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In Chronic Illness

Share your Story. Share your Strength…

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Hey Everyone

Some of you may know that I am involved with a new project called Neuro Nula. This site is a new online community for those with neurological conditions, their carers and families and its aim is to bring patients and their families together to share their stories, experiences, advice and most of all their support to help others and to make new and lasting friendships.

The site will include stories of patients with a variety of neurological conditions, as well as safe and moderated forums to chat with others and get advice and support as well as signposts for a variety of UK neurological organisations that can provide further advice and support.

I am honoured to have been asked to share my own personal story, which I have written and will be added to the site when it is up and running.

The site is hoping to be fully up and running by mid October and are looking for other people with neurological conditions to share their story as well as finding out about local neurological organisations that are in your area. So if you have any knowledge of such organisations or would like to share your story to help others then please get in touch with the team at their email address:

NeuroNula@live.com

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In Chronic Illness

HAWMC 2013 Day 4: Sharing Resources

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Welcome to the Health Activist Writer’s Month Challenge brought together by WEGO Health – a social network for all health activists.  Again, I am participating in the annual Writer’s Month Challenge in which I will be writing about my health activism and health condition based upon prompts given.

Today’s prompt is as follows:

Create a “care page” – a list of your best resources that someone who is newly diagnosed could go when starting to advocate for themselves or a loved one.  Remember to include sites that lead to successful self-advocacy! 

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This is a particularly difficult prompt for me because as I have mentioned before my condition is rare and as a result there are not that many resources out there for conditions like mine.  However, I will try and give it a go!

The first resource that I would recommend would be the Brain and Spine Foundation‘s Website.

The website is for anyone who suffers with any brain or spine conditions.  As well as the website, the organisation also runs a helpline, where you can contact a nurse specialising in neuroscience, either by phone or email.  This service offers the opportunity to gain answers to any questions patients with brain and spine conditions have or simply gain emotional support between appointments with their consultants.  The organisation also offers various factsheets and booklets explaining a wide variety of neurological symptoms, investigations regularly used by neurological consultants (e.g. MRI scan) as well as advice on how to live with neurological disorders.   They even offer a sheet on questions that may be of use to asking doctors, whether it would be with your General Practitioner or with a neurologist. Great for self-advocacy or advocating for someone you love!

Another great resource for anyone newly diagnosed with a neurological disorder is NeuroSupport a charity offering non-medical advice for those with neurological conditions and their families and carers.   The charity is based in Liverpool, UK, however their website offers information and links to other resources for anyone living in the UK.

If anyone living in the UK, wish to campaign for better services for those with neurological conditions, then the Neurological Alliance is an excellent resource for advocacy and self-advocacy for both patients, carers and the wider family.  The Alliance works with 70 other brain and spine charities to help give patients a voice both locally and nationally.

Those are the key resources that I have personally found.    Unfortunately, there does not seem to be many key charities or organisations for those with neurological conditions, and as a result not that many resource that I could find or have helped me.  The resources that I have found  are for neurological conditions in general as there are no specific organisations for a condition like mine.  If any of you know can sign post and me to other organisations then please get in touch and leave details in the comment section below!

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In Chronic Illness

Winter and Ice has arrived!…My Nemesis…

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Ice crystals Hey Everyone I hope that everyone is well and so far is experiencing a great 2013!  For those living in the UK, as I am you may be aware that the country has been affected by snow and icy conditions; schools have closed here in Wales because of widespread icy conditions therefore making driving hazardous. I know for many, snow brings joy and happiness – the picturesque scenes that it creates as well enjoying snowball fights and so on.  However, for many people; those in similar circumstances such as myself, it can create anxiety, even leaving some housebound during these weather conditions.  For example, this morning I had an appointment at the dentist; however, I was unable to attend because where I live was extremely icy because of the ice that developed overnight.  Myself, as well as my parents were concerned due to my impaired mobility and balance problems that I was at a high risk of a fall…I am very fortunate that despite the numerous and often severe falls that I have experienced, I have not broken any bones, so we did not want to risk anything that may potentially break this record!! The Winter can be a difficult time for anyone with a neurological condition like mine; especially as the very cold weather can make the spasticity in my legs worse than usual.  As well, as heightening the nerve pain. So, what are some of the ways in which those like me with neurological conditions can cope with the icy and winter conditions?  Here are some tips that I have found from magazines and the internet:

  • Keep warm!  Extra layers such as thermal underwear can keep the heat in, and stop symptoms such as nerve pain from getting worse because of the very cold weather.  And don’t forget to keep hands and feet warm with thick socks and gloves as well as a warm winter coat, hat and a scarf when out and about. 
  • If the nerve pain is confined to a particular region in your body, then make sure that region is well protected from the cold as the cold can heighten the amount of pain experienced
  • Hot water bottles and heat pads can be extremely useful for extra warmth – or perhaps, use an extra thick blanket, or invest in a ‘slanket’ which is a blanket with sleeves and even some has a pocket for your feet!  Great for keeping warm when watching TV on those very cold nights!
  • Keep your home warm – the ideal temperature for your home during the winter month is between 18ºC and 21ºC.  And the bedroom at night should be kept above 18ºC
  • Stay active as it increases the circulation and generate heat
  • If nerve pain is much worse during the winter months than perhaps it would be a good idea to speak to your doctor for extra medication to help during these months
  • If it isn’t necessary than it may be an idea to stay indoors especially if you experience problems with balance in order to prevent falls
  • If you do have to go out for any reason than make sure you wear appropriate footwear; for example flat footwear with rubber soles provides better traction on the snow and ice than leather soled footwear or high-heeled shoes
  • Where possible make sure that you use handrails
  • Take small steps in order to keep your centre of balance and walk slowly
  • Avoid carrying heavy shopping bags, especially on steps

For more information:

How do you cope during the Winter months; and particularly when there is snow and icy conditions?  Are there any other advice you can give to cope during these hazardous weather conditions?

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In Chronic Illness

Summer’s Here!…And worsening of some symptoms??

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Hello, Everyone!

I hope you are doing well and are AWAP (as well as possible!) and I hope that everyone has been able to enjoy the great weather we’ve had (granted, for those of us in the UK, it’s only been a week or so!). Anyway, although it has been delightful to see bright blue skies and the feeling of warm sunshine on my skin, the hot weather and particularly the humidity at night has been playing havoc with the symptoms which I experience.

For example, Monday I had the opportunity to sit in the beautiful gardens at the Centre for which I volunteer, and after only a short time the dizziness and vertigo which I experience daily were incredibly intense, leading to visual disturbances and incredible nausea as well as deep aches and pains in my legs.

And last night was one of the worst nights I have experienced for a while.

It was so warm and humid in my bedroom, and unfortunately for me, I also had a guest in my room – my dog Honey! And believe me, this didn’t help the situation!

Due to the humidity, it was incredibly difficult for me to get to sleep anyway, especially with the cramping and deep pains in my legs, but somehow I did manage to drop off sometime during the night.

Honey looking angelic keeping cool – complete opposite of her antics last night!

But alas, was awoken around 2.30 by the dog, crying and heavily panting – seems I wasn’t the only one that is having trouble with the heat, and hampered by my bedroom which always seems to get very warm.  And after that was unable to fall back asleep due to the severe stiffness and pain in the legs as well as the violent dizziness and so spent the early hours of keeping myself occupied by listening to music and watching episodes of ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ and ‘Once Upon a Time.’

But a question that might you be thinking is why does the heat affect those with neurological conditions so much?

Well, the reason for this is in many neurological conditions the nerves are damaged or the neural pathways which slows the ability of the nerves to function and send messages to the appropriate part of the body.  Heat can further slow down nerve impulse in affected areas such as legs in my case. And this is the reason for increased symptoms during the hot weather.

 

Image: She Radiance.  A Magazine by Ayushveda 

So to ward off increased symptoms and those of heat intolerance it is vital that those with neurological conditions such as in my case, or those with MS, keep cool during these warm Summer nights.

And what steps can we take to ensure that we do not relapse or our symptoms become worse or find ourselves unable to sleep because of them?

 

Suggestions for keeping cool and being able to sleep comfortably on a hot night: 

  • If safe to do so leave a window open in your bedroom to increase the air circulation in the room.  Multiple windows facing different directions to admit breezes is even better.
  • Set up a fan – if you are worried about the noise emitted by fans, consider buying a large fan or even a ceiling fan which tends to move air with less speed and noise
  • If you are unable to open a window, consider using a fan and ice to mimic air conditioning if it is unavailable.  Buy a commercial bag of ice and empty it into a shallow container (to contain the water as the ice melts).  Place the bowl of ice directly in front of the fan (between the fan and you), level with the top of the bed
  • Keep your neck cool! It works the same way as keeping your feet cool.  Try using a cooling pack that works for you, or place a damp towel on your neck
  • Consider using the ‘Egyptian Method’: wet a sheet or bath towel that is large enough to cover you with cool or cold water, and wring it or run it through the spin cycle on a washing machine until the sheet is quite damp but not dripping wet.  Or you can use a spray bottle of water to spray the top sheet until it is damp but not soaking.  Place the dry towel or sheet underneath your body and use the wet sheet as your blanket.  The wet blanket will help keep you cool.
  • During an extreme heat wave take a light t-shirt and wet it, wring it and then wear it.  Evaporation from the shirt will help to keep you cool enough to sleep for a few hours
  • Take a pair of cotton socks and rinse them in cold water, wring them until they are damp and put them on.  The cooling of the feet lowers the overall temperature of your skin and body
  • Chill your pillowcases: put your sheets, blankets, and pillowcases into freezer bags and place it in the freezer all day.  Doing so can help you fall asleep faster, further reducing your exposure to the uncomfortable heat
  • Sleep in a ‘spread eagle’ position, so heat doesn’t gather around you
The ‘Spread Eagle’ Position
  • If it is a terrible night for you, sleep downstairs – warm air rises, so it tends to be cooler downstairs
  • Take a cold shower or bath before bed, or if this is not an option splash some cool water on your head and feet – this will help you keep cool for longer allowing you to fall asleep faster

 

These are some of the examples of keeping cool during those unbearable hot summer nights.  Have you got any other tips?  Please leave a comment with any other suggestions!

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