December 5, 2009 Newsletter
SEASON OF GOOD CHEER!
Our annual holiday breakfast was a warm reminder of the very special friends we have at HOPE 4 MS. This social affair began with everyone at the tables just cheerfully chattering away until the waitress somehow was able to get through to each of us and get our orders. The food was excellent and the plates were full of great omelets, waffles, pancakes and more. It was quite an interesting phenomenon to watch everyone devour the food without even a break in conversation!
Beth & Patricia made an announcement about an exciting new MS discovery by Dr. Paolo Zamboni in Italy. His wife had MS and he was determined to get to the bottom of it. What he found was something completely astounding. Called CCSVI for short
CCSVI is an acronym which stands for Chronic Cerebro-Spinal Venous Insufficiency. In short, the brain and the spinal cord have great difficulties getting rid of and draining the non-oxygenated blood and toxins. This is due to narrowing in the cerebral veins which are located very far from the brain, i.e. near the heart which is their natural destination. Interestingly, in all cases studied, 90% of MS patients had this and none of the others including those with other autoimmune diseases. Read about this exciting discovery by using CCSVI in your search engine, “This is MS” website or the CCSVI Facebook page. We have learned to be cautiously optimistic about so many things, however this one is cause for true hope. When you get into this information you will likely find a renewed spark. http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20091120/W5_liberation_091121/20091121?s_name=W5
Ann Johnson from the MS Society came up from Sacramento to join us. Ann is a very special person who works to bring us good speakers, functions and help by getting to know us and our needs. We were extremely honored that she came to our party.
We sat in a big circle for the white elephant gift exchange and had lots of fun opening & stealing presents. Again the fun and camaraderie continued until the waitress was actually graciously getting us to move while she set up for another banquet. We remained rooted in conversation and she got it done. In the parking lot we said farewells and extended wishes for a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.
Our next meeting will be January 9, 2010 and we will have a presentation about Angel Flights a fantastic resource for transportation to medical appointments out of the area. Mark your calendars for this one.
Until then Happy Holidays!