Young and Living with Myasthenia Gravis

 I chose to complete our final neuro note on Myasthenia Gravis (MG). I decided to utilize the Youtube video that was shown in class title, "Sheryl and Myasthenia Gravis: How I Cope!". This young girl is only 17 and was 16 when she was diagnosed with MG. Its honestly so sad how her life went from being this happy teenage girl who loved the game of softball, to being bedridden and battling this disease every day. Sheryl is truly a superhero and you can tell that she will not let MG defeat her. I had never heard of Myasthenia Gravis. I find that I have a better time understanding the disease when I am able to watch personal videos and tie that person to the condition. 

Myasthenia Gravis is a chronic autoimmune disease that affects your voluntary muscles and is due to the inadequate uptake of acetylcholine. Some initial symptoms you see with MG are ptosis, weak face and throat muscles, and then progressing downward. The first sign Sheryl had were her droopy eyes and she had other vision problems leading her to go to the eye doctor to get it checked out. The doctor then performed the Ice Test, an informal screening for Myasthenia Gravis. She also began to have difficulty swallowing. She describes MG as not being able to charge your own battery like individuals who do not have this disease. She does a really great job at breaking down the symptoms and the various treatments one can receive to aid in the relief of the symptoms. She receives plasmapheresis where you have a catheter inserted, with hers being in her neck, and abnormal antibodies are removed from the blood and put back into the body.You can tell that she has done a lot to understand her diagnosis and I think it helps her in coping with it. She figures out ways to continuously engage in activities she once did with a few modifications. 

I truly appreciate Sheryl for being so brave and sharing her story with the world. These are the things that we need to spread awareness about conditions people don't hear much about such as Myasthenia Gravis. It makes me value the life I have, because your life can quickly change in the blink of an eye. Take heed to symptoms and signs you deem not normal that way you can catch whatever it may be early on. Sheryl mentions how she uses humor with her disease, and just makes the best out of her days. A little laughter can take you a long way.    

Bryan Carter. (2014, October 23). Sheryl and Myasthenia Gravis: How I Cope! YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UZU2nTf6_cc

Media Project- The Zip Chain Bracelet

I truly enjoyed doing this media project. Initially, I had no clue of what I would do with a zip tie. The most meaningful part out of this entire thing for me is when my clinical reasoning kicked in. I have struggled with thinking like an OT, so when the idea came into my mind I was like, "YESSSSS!" One thing that I learned from this assignment is that it is okay to read between the lines. I came to the decision to use the zip tie and beads one because Ms. Barbara enjoys arts and crafts, but it was also mentioned that she needs minimal assistance for feeding which led me to believe that her fine motor skills were decent. This would help to work on it that way she can continue to remain at that level and not lose function. I believe that this assignment will help me in the future by always knowing that you can create a therapeutic activity pretty much out of anything. It has reminded me to be resourceful and useful. It has made me tap into a creative side that I didn't think I had. I am so ready to see what other things I create and how I continue to develop my OT perspective of things. Thank you to Dr. Lancaster for providing us with the opportunity to put the books down and have a little fun while also learning through this process.

I had a hard time trying to add the video directly to the blog. I have attached a link to the video uploaded on Youtube.

https://youtu.be/wOJ9X3q4m24

Living with Multiple Sclerosis

Today, I will be discussing Multiple Sclerosis (MS). More importantly, I will be sharing what I learned from a teenage girl named, Breea, and her journey of recovery with MS. I watched her short documentary on Youtube titled, "Multiple Sclerosis-Breea's Story.wmv". I chose this because, it was recommended as great documentary to watch, but also because I have never met or seen anything about a teenager battling with MS. I wanted to see how her life changed and how she dealt with that to overcome obstacles. We are also discuss Multiple Sclerosis in my Neuro Aspects course this week, so I wanted to tie what I learned in class with this documentary. 

The video begins with showing a video of her cheering before her diagnosis. It then proceeds to people of her life saying who Breea is to them. Her diagnosis happened after her suddenly falling and becoming paralyzed on her left side, leaving her with Severe Onset of Multiple Sclerosis. She then became blind her left eye and could not talk or swallow. Her family was there for her every step of the way. They continuously pushed her to keep going and trying things she lost the ability to do. Breea began to gain enough strength to begin learning how to walk again. She knew that she needed to keep a positive mindset, in order to keep her condition from defeating her. After a few months, she began to regain some control of her left extremities, by doing various fine motor activities with her left hand. What really amazed me is watching her mom assist her in a back handspring 8 months after her injury, and seeing her walk away when they finished with barely any difficulties. This story truly is inspiring and I am happy that it was shared with the world.

Some of the symptoms that I saw with Breaa from what was discussed in class were intention tremor when she would reach for the spoon or placing the clothes pins on the strings, dysmetria when we she was tossing the bags, weakness, speech problems, and balance problems. But she honestly made a comeback from all of these things by the end of the video. I believe that Breea had relapsing-remitting MS due to the fact that her symptoms got worse in the first few days, and after that she slowly began to improve in her function. She also utilized a mobile arm support for her left arm when seated in her wheelchair. Overall, Breea made an amazing recovery with her intrinsic motivation, support from her family and friends, and her amazing therapy staff. I look up to people like her that show me never give up regardless of the circumstances. #GoBreea !!

breeareneebeatsms. (2012, September 8). Multiple Sclerosis-Breea’s Story.wmv. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hfD9s1_TN0s

Life as a Quadraplegic

I chose to do this Neuro Note on Sophia Malthus. I chose to focus on this after my classmate completed her case study and shared this story with me. I was honestly moved by it and wanted to learn more I watched her short documentary on Youtube titled, "Life as a Quadriplegic: Sophia Malthus". Sophia is a young woman who acquired a spinal cord injury, resulting in her becoming a quadriplegic. She dreamed of becoming a jockey, and absolutely loved her horse. Sadly, one day as she was riding, her horse became spooked causing her to fall of and break her neck. Her spinal cord injury drastically changed her life within a blink of an eye. She went from a happy and outgoing girl, to being wheelchair bound. She has a a C4/C5 injury. She no longer has function from her collar bone down. She deals with high tone in her legs, resulting in decreased ability for functional mobility. She requires assistance for her personal and daily care. 

Relating her injury to what I have learned in my Neuro course, she is capable of operating a manual wheelchair, has no use of a ventilator, and she is able to feed herself. Spinal cord injuries look different for every single person, and the impact it leaves on you is unpredictable. You can have a complete or incomplete injury to a traumatic or non-traumatic injury. But, I really love how she continues to defy the odds that people have once thought she was never able to overcome. She figures out ways to manipulate objects and tasks to be independent. Sophia has so much motivation to become the best version of herself, and she is always wanting to do more. She wants to get as much therapy as she can. I watched another video that showed her auditioning for model calls. She wanted to show other girls battling with the same thing that they can do whatever it is that they want to do. It makes me feel as though I should not take things for granted. It is so crazy how fast your life can change. One of her goals is to be able to drive again that way she can be able to go see her friends again. I hope that one day I am able to create adaptive devices appropriate for individuals who want to be independent for individuals like Sophia. I hate that she was not able to live out her dream of becoming a jockey, but she is inspiring so many people with her journey each and every day. I hope that this makes others want to go out and learn how spinal cord injuries affects people's lives. Always remember, one person's recovery and progress from a spinal cord injury will not look like the next.

Attitude. (2018, May 28). Life as a Quadriplegic: Sophia Malthus. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=voPlqTOdVU8

The Beauty in Music Therapy

On this ride, I will be talking to you about an amazing documentary titled, "Alive Inside". I watched the documentary on a website called IMDb. I was brought to tears several times while watching it.  It brings you into the life of individuals battling Alzheimer's disease/dementia, along with several other conditions, and how music therapy enlightens their world. It takes them back to memories that they have not been able to recall in years. An amazing social worker, Dan, sees the true beauty of music and how it can benefit individuals battling with neurological conditions. I believe that it is sad music therapy is not considered an intervention or reimbursed, even with evidence and research backing it up. Hopefully soon though, this will be changed with a lot more people like Dan in the world.

The first person they showed was a man named Henry. One of the things he said after he listened to his music was, "I didn't know I could talk so much." This goes to show how music brings people so in tune with themselves, and it helps recall memories and times that those battling dementia never thought they could get back. You would see the people featured go from lifeless, non-verbal to joyful, dancing, and actively engaging in conversation with other once they got their iPods and headphones on. It made me so happy to see them feel normal again. I would really get excited when I knew the songs they were playing, and I would sing along with the documentary. 

Music is an outside stimulation that triggers multiple parts of the brain, and individuals of all ages can benefit from the use of music therapy. Coordination is done so by the cerebellum, and it is where we are able to process music and put it with our body movements. Luckily, the cerebellum is one of the last places that dementia affects. Therefore, music helps retrieve those encoded memories. You can remember what was happening in your life when a certain song came out. It can help you remember emotions and people that made you feel connected to that song. It was mentioned how music has the ability to activate more parts of the brain than any other stimulus. It proves that neuroplasticity is very much so real, allowing people to make new connections to music and learning songs again. You witnessed people go from being stiff in the bed and not opening their eyes, to seeing them have movement in their entire body. How can one not see music therapy is amazing and everyone should have access to it?

I have gained so much respect for individuals that go out of their way to give geriatrics a somewhat normal life. I want to go into nursing homes and play music for the residents. I want to be the reason someone remembers some of life's most precious moments. I am going to do my best to spread the word about this amazing documentary. It is something I believe everyone should watch, even it is just the first 15 minutes. It is so worth it. I now have one more intervention, that I will keep with me forever, under my belt that I can use with my future clients. After all, every person deserves to feel like they are cared and loved for. Being in a nursing home should not feel like your world has ended. We need to make a change in making those individuals feel human again. Huge thank you to Dr. Lancaster for sharing this amazing resource.

P.S. This documentary was once on Netflix, but it must have been removed. I accessed it on IMDb by logging in with my Google account. It was free and the quality is great. 10/10 recommendation to watch it.

Alive Inside: A Story of Music and Memory. (2014, October 18). https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2593392/.

Protecting Our Brain

Hello! Welcome back on the ride with me. Today, I will be discussing what I gained from a TED Talk by a neuropsychologist, Kim Gorgens. The title of the TED Talk is, "Protecting the Brain Against Concussion." I chose this topic due to fact that we have been discussing acquired brain injuries in class, and how prevention can go a long way. I want to work with pediatrics, and this is mainly the area she discusses. She begins by telling the audience on how she has a son, and her main job is to keep him protected being that he is an only child and needs to be able to take care of her in the future. One statistic that stood out to me is how over 4 million people incur a concussion every year. She then goes on to compare the various amounts of force that are acquired with a car crash, a blow to the face by a professional boxer, and a high schooler being hit head on causing his helmet to come off. The amount of force increased with each, with the football tackle being at 103 Gs. That is a lot of force being taken to the head, and I cannot imagine how terrible that would feel and the lifelong effects it may have. She mentioned how, "High school athletes are 3x more likely to suffer from a catastrophic injury" (Gorgens, 2010). It has me wondering if I ever want my kids to be involved in sports. It is honestly a scary thing to think about.

She leaves the crowd with 3 things that they can do to guarantee safety for kids. The first thing she said to do is study up. Learn about the things that are happening around, that way you can be educated on those situations. The next thing she said to do is to speak up. Speak up to your child's coaches in asking what equipment is required, how up-to-date is it, when are they required to wear it, etc. She also mentioned how you should speak with your legislators on the requirement of safety gear, especially if it is something you care about. Use your voice for helping save the next child. The last thing she said to do is gear up. Put a helmet on. It may seem so simple, but it could save you from losing a lifetime of knowledge that may come with a brain injury. A helmet can help reduce the impact of a fall by up to half. By me knowing how quickly you life could change by not taking the necessary precautions, I am 100% for wearing a helmet. I have been using roller skates lately, and soon want to transition to skating outside. Before I do that, I will make sure that I have the appropriate helmet to ensure that I will be safe in doing so. Her talk was so very simple and to the point, but it was also very informative and I believe that others should take 10 minutes out of their day to listen to it. A concussion could happen at any time and any place. The only things we as humans can do is to simply prepare as best as possible, while also taking the necessary precautions to do so. #WearAHelmet :)

Gorgens, K. (2010). Protecting the brain against concussion. TED Talks. https://www.ted.com/talks/kim_gorgens_protecting_the_brain_against_concussion

A Mini Dive into Tourette Syndrome

I chose to watch a TED Talk about the neurological condition, Tourette Syndrome, titled "Tourette Does the Talking" by Thomas White. I have always heard of Tourette, but never saw a video or even met anyone with it. I have heard people reference to it in a joking matter. It was not until I was on TikTok, a few days ago, and saw a girl posting about her tics. I was very much so intrigued, and with this assignment coming up, I figured why not do it on Tourette to gain more insight into what it really is. 

The TED Talk features a college student who is simply bringing us into a day of his life with what he called an "unrelenting neurological assault"(TEDx Talks, 2014). That itself makes me feel as though the condition is truly a battle and it is hard. He mentioned how it was a fight that he may lose during his presentation, due to his tics being uncontrollable. He talked about how his coordination and control are impacted due to the chemical imbalance Tourette cause, which in turn puts a hinder on his day-to-day life. He cannot take a shower without throwing shampoo and body wash bottle, with some even breaking. He suffers from Coprolalia, the involuntary use of cursing, which not many suffer from with Tourette Syndrome. Interesting enough, I have never heard of that term and did a Google search to read more about it. Applying what I have learned from Neurobiology and Neuro Aspects, I believe that the frontal lobe is impaired by this condition. It is responsible for your filter on the things you say and do. It is also responsible for your impulse control, and he mentioned how sometimes he will pretend to vomit on kids or hit older women on their behind. I think that it is sad because a lot of people, like myself, do not know much about Tourette and may find it as an insult, when in reality a person really cannot control themselves. It is going to take for everyone to want to know more to be able to be kind and understanding of the next person. 

I am so happy that I chose this topic. Thomas did a great job at giving people a brief look into his life. He turned his story around and showing that Tourette does not have him, but rather he has Tourette. He looked it as a gift of life and that it is his responsibility to share it. It is hard to not look at your life as you have a problem, and I truly commend him for standing up and having a different view. He ended his talk with a quote that I believe will stick me forever. He said, "Embrace the life that you lead, let your talk be heard, and remember that each word is a celebration and has hope (TEDx Talks, 2014)." I believe that this is a quote anyone could learn from and become comfortable and loving for who they are, no matter the condition. I really do suggest watching this TED Talk if you have not heard of or seen a first-hand case of Tourette syndrome. Not only do you learn about the condition, but it will change your perspective on the way you look at a lot of things in life.

TEDx Talks. (2014, February 27). Tourette Does the Talking: Thomas White at TEDxUND. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0szLOMIt9SQ