Can Do MS

MS is commonly associated with a variety of visual disturbances. To maximize function, independence and safety, it is important to successfully incorporate compensatory strategies into purposeful occupations and functional daily activities in the home, in leisure skills, at work, and in the community.

We all know that exercise is important and researchers are finding increased specific benefits related to multiple sclerosis. Can Do MS believes that exercise will help you in all facets of your life, and these benefits are achievable to everyone. A well-balanced fitness program needs a number of components - some tangible, some not so tangible.

Don’t weight for wellness! Build your MS team to help you focus on what you can control! Recruit a physical therapist or exercise physiologist who understands MS to help you establish an exercise and/or physical activity routine that suits your ability levels. We also suggest seeking the guidance of a registered dietitian (RD or RDN) who understands the challenges of MS to help you make manageable...

When trying to determine whether and under what conditions you can work with multiple sclerosis, it is key that you understand the laws that govern accommodations in the workplace.

Following the diagnosis of MS and during periods of change in your MS, it is not unusual to feel your personal GPS is out of whack and not working as well as it had in the past - or not as well as you were hoping it would. This is true whether you are the person with MS or someone who cares about you. You may feel lost, without direction, and overwhelmed with multiple choices and decisions. You ma...

Sleep is a surprisingly complex process that is essential to maintaining health and wellness. Unfortunately, problems with sleep quantity and quality and the negative impact of poor sleep on daily functioning are particularly common among people with MS, affecting 50% of the population.

he Paleolithic Diet. The Mediterranean Diet. The McDougall Diet. The Swank Diet. With so many diets being promoted, it is hard to fully understand each of their nutritional benefits, possible deficiencies, and effects on multiple sclerosis. However, it is clear that certain dietary factors are linked to the risk of developing MS, as well as to helping manage symptoms, support treatment options, an...

Living with MS can be challenging not only for the person who has MS, but also for the support partner – whether he or she is providing assistance with everyday tasks, emotional support, and/or hands-on care. How do I help? Am I helping too much? I’m frustrated with this disease…I have no time for me…I’m exhausted…I feel stressed. Sound familiar? The support person – whether a spouse/partner, frie...

Making sure you are enrolled in a health insurance plan at all times may be the single most important way to avoid debt and assure your ability to get the health care services you need. Many changes have been made to health insurance in recent years, including new protections for people with pre-existing and high-cost conditions like multiple sclerosis. Unfortunately, even comprehensive health ins...

Anxiety is an umbrella term that describes an emotional state of apprehension, worry, fear, or terror. Typically one’s body also responds resulting in: sweating, increased heart rate, muscle tension, shaking, dry mouth, or a flushed face. It is normal to occasionally feel worried or anxious. However, anxiety is considered problematic when it starts to interfere with your daily life. In such cases,...

"Spasticity: Your Friend, Foe, or Indifferent Acquaintance " by Gail Hartley, MSN, NP, MSCN and Kathy San Martino, PT, NCS, MSCS, ATP/SMS, CLT © Can Do Multiple Sclerosis

A cruise vacation is an excellent choice for people with multiple sclerosis. You can visit a lot of ports and only unpack once, which saves a lot of energy. Additionally, since todays cruise ships offer a variety of healthy menu options and state-of-the-art exercise facilities, it’s easy to stay in shape while at sea. Last but not least, if fatigue hits while you’re on a cruise, it’s easy to alter...

Research is the driving factor in understanding the cause, management, and, hopefully one day a cure for multiple sclerosis. What we know about MS has come a long way over the years, particularly its profound effects on the critical nerve protectors known as myelin. This article will also provide a real-life look into exercise rehabilitation and its impacts on cognition, as well as the promising t...

Essential Tools To Manage Stress in MS by Can Do MS

Every day you are faced with countless decisions. What should I have for breakfast? What clothes should I wear? Other decisions, of course, are more complex, such as which bill to pay first or how to strategize with a work team to impress a potential customer. Some decisions are reflexive, requiring minimal thought; others require thoughtful consideration of the implications and a process for arri...

"The Relationship Between Exercise and Cognition" by Mandy Rohrig, DPT.

If you have been diagnosed with MS, some of your initial thoughts might be around how your work life may be impacted. Don’t panic! Don’t make any decisions too quickly. Allow yourself the time to review your situation and explore the various resources available. Many people continue to work with MS, and while some changes may need to be made, managing your career with MS is really not that much di...

Pain is a common and complex symptom for people living with multiple sclerosis. Creating and maintaining strategies for managing pain is an important component of wellness. It is estimated that approximately 65% of the MS population experiences some form of pain, which is an internal experience that others cannot see. Pain is a complicated symptom to address because it has many causes and many tre...

As the holiday season approaches, we look forward to fun times with family and friends—and food as the centerpiece to all celebrations. But if just the thought of holiday entertaining seems overwhelming and exhausting, don’t despair. These four simple strategies can help you relax more and stress less.

Many people find fatigue to be one of the most complex and challenging of the symptoms they face with MS. It is often called an “invisible” symptom since it cannot be seen on its own. To make matters worse, friends, family, and associates may not understand the severity of MS fatigue and expect you to simply “push through it.”

Everyone has down days and times of feeling sad or blue, but people living with MS have more than their fair share. In fact, the rate of clinical depression is higher in MS than in the general population, as well as higher than in most chronic illnesses. The numbers are similar to those seen in other neuro-inflammatory diseases (e.g., rheumatoid arthritis and inflammatory bowel disease), suggestin...

Living with multiple sclerosis demands incredible patience and resilience in both the person living with MS and his/her support partner. Symptoms may change from hour to hour, day to day, or month to month. The continuous process of adaptation that the disease requires can be both emotionally and physically exhausting, as one is constantly working to achieve the “new normal.” The demand for adapta...

Feelings of frustration, annoyance and outright anger are common occurrences in everyday life. Add MS to the equation, and it’s even more likely that people will have differences of opinion and conflicts. Some examples of these conflicts can be about how things are done, division of responsibilities, activities and making decisions. Under these circumstances, it would be the rare person who never...

Adaptations during exercise and sport can become very useful when living with MS. Often times, we are not able to exercise the same. Maintaining an exercise program with MS is important as research suggests, but it is how one exercises that is imperative. As the saying goes, it is easier said than done. When we think of exercise, many automatically think the gym, but there are many resources that...

Cognition and communication challenges affect approximately 50-66% of those with MS. Impairment can range from mild to severe, but most MS-related cognitive changes fall in the mild to moderate range. However, even subtle changes in cognition can be distressing and can have a significant impact on daily function. Cognitive changes and fatigue are more common reasons for people with MS to leave the...