The MS Wire

News, info and tips for living with multiple sclerosis

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What Would Freud Say About These Dreams?

psychologist

I studied psychology in college, but haven’t thought much about Sigmund Freud since then. I did the other night, though. I had a couple of puzzling dreams. Thinking about them after I woke up and putting a little of that college psychology to work, the puzzle became less puzzling. I think the dreams were directly related to my multiple sclerosis experiences. Take a look at these two dreams, and before…Continue Reading

Montel, MS and Me: The Podcasts

Talk-show / podcast host Montel Williams and I sat down a couple of weeks ago to chat about our experiences with multiple sclerosis. Montel was diagnosed with MS about 25 years ago. He’s very active in all things MS, particularly using medical marijuana as an MS therapy. We talk about that as well as some of the experiences I’ve written about in The Multiple Sclerosis Toolbox, my little book for…Continue Reading

This Tool Can Help You Choose an MS Treatment

MS treatment choice

It’s not easy choosing a MS treatment. There are shots and pills and intravenous infusions. The National Multiple Sclerosis Society lists more than 20 disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) on its website. Some, such as Lemtrada (alemtuzumab), Ocrevus (ocrelizumab), and Tysabri (natalizumab), have proven to be effective at slowing the progression of MS. Others, less so. All DMTs have potential side effects, some more than others. So how do you know which…Continue Reading

A Little Stumble for BTKi’s

BTK's are molecules

A little over a year ago, I wrote about whether Bruton’s tyrosine kinase inhibitors (BTKi’s) might be the next big thing in multiple sclerosis (MS) treatments. BTKi’s are small molecules that selectively block an enzyme that’s important for the activation of B-cells in the immune system and microglia, cells whose job is to protect neurons. Some of both types of cells are thought to be responsible for the abnormal immune…Continue Reading

Crying or Laughing but Don’t Know Why? PBA Might be the Reason

laughing and crying and PDB

I often see posts on social media from people with multiple sclerosis asking if crying for no reason is an MS symptom. It can be. Laughing for no reason can be one, too. Both can be severe, persistent, unremitting, and unpredictable. The medical name for this is pseudobulbar affect (PBA), and according to the Multiple Sclerosis Association of America, it affects one in 10 people with MS — and maybe…Continue Reading

Dits and Dahs Keep My MS Brain Sharp

Morse code key for dits and dahs

I speak Morse code. Dits and Dahs. It’s my second language, and I’m fluent. I’ve been speaking Morse code since I got my ham radio license nearly 63 years ago. (My call letters are KR3E.) At first, I received what was sent at a very slow speed of five words per minute, hearing  o-n-e  l-e-t-t-e-r  a-t  a  t-i-m-e  and writing each on a pad. Later, I would hear whole words,…Continue Reading

Dr. Amazon Wants You as a Patient

Doctor Amazon in your cart

Are you ready to buy your healthcare services from the same place you can buy almost everything else under the sun? Amazon hopes you are. Last month, the giant of online sales announced plans to acquire One Medical, a company that operates more than 125 medical offices across the U.S. and offers 24/7 telemedicine service in exchange for a yearly membership fee. One Medical’s vision is to “delight millions of…Continue Reading

A Shark Bites into Prescription Costs

Shark bites into prescription costs

My multiple sclerosis prescriptions cost me a lot, even with good insurance. Your prescription costs are probably also high, no matter what your illness is, if you don’t live in a country where the government picks up your drug costs. But now billionaire entrepreneur Mark Cuban is taking a shark-sized bite out of the cost of some of those medications. Cuban is an investor who regularly appears on the “Shark…Continue Reading

Disclosing My MS – In a Dream

Dreaming about disclosing

The other night I dreamed I was standing in a military formation when my leg began to twitch with an MS spasm. I couldn’t stay in line. The top sergeant yelled while the other soldiers laughed. Suddenly, the scene shifted to a balance beam, where I desperately tried to stay upright, but knew I couldn’t. So I jumped off. More laughing. In the dream, I realized it was time to…Continue Reading