Come on!

  PIP reflection 2024 Over the last few months, it’s safe to say (metaphorically) that my head had been somewhat up my arse; with anxiety. All due to my friend P I flipping P. Yes. Personal Independence Payment ( PIP ). Having received the renewal form LAST year (that’s 2023 as of typing), I anxiously stressed to get what legitimate proof I could get to assist my honest form answers. Big kudos to the Citizens Advice Bureau for help with said form ‘completion’. I was struggling. And without ANY surprise, I still live with MS ! Multiple Sclerosis the chronic Central Nervous System disease. Has it improved? No. Is it progressing? Yes. Is there a cure? I and about 2.3+m others wish. Anyway, part of my ‘processing’ stuff is that I keep notes. Yip, my memory is far from good. Cognition . So, here are 3 fairly recent ‘notes’ relating to PIP that I still have in my phone for a short blog and how one’s anxiety has been: No escape (1st May) Missed phone calls, a voice message. Joanne ab...

Coronavirus realisations? This is fun isn’t it? Hopefully I am not going to repeat my previous Coronavirus blog [ there! ], but sure there will be overlaps! What realisations am I on about then? This / these struck me very recently. The staying indoors more as we are supposed to – previously explained! – giving me more ' boring me time ’, giving positives? I am doing what I can the best for my physical and mental health, under ONE set of rules. MINE. I haven’t got to be anywhere at a certain time, do anything specifically, rest not-guiltily… Aye, sounds like they all go directly against the set of government COVID rules; but it doesn’t. Let me explain a bit. The statement that was said was to stay indoors , and remains overlying advice. So, I am ‘adhering’ mostly to this straight away. Fun? Well actually! For example, when I have the/some permitting energy I may attempt to do: Some kind of morning fitness – MS friendly YouTube mixture; like P...

Staggering I know that I have not ‘produced’ any writing for a while, not without reason; different stories there. Anyway 7 months is long enough. A 7-month hike, err, obviously; not. Hike. Something I can say never did to my memory, without doubt not in the last many years. Why? If you don’t know why, it’s because I have never been a walker, let alone a hiker and now living with MS for over half my life has changed a lot of life . In this case, I’m bouncing (ha) off the word “ hike ” into the more common word and activity “ walk ”. Let me explain a bit. In a nutshell, if you didn’t know; I may have been living with Multiple Sclerosis – MS – for over half my life now. It wasn’t ‘formally’ diagnosed until I was a tender, ahem, 23 but it was spied (by a great friend and now qualified neuro-doctor) initially in 1997/8 – I was then not 23. Now, some moons later, and having gone through the denial process that comes post-diagnosis e t c (more stuff elsewhere on the...

Positive Affiliations 5 Straight to it! #lesswaffle! 1. Tysabri 108. Another? Thankfully YES! Those who know, know! My MS treatment, my DMT ( Disease Modifying Treatment ; DMD…Drug), and it has done and doing its job. Touch wood. I like to think that the week prior to the infusion I was quite active and energetic in my own way; then the reminder. Tysabri gets commonly named ‘magic juice’ by its MS recipients. I can’t quote stats for those of us who get Tysabri that are NOT affected by the time between infusions. Some are though. Commonly I am one that knows when it is the 4 th week of the 4. More fatigue with symptomatic responses as an example. A top-up then. Literally! The weekend was largely spend sat on my arse doing not a lot. The actual day after the infusion (before the weekend) I did ‘receive’ a session with an MS specialist Physical Trainer, all positive for the MS journey’s benefit. Then a welcome sit for a meditation session thereafter. Back ...

Positive Affirmations Introduction In my MS journey, I participated in Conductive Education (CE) for a good number of months. As the respective blog says, it is a fairly unique activity - moulded from primarily to help with Cystic Fibrosis - to help with Multiple Sclerosis. More info on the CE blog and its links too. Anyway, that was then. I stopped for a few reasons not to be listed as they may sound wrongly negative. One of which I am in that guilty of taking too much on. Last in first out? That’ll do. Do I miss it? The activity itself not really (no bridges burned and yes, I would return), but I thoroughly enjoyed that the first thing attendees were asked to say were three positive experiences of the last week they / we had had. A memory test itself but the positive reflection was great! So, why not carry this on? It has been a while yes (group thoughts sharing) and/but I am now taking up from my intentions to share some positive vibes! Ideally on a week...

More than 3.14! “Shingles”. “Shingles”. Say it. What a horrible word! Why am I writing about shingles? I am currently (end of November 2015) getting shot of a bout of these/this thing. Herpes Zoster . Shiver. NOT Herpes Simplex (the genital ones), thankfully! I have had chickenpox, not as a kid though. I was treat to getting that aged 26 in a hotel, catching it when working near Blackpool; but that’s a different story (haven’t been back to Blackpool since). So that opened the doors to allow shingles to develop. Wonderful! Or not. Shmingles Basics What is shingles? Otherwise known as Herpes Zoster, is a skin manifestation of the dormant chicken pox virus. Chicken pox, once an expected rite of childhood (not me), causes a respiratory syndrome with a widespread rash. The infection eventually resolves and the virus remains in the body, dormant in the roots of nerves at the level of the spine. How dare it. The virus finds a home in the cells of t...

My exercise story? I am 37 years old and do have #MS. I also try to #exercise. I like it (gym weights mostly (I try!)) and feel some benefits of it too. Wouldn't go if didn't I suppose! When I was younger – teens really – I exercised quite a bit all be it strength focused, as some do at that age! Then came university and even though I joined the gym there every year of the 4, my attendance was really not worth the then total of twenty whole quid, yet better than nowt! Working at BAE Systems a bit thereafter, I resumed going to the gym and played football (not very well!) and did some kickboxing (I liked it!). So I guess I have had some form of exercise in my life to a certain regard. After BAE I went to what became Lockheed Martin – gym and football* stopped really. Wasn’t the same funability of 6-a-side availability; but I did pick-up a bit of eskrima that I enjoyed until the #MonSter started fighting back…! The job started to interfere with m...