Engaging Thoughts
— Laura Kolaczkowski

There are many things that confuse me, particularly in the medical area. Perhaps that’s why I am more comfortable thinking about MS patients’ quality of life rather than being into the hard science of medicine and understanding how medicines work. I’m thinking in particular of botulinum toxin, more…

I was talking on the phone with a friend who also happens to have MS. I warned her the extra noise was from me opening the stack of mail I’d been avoiding for a couple of weeks. I have my bills set up for auto-pay, so I was in…

One thing we’ve all hoped for with our disease-modifying therapies (DMT) is a treatment that will improve our multiple sclerosis (MS) and not just keep it from worsening. The latest studies presented on Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) hold promise that this treatment may have finally arrived. According to recent reports,…

I’m a great starter. How about you? I start projects but often lack the time or motivation to finish them. Hence, I have bins full of yarn waiting to be turned into scarves and lots of seeds that were meant to be planted in the past growing seasons. It’s…

After a delay in treatment in late December thanks to a nasty head cold, and the after-effects of contracting the flu in February necessitating another delay, I finally received my second six-month dose of Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) in mid-March. Much like the first time, the infusion was uneventful. I had no…

Have you ever been touched by the actions of one of your doctors? I hope we all have experienced special moments with our care providers because these times break down the authoritarian nature of medicine and allow us to interact as people rather than patients. A heartwarming moment took…

Fatigue. That No. 1 symptom that a large majority of people with multiple sclerosis are affected by. MS fatigue. It can be crushing, numbing, and stop the hardiest person in their tracks. I know MS fatigue all too well because it affects me all the time. Combating MS…

Sometimes they are called “sticky songs,” better known by their common name “earworms.” Earworms are those musical phrases that get stuck in our head that we hear over and over. It’s much like those worms underground that burrow and twist and turn, constantly finding new territory to inhabit.

While at the ACTRIMS Forum 2018 (which stands for Americas Committee for Treatment and Research in MS), I was surprised to see a colorful display of orange-and-teal colored sock monkeys mixed in with the pharmaceutical company and advocacy organization displays. It was the display booth for Oscar…

I fell out of sight in February, thanks to a case of the flu. Influenza B and its lingering side effects took me out of action from almost everything except sleeping, but I’ll save those details for another story. As I come out of my flu-induced fog, I see…

Engaging all types of people for research isn’t just a nice thought. It is critical to obtaining research results that will be meaningful. Middle-aged white women are often the people who volunteer for studies. Men, young people, and most significantly, people of color, lack representation in studies. According…

Quality of life. These three words conjure different images for people, depending on their needs. Quality of life could mean having improved health, good relationships with others, and stress-free life. In the world of medical research, quality of life (QoL), is an endpoint result that is often understudied…