YouTube - Ginger MacQueen - EuroMedic's patient giving her testimonial

YouTube - Ginger MacQueen - EuroMedic's patient giving her testimonial

Cold Feet

A neurologist explains cold feet...
by Ccsvi Transverse Myelitis

"The complaint of cold feet is common in MS, even in the milder forms of the disease.The maintenance of skin temperature is an involuntary process under the control of that portion of the nervous system referred to as autonomic, which controls functions such as heart rate, sweating, and pupil dilation.

Short-circuiting in the interconnections that control the diameter of blood vessels and those nerves that sense temperature appears to be responsible for the perception of cold feet.

This symptom may be annoying, but it usually is innocuous. There is nothing wrong with the blood vessels themselves in the legs or feet, and there is nothing dangerous in the slight drop in temperature that produces this sensation. It should be emphasized that cold feet do not signify a general circulatory problem. Most people who have this symptom are young and have normal blood vessels.

Although they are not protected from vascular disease by MS, they are no more likely to have it than are others of a similar age. Nonetheless, if the problem is severe it should be checked out by a physician.

The best way to manage the problem of cold feet is with warm socks, an electric blanket, and similar local treatments.

Occasionally, niacin or medications that dilate blood vessels may be used to alleviate this symptom when it is particularly annoying."

Source:
Managing the Symptoms of Multiple Sclerosis by Randall T. Schapiro, Director of the Shapiro Center for Multiple Sclerosis at the Minneapolis Clinic of Neurology, Clinical Professor of Neurology, 5th Edition, (2007) page 109.

Government of Canada Announces New Monitoring System for Multiple Sclerosis

OTTAWA, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - March 23, 2011) - The Honourable Leona Aglukkaq, Minister of Health, today announced the creation of a Canadian Multiple Sclerosis Monitoring System (CMSMS).

"We are pleased to support the Canadian Institute for Health Information, working in collaboration with the provinces and territories, the Canadian Network of MS Clinics and the MS Society of Canada, in establishing this system devoted to monitoring the health of those diagnosed with MS," said Minister Aglukkaq. "The health and safety of Canadians is of the highest importance, and we need reliable, national information on MS to help those diagnosed with MS and their health care providers."

"We need reliable information on the health status of Canadians with MS, " said Chief Public Health Officer, Dr. David Butler-Jones. "Over the long term, this system will help monitor outcomes and identify the most effective therapies in the treatment of MS. The information can also help health system planners identify future needs and plan resource distribution more effectively, to ensure those diagnosed with MS have access to the care they need."

The new monitoring system will give Canadians living with MS, health care professionals, researchers, policy makers and Canadians a better understanding of disease patterns and the use of treatments across Canada. It will give their health care providers new information to support the delivery of care and potentially identify areas for improvement

Many Canadians are affected by MS and in fact, Canada has one of the highest rates of MS in the world.

"The Canadian Network of MS Clinics is pleased to be part of this new collaborative initiative," said Dr. Anthony Traboulsee, from the Canadian Network of MS Clinics. "Our clinics are dedicated to ensuring the best care for those diagnosed with MS and this system will help provide the information we need to do so." 

MS Society President and CEO Yves Savoie also reiterated that there are many questions that still need to be answered. "We are pleased that the Government of Canada chose to support a national monitoring system for MS. People living with MS need more information to make the best choices for the benefit of their health."

The findings from this monitoring initiative will be reported to those with MS, health care professionals, researchers, policy makers, stakeholders and Canadians. The Government of Canada is sponsoring other MS research initiatives as well, and will fund clinical trials for the Chronic Cerebrospinal Venous Insufficiency (CCSVI) treatment, if the scientific expert working group recommends clinical trials be undertaken, based on scientific evidence. The Public Health Agency of Canada is conducting a $15 million study of neurological conditions in the Canadian population over four years. To date, the Government of Canada has invested $49 million in MS-related research.

For more information, please contact

Office of Leona Aglukkaq
Minister of Health Canada
Jenny VanAlstyne
613-957-0200
or
Public Health Agency of Canada
Media Relations
613-941-8189

Click here to see all recent news from this company

Is there a net benefit to marijuana use in ameliorating MS?

EMBARGOED FOR RELEASE UNTIL 4 PM ET, MARCH 28, 2011
Marijuana Use May Hurt Intellectual Skills in MS Patients

ST. PAUL, Minn. – Any possible pain relief that marijuana has for people with multiple sclerosis (MS) may be outweighed by the drug’s apparent negative effect on thinking skills, according to research published in the March 29, 2011, print issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

Some clinical trials have reported a mild benefit of marijuana on pain, bladder dysfunction and spasticity in MS, an auto-immune disease that affects the brain and spinal cord.

The researchers studied two groups of 25 people each between the ages of 18 and 65 with MS. One group used marijuana and the other reported no marijuana use for many years. Urine tests were used to confirm use or non-use of the drug. The groups were matched so there would not be significant differences due to age, gender, level of education, IQ before diagnosis, level of disability and duration of time with MS.

On average, the duration of marijuana use was 26 years. A total of 72 percent of users reported smoking marijuana on a daily basis while 24 percent reported weekly use and one person reported bi-weekly use.

Participants’ cognitive skills were tested. The research found that people who used marijuana performed significantly worse with respect to attention, speed of thinking, executive function and visual perception of spatial relationships between objects. For example, on a sensitive test of information processing speed, those using marijuana scored approximately one third lower than non-users. Those who used marijuana were also twice as likely as non-users to be classified as globally cognitively impaired, defined as impairment on two or more aspects of intellectual functioning.

“Given that about 40 to 60 percent of MS patients have problems with cognitive function to begin with, any drug that may add to this burden is cause for concern,” said study author Anthony Feinstein, MPhil, MD, PhD, with Sunnybrook Health Services Center and the University of Toronto in Ontario, Canada. “This study provides empirical evidence that prolonged use of inhaled or ingested marijuana in MS patients is associated with poorer cognitive performance, and these effects have to be weighed against any possible benefit of using marijuana for medicinal purposes.”

The study was supported by the Multiple Sclerosis Society of Canada.

The American Academy of Neurology, an association of more than 22,500 neurologists and neuroscience professionals, is dedicated to promoting the highest quality patient-centered neurologic care. A neurologist is a doctor with specialized training in diagnosing, treating and managing disorders of the brain and nervous system such as Alzheimer’s disease, stroke, migraine, multiple sclerosis, brain injury, Parkinson’s disease and epilepsy. For more information about the American Academy of Neurology, visithttp://www.aan.com.

Maintaining an active lifestyle essential for people living with MS

BY IRIS WINSTON, FOR POSTMEDIA NEWS

NOVEMBER 30, 2010
"Exercise improves the fatigue level, probably better than any drug out there," Stewart says. "Tai chi and yoga, for instance, have a markedly positive impact on patients' balance and on improving their level of fatigue."
Photograph by: Shaughn Butts, Edmonton Journal

Multiple sclerosis is "the single biggest disabler of young, healthy adults," says Edmonton neurologist and University of Alberta associate clinical professor Dr. Brad Stewart. "Medication can cut down on relapses. Some drugs will cut down on disability. Some will have an impact on quality of life."

But Stewart, like many experts, says exercise also plays a crucial role in improving life for people with MS.

"Exercise improves the fatigue level, probably better than any drug out there," Stewart says. "Tai chi and yoga, for instance, have a markedly positive impact on patients' balance and on improving their level of fatigue."

"Exercise is good for all of us and is specifically good for MS patients," says neurologist Dr. Virender Bhan, an associate professor and director of the MS research unit at Dalhousie University, who has cared for MS patients for two decades.

"We recommend that our patients should be as active as possible, keeping in mind that they need to be safe, whatever the activity," says Trudy Campbell, one of only three nurse practitioners in Canada specializing in working with multiple sclerosis patients.

"Exercise, learning strategies to cope with stress, adequate nutrition, maintaining an ideal body weight and family support all play a role in living with MS," she says.

As part of her research projects, Memorial University postdoctoral fellow and physiotherapist Michelle Ploughman worked with numerous older individuals who have had MS for more than 20 years.

"They talked about what they have done to manage their condition and their quality of life now," she says. "I met people in their seventies and eighties who were still contributing to their community, providing telephone support to others with MS and remaining as active as possible. Their lives were not always rosy, but certainly the people who were doing best followed the trend of resilience, taking charge and staying active."

Bhan says that numerous studies indicate the value of any kind of exercise for MS patients. "The type of exercise does not seem to make any difference," he says. "In one study, the groups that did aerobic exercise or worked with weights did equally well and better than the control group. The message is that patients don't have to worry about the type of exercise. Any exercise works."

Balance and time management are also very important for people with MS, says Stewart. "I tell my patients if you're having a bad day, take it easy. If you're having a good day, don't try to make up for all the bad days of the past month. Instead, take an hour or two to go out for dinner and enjoy yourself while you're feeling good."

He adds that getting the appropriate amount of sleep, taking naps and pacing themselves are also extremely important for people with MS; so are managing any other concurrent diseases "aggressively" and maintaining a generally healthy lifestyle. He warns against smoking, for example. "If you have MS and you smoke, you are really doing yourself a disservice. People who smoke tend to have more attacks and more relapses."


© Copyright (c) Postmedia News

Exercise

Tips for safe exercise with multiple sclerosis

• Always warm up before beginning the exercise routine and cool down at the end.

• If you plan to work out for 30 minutes, start with 10-minute work out sessions and work your way up.

• Work out in a safe environment; avoid slippery floors, poor lighting, throw rugs and other potential tripping hazards.

• If you have difficulty balancing, exercise within reach of a grab bar or rail.

• If you feel sick or are in pain, stop.

• Select an activity that you enjoy, e.g. water aerobics, swimming, tai chi and yoga.

• MS symptoms may worsen when body heat rises, so don’t exercise during the hot time of the day and drink plenty of cool fluids.

Source: WebMD, wbmd.com

Gregory Petsko on the coming neurological epidemic | Video on TED.com

Gregory Petsko on the coming neurological epidemic | Video on TED.com

Biochemist Gregory Petsko makes a convincing argument that, in the next 50 years, we'll see an epidemic of neurological diseases, such as Alzheimer's, as the world population ages. His solution: more research into the brain and its functions.

Gregory Petsko's own biography, on his Brandeis faculty homepage, might seem intimidatingly abstruse to the non-biochemist -- he studies "the structural basis for efficient enzymic catalysis of proton and hydride transfer; the role of the metal ions in bridged bimetalloenzyme active sites; direct visualization of proteins in action by time-resolved protein crystallography; the evolution of new enzyme activities from old ones; and the biology of the quiescent state in eukaryotic cells."

But for someone so deeply in touch with the minutest parts of our bodies, Petsko is also a wide-ranging mind, concerned about larger health policy issues. The effect of mass population shifts -- such as our current trend toward a senior-citizen society -- maps onto his world of tiny proteins to create a compeling new worldview.

MS and Stem Cells: Time is brain in MS

The Canadian MS Bone Marrow Transplant Research Study is a MS Society-funded project to re-grow the immune systems of patients with MS using stem cells. Led by Drs. Mark Freedman and Harold Atkins at the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute and University of Ottawa, the study began in August of 2000. Ten years later, more than half of the 26 patients enrolled have seen their symptoms stabilize and, in many cases, actually improve, unheard of results in the treatment of MS. Yet few people know about this research. As part of our month-long salute to MS and stem cells, we will speak with people involved in every aspect of this study: the doctors and researchers, patients and their families and the people behind the scenes. Today, an interview Dr. Mark Freedman.

Spasticity

Spasticity is a feature of altered skeletal muscle performance occurring in disorders of the central nervous system (CNS) impacting the upper motor neuron in the form of a lesion. 

Memory

Horizon: How Does Your Memory Work?

49:04 - 2 years ago

Aired: March 25, 2008 on BBC2 You might think that your memory is there to help you remember facts, such as birthdays or shopping lists. If so, you would be very wrong. The ability to travel back in time in your mind is, perhaps, your most remarkable ability, and develops over your lifespan. Horizon takes viewers on an extraordinary journey into the human memory. From the woman who is having her most traumatic memories wiped by a pill, to the man with no memory, this film reveals how these remarkable human stories are transforming our understanding of this unique human ability. The findings reveal the startling truth that everyone is little more than their own memory. More Documentaries: http://Atheistmedia.blogspot.com -

Albert Ellis

The Essence of Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy: A Comprehensive Approach to Treatment by Albert Ellis, Ph.D. (The following has been adapted from The Essence of Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy website).

Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy is a comprehensive approach to psychological treatment that deals not

only with the emotional and behavioral aspects of human disturbance, but places a great deal of stress on

its thinking component. Human beings are exceptionally complex, and there neither seems to be any simple

way in which they become “emotionally disturbed,” nor is there a single way in which they can be helped

to be less-defeating. Their psychological problems arise from their misperceptions and mistaken

cognitions about what they perceive; from their emotional underreactions or overreactions to normal and

unusual stimuli; and from their habitually dysfunctional behavior patterns, which enable them to keep

repeating nonadjustive responses even when they “know” that they are behaving poorly.

PHILOSOPHICAL CONDITIONING

REBT is based on the assumption that what we label our “emotional” reactions are largely caused by our

conscious and unconscious evaluations, interpretations, and philosophies. Thus, we feel anxious or

depressed because we strongly convince ourselves that it is terrible when we fail at something or that we

can’t stand the pain of being rejected. We feel hostile because we vigorously believe that people who

behave unfairly to us absolutely should not act the way they indubitably do, and that it is utterly

insufferable when they frustrate us.

Like stoicism, a school of philosophy that existed some two thousand years ago, rational emotive behavior

therapy holds that there are virtually no good reasons why human beings have to make themselves very

neurotic, no matter what kind of negative stimuli impinge on them. It gives them full leeway to feel

strong negative emotions, such as sorrow, regret, displeasure, annoyance, rebellion, and determination to

change social conditions. It believes, however, that when they experience certain self-defeating and

unhealthy emotions (such as panic, depression, worthlessness, or rage), they are usually adding an

unrealistic and illogical hypothesis to their empirically-based view that their own acts or those of

others are reprehensible or inefficient and that something would better be done about changing them.

Rational emotive behavior therapists — often within the first session or two of seeing a client — can

almost always put their finger on a few central irrational philosophies of life which this client

vehemently believes. They can show clients how these ideas inevitably lead to emotional problems and

hence to presenting clinical symptoms, can demonstrate exactly how they forthrightly question and

challenge these ideas, and can often induce them to work to uproot them and to replace them with

scientifically testable hypotheses about themselves and the world which are not likely to get them into

future neurotic difficulties.

12 IRRATIONAL IDEAS THAT CAUSE AND SUSTAIN NEUROSIS

Rational therapy holds that certain core irrational ideas, which have been clinically observed, are at

the root of most neurotic disturbance. They are:

(1) The idea that it is a dire necessity for adults to be loved by significant others for almost

everything they do — instead of their concentrating on their own self-respect, on winning approval for

practical purposes, and on loving rather than on being loved.

(2) The idea that certain acts are awful or wicked, and that people who perform such acts should be

severely damned — instead of the idea that certain acts are self-defeating or antisocial, and that people

who perform such acts are behaving stupidly, ignorantly, or neurotically, and would be better helped to

change. People’s poor behaviors do not make them rotten individuals.

(3) The idea that it is horrible when things are not the way we like them to be — instead of the idea

that it is too bad, that we would better try to change or control bad conditions so that they become more

satisfactory, and, if that is not possible, we had better temporarily accept and gracefully lump their

existence.

(4) The idea that human misery is invariably externally caused and is forced on us by outside people and

events — instead of the idea that neurosis is largely caused by the view that we take of unfortunate

conditions.

(5) The idea that if something is or may be dangerous or fearsome we should be terribly upset and

endlessly obsess about it — instead of the idea that one would better frankly face it and render it

non-dangerous and, when that is not possible, accept the inevitable.

(6) The idea that it is easier to avoid than to face life difficulties and self-responsibilities —

instead of the idea that the so-called easy way is usually much harder in the long run.

(7) The idea that we absolutely need something other or stronger or greater than ourselves on which to

rely — instead of the idea that it is better to take the risks of thinking and acting less dependently.

(8) The idea that we should be thoroughly competent, intelligent, and achieving in all possible respects

— instead of the idea that we would better do rather than always need to do well and accept ourselves as

a quite imperfect creature, who has general human limitations and specific fallibilities.

(9) The idea that because something once strongly affected our life, it should indefinitely affect it —

instead of the idea that we can learn from our past experiences but not be overly-attached to or

prejudiced by them.

(10) The idea that we must have certain and perfect control over things — instead of the idea that the

world is full of probability and chance and that we can still enjoy life despite this.

(11) The idea that human happiness can be achieved by inertia and inaction — instead of the idea that we

tend to be happiest when we are vitally absorbed in creative pursuits, or when we are devoting ourselves

to people or projects outside ourselves.

(12) The idea that we have virtually no control over our emotions and that we cannot help feeling

disturbed about things — instead of the idea that we have real control over our destructive emotions if

we choose to work at changing the musturbatory hypotheses which we often employ to create them.

MAIN DIFFERENCES FROM OTHER SCHOOLS

1. De-emphasis of early childhood. While REBT accepts the fact that neurotic states are sometimes

originally learned or aggravated by early teaching or irrational beliefs by one’s family and by society,

it holds that these early-acquired irrationalities are not automatically sustained over the years by

themselves. Instead, they are very actively and creatively re-instilled by the individuals themselves. In

many cases the therapist spends very little time on the clients’ parents or family upbringing; and yet

helps them to bring about significant changes in their disturbed patterns of living. The therapist

demonstrates that no matter what the clients’ basic irrational philosophy of life, nor when and how they

acquired it, they are presently disturbed because they still believe this self-defeating world- and

self-view. If they will observe exactly what they are irrationally thinking in the present, and will

challenge and question these self-statements they will usually improve significantly.

2. Emphasis on deep philosophical change and scientific thinking. Because of its belief that human

neurotic disturbance is largely ideologically or philosophically based, REBT strives for a thorough-going

philosophic reorientation of a people’s outlook on life, rather than for a mere removal of any of their

mental or psychosomatic symptoms. It teaches the clients, for ex ample, that human adults do not need to

be accepted or loved, even though it is highly desirable that they be. REBT encourages individuals to be

healthily sad or regretful when they are rejected, frustrated, or deprived. But it tries to teach them

how to overcome feelings of intense hurt, self-deprecation, and depression. As in science, clients are

shown how to question the dubious hypotheses that they construct about themselves and others. If they

believe (as alas, millions of us do), that they are worthless because they perform certain acts badly,

they are not merely taught to ask, “What is really bad about my acts?” and “Where is the evidence that

they are wrong or unethical?” More importantly, they are shown how to ask themselves, “Granted that my

acts may be mistaken, why am I a totally bad person for performing them? Where is the evidence that I

must always be right in order to consider my-self worthy? Assuming that it is preferable for me to act

well rather than badly, why do I have to do what is preferable?”

Similarly, when people perceive (let us suppose, correctly) the erroneous and unjust acts of others, and

become enraged at these others, they are shown how to stop and ask themselves, “Why is my hypothesis that

the people who committed these errors and injustices are no damned good a true hypothesis? Granted that

it woulould be better if they acted more competently or fairly, why should they have to do what would be

better?” REBT teaches that to be human is to be fallible, and that if we are to get on in life with

minimal upset and discomfort, we would better accept this reality — and then unanxiously work hard to

become a little less fallible.

3. Use of psychological homework. REBT agrees with most Freudian, neo-Freudian, Adlerian, and Jungian

schools that acquiring insight, especially so-called emotional insight, into the source of their neurosis

is a most important part of people’s corrective teaching. It distinguishes sharply, however, between

so-called intellectual and emotional insight, and operationally defines emotional insight as individuals’

knowing or seeing the cause of their problems and working, in a determined and energetic manner, to apply

this knowledge to the solution of these problems. The rational emotive behavior therapist helps clients

to acknowledge that there is usually no other way for him to get better but by their continually

observing, questioning, and challenging their own belief-systems, and by their working and practicing to

change their own irrational beliefs by verbal and behavioral counter-propagandizing activity. In REBT,

actual homework assignments are frequently agreed upon in individual and group therapy. Assignments may

include dating a person whom the client is afraid to ask for a date; looking for a new job;

experimentally returning to live with a husband with whom one has previously continually quarreled; etc.

The therapist quite actively tries to encourage clients to undertake such assignments as an integral part

of the therapeutic process.

The REBT practitioner is able to give clients unconditional rather than conditional positive regard

because the REBT philosophy holds that no humans are to be damned for anything, no matter how execrable

their acts may be. Because of the therapist’s unconditional acceptance of them as a human, and actively

teaching clients how to fully accept themselves, clients are able to express their feelings more openly

and to stop rating themselves even when they acknowledge the inefficiency or immorality of some of their acts.

In many highly important ways, then, rational emotive behavior therapy utilizes expressive-experimental

methods and behavioral techniques. It is not, however, primarily interested in helping people ventilate

emotion and feel better, but in showing them how they can truly get better, and lead to happier,

non-self-defeating, self-actualized lives.

http://www.psychologistanywhereanytime.com/index.htm