Multiple Sclerosis Society and Fund

As a part of our trip, we have decided to hook up with the MS Society of MN. My cousin, Erik, was recently diagnosed with MS. He is a loving father of 8 children and is a pastor leading a congregation of a new church in Duluth, The Water’s Edge. He is an inspiration by the way he has not wavered in his faith or zest for life as a Christian servant through this roller coaster ride. As God’s plan is revealed, Erik and his wife Jess embrace the highs and lows with thanksgiving and see the blessings in each day. We want to bring awareness of MS through our bike trip, acknowledge the heroic journey my cousin and his family are on, provide strength, prayers, and support his way, as well as an opportunity to donate if you feel moved to do so. The website linking Erik’s story and donation fund is http://main.nationalmssociety.org/site/TR/Events/MNMChapter?pxfid=174741&fr_id=7409&pg=fund

The Facts About MS from the MS Society Minnesota Capter site:
http://www.nationalmssociety.org/chapters/MNM/index.aspx

What is multiple sclerosis?
Multiple sclerosis is a chronic, unpredictable disease of the central nervous system (the brain, optic nerves, and spinal cord). It is thought to be an autoimmune disorder. This means the immune system incorrectly attacks the person's healthy tissue.

MS can cause blurred vision, loss of balance, poor coordination, slurred speech, tremors, numbness, extreme fatigue, problems with memory and concentration, paralysis, and blindness and more. These problems may be permanent or may come and go.

Most people are diagnosed between the ages of 20 and 50, although individuals as young as 2 and as old as 75 have developed it. More than twice as many women as men have MS. Studies suggest that genetic factors make certain individuals more susceptible than others, but there is no evidence that MS is directly inherited. MS is not considered a fatal disease as the vast majority of people with it live a normal life-span. But they may struggle to live as productively as they desire, often facing increasing limitations.

How many people have MS?
Approximately 400,000 Americans have MS, and every week about 200 people are diagnosed. World-wide, MS affects about 2.5 million people.

What are the typical symptoms of MS?
Symptoms of MS are unpredictable, vary from person to person, and from time to time in the same person. For example: One person may experience abnormal fatigue and episodes of numbness and tingling. Another could have loss of balance and muscle coordination making walking difficult. Still another could have slurred speech, tremors, stiffness, and bladder problems.

Sometimes major symptoms disappear completely, and the person regains lost functions. In severe MS, people have symptoms on a permanent basis including partial or complete paralysis, and difficulties with vision, cognition, speech, and elimination.

What causes the symptoms?
MS symptoms result when an immune-system attack affects myelin, the protective insulation surrounding nerve fibers of the central nervous system (the brain and spinal cord). Myelin is destroyed and replaced by scars of hardened "sclerotic" tissue. Some underlying nerve fibers are permanently severed. The damage appears in multiple places within the central nervous system.
Myelin is often compared to insulating material around an electrical wire; loss of myelin interferes with the transmission of nerve signals.

Is MS fatal?
In rare cases MS is so malignantly progressive it is terminal, but most people with MS have a normal or near-normal life expectancy. Severe MS can shorten life.

Can MS be cured?
Not yet. There are now FDA-approved medications that have been shown to "modify" or slow down the underlying course of MS. In addition, many therapeutic and technological advances are helping people manage symptoms. Advances in treating and understanding MS are made every year, and progress in research to find a cure is very encouraging.

What medications and treatments are available?
The National Multiple Sclerosis Society recommends that a person consider treatment with one of the FDA-approved "disease-modifying" drugs as soon as possible following a definite diagnosis of MS with active or relapsing disease. These drugs help to lessen the frequency and severity of MS attacks, reduce the accumulation of lesions (areas of damage) in the brain, and may slow the progression of disability.

In addition to drugs that address the basic disease, there are many therapies for MS symptoms such as spasticity, pain, bladder problems, fatigue, sexual dysfunction, weakness, and cognitive problems. People should consult a knowledgeable physician to develop a comprehensive approach to managing their MS.

Keep vs. Throw Piles

Christie: Our story has been featured in this summer’s issue of Concordia Magazine and Enews, the link is http://www.cord.edu/Enews/Summer/faith_and_Learning.php. I am quite sure now that Oprah will be dialing my number soon. I have officially filed my termination request at the hospital for August 2. My parents, the roaming, fifth-wheeling, “Central Command,” visited for 2 weeks. We said our good-byes, knowing the next time we see them again will be in Colorado at the end of August on our bike. With my BS in Nursing completed, I have some extra time on my hands and have been officially assigned to gather trip data from Lonely Planet, including desired border crossing, time it is open, entry fee/departure tax, visa requirements, currency, how to exchange money, nearest ATM, US embassy, and places to stay in all the countries we will pedal through including: Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia?, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Chile, and Argentina. Although Eric has compiled a very through list, I have also included shower/hot water availability and the nearest beaches. The reality of the trip is here, homeless and jobless, by choice, in 8 weeks. We are “settled” into Eric’s parent’s basement as our temporary post. The middle of the floor has a small mountain of plastic bins too heavy for me to carry up the stairs and to my parent’s storage shed, so there it rests until Eric gets back from his Pittsburgh/Japan travel spree for work. Labels read “Vanuatu,” “Canning supplies-heavy,” “Scrapbooks, pictures, yearbooks-heavy,” the beloved “Nic-nacks” (that Eric says with a nasally “naaaaacks”), “Eric’s toys and childhood books-heavy,” “Eric’s stuff ????-heavy”….can you tell who the sentimental one is? We had a small garage sale and the rest is destined for the greatest store on earth… The Thrift Store. Packing and sorting is not fun for me, maybe because my family lived in one place for 22 yrs. I tend to be a quick decision maker when the “keep vs. throw/donate” issues arise – just to get the job done…where as Eric LOVES to sort…and it’s not really sorting because he tends to keep most everything…it’s more story-telling time. Each of his thin, armpit stained Jr. High and High School sports t-shirts have a story, “Stanley” the stick – of course must be kept, his baby teeth, the track and field ribbons from the last day of kindergarten…oh my…it’s torture for me. I encourage him towards the “throwing” pile from a distance (teetering on becoming the nagging wife)...usually a futile effort on my part, so the box is reluctantly labeled “Eric’s stuff????.” I smile when I look at it. And why he needs to keep 2 boxes of notes, mathematical formulas, graphs, and what-not from college is beyond my human understanding since the boy dreams in engineering equations…Lord help me. This is my high-school sweetheart and husband of 9 years (we just celebrated on June 3rd), the quirky fun-loving spirit, the adventurer, the dreamer, goal oriented, peaceful at heart, sarcastic as heck and full of faith. Everyday I laugh because of some random thing he does or says…more recently breaking out the Zumba Latin American aerobic dance moves…he’s sure he is improving with each attempt. I am ever grateful to have him at my side (actually in front of me on JoJo) and to be doing life with him. I guess I can understand why people say, “Why are you doing that?” and “I could never do that.” Without him, I would probably be saying the same thing. As a Christian couple, we are a unit that feeds off each other’s passions and shared sense of adventure.