Mindfulness Continental Style

“The life of our city is rich in poetic and marvelous subjects.
We are enveloped and steeped as though in an atmosphere of the marvelous;

but we do not notice it.”
(Charles Baudelaire - French poet, 1821-1867)

Imagery for Getting Well

Creating the image of meaning in despair, finding joy in crisis, and imaging hope in tragedy.  In other words, it is about seeing the pony in the mire of a life-threatening or chronic condition.

- Deirdre Davis Brigham, author "Imagery for Getting Well -Clinical Applications of Behavioral Medicine

Beginner's Mind

Sit down before facts like a little child, and be prepared to give up every preconceived notion.  Follow humbly whatever and to whatever abyss nature leads, or you shall learn nothing.
- T.H. Huxley

Pay attention to what you are still able to do rather than what you have lost.

Don’t ask yourself what the world needs, ask yourself what makes you come alive. 

And then go and do that. Because what the world needs is people who are alive.


Success is living in such a way that you are using what God
has given you - -your intellect, abilities, and energy
--to reach the purpose He intends for your life.

IMAGERY FOR GETTING WELL

CLINICAL APPLICATIONS OF BEHAVIORAL MEDICINE

MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS (MS)

DESCRIPTION

MS is a disease of the central nervous system involving the breaking down and scarring of the myelin sheath by the immune system which no longer recognizes the myelin as "self." When this fatty insulation of the nerve fibers is disturbed, the messages that control bodily movements/functions are distorted or blocked or communicate to the wrong muscular destination. The condition tends to have an uneven course of exacerbations and remission; however, stress frequently precedes exacerbations. In general, medical treatment is focused on symptom relief.

IMMUNE DYSFUNCTION

Present theories concerning MS involve: (1) a viral etiology, (2) an autoimmune dysfunction, and (3) a combination of the two (the immune system attacking a virus sleeping deep within the cells of the myelin sheath).

DESIRED IMMUNE RESPONSE

    * Immune system recognition of myelin sheath as "self"

  * Harmonious interaction of immune system with the body, especially the myelin-recognizing and loving "self" cells.

    * Increased suppressor cells

SEEDS FOR IMAGERY

A honey-like substance coats the nerves- melting tough scars into viable powerful myelin material- filling any gaps in or degeneration of the myelin sheath, perfectly protecting and insulating the nerve fiber, allowing it to carry the nerve impulse precisely from the brain to the muscle where it is needed.

See a substance pouring over the tangled nerves in nerve trunks, like a soothing oil poured over spaghetti, coating the nerve strands so that they untangle and magically fall into relaxed, straight strands.

See the damaged nerves arcing like frayed electrical wires. See maintenance workers reweave the tattered insulation so the nerves cease short-circuiting each other.

Hand and Foot Warming Exercises

See white clouds in the head (MS scarring as seen in an MRI) being blown away by a powerful wind.

See the nervous system n an indigo blue color. Where there is damage, the scales and scars are greyish-white. See a swarm of mud-daubers flying to a palette heaped with translucent myelin. Some of the mud-daubers use their stingers to cut away the damaged myelin and scales from the nerves. Others pick up the myelin compound and spread it into the area perfectly. When the repairs dry, they turn dark indigo blue, blending so perfectly that no trace of the repair work remains.

See a big eraser rubbing out the lesions in the brain.

Imagine a worker with scrub brushes, pumice, and rouge cloths scouring away the scars and then painting fresh myelin into the area, which turns indigo blue to match the rest of the system.

See calamine lotion being patted onto areas by the immune system. See the immune system change from being irritable and angry to protective, loving, and friendly. See the whole body experience regeneration.

Demand inwardly that your body (and any medication that you are taking) produce all its healing substances. Sense and feel the substances being released...sense the suppressor T cells...teaching the other white blood cells to distinguish friend (the myelin sheath) from foe (bacteria). Sense and see this happening all along the spinal column, from the bottom to the top and up into the brain, as a ladder of flashing lights sending sparks of electrical energy throughout the body" (Epstein, 1989, pp. 149-150).

AUTHORS: Deirdre Davis Brigham with Adelaide Davis and Derry Cameron-Sampey.

My Diverse Blog Topics Demonstrate My Struggle To Focus On One Topic By Attempting To Categorize Many Interesting Tings Into Themes

Work In Progress:

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Living Well

Guiding principles:

• Change is a constant
• adapt to survive and thrive
• flexibility is the master skill
• habits are the key to lifestyle and accomplishment
• we can change current habits and form new habits
• a simple life is a satisfying life.
• Cherish every moment

MS Treatment Avenue may expand with brain steroids

MS treatment avenue may expand with brain steroids - Health - CBC News

MS Treatment Avenue may expand with brain steroids
CBC News
Posted: Sep 21, 2011


Multiple sclerosis might be connected to a lack of steroids in the brain, Alberta researchers have found.

MS attacks the brain and spinal cord, causing inflammation and damage that can lead to paralysis and sometimes blindness.

In the September issue of the journal Brain, neurologist Dr. Chris Power of the University of Alberta Hospital in Edmonton and his colleagues describe a new potential avenue for treating MS.There are some drugs related to neurosteroids that are actively in clinical trials, Dr. Chris Power said. CBC

The discovery centres on neurosteroids, which help brain cells to talk, grow and repair themselves.

The findings open up a brain process "that we might be able to direct so that we can prevent damage and maybe even repair the damaged brain," Power said Wednesday.

Brains of people who died with multiple sclerosis showed lower levels of neurosteroids, the researchers found.

The team believes that by replacing neurosteroids, it might be possible to alleviate symptoms or even prompt recovery, based on the results of their test tube and mouse modeling studies.

"We've actually jumped the queue a little bit because there are some drugs related to neurosteroids that are actively in clinical trials," Power said. "This certainly provides fertile ground."

The researchers aren't yet at the point to start a clinical trial to test whether giving neurosteroids actually help people with MS.

The research was funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, the Multiple Sclerosis Society of Canada, and Alberta Innovates — Health  Solutions.

Multiple Sclerosis sufferers need to take some advice from the Ancients.

It is not possible to fight beyond your strength even if you strive.


Homer

Entropy and Chronic Illness

"I wanted you to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand. It's when you know you're licked before you begin, but you begin anyway and see it through no matter what."
- Harper Lee



You meet the challenge of a chronic illness with no cure and no effective treatment like M.S. with the kind of bravery Harper Lee is describing in this quote.  You need to go forward knowing you cannot win this battle but can work around your short comings. 


Every day above ground is a good day.  Everyday is a day to act in positive ways to improve your life and make a contribution to your community.

Elliot Krane: The mystery of chronic pain | Video on TED.com

Elliot Krane: The mystery of chronic pain | Video on TED.com

We think of pain as a symptom, but there are cases where the nervous system develops feedback loops and pain becomes a terrifying disease in itself. Starting with the story of a girl whose sprained wrist turned into a nightmare, Elliot Krane talks about the complex mystery of chronic pain, and reviews the facts we're just learning about how it works and how to treat it.