Columns

There’s one thing you need to know about my family — we’re weird. We laugh at inopportune times. We can go entire days just speaking to one another in movie quotes. Sarcasm is a love language to my clan. And we can make just about anything — and I…

Want to know what living with MS feels like? Take a ride on this bike. Those of us who have MS know that our disease has lots of symptoms. There are the legs that feel like they have 20-pound weights on them … balance that can have you…

After my recent insurance experience, which I share here, I never again will wonder why some people give up on claiming their medical benefits. I have received Botox treatment for spasticity of my quad and hamstring muscles. This is an FDA-approved use, but to get this treatment there has…

Nominations are being sought for individuals and groups for the U.K.’s MS Society Awards 2017. Organizers say the awards will recognize the stars of the MS community and their contributions during 2016. While not wishing to denigrate…

In August I sold my home of 18 years and downsized to a small one-bedroom rental “in town.” For weeks I tripped over boxes, packing paper, out-of-place furniture, the dog, the cat, the dog chasing the cat, size 11 tennis shoes and dirty socks. I shared my efforts to…

Serving as co-administrator for a large MS forum has shown me that, while we live in a world of easy access to information, we may not always be prepared to understand and interpret it. While I’m not a medical doctor, I do work in the healthcare field and have…

Grief can weaken our immune system, elevate our blood pressure, and affect our overall health. During a loss, especially one of the magnitude of a loved one, self-preservation is not always a top priority. For those of us with multiple sclerosis, the mental anguish that is grief can exacerbate our already…

When the Americans with Disabilities Act was signed into law in 1990, there seemingly were as many opponents as there were proponents. All these years later, the standards and expectations of that landmark legislation have become second-nature in mainstream America. Concerns about costs and consequences were…

Many MS patients are in the hunt for multiple sclerosis clinical trials for which they can volunteer. But those trials are not always easy to find. On the other hand, researchers complain it also can be difficult to find trial subjects. I was lucky. Back in…

Here’s my Pick of the Week’s News as published by Multiple Sclerosis News Today. Sanofi, ImmuNext Partner to Develop Antibody to Treat Range of Autoimmune Diseases Big news on the business front is the alliance of two companies, Sanofi and ImmuNext, that have announced an agreement…

It’s often said of the 2.5 million of people in the world who have multiple sclerosis that no two have the same symptoms. Indeed, that is why it is known as the Snowflake disease. And the wide variety of symptoms can be well-illustrated by looking…

I don’t think this will surprise you. Multiple sclerosis drugs, some of the most expensive drugs there are, are getting even more expensive. Drug industry analyst Eric Schmidt, quoted in the Boston Business Journal, reported that Biogen began the new year by upping the price of Tecfidera,…

Would you open your bank account and write a blank check to just anyone requesting something of value from you? Of course not. So, why would we do that with our healthcare information? I was recently sent an informed consent form from the MS clinic where I am treated,…

At the time of my MS diagnosis I was a full-time graduate student with plans to obtain a joint Masters of Public Administration/Juris Doctor degree. After six years as a stay-at-home mom and military spouse, I was anxious to complete this next stage of my education and return to…

  When thinking about multiple sclerosis (MS), it’s important to remember there are four distinct types of the disease. Most of you well know this, so I’ll just mention them here: relapsing-remitting MS (RRMS); secondary progressive MS; primary progressive MS, and clinically isolated syndrome. (Anyone needing or wishing more information…

It’s been a month since I completed my first round of Lemtrada infusions, so it’s time to bring everyone up to date on how things are going. I was told to expect a roller coaster of side effects. I’m pleased to say that, at least so far, it’s…

As I was looking down typing one of my articles recently, I experienced a unique pain in my neck. It was one I haven’t felt before. It was a sharp electrifying pain that started on the left side of my neck, and propelled itself on a downward zig-zagging path…

Here’s my Pick of the Week’s News, as published by Multiple Sclerosis News Today. Inactivity and Poor Diet Are Common Risk Factors Among MS Patients, Study Says For years, people with MS have been advised to exercise more and eat healthy foods. That is advice given to…

An MS patient who reads my column sent a personal message last week. It began: “Sorry about the secrecy. I’m in the closet! Seriously, I haven’t told many people about my RRMS diagnosis, for many reasons. I really don’t want my kids knowing. … I want to spare them that…

Now that 2016 is thankfully behind us, it’s time to start a new year — fresh, rested, and ready to kick butt and chew bubble gum. That being said, rest in peace David Bowie, Alan Rickman, Glen Frey, Prince, Nancy Reagan, George Kennedy, Gary Shandling, Anton Yelchin, Gene…

I’m already tired of hearing about New Year’s resolutions. If you’re like me, you find that for those who spend their social media time listing goals in earnest, there’s a smidgen of luxury to their actions. After all, most of these goal-making champions are not chronically ill. They don’t have to think…

Phoebe Scopes was the first international patient to receive Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation (HSCT) therapy for multiple sclerosis in Moscow. In this fourth, and last, part of her story, we join Phoebe on her return home to the London. Ian: What is your post-HSCT MS state from getting home…

Long-awaited approval of the multiple sclerosis drug Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) has been delayed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. What had been publicized widely as a late December 2016 FDA approval hearing has now been pushed to late March 2017. The drug’s manufacturer, Genentech, issued a very…

Cookies and veggie tray in tow, and trepidation in check, I ventured to a New Year’s Eve party at a friend’s house. Since my diagnosis of MS, New Year’s Eve has been celebrated at home with Dick Clark, and then Ryan Seacrest, to keep me company. In Winter…

Loss of hearing symptoms such as tinnitus are not usually attributed to multiple sclerosis, but for those with MS who do experience tinnitus, like me, they can be very annoying. The American Tinnitus Association (ATA) describes the symptoms as: “the perception of sound when no actual external noise is present.

2017 has arrived. Welcome to a new year! First, I would like to say thanks for allowing me the opportunity to share my MS journey with you. Your comments, emails and words of encouragement are appreciated. 2016 was an eventful year, indeed. I have learned much about the disease…

  Several months ago I wrote a blog on my personal website about Ocrevus (ocrelizumab), the first drug that’s designed specifically to treat primary progressive, as well as remitting, multiple sclerosis. The clinical trials for Ocrevus posted excellent results. The buzz in the medical community was good,  and it was…

We all know the credit card commercial with actor Samuel L. Jackson talking about the buying power and the return on a certain credit card. He speaks about the bonus cash-back offers you can accrue if you just keep spending money and putting it on your credit card. The tag…

The glory days of multitasking may be fading. More and more research points to the fact that our brains actually cannot multitask. Rather, the brain shifts rapidly (it’s all relative) back and forth between tasks as we attempt to do multiple activities at once. Like many people with MS,…

When I was a child my teeth had a lot of cavities So, I had lots of fillings in my mouth. The fillings were silver amalgam, which contain about 50% mercury. Mercury is a pretty toxic metal. In fact, these days if you break a thermometer and its mercury spills…