Stress Control for the Holiday Season

I was apprehensive when I first began blogging about my personal life living with ms, then a few of my politic views, and social issues for the world to see. I never expected anyone to really read my blog. Instead of going to a MS support group, blogging became my therapy. To my surprise thousands of people read my blog a month and my blog went from being worth zero dollars, then to $4,205.00 in 2007, and now today worth $10,726.26.

I could not believe it when a major newspaper offered me a freelance writer job because of my blogging. To get paid monthly to write articles for the last two years have lifted my spirits, because I was devastated when my multiple sclerosis symptoms caused me to stop working in a profession I loved. (I know some of you are probably wondering how did that happen with the writing errors I makes on some of my posts. All I can say is do not let my writing fool you on my blog...lol). The second great thing to happen from blogging is that I have gotten to know some wonderful people via cyberspace.

Most importantly it has been amazing from the emails and comments that my honesty about living with ms has helped them. In addition having my blog featured on two well respected medical websites. Finally, to have a freelance writer wanting to guest blog on my blog with helpful articles is the icing on the cake. I love the article she wrote and I am looking forward to her doing more.

I hope you all enjoy the following article "Stress Control for the Holiday Season" by Mary Ward as much as I did...



The holidays are here again, and for many people that means a great deal of joy. For many people, the holidays also signify a whole lot of stress and anxiety as well. As the family comes together and there’s so much to do, it’s easy to see how anybody can quickly feel the stress. Don’t be a victim of the holiday stress! There are some simple and effective ways to control it so that it doesn’t overtake you. If you think through things in advance and work hard to remember what the season is all about, then you can learn to cope with anything that comes your way.

Have a Solid Plan

The problem for most people is that they don’t have a plan. Between the cooking, the shopping, the decorating, the baking, and writing out Christmas cards it can all get a bit overwhelming. Fortunately if you approach it with a clear head and have a plan, you are sure to be far more successful. Take the time before the craziness hits to plan out everything that you have to accomplish, and be sure to prioritize. Make a master “to do list” that can serve as your work in progress. List out the people that you need to buy presents for, the food that you have to shop for, and anything that you need to accomplish along with any deadlines associated with each activity.

Remember What It’s All About

The holidays can quickly become stressful if you don’t stop to remember what they are all about. If you have kids in your life, look at the joy on their face that the holidays bring. Think back to any special memories, or find a way of reconnecting to good times shared in the past. This is meant to be a joyful time and if you can actually take the time to remember that, then it will make it much more enjoyable along the way. Sometimes taking the time to enjoy the journey as much as the destination can bring much joy in and of itself.

Stay Organized

Though it sounds obvious, many people lose their way at some point. You may have the best of intentions and start out with a good solid plan, but somewhere along the way it gets lost. Either you give into the stress or you end up coming across additional tasks or unforeseen circumstances. Do your best to update your list, stay organized by checking off what you’ve already done and what you still have to do. Wrap presents as you get them for example. When you’re heading to the grocery store, make a master list of everything you’ll need for cooking and baking. If you have the opportunity, you can even try to buy some items ahead to save you the last minute trips. Staying organized along the way, no matter what is thrown at you, can save you a lot of stress during the holiday season.

Mary Ellen Ward blogs about how to choose among LPN to RN degrees.

From ME (Blinders Off) to YOU

In The Arms Of ANGELS

When I first heard and saw the picture about 5-year-old Shaiya Davis, I said a prayer for her safe return. Seeing her beautiful face took my mind back to all the wonderful times I had with my daughters at that age and I thought about how I would KILL or DIE for them.

I feel sadness and I say a prayer for every young child that has been reported missing and died at the hands of another. Shaiya Davis, touched me like no other story I have ever heard. I cried as if she was one of my daughters, I prayed for her like I never prayed before. Shaiya Davis is safe now, she is in the arms of Angels and I thank God for bringing her home to a place no one can ever hurt her again.

I cannot imagine not loving my daughters. I cannot imagine not protecting my daughters. I damn sure cannot imagine passing my daughter to sexual deviants. Most of all I cannot imagine my daughters leaving this world before me.




The death penalty is too good for this MONSTER Antoinette Nicole Davis. She deserves no protection from prison justice by putting her in isolation; put her in with the general prison population to receive prison justice. Then put her back in her cell nightly so her demons can destroy her because she allowed her demons to destroy Shaiya Davis.

The Fight Is On Today!

My body is tired, but my mind is not. Nerves on my right side is burning and tingling, but my left side is not. It feels weird when one side of your body feels very different from the other the last time I felt split in half it was the left side of my body.

My body is tired and my mind is not because INSOMNIA decided to visit me. If INSOMNIA thinks it is going to prevent me from doing what I have to do later today it have another thing coming.

My day is going to be interesting because MS causes life to be out of the ordinary. We have to adjust to the burdens of the symptoms of MS and I have plans that I must and want to keep today.

However, at my last neurologist appoint a month ago. I did mention to the doctor how painful my fingers were in my right hand. She told me what I already knew, which was it was the nerves in my fingers. I am an expert on distinguishing PAIN, but I would not wish NERVE PAIN on my worst enemy. It is one thing to have severe pain, but serve pain that also burns is HELL. Let me get back to my neurologist, insomnia is causing my mind to wander.

It is time to give the doctor a call because the nerve pain in my right hand fingers is now afflicted my entire right side and feeling slight dizzy on and off. In the early years of living with MS, I would have stress myself out wondering what is going on, but now I know better. Not that I am playing doctor, but I am 99.9% my doctor is going to order up Solu-Medrol…the remedy when MS exacerbate.

Nonetheless, that call can what until Monday; there is no need for me to ruin the day I have plan. I am tired and my right side feels like Hell, but I have a plan the fight is on.

I PLAN TO WIN TODAY!

Fight The Symptoms MS Throw At You

I AM BLESSED
click the title and hear why I am BLESSED

Thanks for the well wishes by email. For those who have been reading my blog for a while you know I do not get religious on you because I do not believe in pushing my faith on others. We each have to answer for our self when that time comes.

However, I am shouting it today I Thank GOD for BLESSING me. It is no secret for us who live with multiple sclerosis that it is a terrible illness, but I am thankful for what living with multiple sclerosis has brought to my life. Hmmm, I bet some of you are asking yourself, “WHY”...Let me tell you why.


There was a time when the pains I live with daily intensified to the point were I was ready to take my life. During the last several weeks, I have been living with so much pain that would bring an elephant to its knees. The pain was in my entire body, but it magnified in certain areas. This may sound crazy, but I felt as if I was at war with good and evil. Ummm, let me explain myself before you all think I am nuts.

Some of you know I have not let my disability keep me from fighting injustices and being involved to empower our youth. Thankfully, I had not had to fight any injustices lately, since I have been successful in unseating our last Mayor to bring about change in my community. I have been busy with a non-profit in bringing a program for the underserved (I will talk more about that on another post) and working with the Kiwanis (which I am a member). Out of nowhere the pain, I was use to on a daily basis start intensifying; it was becoming difficult to move. I would wake up stiffer than the Tin Man from Wizard of Oz. MS is a mean SOB; it is as if when you try to continue to have a life, it throws one or more of the many symptoms your way. It does that because it wants you to lie in bed all day and feel sorry for yourself. I REFUSED to do that once I went through my grieving period after my initial diagnosis. I witness too many MSers give up on life and they are now in a wheel chair or in a nursing home.

The fight was on these pass several weeks, I oiled myself up by thinking positive when I woke up. I made myself get out of bed; I made myself make it to meeting for the causes I was working on this summer. The good out of this was the people I was working with never knew the difference. I did not have to go around them when I was too stiff to move, I made up for that by doing what I could from home. It was the fight of pushing on is why I am back to blogging. The evil of the pass several weeks was how my MS PAIN tried to take me down. I am going to try to draw a mental picture. Pain exploded through out my body like a nuclear bomb and while one nuclear bomb went off in my body another localized in three of my right fingers making that area worse. I am right handed and it was so bad, if I was not in my right mind I probably would have cut my fingers off, because I kept moving PAIN deciding to explode another nuclear bomb in my head. I was tempted to put on a morphine patch (yes, although I kicked the morphine, I did not throw out my last refill), because I am bless, I did not put on a patch. To get some relief, I down a couple of Lortab 10mg a day, which is not bad because you know we can take up to six a day. I did not want to go back to dependency of Morphine, although by using morphine I do not feel PAIN. I could not go back to it because I know it was slowing killing me (causing problems with my heart).

I vowed the last time PAIN drove me to the point of taking my life, I would never allow PAIN to do that to me again. I am blessed because I did not once THINK about going there. I am blessed because I did not give into pain and start taking morphine again, finally I am blessed because the program for underserved children started September 12 and I was able to do my volunteer duty with the Kiwanis where hundreds of young children have ID’s with COMEC if (God forbid) they become missing.


It is not over until God says it is over keep fighting and praying while living with Multiple Sclerosis or any other chronic illness.

Notice of Address Change

click on picture to read

I use to dread the summer because of heat. Heat is like kryptonite for us MS'ers. I am now beginning to dread Summer time because this is the second year in a row death has taken people who have a special place in my heart.

I have been trying to keep my spirits up since the lost of Cookie. Then I heard about my Uncle Julius being sick with cancer. No sooner had I heard about him being ill, the angel of death called him home. I felt bad that the pain I have been experiencing kept me from making it to his funeral and I could not be there for my father who had lost his oldest brother.

I know my father understood why I could not be there and I know Uncle Julius is in a better place. It was a blessing he did not have to suffer long when he was told he had cancer. I have not been blogging lately because I have a heavy heart and my body is in pain. It hurts to type when I also have pain in my fingers. I been wanting to put a tribute to my Uncle on my blog and what better time to fight through my pain and put the above Notice of Address Change, I received from his son today. The notice definitely lifted some of the heaviness I feel in my heart.

Rest in Peace....Uncle Julius

Bee Venom Love

I am sure every mother feels their daughters are the best. I know I do, I thank GOD for my jewels. I am thankful that I lived to see myself in my girls; there was a time I did not think I would be around to see them grow up to be the beautiful women they are today. Having them in my life has made it easier to live with this ugly disease called multiple sclerosis.

Everyday is a struggle getting up; everyday is different from the next. During the past two weeks, it took every ounce of energy I had to go on with my day against the pounding punches of PAIN. Many days I wanted to relieve myself from this excruciating pain by putting on a morphine patch.

I wanted it so bad, but I refused to give in because I NEVER want to experience this again. I cannot hide anything from my daughters; they seem to know when I am having a hard time with multiple sclerosis. I opened my email one day and received the following from one of my daughters:

Mom I saw that honeybee venom is a therapy that treats MS pain. I saw this on "Radical Hollywood Remedies" last night and did some research and found this link about it. On the special, it says the honeybee therapy cost $75 a session. I suggest you try this and I will pay for your first session. I suggest this because I truly believe you should try natural remedies to lure yourself off the drugs. It doesn't hurt to try natural procedures since God put them on earth for us to use to heal our bodies to live a longer healthier life. Everyone please let me know all your thoughts on this.

http://health.discovery.com/centers/althealth/beetherapy/bkgsclerosis.html

Then there was this reply email from another daughter:

I think it's an absolutely wonderful idea! I'll try it with you!


I appreciate my daughters looking out for me and wanting to pay for me to have some bee venom because of their love for me, I do not know if I can do this. I am paranoid about trying something new. I know I do not want to go back to wearing morphine patches again and my doctors do not want to prescribe Lortab like they use to...thanks to all the accidental overdosing in the entertainment industry.

I survived this many years living with pain, with God’s help, I will make it some more years. However, I am open to natural pain resources; I am not saying I will never try bee venom as a natural pain remedy. I am old school and I have to get over my paranoia trying new drugs or natural remedies…blame it on my Daddy I get it from him :-)

THE REAL CULPRITS OF EVIL

MONEY... GREED... AND... HATE

ARE THE CULPRITS DESTROYING AMERICA

Rollercoaster Day

I should be use to it, but how can you get use to not knowing what MS symptom you will experience from minute to minute, day to day. Today is one of those days, I had hope the MS roller coaster ride I felt my body taking would not last the entire day. So much for hoping, it has been getting worse as I type my woes. A new day is approaching maybe it will be better than today.

I am home alone and I have been tempted to call one of my daughters, instead I do what I always do to take my mind off how I feel. I go and visit the many blogs I like to read. I post comments regularly on some of my fellow MS’ers blogs. You can count on one had how many times I ranted in the four years I have been a blogger.

Today I did something out of character. I know I can rant on my fellow MS’ers blog, but today I ranted about trolls taking over one of my favorite blogs that is not someone who lives with MS. What the blogosphere do not know about us MS blogger we blog about current issues or whatever the heck is on our minds. Unfortunately, my rant was not on that blog it was on another blog I like that is not troll infested.
What I did not expect was someone taking it personally.

As I thought about, I think some people look for any reason to get pissed off. I do not engage in cyberspace arguing, what is the point of that. We all have a right to our opinions, I read many opinions I do not agree with, but I am not going to beat you over the head to drive my point of view home. There is a difference in toll engagement and engagement for understanding.




Trolls take over blogs when they should get there on damn blog since they have so much to say and provoke a response to practically every damn comment. Trolls intent is to engage that is why I do not freaking engage trolls. I was hoping the trolls that invaded my favorite blog find another home. Hell, they are starting to multiply. The main troll now has a following that is taking over the comment section from the regular people who comments that I enjoy reading.

I do know this I WILL NOT allow the trolls that invaded my favorite blog to run me off from reading it. Now that the troll followers are commenting with their leader and amongst themselves, should not be long before they will highjack another blog or go back to their leader blog.

Finally At PEACE

Michael Jackson Memorial Service was BEAUTIFUL. I remember that day in 1969 when the world saw Michael Jackson and his brothers on the Ed Sullivan Show. I grew up to the music of a genius and in my eyes as a Black American, HE DID bust down doors that were closed to us.

I enjoyed the entire Memorial, but there were three highlights for me that reflected Michael Jackson and how he should be remember. Maya Angelou poem written for Michael that Queen Latifah read, eulogy by Rev. Al Sharpton, and the eulogy by Congresswoman Shelia Jackson Lee

I know this is too much to ask for, but I hope the mainstream media put a STOP to dragging his name in negative talk. If they must keep talking, talk about his talent, and humanitarian deeds. We all live in glass houses, unfortunately, a super star as Michael Jackson always had someone throwing rocks to shatter his glass house for financial gain.

He never had a normal life. He could not enjoy a stroll in the park, shop with his family in a mall, take in a movie, and go to a grocery store…you get the point, without being stalked or harassed. He was a prisoner who had to create his own NEVERLAND to have some sort of normalcy in life.

Michael Jackson completed his purpose God gifted him to do and now he is at home…

FINALLY AT PEACE

Funding For Community Health Care Centers

On June 29, 2009 First Lady Michelle Obama announced the release of $851 million in grants to address immediate and pressing health center facility and equipment needs and increase access to health care for millions of Americans

"Community Health Centers provide care to the Americans who need it most and their work has never been more important," said Obama. "These grants will help Unity’s Upper Cardozo and thousands of centers across the country expand and serve more Americans who simply can’t afford insurance coverage anymore. ."

To find a Community Health Center in your state click here