Flirting with Quackery

 I had my follow-up with the naturopath today, and let's just say I am, uh, unconvinced by her treatment options right now. All of my bloodwork came back in the normal ranges, although some of the numbers were what would qualify for "subclinical" levels that might possibly be causing some ill effects. That being said, she used all of the buzzwords and keywords that set my teeth on edge from self-appointed internet experts, all high cortisol this and inflammation that, and her prescription is to follow the Mediterranean diet and take some curcumin supplements.

So, yeah. I dunno.

She did think that the sleep apnea is the likeliest culprit for my symptoms, at least, once I told her about the test. She suggested I see how I feel first after the supplements and then after I (hopefully) get a CPAP to see what makes a difference. I am not super optimistic about the supplements, but we shall see, I guess.

I didn't sleep terribly well today. I napped for about an hour before I met the naturopath, and then I slept but only until about 3:30pm, which made for some rather broken and unsatisfying sleep. I will likely be a broken record for the next few weeks, but I am no longer surprised (if "surprised" is even the right word) that I don't feel rested after sleeping. I did some digging around the internet to see if there was anything I could try at home to help me keep breathing during the night, but from what I can see there's not a ton that will help beyond actually getting a CPAP. I already wear a mouthguard (because yours truly grinds her teeth in her sleep), which obviously does diddly squat for the apnea (I was wearing it during the sleep study), and the only other options appears to be surgery, which obviously is not an option *before* a CPAP, nor do I particularly want to have surgery. If nothing else, surgery appears to be widely understood to be less effective than a CPAP and should only be considered if the CPAP doesn't work. I am considering a body pillow to help position me a little better to keep my airways open and it should also help with my stupid aging body that likes to throw out its back on a semi-regular basis.

Anyway, in political news, our current Prime Minster made a statement today that made it clear in no uncertain terms that Canada is done being the USA's closest economic ally. It's going to be really interesting to see how that plays out both during the election and once a new government is in place. Will the Conservatives decide to play ball and act as if everyone is Team Canada? Or are they going to try to play to the more extreme parts of their base and argue that we should be playing ball with the USA? Public sentiment right now appears to be riding a wave of weird patriotism in the face of the Trump tariffs and the threats to make us the "51st state." 

Pierre Poilievre is in a really sticky situation now, because he's been associating with right-wing extremists for years now, and is up to his eyeballs in suspicion. The Premier of Alberta, Danielle Smith, also sabotaged him quite thoroughly by getting caught on a recording saying he was the best choice for Prime Minister because he was the best person to work well with Trump. Of course, Poilievre and Trump are trying to walk that back now. Trump has been going on at length and quite unconvincingly about how he wouldn't like to work with Poilievre and would just looooove Carney, and Poilievre is trying to pass himself off as a stern negotiator who somehow doesn't align with Trump's priorities at all. I suppose the people who want to be convinced will let themselves, but the rest of us see the charade for what it is.

The USA is getting more terrifying by the day. There are so many stories now of tourists and green card holders being grabbed by ICE and taken to detention centres with no one knowing their whereabouts. They grabbed a Fulbright Scholar the other day and held her in an undisclosed location and refused access to her lawyers despite their repeated attempts to locate her. Earlier today there was a news story about a woman in Georgia arrested because she had a miscarriage. She was accused of "concealing the death of another person," and "abandonment of a dead body," and could face up to 10 years in prison. This was a natural miscarriage at 19 weeks, so still relatively early in the pregnancy, and just a fucking tragedy, not a crime. 

There's also been reports of the Trump administration cancelling the delivery of food to food banks across the nation. The food is already in the trucks, packed and ready to go, so the money is spent and the food will simply rot where it is. There is no reason to do this except to be extra cruel. Much like in Canada in the past few years, food bank usage has seen a pretty stark increase, with increasing numbers of people struggling to both keep a roof over their heads and put food on the table. These cancellations mean people will literally starve. The cuts to government services and the general chaos caused by DOGE also guarantees that tens of thousands of people just won't be getting the already paltry sums that they needed to survive. The USA is setting up its most vulnerable citizens to die, and it is horrifying to watch.

There has been some grumbling online about why Canadians can't just "find a way" to keep going to the USA for tourism, and it kind of baffles me that anyone doesn't understand why people don't want to take the risk of being dropped in the equivalent of a black site for anywhere from a few days to the rest of their lives. What vacation is worth that? The USA has made it clear that no amount of "legitimate" documentation will protect you if it decides you've broken some completely arbitrary rule that isn't written down anywhere. They can just decide that you're an enemy of the state and imprison you.

Okay. Now that I have thoroughly depressed myself, I'm going to wrap this up and finish out my night shift. Catch you on the flip side, friends!