The MS Wire

News, info and tips for living with multiple sclerosis

Category: Living with MS

Some Doctors Hug Patients. Others Say “No Way.” What do You Think?

Doctors who hug

Former Vice President Joe Biden has been in some hot water recently because of his habit of hugging some of the people he meets. More generally, in today’s society, some of the casual social touching that once went on, particularly in the workplace, has become out of bounds. So, is it OK for your doctor to give you a hug? I spotted that subject on Twitter the other day. Rhea…Continue Reading

C. Auris: A Dangerous Fungus if You’re Immune System is Compromised

C. auris

Most healthy people probably don’t have to worry about a fungus named Candida auris, or simply C. auris. But if your immune system is compromised, it’s a different story. Health officials say C. auris should be of special concern to people whose immune systems are not at full strength, and I’m one of them. I’m being treated with Lemtrada (alemtuzumab). It, like Ocrevus (ocrelizumab), Mavenclad (cladribine), and aHSCT (autologous hematopoietic stem cell…Continue Reading

Horses Helped My MS. Now Some Need Our Help.

Great and Small horse

Have you ever thought about getting on a horse and riding? It may sound impossible for someone with MS, but it’s not. In fact, equine therapy can help your body and your mind, and it’s fun. Several years ago, in my early 60s and not having ridden a horse since I was a kid, I was back in the saddle with an instructor from the Great and Small therapeutic riding…Continue Reading

Controlling Your MS Bladder Problems

MS bladder problems

There are two types of people with MS: Those who have bladder problems and those who will have them. That may be an oversimplification but I’d be willing to bet that you, like me, have had that gotta-go-gotta-go problem too many times to count. Sometimes you make it to the loo, sometimes you don’t. And if you do make it in time, the urgency might then become a now-I-can’t-go bladder…Continue Reading

Thinking About Changing Your Neurologist?

Time to leave your neurologist?

If you’re a member of the baby boomer generation, or if you just like the music of the 1960s and ’70s, you probably know Paul Simon’s “50 Ways to Leave Your Lover“: “‘The problem is all inside your head,’ she said to me. ‘The answer is easy if you take it logically. I’d like to help you in your struggle to be free. There must be 50 ways to leave your…Continue Reading

I’m Worried About Affording My Healthcare. You Should Be Too.

Worried about affording my healthcare

I rarely write anything involving politics. But I’m very worried about the latest challenge to the ability of Americans to find affordable healthcare. I struggled with how to express my concerns about affording my healthcare while still maintaining my reporter’s objectivity. I struggled because I’m fortunate. I had access to a very good health insurance plan from my employer for many years. Then, not long after retirement, I became eligible…Continue Reading

Things I Wish I’d Known Before My MS

Things I wish I'd known about my MS

A recent article in The New York Times hit the nail on the head when it comes to describing some things I wish I’d known about living with MS before I started living with MS. But the article isn’t about MS. The Times‘ Tessa Miller writes about Crohn’s disease, a type of inflammatory bowel disorder. Like MS, Crohn’s is an autoimmune disease. Instead of attacking the central nervous system, however, it…Continue Reading

I’d Rather Live With My MS Than Battle It

MS battle

A former colleague recently asked me, “How are you doing in your battle with MS?” It was a legitimate question, not one of those throwaway lines of mock concern that we often hear. We were discussing the death of a former colleague who had been diagnosed with MS in 1996. She was just 59 years old when she left us earlier this month.” Annie’s death and the “how are you…Continue Reading

Debating Whether to Stop Your MS Medication

Thinking about changing your M S medication

I see a lot of reasons why people stop, or refuse to start, an MS medication. “Thinking of stopping the…meds. Sick of the shots and how they hurt to take them” “I stopped all of them….all multiple times. It takes too long for an appointment and I tapered off “ “Half the s**t will kill you” “My body and my choice” “The side effects are worse than the disease” Forty…Continue Reading