Most people associate physical therapy with the recovery from an injury or a stroke but what is less known is its use with symptoms of chronic and neurological disease such as the symptoms of MS.  As no two people with multiple sclerosis experience the same set of symptoms, physical therapy for MS does not have a single solution but can tailer and address your particular combination and struggles at all stages of the disease.

In the video of this episode Dr. Poorva Kulkarni, PT DPT MHS explains to us in this episode how physical therapy can help you with your symptoms.

Physical Therapy for MS

Dr. Poorva: Thank you so much for giving me this opportunity to be here. It is heartfelt to hear all your stories and what you guys have been going through. It definitely helps me to be a better physical therapist knowing what struggles you go through. So I hope this will help explain the role of what physical therapy is and when it can help.

No Two MS patients are the same

So, basically what is MS? I’m not going to spend a lot of time on this because a lot of you already know. But what I do want to say is that it affects everyone differently depending on which part of your brain and which nerves are damaged. And thus it will present itself in a different way for each of you. If you do a Google research on MS, it can be overwhelming to see that there are so many symptoms out there. Know you will not experience all of them. Everybody is going to go to a different level of progression and have a different evolution.

The only thing I do want to mention is how physical therapy (PT) can help.

The Role of PT for MS

So when does PT come in? What will help to improve your strength, your endurance, your balance, and decreasing spasticity? Things such as managing it in a better way. For example, having a stretching program will make sure that your spasticity is much more under control and easier deal with it. Another example is coping with fatigue.

Because coping with fatigue is vital. There’s a lot of research out there about fatigue induced weakness. So what if you push yourself to a limit?  It is too much. The next day you’re going to feel it and you’re going to feel that weakness. And so just being aware of your limits, which could change, is important. Knowing your limits and not reaching them.  I always tell my patients to imagine a zero-to-ten scale. Zero being you’re not tired, 10 being you’re very tired. You don’t want to reach ten. You want to keep yourself at a solid five to six range. If you feel like you are do something, pushing it into an eight or nine, you’re going to feel that weakness may be that day or next. And most times, that is not worth it, so always try watching your thresholds.

Apart from stretching and watching your fatigue levels, PT for MS supports you with exercises. It’s hard to generalize what can really benefit as each of you presents symptoms differently. But, some things that help are endurance training, walking, and biking. These are especially good in the morning. If you feel like you know you’re tight and it’s hard for you to get going – the bike definitely helps to relief that muscle tightness that you feel.

As for balance and coordination training, PT works a lot with those issues. If you’re noticing that you have fallen two or three times and are having a little trouble with balance, we can definitely help you with that.

Again, something that I want to stress so much because it is so important is to learn to gauge your fatigue. And I stress this because I know it is hard for you to gauge how much is too much. You need to learn your limits. In physical therapy, I offer my patients an activity log. That way you can plan ahead. Sometimes the log will work and you might have days, that it might not. But even if it works 90% of the time, it’s still a good thing. So if you feel like you have to do A, B, C, and D things, just plan ahead. Plan taking little rest breaks in the middle so you’re not pushing yourself to the limit where you’re going to be so tired the next day.  That has really worked well with patients – having that activity log as a reminder.

Also, split your activities out during the week, or delegate it. Getting an idea of your fatigue is key. It will definitely help. Also, if you go to a gym on your own, just be aware to exercise within that fatigue level too. Have somebody initially give you a guided exercise program so you know your limit and how to progress.

Aquatic exercise is another option of physical therapy for multiple sclerosis. There is new research that shows that pool therapy is really good for patients with MS. It helps to relax the muscles. The biology of the water basically helps you. And it is nice to not be afraid that you’re gonna fall. It’s a good place to stretch out. Also, physical therapy in a pool can put you in positions that would be hard for you to do on the table or a mat.

The thing that you want to remember is you are not going into a heated pool. You want it at 80 degrees, which is a therapeutic temperature that is important with MS. So you want it to be at 80 to 85, a good therapeutic range that relaxes the muscles and makes it easier out. So much more so than on land.

When can Physical Therapy for MS help?

Everyone with MS goes through many different stages and PT can help in all of them. It could be at the time of diagnosis, when you are in remission, and during a relapse or progression. Know that PT can help with MS at each of these stages.

1. At the Time of Diagnosis

So, to begin, at the time of diagnosis, it can help educate you on what is out there. And that is key. It’s definitely scary because it’s new and overwhelming to just have the diagnosis. And if you don’t have enough information, you could be misled, as there is so much out there on the internet. And PT has a treatment for each of the symptoms that present themselves at the onset. The earlier you start, the better you’re able to deal and cope with it. One of the basics, which is most important from the beginning, is teaching you the energy conservation techniques. What I kind of explained to you with making sure that you’re planning your activities, you’re taking rest breaks, etc. And that’s the key. If you start sooner and if you know what this is, it’s easier to get in the routine and help stabilize you.

2. In remission / stability

Then your PT can check up on you at 6 months. You would review your home exercise program. See if everything fine. Is there a change? The idea behind that is that you’re catching the problem before it happens. If you’re kind of slowly noticing that maybe you’re having a little issue with your foot or you’re dragging it, we can work with that. It can be fixed.

Even when you are in a stable phase, you can come in for a tune-up, do a reassessment, and overall see where you are at.

3. During or after a relapse

During a relapse, working on things that are affecting you and getting the treatments to address the symptoms. Is there a need for assistance advice at that point? We are assessing your balance and seeing if that relapse has done anything that might make you more susceptible to falling or things like that.

4. Disease Progression

And then with the progression, if you are in that phase, we might assess if you need a standing frame if it’s hard for you to stand for too long.

We evaluate the need for each stage. Whether we need to use any device just to make sure you’re safer or if we need to brace. Things like that will help you live that much better.

Questions on Using PT for MS

Question: If we did start needing an aid, even temporarily, would we be able to come to you with that aid and you could show us how to use it physically, therapeutically and make sure we’re using it right?

Dr. Poorva: Yeah, totally. Because it’s the technique we use. It could be a walking stick. We assess what might be best for you? It could be a cane or you could do better with a walking stick or a walker if you need to. A physical therapist can show you which device could work best for you at that point. Aids require technique and it can be hard if you haven’t used it.

We have mobility clinics that can help out if you need a wheelchair or things like that. Know that you can get a customized wheelchair if need be, which is way better than getting a rental one which is not your size. You don’t want to get pressure sores. So things like that. So just knowing that you have that source out there too, which is a mobility clinic where they evaluate you, they customize a wheelchair or a standing frame based on you.
There are definitely options out there for you to know that if you are in that phase as well.

And then again managing your symptoms at that point too. If there are things that are getting harder for you, we can definitely address those changes. So some things, when you’re aware of them through the activity log, we can address things like using an ice vest. If you’re a person who gets overheated too much and then your symptoms get really hard to manage, especially with the heatwave that we had, there’s an ice vest that you could get which helps you not get overheated.

Many of the patients will describe tingling or numbness in the hand. And if you’re cooking, you don’t want to cut yourself with a knife. That could happen if you’re not feeling your hand. So there are these weighted spoons would you can get even on Amazon and things like that. The idea with that is that the weight helps you to realize that you have something in your hand so it helps your brain. What we called proprioception. Even with the tremors, it helps. I use weights a lot for patients who don’t know where their feet are. It gives your brain extra feedback. And it will help you not cut to the finger too.

Question: I know the cold season’s coming and I know we’re all basically just like Goldilocks is, we need perfect temperatures. If we are going to exercise outside, should I be wearing like warmer stuff even though I get hot? I guess the temperature thing has been a bit concerned. Should I be going out for long walks? Or should I be going to the pool where it’s warmer, where I can stretch?

Dr. Poorva: Definitely. Again, it depends on every individual, but usually, if you walk in extreme heat, those symptoms trigger. Like you might feel like you’re getting fatigued a lot. So choose the time when you go for walks.

Question:  As I mentioned earlier, my shoulders are really starting to hurt.  It feels like I don’t really even have the strength to build them up at this point. So is that something that you think would be better?

Dr. Poorva: If there is pain, we need to address that pain first. We’d definitely show you some techniques on how to spread and transfer your weight. And then if at that point, if we determine that you are having trouble with your daily activities, I refer you to OT. Occupational therapy can help you learn about the cool devices out there for you. And there are so many now that can make your life easier. We always tag team with other therapists, splitting the sessions so that you get the support you need. You don’t have to be concerned with knowing what kind of physical therapy you need.

Audience member:  We have a real advantage in this community because there aren’t a lot of outpatient neuro PT clinics in the country and she (Dr. Poorva) has a lot of really specific things that will help you adapt and help you. Whatever stage you’re at. I mean you can, it doesn’t really matter whether you’re primary progressive relapsing, remitting or secondary progressive there you can make changes at any stage.

Dr. Poorva: After you have completed your physical therapy, I usually like my patients to go to the classes offered at the clinic. We can always talk about which one you might benefit from.

There are these PEP classes that take place or you could be going off into the community doing senior fitness classes or going into the pool doing one of their programs. The idea behind that is that you’re doing something once a week where you are having somebody there for you. And they can catch things, notice changes, and refer you back to PT. So you can stay in the loop that way. It’s quicker to catch things that way.

Question: Do we need to ask our doctor to refer us? I feel like, every time I go see my doctor, I ask but then they don’t send through a referral.

Dr. Poorva: I would follow up and see if they have. They don’t always call you. Sometimes they say that if they don’t call by such and such date, call them. If they say no, you get back to your doctor and say I didn’t get my referral. Exactly. Yeah, that’s pretty much it. I can also check in our files if your doctor sent us a referral for you.

Member of the audience:  I just wanted to say, I didn’t think I would benefit from physical therapy because I was operating on a basic level, but you showed me stuff that I didn’t even realize! The brain is amazing, and some of the stuff that my body was doing in order to protect me was actually causing me longer-term damage. For instance, I didn’t realize that I wasn’t really looking left and right when I was walking because it made me dizzy. And, and then, getting more confident in being able to look around.  That has helped me feel safer going on walks at night. There was a point there where I was feeling really uncomfortable because I go if you’re coming on my left I was like Zoo Lander…couldn’t turn left!

I’m now a big advocate. Thanks. Thanks to your work. I didn’t realize. I didn’t understand all of the stuff I was doing. Like, I wasn’t even using my knees right. I’ve had these for 32 years! I just didn’t know. It really has helped. And, for example, the pools that they use. Just that light bit of compression that you get from being in the water. Cause I’m always pressing on myself, and the pressure of laying in the pool makes my arms feel so much better. I just didn’t know. The water is amazing, it really is. It definitely helps. So you might not realize that you might be compensating by training your body when you are looking and not turning your head at the onset of that dizziness. PT for MS helps you to learn that. And, Dr. Poorva, you made me sit up straighter!. I’ve been sitting up straight and it makes me look skinny (laugh)!

Dr. Poorva: Thank you.

References

Dr. Poorva Kulkarni, Physical Therapist specialized in neuro, Dominican Hospital Rehabilitation and Therapy Services, Santa Cruz, CA.

Rohrig, mandy. (2018). Physical Therapy in Multiple Sclerosis. National Multiple Sclerosis Society.

Creating Health Series

This video was recorded at the National MS Society Self-Help MS Group in Santa Cruz, CA. It is part of our series “Creating Health in Multiple Sclerosis”. If you would like to receive these videos in your inbox each month, please sign up for our newsletter.  Don’t be left behind. There is help.

 

Achieving Sound Sleep?

Sleep and MS. Adequate sleep is just as essential as proper nutrition and stress management, in maintaining your health. It can cause grumpiness,  increasing the likelihood of accidents, reduce our ablity to function at our best and affect recovery.

According to The National Institutes of Health adults need seven and a half to nine hours of sleep each night, but tend to be shy of that goal. Most time, those diagnosed with MS weren’t heavy sleepers before their diagnosis and struggle to allow themselves this seeming luxury even when they are interested in doing all they can to heal. But sleep is a great starting point on the path to health and necessary for recovery.  Getting by with 6 or 7 hours a night, will not allow you to achieve your full potential and will hinder your body’s ability to self-heal.

Benefits of Adequate Sleep

Sleep is not a luxury but necessary.

• It can help increased efficiency and creative problem solving abilities
• It has anti-aging benefits and affects hormone production
• It reduces sugar cravings and hunger and helps with appetite control (meaning you can lose weight by getting enough sleep).
• It affects immune function
• It reduced the risk of developing diabetes, heart disease and cancer.
• Healing happens when you sleep
• Increased overall life expectancy

Dreaming is Necessary

When we are dreaming (REM), we are actually helping ourselves better cope with life’s stressors. When we dream, our brains release a consoling neurochemical bath that mollifies painful memories and creates a virtual reality space in which the brain melds past and present knowledge, inspiring creativity. Without enough sleep, we might feel incapable of dealing with stressful issues and moody.

Are you Getting Enough Sleep?

If you are not sure if you are getting enough sleep, ask yourself:

1.  After waking up in the morning, could you easily fall back asleep at 10 or 11am?
2.  Can you function without caffeine optimally before noon?
3. If you didn’t set an alarm clock, would you sleep past that time?

Having Trouble Sleeping?

There are many reasons why sleep can be elusive and many ways to address them and get a better night’s sleep.

For example, magnesium calms and relaxes the muscles.  Tryptophan is an amino acid that is a precursor to melatonin and can be found in many foods (see food list below). L-Theanine is another amino acide that stimulates the production of GABA, a neurotransmitter that tells your brain to relax.

Balancing cortisol is important as well. Your stress hormone can get out of whack and disrupt sleep patterns.

Address Your Circadian Rhythms

“Hormones are like a symphony and circadian rhythms are the conductor”

Circadian rhythm allows your body to assign functions based on the time of day (and whether or not you are asleep); for example, prioritizing tissue repair while you are sleeping, and prioritizing the search for food, metabolism, and movement while you are awake.

The circadian clock is set by a variety of external factors, but most importantly by daylight and darkness (also called the light-dark cycle).  In order to have healthy circadian rhythms, your circadian clock needs to be set correctly. Not everyone’s circadian rhythm is the same.  For some, the peak of wakefulness arrives early in the day (morning person~ 40% of the population) and for others the peak of wakefulness arrives later in the morning (night owls! 30% of the population). The remaining 30% fall somewhere in between. Are you working with your natural circadian rhythms or against them?

Adenosine, the Sleep Chemical

Most of us have heard of melatonine, but have you heard of Adenosine? Adenosine is an internal chemical of the body that tells our body’s to sleep. Adenosine builds up continuously throughout the day, increasing the desire to sleep. The more Adenosine, the sleeper we feel. Caffeinated substances block this signal by latching onto the receptor sites meant for Adenosine. Caffeine can continue to affect Adenosine for up to 12 hours.

Alcohol can also effect our sleep. Though it may help put you to sleep initially, it blocks REM (the dreaming state) during the night.

Foods for Better Sleep

There are many foods that can help with sleep. They can provide amino acids, hormones and minerals necessary for our bodies to relax and rest.

• Cherries – dried cherries and tart cherry juice contain melatonin, the hormone that makes you sleepy
• Grass-fed beef, wild game, and turkey are a natural source of tryptophan
• Pumpkin seeds, walnuts, and almonds – a rich source of relaxing magnesium
• Hard boiled eggs – a good source of protein and fats to stabilize blood sugar throughout the night
• Seafood- high in long chain omega 3 fatty acids (DHA and EPA) promote brain health. If you get adequate omega 3’s you secrete less cortisol
• Invest in herbal supplements with sleep-promoting ingredients

Also eating a well-balanced dinner at a reasonable hour, (not too close to bedtime), can help our bodies prepare for rest.

Habits to Help you Snooze

What habits can help you snooze more effectively?

• Get exercise- activity during the day (morning over night time) has been shown to support melatonin production.
• Get natural sunlight- sun exposure promotes melatonin production.
• Blood sugar balance- both cortisol and melatonin are sensitive to swings in blood sugar
• Be social during the day, and relax in the evening.
• Use lavender essential oil in a warm bath or diffuser in your bedroom.
• Make it a rule to avoid screens in the hour before bed, this means computers or tablets, televisions, and cell phones, (blue light).
• Wear an eye mask or get black out curtains to create darkness in a room with light pollution
• Sleep in a cool room- temperature affects your circadian clock (65-68 degrees).
• Start a nightly calming routine with relaxing herb teas – chamomile, lavender, and passionflower are often included in night time tea blends. Reducing stress will help regulate cortisol.
• Take an Epsom salt bath before bedtime.
• Embrace the seasons- it is natural for us to sleep a little more in the winter and less in summertime. Eat seasonally, which will help regulate melatonin and cortisol based on their relationship to insulin.

 

If you’d like to contact Madia Jamgochian and learn more about ingredients that heal, visit her page – www.myhealinghabits.com or her Facebook page : My Healing Habits

 

 

In this presentation, Madia Jamgochian introduces us to the anti-inflammatory diet for multiple sclerosis (MS).  The main points she covers are:

1. Digestive support
2. Essential fatty acid balance
3. Antioxidant-rich whole foods

Digestive Support

You may have heard the phrase “Illness begins in the gut.” This is because our digestive system is our first line of defense against pathogens and bacteria from the outside world. Think of your gut lining as a barrier to the outside world.
For this reason, about 80 percent of our immune cells reside in the tissue of our gut lining. Our goal is to protect our linen and to help our digestion work at an optimal rate to assimilate all the nutrients we need to heal. How do we do that?

Improve Your Digestion

• Eat sitting down in a relaxed state.
  Our digestive system functions optimally in a rested, relaxed state—away from stress. Stress negatively affects your digestion and can make keep your intestines from effectively absorbing the nutrients you need.
• Remember to chew.
  Chewing our food effectively is the first step to proper digestion. Saliva is composed of enzymes, which help digest food from the start.
• Save liquids for between meals.
  Large amounts of fluid can dilute the stomach acid needed for digesting food, killing off foreign bacteria and microbes. Limit liquids with meals to about 6 ounces.
• Enjoy bitter leafy greens before (or with) meals.
  The taste of bitter flavors signals our gallbladder, stomach, and pancreas to get ready to digest food. This signal coordinates the entire digestive process, including the action of our intestines. Some examples that you can add to your favorite salad are arugula, endive, collard, kale, or dandelion greens.
• Include cultured and probiotic-rich foods.
  The process of culturing and fermenting makes food more digestible and provides beneficial bacteria that support digestive health.  Some examples are:  sauerkraut, kombucha, kimchi, yogurt, and kefir

Anti Inflammatory Diet for Multiple Sclerosis Starts with Healing Your Leaky Gut

Leaky gut, or intestinal permeability, takes place in the small intestine where we absorb the majority of our nutrients. A leaky gut occurs when the linen of the small intestine becomes damaged creating small microscopic holes that allow the contents of the gut (pathogens, undigested proteins, or bacteria) to leak through to the bloodstream. When pathogens leak through the gut barrier, the resident immune cells see them as foreign invaders and attack. If this happens continuously, it can create body-wide inflammation, sending our immune system into overdrive. The extent of the damage to the gut lining, combined with your specific genetics, and the immune reactions to the leak, all add up to develop an autoimmune condition. An anti-inflammatory diet helps you heal the gut lining and prevent these reactions from continuing (Sarah Ballantyne, Ph.D.: The Paleo Approach, Victory Belt Publishing 2013).

Remove the foods that contribute to a leaky gut.

• Refined foods
• Grains, especially gluten grains and grain oils. Unless properly soaked, they are tough to digest.
• Refined sugar – Sugar is overconsumed and tends to be in most products these days. Stick to natural sources if you need a sweet fix.
• Alcohol – Can unravel tight junctions between enterocytes, increasing intestinal permeability.
• Nightshades – Compounds in nightshades can be potentially irritating to the gut lining and should be avoided, especially in high quantities. Examples include peppers, tomatoes, eggplant, tomatillos and white potatoes (sweet potatoes are OK).
• Conventional dairy – Dairy is a bit of a grey area on an anti-inflammatory diet and should be eliminated in the initial phase.  If you do eat dairy, stick to organic, and pasture-raised or grass-fed.

Essential Fatty Acid Balance

Any anti-inflammatory diet for MS needs to include fatty acids. Fatty acids are essential for the body. Most of us have heard of omega fatty acids, but did you know that they are not all equally important? In fact, we should probably reduce some of them in our diet and increase others significantly. Most of us eat far too many omega 6’s and not enough, omega 3’s. A helpful motto might be: “Nix the 6, and eat the 3” when it comes to choosing your meals.

Omega 6: Overconsumed

Omega 6 contributes to the inflammatory process.  They are necessary but only in moderation.

Examples are safflower, sunflower, corn, soy, and most nuts; grain-fed beef, dairy, and chicken; as well as farmed fish.  Omega 6 is also present in processed and fast foods, which is another reason to avoid these convenient foods if we want to heal.

Omega 3: Underconsumed

Omega 3’s reduce inflammation, speed metabolism, and are necessary for brain development and function.

Examples are flax, hemp, pumpkin seeds, and walnuts; organic free-range/grass-fed beef, chicken, and dairy; as well as cold-water fish and algae.

Antioxidant-Rich Whole Foods

What an antioxidant-rich whole foods diets comes down to is:  “Eat More Vegetables!”

Benefits of Vegetables

Vegetables have three key benefits:

1. They are antioxidants helping to combat cell-damaging free radicals and reduce inflammation
2. They contain phytonutrients, compounds that promote health and decrease disease risk
3. They are rich in natural fiber that helps us maintain digestive regularity and contribute to satiety and blood sugar control.

Have you ever heard of nutrient density? This is a term that measures the nutrient concentration in food, per calorie. Vegetables are at the top of this list. Low in carbohydrates but chock full of vitamins and minerals, veggies come in a rainbow of colors, and each color signifies a unique nutrient composition. An anti-inflammatory diet for MS must include nutrient-rich foods.

Color Compound Benefit

• Red Lycopene is an antioxidant that has shown to cut the risk of prostate cancer. Examples are tomatoes, watermelon, cara cara oranges, grapefruit, red peppers, cabbage, and guavas.
• Orange Beta-carotene is an antioxidant that supports the immune system. Examples are sweet potato, carrots, pumpkins, mangoes, cantaloupe, and apricots.
• Yellow-orange contains vitamin C and flavonoids, and they may inhibit tumor cell growth and detoxify. Examples are lemons, oranges, peaches, citrus, bell pepper, and apricots.
• Yellow-white Anthoxanthin lowers cholesterol and blood pressure. Examples are jicama, onions, garlic, mushrooms, and parsnips.
• Green Folate builds healthy cells. Examples are collards, kale, spinach, lettuce, asparagus, avocado
• Green-white Indoles contain lutein and can eliminate excess estrogen and carcinogens. Examples are brussel sprouts, broccoli, cabbage, and cauliflower.
• White-green Allyl sulfides protect against cancer and support the immune system. Examples are garlic, onion, chive, and asparagus.
• Blue Anthocyanins protects against free radicals. Examples include: Plums, blueberries, purple grapes, eggplant
• Red-purple Resveratrol promotes heart health. Examples include: plums, berries, grapes, cranberries

About Madia

This Anti Inflammatory Diet for Multiple Sclerosis video is part of our Creating Health Series.  Our presenter in this episode is Madia Jamgochian.  Madia graduated from Bauman College of Holistic Nutrition in 2013 after completing a BA in Environmental Studies and Exercise Sports Science at UCSB. Shortly after Bauman, she started her consulting business, “My Healing Habits,” that began from her own experience with healing an autoimmune condition. She enjoys educating on how to heal inflammatory and autoimmune conditions and believes in the food-as-medicine approach.

In this video of the second part of the Wheel of Health in Multiple Sclerosis – the psychosocial factors behind MS – we will address the psychological and social factors that can be affecting the health of your body.

The Wheel of Health for Multiple Sclerosis

The Psychosocial Factors behind MS

“The psychosocial factors are closely associated with MS onset and may play important roles in the development of the disease.” — study on the “Relationship between Psychosocial Factors and Onset of Multiple Sclerosis”

In most books, these psychological factors will all be grouped into one chapter on stress and MS.  In this presentation, Eva M Clark divides that stressors into four clear psychological and social categories and explains how it’s not what has happened in our lives but how we cope with those moments that can create havoc in the body.

Eva M Clark splits stress and MS into two main factors, social and psychological factors.

Social Factors

Our relationships play an important role in our health.  Cancer research shows that adequate community support plays a strong role in healing.  It is not any different with multiple sclerosis.  Do you feel supported?  Are you able to ask for help? Are you too dependent emotionally (codependence) or too independent (isolated) with others?  Unhealthy relationships can let us, and our bodies, feel hopeless, and can be a constant source of stress.

Psychological Factors

Emotionally Expressive

One area most of us struggle with is expressing our feelings.  Is it ok to express them or have you grown up learning to repress them for fear of making someone else uncomfortable?  Repressing anger, pretending that you are not grieving, living with a continuous sense of guilt or shame affects your mental and physical health. The expression “It’s been eating me up inside.” describes the reaction of the immune system to these emotions quite accurately.

Self-Respect

How we relate to others is an important factor but so is how we relate to ourselves.  Most of us have been phrased as children when we are nice to others but are we nice to ourselves?  Allowing yourself to have a harsh inner critic, self-loathing, putting yourself down anytime you make a mistake (not something you would do to another) and putting your job’s needs (workaholic) or a family member’s needs above your own is a sign that there is work to be done to gain self-respect, self-love, and greater self-care.  By always beating yourself up, you are telling your immune system to protect everyone else but yourself.

Be Your Authentic Self

“We have two basic needs – to have healthy attachments and to be our authentic selves.” — Dr. Gabor Mate “When the Body Says No”

Learning to care for yourself above all else is a hard one to master and not something taught in childhood, yet it’s necessary.  Without a greater focus on yourself and your needs, you won’t discover what your unique gifts, dreams, and desires are.  Life is not about getting all A+’s, reaching the next promotion, and always competing with others, but about becoming your most authentic self.  And your body knows that.

Your Journey Back to Health

If you ready to take the journey, learn about all the aspects to consider to turn your health around through the Creating Health series.  If you would like to explore and resolver the psychosocial factors behind your MS, consider one-on-one sessions with Eva M Clark and her Healing Multiple Sclerosis Program. If you have any questions or want to find out if this program is a good fit for you call Eva at (+1) 415 699-2574 or email to set up a consultation.