News, info and tips for living with multiple sclerosis
Labor Day has come and gone here in the U.S. Now, flu season has arrived in the Northern Hemisphere. This isn’t the novel coronavirus we’ve been fighting all year. It’s the regular seasonal flu virus that’s knocking on our door again. Each year, some people with multiple sclerosis wonder if they should get a flu shot. My wife and I have been getting one for as long as I can…Continue Reading
You’re stressed, and Halo may know it. Halo is a new Amazon service the company says can judge how stressed you are, in part by the tone of your voice. The service uses a wristband that connects to a mobile app. A small sensor in the band monitors temperature, heart rate, and body motion. It also has a pair of microphones that listen to your voice. That voice feature is…Continue Reading
I’ve used a Bioness L300 Functional Electronic Stimulator for almost 8 years to help me walk. Has the benefit been worth the cost?
In early July, I wrote a blog post about Disability Pride Month. It’s not for me, I said. I questioned the word “pride” and asked whether we need a special month to advocate for a more inclusive world. Several people commented on that column — some supported my thoughts, while others were critical of what I wrote. A woman named Danielle wrote a particularly strong comment ending with: “I think…Continue Reading
I’d just gotten out of bed the other morning and was headed to the bathroom using just one cane when I tried to step over a dog toy on the floor. I went down slowly onto the carpet, so it was really no big deal. No harm, no foul, but I should have been using two canes, and I should have been more careful. I should know how not to…Continue Reading
July is Disability Pride Month. Now, don’t flame me right away for writing this, but I don’t think we need a month highlighting disability pride — just like I don’t think people with MS need a month in October spotlighting rare diseases. MS is invisible but, with more than 2.3 million people carrying that diagnosis, it’s not rare. Disability Pride Month seems to have started as Disability Pride Day, which…Continue Reading
Are you tired? Really tired? Me, too. Most of us with multiple sclerosis are. How many really tired people is most? A small new study of 44 people with one of the progressive forms of MS found the answer is a little over 86%. (I’m surprised the number isn’t higher.) Those people described their fatigue as “tired,” “exhausted,” “wiped out” and having “little or no energy.” Half of patients reported…Continue Reading
Sitting down to write this, it’s hard for me to concentrate. I’d planned to write about some new MS mobile apps, but I can’t get my brain to focus on the task. I’ve been bragging about how I’ve been feeling sharper and better able to concentrate over the past several months, but not today. Distractions are more distracting than usual. For two days, my legs have felt weaker than usual…Continue Reading
It’s comforting to have this guy, with his floppy ears, stretched out next to me as I sit here writing about my MS. I don’t know why but the fact that Joey, who is really my wife Laura’s cocker spaniel, has chosen to nap next to me is special. I’m not usually a softy for this kind of thing and Joey can be a real pain in the neck when…Continue Reading
A number of websites are currently offering online coronavirus screening. These aren’t a full-scale test. The online sites read symptoms that you enter and then use artificial intelligence to determine how likely it is that you’re positive for the virus. But there’s a bit of a problem. An investigation by a pair of reporters from STAT reveals that different websites give different responses to the same set of symptoms. For example,…Continue Reading