For Auld Lang Syne, My Dear

As the year draws to a close, I don't think anything says it better than the Bard himself.

Auld Lang Syne by Robert Burns

For auld lang syne, my dear,
For auld lang syne,
We'll tak a cup of kindness yet,
For auld lang syne! 

Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
And never brought to mind?
Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
And auld lang syne? 

And surely ye'll be your pint-stowp,
And surely I'll be mine,
And we'll tak a cup o kindness yet,
For auld lang syne! 

We twa hae run about the braes,
And pou'd the gowans fine,
But we've wander'd monie a weary fit,
Sin auld lang syne. 

We twa hae paidl'd in the burn
Frae morning sun till dine,
But seas between us braid hae roar'd
Sin auld lang syne. 

And there's a hand my trusty fiere,
And gie's a hand o thine,
And we'll tak a right guid-willie waught,
For auld lang syne.

Keeping Up With MS Research

After a fabulous christmas (presents galore and wonderful food!) it's back to blogging as usual. Although my relapse is still in full swing, I'm going to make more of an effort to post more frequently again on here. The IV steroids I was due to receive next week have been put off until after my urinary tract infection has cleared up. Not a terribly happy bunny about either!

It can be very difficult to try and keep up to date with current MS research, so I've written an article detailing how I keep up with the latest developments.I tried to be as detailed as possible, and added all the sites I visit on a regular basis or subscribe to the RSS feeds of. Hope it helps! You can find my article at: http://www.monsterski4.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=77:keeping-up-with-ms-research&catid=30:about-ms&Itemid=55 

My new series of blog posts is almost finished and the roll out will start shortly. Keep your eyes peeled for them!

I hope you had a great christmas and have mountains of fun on hogmanay.

I've migrated my blog to: http://lifewithms.wordpress.com/ This blog will only be active for another few weeks.

Ding Ding! Round 2

I've been rather neglectful of my blog of late, but unfortunately my MS has been unrelenting. Tweeting is about my limit at the moment. I was at the hospital for an appointment with my MS specialist yesterday and he feels I'd benefit from a second course of steroids for this relapse - IV this time. The course starts next Tuesday and finishes on the Thursday. Although I'm lucky enough to be attending as an outpatient, it means the last dose will be on hogmanay. There go my new year celebrations! hehe. Hopefully this time the steroids help to control my relapse.

I've migrated all of my blog postings to Wordpress.com and will be running both blogs for the next month or so to allow everyone to get used to the change (including me!) and then I'll be closing this blog. Hopefully everyone that reads this blog will continue to read after the move : ) I've changed the name of my blog too: although I'll still be blogging about my experience with LDN and MS, I don't feel I devote enough time to writing about LDN for the title to be solely about LDN. To read the new blog (still in early stages of design), please visit: http://lifewithms.wordpress.com/

A quick update on my LDN usage: I'm up to 2mg per day, but will have to stop it to take the steroids, then back on again. I still think my relapse is in too full a swing currently for any benefits of LDN to be felt, but hopefully as the symptoms improve and the dose increases, I'll be seeing the benefits : ) I experienced no problems increasing the dose from 1mg per day to 2mg, although some people do find there is an adjustment period.

I have a great series of posts in the pipeline and they'll be appearing very soon. More info to follow! Keep your eyes peeled!

Merry Christmas!

Now I Have A Walking Stick, Can I Behave Like Dr House Please??

I was at the hospital today for some cognitive ability tests (very easy and terribly boring!) and also to see my physiotherapist. It's the first time I've taken the Stroop Test and I've decided I hate it with a passion! Not the most fun at 0930 on a Monday morning having taken strong medication! Seemed to go rather well though. For more info on the Stroop Test, visit:

http://www.snre.umich.edu/eplab/demos/st0/stroopdesc.html

Having had the functional electrical stimulator (FES) on my left leg for over a month now, I'm finding it a fantastic help when walking, but my walking is still rather bad: I'm unsteady on my feet due to balance problems and my left foot deciding not to follow instructions from my brain. My physio decided to give me a walking stick and it helps a treat! I feel more confident walking and it provides stability without having to lean on it. I don't need to use it all the time, only when I require it, so I may invest in a folding one to keep in my handbag to use when needed. My handbag is akin to Mary Poppins's bag - everything in it except for the kitchen sink!

Many may feel sympathy for a 23 year old woman having to use a walking stick, but I feel no stigma attached to it and am going to make it into a feature (when I need to use it). I'll end up with a whole cupboard of the things in various different designs and colours! One must match one's accessories after all ; ) If my stick changes how strangers perceive me, that is their problem and not mine. Small minds are commonplace, but perhaps I can shatter their illusions rather spectacularly. 

Nice as my stick is, it's plain black and rather boring (see below) and I think it needs jazzing up. If I've got it, I'd rather make a feature of it than be embarassed by it : ) I'm pretty arty and may decorate it myself - I've spray painted a few motorbikes so I'm pretty handy with spray paints and detailing. If I can't decide on a design, I may hold a competition for someone to come up with a design for me, or I may end up with a collection of designed sticks! Keep your eyes peeled on here and Twitter! At the moment I'm thinking candy cane stripes, humbug stripes or stars on the stick. Artistic area of my brain's in overdrive!

I've had a couple of suggestions to decorate my stick like Dr House's with flames on. This is definitely high up the list of choices! I'm known for my occasional rants when I feel strongly about something or am angry and can be a bit of a grump for a very short period of time - a mild version of Dr House (some may say actually a very similar version!!). Now I have a stick, can I act like Dr House please? I wonder if I could get away with being cantankerous, sarcastic and rude when I'm using my stick?? Just how many allowances are made for disabled people? None? Rather a lot? Perhaps I may experiment with this out of sheer curiosity......

A quick update as I've been rather quiet recently: I'm now on anticonvulsants for neuropathic pain, muscle relaxants for muscle spasms and heavy duty painkillers. They're definitely helping and it's fantastic to get to sleep without pain and sleep like a log for the first time in a year. I got the swine flu vaccine a couple of days ago and have no ill effects except for a slightly sore neck, some shivers for a day or so and a feeling of bruising around the injection site.

I have a phone consultation tomorrow with the Dr I receive LDN from and will hopefully have the dose increased to 2mg per day. Fingers crossed!