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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 3 of 3. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by bookgurl99 on July 22, 2003, at 7:41:39
Mercedes --
Hey! I'm glad you're on the road to recovery.
It's funny; I also felt this new sense of urgency upon learning my diagnosis a week ago. This urgency is good; it gets you into action. And, btw, I had some 'panic attacks' that were really these before getting diagnosed, too. :D
>Alka Seltzer, what a concept. I'm buying some tomorrow just to have around.
Yeah; how do you think this works? Maybe sodium bicarbonate and citric acid help the veins widen (more water will be drawn into the vein to absorb the salts), and the aspirin just helps everything relax?
It seems that most of the treatments are aimed at physiological 'relaxing.' Even the anti-epileptics as a preventative might work in part because of their 'sedative' nature.
I'm hoping that working towards being less uptight it in my own life will help.
>Glad to hear you GP said that the damage isn't permanent.
He did say that it _could_ be permanent, but that permanence would be rare.
I've thought that you could liken it to drinking. You might lose some brain cells when you drink to the point of drunkenness, but an MRI wouldn't show anything. If you can avoid having attacks for long spells of time, then you end up with the brain of an occasional drunk. :D Repair should theoretically be very easy, once you stop the attacks.
>My GP won't even give me the time of day or let me discuss it with her.That's kind of scary. But maybe she is genuinely concerned about mis-treating you. At least she acknowledges the condition.
I didn't realize what a find my dr. is. I picked him out a few months ago because he's supposed to be a good thyroid dr. Yesterday, I discussed using oxygen with him, and he told me he uses oxygen on his _own_ migraines, but that he doesn't want me to use it because it is a vasoconstrictor. So my dr. gets his own (classic) migraines and understands the disorder! So if you're near Wisconsin, I have a good GP for you.
>>I was getting concerned about the permanent damage.One thing I can say is that it seems to age your brain faster this way. That's how I feel. I'm trying to follow the 'stay mentally active,' 'stay physically active,' 'do stress reduction' advice that's out there on keeping your brain working well.
Good luck; let me know what's happening.
Posted by mercedes on July 23, 2003, at 2:42:37
In reply to BAM treatment protocol Mercedes, posted by bookgurl99 on July 22, 2003, at 7:41:39
I didn't know how to change threads but I'm here now. I guess my worst concern is that my brain doesn't seem to be as smart as it used to be. I have a hard time adding or subractine simple numbers in my head. I have a hard time comprehending instruction. I can't read a book cause my concentration level is almost -0-. : (.
It seems that throughout the last 7 years and having had 100's if not thousands of these attacks, I may have some permanent affects. I'm an unemployed finance person right now. I've had various positions ie., financial analyst, accountant, auditor, and right now I feel so stupid. This past Feb, I tried for a data entry position with the IRS and didn't pass the test. Frigen data entry. My keystrokes were fine but I couldn't comprehend the instructions.
I just told myself that I'm not well yet. And I'm not. If I'd been working or trying to hang in there, I'd never have seen this site and the information you gave me on BAM. I've seen about 4 neurologist throughout my life and none ever understood what I was trying to tell them about the dble vision, slurred speach, memeory loss, sleeping it off and be alright for awile until the next B A M !
I'm in CA, and hopefully will be seeing a competant neuro.
Thanks, mercedes
Posted by bookgurl99 on July 23, 2003, at 7:50:16
In reply to Re: BAM treatment protocol Mercedes » bookgurl99, posted by mercedes on July 23, 2003, at 2:42:37
Mercedes --
I understand how you feel about not being as smart; it's hard when you consider yourself to be intelligent in the first place. Luckily, we probably both started out with more than the average person so -- even though it's a loss -- we could do with less. Hee hee.
But I think that you will be surprised as to how well you will feel when the attacks stop. I didn't think I would ever feel normal again, but after 9 months without a serious attack I felt awesome -- as good as my old self. My attention span seems low, but my friends tell me that it always was.
Your brain is growing all the time! All it needs is enough nutrients (i.e., air), enough time, and it will kick off the rust.
At Daniel Amen's the brain place online (www.brainplace.com), there are brain images of people who've used alcohol and drugs long-term. I would consider the alcohol use to be similar to this -- the lack of oxygen is similar. You can see that once people 'quit' drugs for a year, their brain scan brightens up with activity! Your brain will do the same thing!
One last thing -- I went to the acupuncturist yesterday and talked about BAM. She was able to pick what's wrong out of a Chinese Medicine book. I was treated accordingly, and slept suprisingly well last night, and awoke with my left side more in balance and stronger than it has been for a week or two. It's like the batteries are back. So you might want to try acupuncture.
The acupuncturist said that in this disorder, activating energy that should be in your digestive system travels up to your head/neck and causes trouble! Anxiety is also a manifestation of it.
She said that stress relief and eating easily digested foods (i.e., root vegetables, cooked grains, lightly steamed greens), will be very important. Activating your digestive system in a positive way is good.
So, just thought I'd toss that out. I completely understand how you feel, I am there and have been there. But you are getting through this! I know that in 6 months you will be able to compare back to this time and know that you are doing so much better!
*hugs*
books
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