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Moving into the Month Of Spoonies |
Did you know?
- Those who learn to live despite chronic illness or pain are called spoonies.
- May is awareness month for:
- Allergy
- Arthritis
- Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS, SEID)
- Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS)
- Fibromyalgia
- Lyme’s Disease
- Neuropathy
- Osteoporosis
- Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE, Lupus)
ALLERGY– The role in immune dysfunction
Allergy may be coexistent with or aggravate many conditions.
“Allergy symptoms are in response to an abnormal neurotransmitter,
specifically, histamine.” (Cooper and Miller, 2010)
Take the Health Central “Allergy Quiz”.
ARTHRITIS
Arthritis is an umbrella term for many disorders that affect
our joints. The most common type is osteoarthritis. Research is advancing what
we know of about osteoarthritis.
See Health Central article "Arthritis Awareness Month: More than 100 Types of Arthritis and Related Diseases" by Lisa Emrich, Follow me, Celeste Cooper, Chronic Pain Health Pro and other "Health Guides and Pros" who walk the talk. Ask questions, comment, share your story.
CHRONIC FATIGUE SYNDROME (ME/CFS/SEID)
Advances have been made in understanding the biology of
ME/CFS. Love it or hate it, and there
are reasons for concern, the Institute of Medicine proposes a name change that
addresses the most common component, systemic exertion intolerance disease
(SEID). There is genuine concern that this name, while addressing a biological
cause, may result in ignoring other biological changes that have been associated
with ME/CFS. Many people educate and advocate for those of us with this
dreadful disorder. You can find out who they are on my website here.
EHLERS-DANLOS SYNDROME (EDS)
Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome is a genetic disease with several
types under its umbrella. Characterized by joint hypermobility, skin elasticity,
and connective tissue fragility, this disease results from atypical (unusual)
proteins are responsible for the fragility of collagen, which is the glue for
our tissue. Some patients with EDS also have fibromyalgia or are susceptible for developing myofascial pain syndrome. Read on.
FIBROMYALGIA (FM)
We are learning more about fibromyalgia. Several researchers believe they are close to finding biomarkers, but the
stigma lives on because of those who hold tight to the in ill-conceived notion
that fibromyalgia is a psychosomatic disorder. In light of more recent
research, how and why remains a mystery to me. But, as I always say, there is
opportunity in adversity.
It’s possible that finding the answer to FM will unlock our understanding of other chronic pain disorders associated with pain
(pain that is amplified by our brain’s perception). I have written many blogs
on fibromyalgia; check out the archived blogs to the right listed according to
month.
LYME’S DISEASE
“Lyme disease is caused by the spirochete bacterium,
Borrelia burgdorferi. The infection is passed to humans by the bite of an
infected tick carrying the microorganism. Symptoms include a “bull’s eye” rash
at the site of the bite, malaise, fever, headache, muscle aches, and swollen
lymph nodes. Untreated Lyme disease can result in symptoms occurring months or
years after the initial exposure and causing damage to the heart, joints, and
nerves of infected individuals. Symptoms can imitate other diseases and can be
misdiagnosed.” (Cooper and Miller, 2010)
It is very sad to say, but despite overwhelming evidencethat Chronic Lyme’s Disease exists, there are those who doubt it.
OSTEOPOROSIS
Osteoporosis is diagnosed according to bone density tests. Poor
bone density makes our bones fragile increasing fracture. A common complication
of osteoporosis is hip fracture, and the mortality of hip fracture in the
elderly is very high. Watch a great overview of osteoporosis and prevention on Health Central.
NEUROPATHY
“Neuropathy is any functional disturbance or pathological
change in the peripheral nervous system; also used to denote nonspecific
lesions, in contrast to inflammatory lesions.” (Cooper and Miller, 2010)
Neuropathy can be due to an array of medical conditions. It
can also be idiopathic, meaning that the cause of symptoms is unknown. Read
about neuropathic pain.
SYSTEMIC LUPUS ERYTHEMATOSUS (SLE, Lupus)
Systemic Lupus Erythematosus is poorly understood and under
researched. The cause is unknown. Often referred to as Lupus (not to be
confused with discoid lupus), SLE affects predominately women, African
Americans, Hispanics and Asians and is generally diagnosed between puberty and
mid age. It is an inflammatory autoimmune disease that causes destruction of
the body’s various connective tissues. Read on.
You can learn more about Lupus in an article by Leslie Rott at Health
Central, “Lupus is as Lupus Does”.
BRINGING IN THE SPOONS
While we wait for such evidence, it is important to remember
that regardless of our diagnosis, regardless of biomarkers, we are yet to find
the cause or a cure for many immune or neuro-immune disorders. So, we must find
ways to cope in a healthy way. You can find coping
and management strategies on my website.
To all my fellow SPOONIES, thank you for sharing this
journey.
~ •
~ • ~ • ~ • ~ • ~
"Adversity is only an obstacle if we fail to see
opportunity."
Celeste Cooper, RN
NEW Website: http://CelesteCooper.com
Learn more about what you can do to help your body function to its
potential in the books you can find here on Celeste's blog.
All
answers and blogs are based on the author's opinions and writing and are not
meant to replace medical advice.
2 comments:
Did you know that all of these pain syndromes have a common link and all have a common therapy to boot.
It is all in the archives of myofasical pain and dysfunction as per Travell, Simons, Gunn, Rachlin and Baldy.
They all have slightly different view and therapies. But if you blend the all into a single therapy then the nonsense and loose ends will become clear.
It is all about intramuscular stimulation with needles.
Agreed, most, if not all chronic pain is maintained by the myofascia and restrictions of connective tissue. Other helpful strategies include self-treatment with tools such as a theracane and specific myofascial hands-on therapies. TY for the comment Stephen.
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