Was this really MS Awareness Week?

[doublevision1]

Other than Janice Dean coming out of the closet with her MS last Sunday, I haven't seen any other media reference to the fact that this was Nat'l MS Awareness Week in the U.S.  I watch CNN, MSNBC, etc. and most of the morning shows, and no mention, from what I saw.  The Osmonds were on GMA today; no mention of Alan Osmond's MS.  I didn't catch the very beginning though so maybe he said something?

Certainly from a business perspective, news coverage is geared to the audience, and obviously there are more people interested in the Democratic Primaries and the Spitzer debaucle than MS.  That's why the MS association ought to be proactive in soliciting coverage for AWARENESS at a national/international level.

Did I miss anything or was it just not covered this year?  

I am curious whether Nat'l MS Awareness Month in Canada (in May) will get much air time.  I'll be watching!

db1

[CtResident]

I guess that's the way things work with quotes in articles. They're just part of a larger work, taken as a sound byte. Sometimes out of context.

As I tell my kids when they want to know what a word means, I will say "read it to me in a sentence." And if that doesn't aid them, I direct them to reread the entire paragraph.

On the face of it, the quote just sounded....odd....

I'm glad you were able to get a ride to work, that you were aware something was amiss. You must've had a sense of relief!

Suzanne

[doublevision1]

Thanks for sharing those articles; good to see there was some press lately even though as you say there was no mention of 'awareness week.'

Blackstone's book was one of the first I read about MS, before my final dx;  I found it well written and could really relate.  I go back and re-read sections from time to time.

I think I know what she means when she talks about sensing an impending relapse.  I've only had one BIG relapse and I could tell something was happening and going to get a lot worse, but couldn't put my finger on it.  

It does sound a bit creepy I guess, but I don't think of it as freaky supernatural esp-type thing; I just assume that as your system starts malfunctioning in the early stages of an attack, you start to feel different and become aware that something is wrong.

After over a year having no sx and two previous normal MRI's, one day I became totally exhausted out of the blue.  Next day, mild tingling in my hand.  You all know the drill.  Anyway over the next two weeks I felt mildly yucky, the numbness spread a bit, but otherwise I was ok and continued to go to work.  Something in my gut told me maybe I should say something to a co-worker just in case something worse happened, I just wasn't sure what that might be.  Anyway being very private about such things, and I think talking myself into the idea I might be imagining things, I decided to keep it to myself.  However, for my last few days of work before going off ill (this is last September), I asked a friend for a ride to the office. This is unusual for me, so I made up a lie that my husband needed the car, rather than explain why I really didn't want to drive.  This was before my double vision, and I had no idea that this would happen, I just felt in my gut that I may not be safe driving.  I just felt 'off.'  Less than a week later, I was off work, had full-blown double vision, and could barely move from the MS hug.  Things moved very fast then, in terms of symptoms, diagnosis and treatment.  

Anyway, that was my first and only episode of "impending doom" and I wonder if I will get such a warning the next time.  At least if does happen again I will know what I am dealing with.

db1

[essdipity]

Oops, I guess that creepy person is a she. Still, it's creepy.

ess

[essdipity]

I think that guy's description is kinda creepy. Maybe it's true of HIM. For me, I tend to be in denial, or at least avoidance, for as long as possible. If the symptom is going to turn into something, it will. Otherwise it may be just a weird or odd thing that means nothing. The big majority of the time, it does turn out to be nothing, and I haven't stressed myself worrying meanwhile. The stuff I can't avoid I do have to deal with eventually. My system works for me, though your mileage may vary.

ess

[CtResident]

From the first article:

"Ms. Blackstone states it is important for patients to recognize an impending relapse — common indicators are fatigue and “a heightened sense of vulnerability, as if the person can tell something bad is going to happen” — and not try to work through a relapse. “It’s better to rest” and “avoid engaging in strenuous activity,” she suggests."

Whenever a flare is coming along, do any of you feel this heightened sense of vulnerability? I get vague feelings of unease, like when I was overwhelmed at the dollar store earlier this week and just flat out left the store. But I don't know that it's related to a flare-up.

I think the statement itself is rather vague.

???

Suzanne

[smittygirl]

Morning,

I heard on my local NBC station that March is the month for National
MS Awareness.

[shoshin]

There were a couple interesting article in the NY Times recently, although they don't mention MS Awareness week.

On is on the challenges of MS because it's so complicated, heterogeneous, and not well understood:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/04/health/04brod.html

And one on the MS recovery diet:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/11/health/11brod.html