my Owen.

    Maybe I just need a cookie.

    Completely understandable. And that's my main point and what it took me a little too long to learn: kids rebelling or being uncooperative is in no way a reflection of their character or emotional maturity or intelligence. It's simply an attempt at control. Hard to remove the emotions in the heat of the moment. I regret many times that I didn't. But, live and learn.
  • quiksylver296
    quiksylver296 Posts: 28,439 Member
    I've fallen off big time lately, and now I'm confused on how to get back. I've looked at the TDEE method but I'm so confused on that, but I can't do the 1200 MFP keeps setting for me. I really don't want to put up a new post about it but may just have to...

    What are your stats? Height, weight and activity level? I'll figure it for you and try to explain it.
    I'm around 5'2, 197.4 lbs, and I've just started going back to the gym 2 days a week, about to bump it up to 3 days a week once hubby gets paid again (kid's birthday drained us lol). Thanks! :smile:

    OK. So your TDEE (total daily energy expenditure) to maintain your current weight is 2027 calories per day. If you eat that, you'll stay where you are. You can subtract a percentage from that number to lose weight - 10%, 15%, 20%. Higher than 20% is not recommended. Your TDEE - 20% is 1622 calories per day. That includes light exercise, so you do not eat back any exercise calories using this. If you ramp up your exercise significantly, we'd have to recalculate. As you lose weight, every 10 pounds or so, you want to recalculate.

    If you want to lose slower and have more calories to eat, you could do TDEE - 10%, which would give you 1825 calories per day.

    With that said, a food scale is a must. You need to be accurate with your calorie intake.

    Does that make sense?
  • MoHousdon
    MoHousdon Posts: 8,723 Member
    edited May 2015

    misskarne wrote: »
    I think I have found the one type of pain that does not make me want to eat eat eat. (Probably comfort eating, but I digress.)

    My back hurts? My period cramps hurt? My everything hurts? Gimme all the food.

    Migraine? Leave me on the couch to die.

    This is probably the most true thing that has ever been said.

    No. the truest thing is leave me alone in my bedroom, hiding under the covers, with the windows blacked out, to die. My living room is much too bright (lots of windows) for a migraine.

    I, too, have to hibernate in my bedroom underneath the covers with the blackout curtains and all the doors closed.

  • kellienw335
    kellienw335 Posts: 1,745 Member
    edited May 2015
    I’m hoping you all can provide some advice. I just got a call from the Assistant Principal at my son’s school. He is in 2nd grade. He was caught taking ice cream from the cafeteria and not paying for it. He admitted to his teacher that this was the second time he has done this. When he was asked why he did this, he said ‘his parents only allow him to have ice cream on Fridays and he doesn’t like that rule’. He has to have silent lunch tomorrow and write a letter to the cafeteria staff. I spoke with him briefly and he was crying and said he was sorry.

    He has been in trouble quite a bit lately for taking things without asking, our phones, the family tablet, his DS. We have tried no electronics, staying in his room, grounding, spanking, soap in the mouth… I’m at a loss…and really scared that this doesn’t bode well for the future. Is this a phase? What did you do that worked?

    ETA: wanted to clarify that he is taking our phones, the family tablet, and his DS...not stealing other peoples property.
  • LBuehrle8
    LBuehrle8 Posts: 4,044 Member
    I've fallen off big time lately, and now I'm confused on how to get back. I've looked at the TDEE method but I'm so confused on that, but I can't do the 1200 MFP keeps setting for me. I really don't want to put up a new post about it but may just have to...

    What are your stats? Height, weight and activity level? I'll figure it for you and try to explain it.
    I'm around 5'2, 197.4 lbs, and I've just started going back to the gym 2 days a week, about to bump it up to 3 days a week once hubby gets paid again (kid's birthday drained us lol). Thanks! :smile:

    OK. So your TDEE (total daily energy expenditure) to maintain your current weight is 2027 calories per day. If you eat that, you'll stay where you are. You can subtract a percentage from that number to lose weight - 10%, 15%, 20%. Higher than 20% is not recommended. Your TDEE - 20% is 1622 calories per day. That includes light exercise, so you do not eat back any exercise calories using this. If you ramp up your exercise significantly, we'd have to recalculate. As you lose weight, every 10 pounds or so, you want to recalculate.

    If you want to lose slower and have more calories to eat, you could do TDEE - 10%, which would give you 1825 calories per day.

    With that said, a food scale is a must. You need to be accurate with your calorie intake.

    Does that make sense?

    You are awesome! I'm learning too :)
  • MoHousdon
    MoHousdon Posts: 8,723 Member
    Rabbit914 wrote: »
    MoHousdon wrote: »

    We'll take any and all suggestions. We'll have 7 days to explore and do touristy stuff.

    I live an hour SE of Orlando. There is so much to do and see in Florida. If you like amusement parks go to Universal Studios Island of Adventures or as a Disney fan I love all of the parks. Go to the beach for sure. There's lots of water parks. The historic area of St Augustine is amazing. In Orlando they have dinner mystery shows you can do and the nightlife is amazing. Visit Kennedy Space Center. If you're into gambling there's a casino cruise boat that goes out of Port Canaveral all the time. There is so much to do here!

    Our resort is on the beach so that's no problem. The dinner mystery shows sound AWESOME! I've always wanted to do one of those dinners where you have you have to guess who the murderer is. Kind of like the movie Clue. We don't have an itinerary (I spelled that without using spell check, yay me!) just yet, but we'll make one. Luckily for me, since my brother lives in Florida, I'll have plenty of excuses to go back.

  • Susieq_1994
    Susieq_1994 Posts: 5,361 Member
    misskarne wrote: »
    I think I have found the one type of pain that does not make me want to eat eat eat. (Probably comfort eating, but I digress.)

    My back hurts? My period cramps hurt? My everything hurts? Gimme all the food.

    Migraine? Leave me on the couch to die.

    This is probably the most true thing that has ever been said.

    No. the truest thing is leave me alone in my bedroom, hiding under the covers, with the windows blacked out, to die. My living room is much too bright (lots of windows) for a migraine.

    Now this... This is the truest thing that has ever been spoken in the history of ever. Migraine sufferers unite!
  • This content has been removed.
  • quiksylver296
    quiksylver296 Posts: 28,439 Member
    edited May 2015
    I confess, I feel a poop coming on.

    You're still slacking in the confessions department, Pancake.
  • Rabbit914
    Rabbit914 Posts: 246 Member
    MoHousdon wrote: »
    Rabbit914 wrote: »
    MoHousdon wrote: »

    We'll take any and all suggestions. We'll have 7 days to explore and do touristy stuff.

    I live an hour SE of Orlando. There is so much to do and see in Florida. If you like amusement parks go to Universal Studios Island of Adventures or as a Disney fan I love all of the parks. Go to the beach for sure. There's lots of water parks. The historic area of St Augustine is amazing. In Orlando they have dinner mystery shows you can do and the nightlife is amazing. Visit Kennedy Space Center. If you're into gambling there's a casino cruise boat that goes out of Port Canaveral all the time. There is so much to do here!

    Our resort is on the beach so that's no problem. The dinner mystery shows sound AWESOME! I've always wanted to do one of those dinners where you have you have to guess who the murderer is. Kind of like the movie Clue. We don't have an itinerary (I spelled that without using spell check, yay me!) just yet, but we'll make one. Luckily for me, since my brother lives in Florida, I'll have plenty of excuses to go back.

    We did a dinner mystery show for our honeymoon and it was so much fun. And with your brother living here, I'm sure he knows lots of great places to be tourists.
  • This content has been removed.
  • Sch614
    Sch614 Posts: 73 Member
    I’m hoping you all can provide some advice. I just got a call from the Assistant Principal at my son’s school. He is in 2nd grade. He was caught taking ice cream from the cafeteria and not paying for it. He admitted to his teacher that this was the second time he has done this. When he was asked why he did this, he said ‘his parents only allow him to have ice cream on Fridays and he doesn’t like that rule’. He has to have silent lunch tomorrow and write a letter to the cafeteria staff. I spoke with him briefly and he was crying and said he was sorry.

    He has been in trouble quite a bit lately for taking things without asking, phones, tablet, DS. We have tried no electronics, staying in his room, grounding, spanking, soap in the mouth… I’m at a loss…and really scared that this doesn’t bode well for the future. Is this a phase? What did you do that worked?
    I have had great help From empoweringparents.com a free site with expert articles on all behavior issues. I do know from experience that you should not project into the future, it does not foreshadow anything. You'll get through this .. Look at the website, it will at least give you perspective in the middle of a stressful time.
  • ythannah
    ythannah Posts: 4,371 Member
    m1xm0d3 wrote: »
    pofoster21 wrote: »
    nonoelmo wrote: »
    ShibaEars wrote: »
    m1xm0d3 wrote: »
    JPW1990 wrote: »
    I decided to try the stationary bike at the gym today.... it was almost successful in murdering my butt. I thought the stationary bike was going to be easy after 40 minutes of stairmaster, but nope!!! They need to invest in some comfy seats so my tush can stop screaming at me.

    That's the main thing keeping me from getting a bike. Mix a Lot wrote a song about it once...

    LOL! And so true! My son got a new bike a couple weeks ago...I tried to ride it...No flipping way!

    The pains subside rather quickly. Usually about a week for new riders... After that, you are good to go!

    Ya, you gotta build up some "butt callouses" then you'll be okay. :grin:

    I've biked a lot for almost 30 years. And by a lot I mean it has varied from a short daily commute to long biking vacations (i.e. from a few miles to lots of miles). I have one tip to add to the others. Bike shorts designed for women. Takes a few rides to get used to but makes a big difference.

    You do have to find the right ones though. Not TOO padded...that just causes more problems. And try Hoo Ha Ride Glide:

    http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_c_0_6?url=search-alias=aps&field-keywords=hoo+ha+ride+glide&sprefix=hoo+ha,aps,168

    Totally helps. I actually get more sore in the creases of my legs where they connect to my body... that for me gets really painful if I don't carefully arrange the shorts as I am biking.


    Likewise for me in the creases. I've had a saddle sore or 2 in those exact spots that luckily didn't need too much attention other than a quick yet OMG sooo painful squeeze & pop and they didn't sideline me at all so I consider myself fortunate.
    On my 13 mile commute I have to stand and adjust my chamois shorts a few times to avoid any gathering problems. It probably doesn't help I wear loose sweatshorts over my chamois and not biker shorts but I have a 38" inseam and while I think my legs look decent enough, I don't care to share my sun deprived upper thighs with the general public. LOL

    @m1xm0d3 My SO also has a 38" inseam so I'm going to pounce on you (as I do every other tall MFP member) and ask WHERE THE HELL DO YOU FIND PANTS??

    Seriously. The poor guy wears one style of Levis and his current suit pants are unhemmed because he can't lose any length (fortunately it's not obvious). He has to get a new suit this summer and I have no idea where to even start. Big & Tall stores aren't helpful because the waist sizes are always too big.
  • quiksylver296
    quiksylver296 Posts: 28,439 Member
    I got a Jimmy John's Beach Club sandwich for lunch before looking at the nutritional info online. 810 calories. Ouch! Glad I didn't get chips. 509 calories left for dinner... :'(
  • FluffySandwich
    FluffySandwich Posts: 1,293 Member
    MissLaaber wrote: »
    ShibaEars wrote: »
    So I looked up awesome drinks to try in the Dominican Republic, and I found out about the ''dirty monkey,'' which is something I need in my life:
    592hv8n74ddy.jpg
    A drinkable, alcoholic dessert, which I'm sure is extremely dangerous for me. Especially since I'm a lightweight and am prone to drinking my way through alcoholic drinks WAY too fast (''Whoa... where did my wine go?''). Someone at work told me to try the ''mamajuana.'' No idea what that is but it looks to be of a citrus-y nature. Sorry guys, I'm getting terribly excited.

    ... I'm going to gain back every single pound, aren't I?

    I tried this when I was in the Dominican, it is... interesting? It's a local beverage and the stuff I had was potent. I drank no more than an ounce, and even that was done in teeny sips because it's such a strong flavor.
    My coworker told me that it's ''delicious,'' but will ''peel your eyelids back'' if you're not careful. I drink very rarely, so I'm not so sure if that's going to be a smooth experience. I'll definitely give it a shot, though!
    MissLaaber wrote: »
    So I looked up awesome drinks to try in the Dominican Republic, and I found out about the ''dirty monkey,'' which is something I need in my life:
    592hv8n74ddy.jpg
    A drinkable, alcoholic dessert, which I'm sure is extremely dangerous for me. Especially since I'm a lightweight and am prone to drinking my way through alcoholic drinks WAY too fast (''Whoa... where did my wine go?''). Someone at work told me to try the ''mamajuana.'' No idea what that is but it looks to be of a citrus-y nature. Sorry guys, I'm getting terribly excited.

    ... I'm going to gain back every single pound, aren't I?

    OMG I lived on Dirty Monkey's while in Jamaica! totally worth the 10 pound gain lol
    Hahaha!!! I'm a sucker for anything banana-y, pineapple-y, and coconut-y. I already plan on drinking some delicious pina coladas :sunglasses:

    There was something called Ice Cream, tasted like a sundae and DESTROYED me. I'm a lightweight and they went down way to easily lol
    This made me search "ice cream cocktail'' on google images. Don't do this unless you want to suffer from severe cravings!! :confounded: Today I still crave chocolate like mad and want to go back to Cacao 70. It's this place in Montreal that specializes in chocolate.

    They have all kinds of hot chocolates, chocolate pizza, fondues, crepes... my boyfriend took me there on my birthday last year and I was feeling deathly sick by the end of the meal. WORTH IT.
  • tulips_and_tea
    tulips_and_tea Posts: 5,741 Member
    I confess, I feel a poop coming on.

    You're still slacking in the confessions department, Pancake.

    I'm a very pure, innocent soul. Not much to confess. :)

    That's not what you said a few pages ago! Spill it! And I don't mean what you just said in your previous post. That we don't need to hear about. Since you're still with us on this thread you might as well contribute something good!
  • JPW1990
    JPW1990 Posts: 2,424 Member
    kecmw25 wrote: »
    Confession: I read a lot of articles about weight loss, exercise, etc. But I only believe the ones I want to. For example, I read once that it really isn't neccessary to do ab exercises, that your abs get plenty of work during your other exercise. I really wish I could find a similar article about push ups.

    Someone might have already posted it, since I have 5 pages to go yet, but here:
    http://stronglifts.com/5x5/
  • Rabbit914
    Rabbit914 Posts: 246 Member
    Went to give blood today but was denied since I got a tattoo in another country within the last year. I was upset that they pricked my finger first (I guess to see if my blood was good enough) before asking those questions so I took the offered cookies anyways.
  • This content has been removed.
  • FluffySandwich
    FluffySandwich Posts: 1,293 Member
    On the subject of giving blood, this is something that terrifies me greatly. When I was younger I didn't fancy myself to be too scared of shots, but I have grown to detest and fear needles more with time. My anxiety increased after I had to give blood and passed out from doing so... the woman constantly asking me if I was ok made it much worse than it was. It's almost as if her asking me if I'm ok validated that it was possible I wasn't ok.

    Then I was reading Dracula for school and passed out in the middle of class. Then every time I heard someone talking about passing out or feeling weak, I would start feeling it. This escalated to occasional panic attacks, always in public places where I felt I couldn't escape from. One time I walked in a busy hallway in school and suddenly had to turn around and LITERALLY run away, which earned me a few weird looks from other students...

    I have more of a fear of passing out than I do of blood/needles, I suppose... but this makes me fear donating blood. My mom has donated blood so many times in her life and greatly supports it, so I feel ashamed of feeling so scared of doing it.
  • CountessKitteh
    CountessKitteh Posts: 1,505 Member
    misskarne wrote: »
    I think I have found the one type of pain that does not make me want to eat eat eat. (Probably comfort eating, but I digress.)

    My back hurts? My period cramps hurt? My everything hurts? Gimme all the food.

    Migraine? Leave me on the couch to die.

    This is probably the most true thing that has ever been said.

    No. the truest thing is leave me alone in my bedroom, hiding under the covers, with the windows blacked out, to die. My living room is much too bright (lots of windows) for a migraine.

    I agree with the brightness, but my couch is better for curling into the fetal position, and no one is sharing the bed to bother me. So I just throw the blanket over my head out there.
  • AmandaPE1021
    AmandaPE1021 Posts: 9 Member
    I've gone over my calories for the day and I havent even had dinner yet. Breakfast--mcds (860 cals) Lunch--homemade (500 cals) Dinner at 9pm--Waffle House (who even knows haha) OBVIOUSLY A CHEAT DAY btw lol. Dont judge me/:
  • MoHousdon
    MoHousdon Posts: 8,723 Member
    I confess, I feel a poop coming on.

    When we were potty training our daughter, and she would have to go to the bathroom, she'd say, "My poop is coming!" My husband and I still laugh about that.

    That is a story that we plan sharing with her future husband. >:)

  • Rabbit914
    Rabbit914 Posts: 246 Member
    On the subject of giving blood, this is something that terrifies me greatly. When I was younger I didn't fancy myself to be too scared of shots, but I have grown to detest and fear needles more with time. My anxiety increased after I had to give blood and passed out from doing so... the woman constantly asking me if I was ok made it much worse than it was. It's almost as if her asking me if I'm ok validated that it was possible I wasn't ok.

    Then I was reading Dracula for school and passed out in the middle of class. Then every time I heard someone talking about passing out or feeling weak, I would start feeling it. This escalated to occasional panic attacks, always in public places where I felt I couldn't escape from. One time I walked in a busy hallway in school and suddenly had to turn around and LITERALLY run away, which earned me a few weird looks from other students...

    I have more of a fear of passing out than I do of blood/needles, I suppose... but this makes me fear donating blood. My mom has donated blood so many times in her life and greatly supports it, so I feel ashamed of feeling so scared of doing it.

    That's awful that you have progressed to the fear of passing out. I'm sorry. Don't be ashamed for not donating blood. There are so many other things that you can donate your time to for the community than that. That is something she is able to support, but it doesn't have to be yours. You find something that you can do and go with that.
  • m1xm0d3
    m1xm0d3 Posts: 1,576 Member
    edited May 2015
    I’m hoping you all can provide some advice. I just got a call from the Assistant Principal at my son’s school. He is in 2nd grade. He was caught taking ice cream from the cafeteria and not paying for it. He admitted to his teacher that this was the second time he has done this. When he was asked why he did this, he said ‘his parents only allow him to have ice cream on Fridays and he doesn’t like that rule’. He has to have silent lunch tomorrow and write a letter to the cafeteria staff. I spoke with him briefly and he was crying and said he was sorry.

    He has been in trouble quite a bit lately for taking things without asking, our phones, the family tablet, his DS. We have tried no electronics, staying in his room, grounding, spanking, soap in the mouth… I’m at a loss…and really scared that this doesn’t bode well for the future. Is this a phase? What did you do that worked?

    ETA: wanted to clarify that he is taking our phones, the family tablet, and his DS...not stealing other peoples property.

    Nothing of that nature but I have found 'writing sentences' is the perfect punishment for my daughter. Granted I take the TV, PC, Tablet from her almost immediately, she still finds ways to occupy herself. Sentences though, there's no escaping.

    And if that fails, show him a few episodes of BEYOND SCARED STRAIGHT.
  • This content has been removed.
  • Rabbit914
    Rabbit914 Posts: 246 Member
    MoHousdon wrote: »
    I confess, I feel a poop coming on.

    When we were potty training our daughter, and she would have to go to the bathroom, she'd say, "My poop is coming!" My husband and I still laugh about that.

    That is a story that we plan sharing with her future husband. >:)

    hahaha! My 5 year old loves to yell out in public "mom, I have to go poop" then while in the stale he likes to make grunting noises and describe in detail what is happening. "oh man it's a big one, mom!" I try to quiet him down but he lacks the library/movie theater voice ability and the ladies in the bathroom always crack up.
  • kellienw335
    kellienw335 Posts: 1,745 Member
    On the subject of giving blood, this is something that terrifies me greatly. When I was younger I didn't fancy myself to be too scared of shots, but I have grown to detest and fear needles more with time. My anxiety increased after I had to give blood and passed out from doing so... the woman constantly asking me if I was ok made it much worse than it was. It's almost as if her asking me if I'm ok validated that it was possible I wasn't ok.

    Then I was reading Dracula for school and passed out in the middle of class. Then every time I heard someone talking about passing out or feeling weak, I would start feeling it. This escalated to occasional panic attacks, always in public places where I felt I couldn't escape from. One time I walked in a busy hallway in school and suddenly had to turn around and LITERALLY run away, which earned me a few weird looks from other students...

    I have more of a fear of passing out than I do of blood/needles, I suppose... but this makes me fear donating blood. My mom has donated blood so many times in her life and greatly supports it, so I feel ashamed of feeling so scared of doing it.

    Please don't feel ashamed. It's not for everyone!