Columns

Ah yes, I’m starting this week’s column with a headline that’s a conundrum (that is, if the ol’ editor lets me keep it). That’s because I’m starting with a slang word. I’ve checked, and it seems that the main slang word for diarrhea both in the U.K. (where I…

I’m just back from walking our dog. My wife, Laura, rescued him about a year ago, and when she heard his name was Toby, like Tobias, she thought it was a sign that he was the dog for us. We’ve had dogs before, but I’m not getting any younger or…

My shoelaces keep coming untied, my compression socks are bunched up, I bumped my shins with the vacuum again, and the shower was too hot this morning. Confused? Don’t be. I’m just getting in the spirit of National Wine Day by — oh, wait, I might have read…

I don’t know why I find it so impossible to sit still. I feel like every moment I’m not engaged in some creative pursuit, I’m somehow missing out. Or worse, I’m squandering what poet Mary Oliver calls my “one wild and precious life.” Multiple sclerosis (MS) has done…

Welcome to “MS News Notes,” a Monday morning column where I comment on multiple sclerosis (MS) news stories that caught my eye last week. Here’s a look at what’s been happening: Early stem cell transplants I’ve read the headline “Stem cell therapy may do most good when given…

Who’d have thought of the following shenanigans? It only took four days of constant badgering to fix. Last summer brought exceptional (actually, likely to be semi-regular from now on) hot weather in the U.K., with parts of England surpassing 100 F for the very first time. This caused a…

Memorial Day, the unofficial start of summer vacation in the U.S., is fast approaching. It’s almost time for some summer beach fun — if we can get there. Beaches can be difficult, if not impossible, to access for many people with multiple sclerosis (MS). But times…

I’ve always liked the phrase “go with what you know.” I suppose I understood it to mean “stick to what you’re good at” or simply, “stay in your lane.” Recently, though, I stumbled on a slightly different meaning that I like even better. “Use knowledge you already have as a…

Welcome to “MS News Notes,” a Monday morning column where I comment on multiple sclerosis (MS) news stories that caught my eye last week. Here’s a look at what’s been happening: Surgical treatment of facial pain I’ve never heard of surgery being used as an MS treatment, but…

So I’m back home. Four months’ worth of bureaucracy lay in front of me. In truth, quite a wodge had grown before I went into the hospital. Hey, I hadn’t been well in the months leading up to my hospitalization late last year. Thankfully Saint Jane — my…

A recent post on the MS-Selfie blog asks and answers this question: What is the “greatest unmet need” concerning multiple sclerosis (MS)? Professor Gavin Giovannoni, the London-based neurologist who writes that blog, lists five unmet needs, many of which I agree with. But those needs are from the viewpoint…

I used to sing — a lot. Don’t worry, I didn’t miss my true calling. I could carry a tune, but that was about it. I was loud, and just like arguing, volume can make up for a lack of skill. My voice might not have been the best,…

As hard as it is to believe, another school year is drawing to a close. It still somehow takes me by surprise every time. It feels like just yesterday that I was buying new shoes and helping my eldest navigate the halls of high school for the first time, and…

Welcome to “MS News Notes,” a Monday morning column where I comment on multiple sclerosis (MS) news stories that caught my eye last week. Here’s a look at what’s been happening: Study: Starting Ocrevus early is better than later The MS News Today story “AAN 2023: Early…

I’m worried that my tales of recovery may have gotten a tad boring, so let me liven things up with the weirdest thing I now have to live with. The head of my “thing” has been sliced half an inch vertically. By “thing,” I of course mean my penis! And…

Is artificial intelligence (AI) intelligent enough to help make a diagnosis of multiple sclerosis (MS)? Apparently so, and more. In the United Kingdom, a project named AssistMS is studying whether AI can be used to detect and highlight changes on brain MRIs. An algorithm software called…

Everyone’s multiple sclerosis (MS) is unique to them. The different disease types, lesion loads, and lesion locations are a few reasons why our symptoms are so variable. We with MS all live in the same neighborhood, just in different houses. If there were such a thing as…

Welcome to “MS News Notes,” a Monday morning column where I comment on multiple sclerosis (MS) news stories that caught my eye last week. Today I’ll focus on stories from the American Academy of Neurology (AAN) 2023 Annual Meeting, held April 22-27 in Boston. Here’s a look at…

Ceilings. Oh yeah, I’ve become quite the expert on ceilings. If you spend much of your life prostrate, it’s hard not to. The very first column I wrote for Multiple Sclerosis News Today opened with this very topic. As it was an unsolicited spec piece, I was pleasantly…

Those with multiple sclerosis (MS) may want to roll up their sleeves again for a COVID-19 vaccine. I’m thinking about whether to join them. About 10 days ago, an advisory committee of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) supported a recommendation that people 65…

Note: This column describes the author’s own experiences with Ocrevus (ocrelizumab). Not everyone will have the same response to treatment. Consult your doctor before starting or stopping a therapy. Tomorrow morning, I’ll have my 13th infusion of Ocrevus (ocrelizumab). I’ve been approved for the fast infusion rate, so…

I don’t really like problems. And I don’t think I’m alone in this. No one I know wakes up hoping a seemingly insurmountable obstacle or painful trial is flung smack in the middle of their path. If it were up to me, I’d rather wake up to perfect hair, hit…

Welcome to “MS News Notes,” a Monday morning column where I comment on multiple sclerosis (MS) news stories that caught my eye last week. Here’s a look at what’s been happening: Yoga vs. physical therapy The MS News Today article “Yoga better than physical therapy at improving…

COVID-19 had finally left me. Its only trace was a pair of slimy hands. For a month, I requested a towel in bed to wipe them dry. My wife, Jane, told me my hands were fine; my phone’s screen, however, didn’t agree. As my companion in the hospital…

Oops! I took a turn too fast in the parking lot of my condo the other morning and tipped to the left. And with that, my mobility scooter and I headed for a fall. Do you know the feeling when something bad is about to happen and there’s nothing…

I’m pretty good at doing what I’m told. You probably think that’s because I was in the Army for 22 years. You might even think it’s because of all the medical authority figures that have come with nine years of multiple sclerosis (MS). Of course, they both factor in,…

Welcome to “MS News Notes,” a Monday morning column where I comment on multiple sclerosis (MS) news stories that caught my eye last week. Here’s a look at what’s been happening: EBV vaccine trial could start in 2024 The MS News Today story “Vaccine against Epstein-Barr virus…

Biogen has been a top dog in the multiple sclerosis (MS) treatment field for decades. The pharmaceutical giant developed Avonex (interferon beta-1a), approved in the U.S. in 1996 as one of the first disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) for MS. I remember how excited I was to be…

I recall a conversation I had with an acquaintance soon after my diagnosis. I hadn’t progressed to a wheelchair yet, but my limp was noticeable, and he’d heard talk from mutual friends. “What is it that you have?” he asked. “Multiple sclerosis.” A moment of wide-eyed silence…

Well, dear reader, my time in Florida is coming to an end. Mom is home from the hospital after her surgery and a stint in rehab. She has begun outpatient physical therapy, and slowly but surely, she’s getting back to a new kind of normal. My being here is…