Please can you help ~ We need raffle prizes for us for our Christmas raffle, the Christmas Craft Fair raffle and tombola at Harwell Village Hall.
Do you have symptoms that only last a few seconds?
In MS paroxysmal symptoms describe symptoms that come on very suddenly, lasting only a few seconds or minutes before disappearing just as quickly.
The information below comes from the MS Trust. Click on the hyperlinks (the blue writing) and you will visit their website page on the topic.
Many symptoms of MS can come on in a paroxysmal way including:
- trigeminal neuralgia which gives stabbing or burning sensations down the side of your face, usually on one side only
- altered sensations in your skin such as itching, numbness, tingling, burning or aching
- Lhermitte’s sign which feels like an electric shock down your neck and spine
- shooting pains in the arms or legs which can be very brief but still take your breath away
- spasms that may cause the sudden tightening of a limb, clawing of a hand, twitching or kicking out of a leg. Spasms may affect your trunk or your face muscles
- problems with vision including double vision (diplopia) and Uhthoff’s phenomenon which is the temporary worsening of symptoms caused by an increase in temperature
- swallowing difficulties (dysphagia)
- slurring of speech (dysarthria)
- weakness, usually in your legs or feet, which can cause unsteadiness or a fall
- lack of coordination (ataxia) which may cause you to stumble or drop things
- freezing of movement (akinesia) which is briefly being unable to move or only being able to move slowly or with extreme difficulty.
Find out more on the MS Trust website: https://mstrust.org.uk/a-z/paroxysmal-symptoms
Asian MS presents: Getting Involved in Research: Participation and Design – 9 November
In this second edition of Asian MS’ webinar series, we will be looking at participating in and designing MS research, with a particular focus on the genetics of MS in people of Asian and African heritage.
Date: Wednesday 9 November
Time: 6pm.
We will meet Ben Jacobs, who is co-leading the ADAMS Study with Dr. Ruth Dobson. The ADAMS study is seeking to understand how genes may influence the development of MS in people from different ethnic heritages. He will be joined by Sadid Hoque, who is part of the study’s steering committee and someone living with MS himself. We will also meet Anneesa Amjad, the MS Society’s Public Involvement Manager, who will be talking about the MS Society Research Network. This will be an opportunity for attendees to learn how they can help to shape and design MS research and research strategy. If you’ve ever wanted to know more about the genetics of MS or participating in/designing MS research, this is the webinar for you!
This session is organised by the national MS charity the MS Society. You can find out more about them by visiting their website at www.mssociety.org.uk
MS Society webinar: Talks with MS – Parenting and MS, 2 November
Talks with MS are proud to host this webinar in partnership with the MS Society to discuss different aspects of MS in the Black community. This month they will be discussing the topic of Parenting and MS.
Date: Wednesday 2 November
Time: 6.30pm to 7.30pm
They’ll be joined by Talks with MS Founder, Terri-Louise. Terri will be joined by a panel of parents, some with their children, to share what life is like managing MS & parenting & they’ll be sharing what helps them through the more challenging days. You’ll get to hear it from both perspectives and you can hear more about how parents told their children about their diagnosis and ways they navigate it as a family.
Find out more and book now by clicking here
This session is organised by the national MS charity, the MS Society. You can find out more about them by visiting their website at www.mssociety.org.uk
Supporting the MS Centre couldn’t be simpler this winter
Supporting the MS Centre couldn’t be simpler this winter thanks to Give as you Live Online’s winter giveaway, and here’s how you can take part.
Give as you Live Online are giving you the chance to earn a £10 bonus donation on top of the regular free donations you can raise by using their free shopping tool. When you sign up to support MS Therapy Centre Oxfordshire on Give as you Live Online and complete 3 fund-raising shops by the end of the year, they’ll pay us a bonus £10 donation.
Plus, when you use Give as you Live Online, you’ll raise a free donation with almost every purchase you make at over 6,000 stores, including John Lewis & Partners, Argos, Sainsbury’s, Wilko and Booking.com.
For example, if you were to click through Give as you Live Online to do your monthly grocery shopping at Sainsbury’s, you could raise up to 7.5%* of your spend back as a free donation for us. Based on a click and collect shop of £100 per month, you could raise an extra £35 a year for us, for free! Plus, there’s no limit to how much you can raise.
Getting the free £10 donation
Signing up is easy:
- Click the button below to be taken to our charity page on Give as you Live Online, and click ‘Sign up’
- Sign up for an account. You’ll only need to provide your name and email address
- Complete 3 shops by the end of December. As well as a £10 bonus donation, you’ll earn a donation on each shop.
Terms and conditions *Calculation of £35 a year is based on 1 £100 shop as a new customer using click and collect at 7.5%, and 11 subsequent shops as an existing customer using click and collect at 2.5%. Rates are subject to change at retailer’s discretion.
MS Society webinar: Talks with MS – Men’s Voices and MS, 19 October
Talks with MS are proud to host this webinar in partnership with the MS Society to discuss different aspects of MS in the Black community. This month they will be celebrating Black History month with a webinar from the perspective of men living with MS.
Date: Wednesday 19 October
Time: 6.30pm to 7.30pm
They’ll be joined by a panel of men living with MS who’ll be sharing their experiences. The webinar will involve conversations around relationships & managing MS symptoms.
Book now by clicking here:
This session is organised by national MS charity, the MS Society. You can find out more about them by visiting their website at www.mssociety.org.uk
Come and tell the MS Trust your views
A message from national charity, the MS Trust:
If you live with MS, or love or care for someone with MS, the MS Trust would like to hear from you!
The MS Trust is keen to hear from all people who have MS in their lives, to understand how our information and services can better serve the MS community, so that all information and services for the MS community are co-designed with the MS community.
Workshop
The MS trust is running a ‘Have your Say’ workshop at the Berkshire MS Therapy Centre on Wednesday 9 November, and you’re invited to join us between 11am and 12.30pm to tell us what you think.
This is a great opportunity for the MS community to speak out on issues about MS. In return for your input the MS Trust will be providing £10 shopping vouchers to all those who participate in the workshop.
How to take part
If you would like to attend, please email claire@bmstc.org or call 0118 901 6000 with any queries.
Kadeena Cox speaks out about people questioning her disability
Britain’s Paralympic gold medallist Kadeena Cox, who has MS, says living with hidden disabilities can feel like “fighting a losing battle” because of negative reactions from people.
She says people have accused her of “faking” her disability and questioned why she is using blue badge parking.
Cox was speaking after new research by Bupa, Paralympics GB’s new official healthcare partner, and disability equality charity Scope, into the experiences of people with disabilities, impairments and conditions. The research shows 83% of people with less visible conditions experience a lack of understanding and negative attitudes when accessing public spaces.
You can read the full article about Kadeena’s experiences and the results of the research here.
There is also an interesting interview on the BBC website with Lina Nielsen, GB 400m hurdler, who has recently spoken out about living with MS. You can view the interview here.
MS-UK Online session – Getting the best from exercise in sitting – Monday 24 October
This information session from Dr Gretchen Hawley will focus on seated exercises, demonstrating how using a seated position to practise exercises can be a good alternative to standing.
Date: Monday 24 October
Time: 2pm to 3pm
The session is for everyone, so whether you want to add variation to your current exercise routine and perform some new challenging exercises from sitting or you are a wheelchair user and want to know some great exercises to work the core and upper body, then please join us for this session.
This session is organised by national MS charity, MS-UK. You can find out more about them by visiting their website at www.ms-uk.org
MS Society Webinar: Using Meditation to Deal with Overwhelm – 10 October
10 October is World Mental Health Day and the theme this year is ‘Make mental health and wellbeing for all a global priority’.
In this session we will explore how meditation can help us to solve our daily problems, particularly around feelings of being overwhelmed.
Date: 10 October
Time: 11am
Michelle who is a trained meditation teacher will:
• Help you to understand what meditation is and what its benefits are in dealing with difficult emotions
• Show you how to meditate
• Give you tips on how to apply what you have learnt to your everyday lives
The session will consist of a brief talk and short guided mediation. You don’t need to know anything about meditation. This session is equally suitable for newcomers and those with some experience of meditation. You do not need any special equipment to take part in the session.
After the meditation there will be an opportunity to discuss how meditation can help us to manage overwhelm.
Book now by clicking here:
This session is organised by national MS charity the MS Society. You can find out more about them by visiting their website at www.mssociety.org.uk
