Wednesday, February 6, 2008
Radio Friendly Mood Shifter
Finished reading: Last Summer #2 -- "Shifts in Mood"
Well, we now have the news from the MD. The diagnosis is "moderate sleep apnea", diagnosed by waking up in mid-sleep an average of, oh, about 25 times an hour.
So what are the options?
1. CPAP, a continuous positive airway pressure machine. Almost one hundred percent effective if used correctly.
2. Orthodontic appliance. Less than fifty percent effective. costs about $1000 to make.
3. Throat surgery. Also less than fifty percent effective.
Obviously, he recommends the CPAP. Which means (unfortunately) that I get to have another sleep study on the 20th, this time with the CPAP machine. I'll meet with the MD on March 11th for the results of the second study.
(* * *)
Now, back to the fun.
"Last Summer #2" picks up from "Last Summer #1". Daria is still trying to figure out what went wrong with her relationship with Young Thomas. She goes back to her diaries in a hope of reconstructing the relationship.
However, she bumps into a line from Trent (after the Morgendorffer kitchen got scalded in "Fire! Fire!") that as a musician, Trent was "very sensitive to shifts in mood". She remembers that Trent steered Daria to Jane to talk to even when Jane didn't want to talk after Tommy Sherman's death ("The Misery Chick").
This poses a question. If Trent was so perceptive regarding Daria's feelings, and if he was one of the first to note that she and Tom had feelings for each other, then how could he have missed Daria's crush on her? Maybe he didn't, and Daria decides to call Trent over to find out more....
(* * *)
"Last Summer #2" is rather different from "Last Summer #1". LS1 could be seen as a setup-punchline type of story -- Daria is faced with an ugly problem and manages to spin the situation around so it suits her -- but LS2 turns out to be an examination of Daria and Trent's entire relationship with each other, with the series over and both of them willing to talk face to face.
I know that Dr. Lobinske (*) is criticised for happy endings. Well, I suppose you need a happy ending every now and then. "Last Summer #2" is one of those compelling reads that you can't take your eyes off of. It might be a bit hard to imagine two people having a conversation like this, but not Daria and Trent. Daria, who believes in honesty and Trent, who is the kind of person completely open to self-examination, almost guileless. You almost wish you were at the table listening in to them.
The only criticism I might have is the appearance of Helen, who didn't have much of a part in the tale and really wasn't needed at the end. However, this is one of those times where one doesn't have much pointed commentary, except to say "good job" and look forward to reading the next segment.
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(*) -- Damn you, Angst Guy. Now you've got me self-conscious.
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3 comments:
Good grief, with those options, why would anyone not choose the CPAP machine? Hope that works out for you.
CG: I was having about the same number of awakenings per hour in my sleep test. The was also a marked absence of deep sleep according to the EEG: not much REM sleep, and therefore even less of the "deeper-than-REM" types of sleep.
E.A.: a lot of people dislike CPAP and have awful problems getting a comfortable mask, proper pressure, etc. I had some minor troubles getting a mask that worked for me, but now I have one that works for me and I don't mind wearing it. There are people who can't; they find them uncomfortable, and there is something that can really squick a body out about putting on a piece of scary looking breathing apparatus and then trying to sleep. Maybe it helps that I think Frank Booth from Blue Velvet (Dennis Hopper's character) is teh cool, but...um, maybe that's too much information right now....
Back to CG: I hope whatever you go with works for you, even if you decide to forego the standard treatments and try other things, or even nothing at all. That may sound nonsensical, but there it is.
Damn you, Angst Guy. Now you've got me self-conscious.
It's okay if you're a Fandemonium fan, but posting stuff about the doctors tearing off their shirts is kind of icky. Well, unless you're into that. Whatever works for you.
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