Welcome to 2015. We wish you all a Happy New Year.
In the coming term various opportunities will be on offer to people who have MS and some items (Yoga, Information Day, Coffee Mornings are also available to Family members / friends.) The HSE and the Education and Training Board (previously known as the VEC) have been very helpful and supportive in arranging these. A crowd-funding initiative has been undertaken in Swords area by Alan Dunne, Fitness Instructor., with a view to providing exercise programmes to people who have a disability. We are very appreciative of all these very practical supports.
The courses will be as follows – see enclosed events calender for details :
- Yoga in Swords
- Gym / Exercise in Swords
- Physiotherapy group in Clontarf
- Mindfulness in Drumcondra
- Yoga in Drumcondra
- Physiotherapy group in Coolock
- Physiotherapy in Dublin 15
- Yoga in Blanchardstwon
- Computer Skills in Finglas
We hope to be able to offer some home-based physiotherapy programmes to people for whom the group programmes would not be beneficial.
On Sat 7th March (for people who have MS & for family / friends) we will have an Update onMS, Types / Symptoms / Treatments and Developments by Prof Orla Hardiman, Clinical Professor of Neurology and Consultant Neurologist, followed by a Workshop on The Psychology of Resilienceand Contentment by Sue Saunders, Human Givens Therapist.
Carers Lunch / Meeting: We will have a specific meeting with lunch for carers (family / friends – i.e. people giving unpaid care / support ) on Saturday 28th February – meeting 11am, lunch 12 noon to 1pm at Carlton Hotel near Dublin Airport.
If you are interested in any of these courses/ events please call Jennifer on 01 4905933.
They take place if there are enough people, so if you want to take part be sure to call us to book your place. At the same time courses and events sometimes get completely booked out, so for this reason too it is advisable to book early.
We will have Coffee Mornings in Balbriggan, Swords, Clontarf and Blanchardstown – see enclosed events calender for details.
If you have ideas for events that would be useful for individuals and families in living with MS please let us know.
Do we have your up-to-date email address?
We email people with information on forthcoming events, as well as posting out information a few times per year. If something comes up at short notice email allows us to let people know more or less straight away. It is very convenient.
We get a significant number of automatic email responses that an email address has changed.
Have you got an email address?
Do we have your up to date email address?
If you haven’t been receiving email from us maybe you should let us know by emailing Jennifer Lloyd in our office its email:
Direct and indirect costs of MS – care-givers needed for focus group: We are doing a survey this January . It will be mainly web based but we are hoping to have a focus group with care givers. We need care givers with a mix of experiences from low dependency to high, with an age and gender mix. So are you a care giver? Do you think ye can help?? Would you attend a focus group on Tuesday 3rd February at 11am until 12.30pm at MS Care Centre, 65 Bushy Park Road, Rathgar? If YES please phone Jennifer on 01-4905933.
New Year Resolutions - we heard a lot about these on radio recently. We heard a couple of tips to help:
1. Make sure its something you can do and something you want to do. The small ones we do are valuable to us – the big ones we don’t do are not helpful and leave us feeling we have failed.
2. Make sure its specific and broken down into steps – because nothing succeeds like success so if your resolution contains small stages or steps so that you will know you have achieved fully or partly you can feel good about that – and feeling good then makes it attractive to do the next stage. 3. Be specific about the time by which you will have done it – again so that you will know how you are doing.
4. Be prepared to adjustif necessary without abandoning your resolution.
One suggestion was to have a resolution for each month – do one thing in January, do one other thing in February etc etc. … and ….
Have you heard about SMART goals?
S ……. Specific
M …… Measurable
A ……. Achievable
R ……. Realistic
T ……. Timely – defining when you will do what.
…… And if you are thinking about a New Year Resolution MAKE IT SOMETHING THAT WILL MAKE YOU FEEL GOOD.
Last Year
As always we worked individually with people with MS, and their families, on issues of concern to them. These can range through health and wellbeing, housing, education, career and employment, finance, transport, and a host of others. This can be by phone, in person, by email etc.
In October we ran an Information Day, specifically on the subject of Mood &Mental Health. There was a talk by Prof Jim Lucey, of St Patrick’s Hospital, and of broadcasting fame, followed in the afternoon by two workshops. The feedback was very positive. Here are some snapshots of what people thought.
- Very Informative/Entertaining & very easy to listen to.
- Educational/Practical/Reassuring
- Everybody has the same needs whether you have MS or not.
Newly Diagnosed Daytook place in September (joint event between North Dublin, South Dublin / Kildare and East Coast / Wicklow. This day was specifically aimed at people who have been diagnosed within the last 3 years, and their family / friends if they wished.It was a very practical & informative day, with topics on MS and treatments, employment rights, diet and MS, exercise and MS, and a talk by Jacinta Murphy about her experiences of managing life with MS for her and those close to her. Jacinta and family were very well received. People could identify with much of what they said, even if they had many years less experience of living with MS. We would like to thank Jacinta and her family for their excellent and generous session. If you are newly diagnosed and were unable to attend in 2014 we have a Newly Diagnosed Day annually.
Coffee Mornings
We had a number of coffee mornings in September. These are informal “get togethers”for PWMS & friends/family, a great way of meeting people to catch up and have a coffee & chat. Check our calendar for the dates of forthcoming Coffee Mornings. There will also be a txt reminder the previous day for those of you who have a mobile phone.
Physiotherapy, Gym and Yoga classes took place at various venues. The research from the University of Limerick Physiotherapy Dept tells us that group programmes are as effective and of course the finances of doing groups mean that many more people have the opportunity. Those who are keen are very keen indeed. Where and when courses happen depends on the level of interest. They seem to work well from point of view of the exercise and content, most people find it motivating to come for exercise, and getting to know other people is valued highly by many. Even though it may sound contradictory Exercise is always recommended as a way of reducing fatigue. People really make a contribution to others, often without realising it at all – and then we hear the positive comments afterwards.
We were able to provide home-based Physiotherapy programmes for a number of people for whom group Physiotherapy sessions would not be helpful.
New Physiotherapy Courses: For the first time we ran a 6 week Physiotherapy course at Parnell’s GAA Club, Coolock. This was well attended and we got good feedback. We intend to run another, starting in January.
This year also saw us commencing a Physiotherapy course in Castleknock (Laurel Lodge.) Again more is planned.
During summer we had a Family Day at Tayto Park (huge attendance), a TherapyTaster Day with massages and workshops at Roganstown, and a Carers Day.
Self Management is increasingly recognised as a way of equipping and empowering yourself if you have a diagnosis of a longterm health condition. Some of the hospitals pioneered this in Dublin and we have run a few courses over the past few years. In Autumn we ran one which we called “Managing MS”. We tailored it to people who have been diagnosed with MS in the past few years. Based on the self management principle it is the input and ideas of those taking part that are vital. We all come from different situations and life experiences and sometimes it can be hard to identify with or take on board someone else’s experience. I guess that is the challenge in any encounter or group. Self Management is not a menu or a recipe to cure health conditions but feedback tells us that people do find themselves approaching things differently as a result, and doing things that make a difference to their quality of life. The key concept is learning practical ways from the experience of the real experts, who are the people living with a longterm illness. While everyone’s experience is unique there will also be many similarities. It is said that after a presentation by a health professional people know more and after learning from people with similar experience people do more.
Fampyra: A lot of time and energy went into lobbying for the HSE to pay for Fampyra. This medication is on the market and about 30% of those for whom it is prescribed find that it significantly improves their walking. People are paying about €275 / €280 per month for it. This adds up to a huge expense for people, and many simply have to do without it and suffer the consequences. There was yet another health service meeting at end of November at which it was on the agenda. No decision resulted and we are told it will be on the agenda for another meeting at end of January.
North Voluntary Dublin Branch: This is a biggish group of people who have MS and who come together monthly on the fourth Tuesday (except August and December) and usually at IWA Clontarf – for sociability and support and also giving financial assistance when it can to people who make application for specific assistance. The branch would always be happy to have new members so if you feel you can add some support to people with MS in the North Dublin area give us a call and we can put you in touch.
During 2014 some branch members met a number of times with branch members and staff from all over Dublin / Kildare and Wicklow. This sharing of ideas and plans is well valued as a great opportunity to learn, as well as being sociable occasions.
This year the branch decided not to have its usual late November pre-Christmas dinner / social night out at Clarion Hotel. It did have a Christmas party evening at IWA Clontarf, where it usually meets. A sociable lunch is being planned, probably for a Saturday, in Springtime. On Tuesday 27th January a Mass will be held at IWA at 8pmfor deceased members. Other events are being worked on. The AGM will take place in March (Tuesday 24th) at IWA at 8pm. Again if you (or a family member / friend) feel you could make a contribution to benefit people in the area who have MS in North Dublin give us a call. A lot of hands make light work.
MS Ireland’s website and Facebook continue to grow and grow. Numbers using each are up significantly on 2013.
We ran a Mindfulness course in Spring 2014 and we plan another for Spring 2015. See calender of events attached.
THREE WAYS MINDFULNESS IMPROVES HOW WE GET ON WITH PEOPLE
1. We become more empathic.
Empathy is the ability to understand how another person feels. It improves relationships at home and at work. In neuroscience research, it has been found that the “insula”, a structure in the brain which is involved with empathy, is strengthened in people who practice mindfulness.
2. We become less reactive.
This “pause for thought” improves listening skills and gives us time to choose more helpful responses. Improvements in the interaction between ‘thinking’ and ‘emotional’ parts of the brain help to lower reactivity and to give us a vital space in which to make better choices. These improvements result from mindfulness practice and have been observed by neuroscientists.
3. We brood and ruminate less.
Ruminating or brooding on the faults of others, from intimate partners to work colleagues, worsens relationships. Because in mindfulness we are encouraged to return continually from our thoughts to our direct experience of reality, with acceptance, we are far less likely to spend time and energy on rumination. This is an extremely valuable effect of mindfulness practice. Rumination can prolong negative emotions and can harm relationships and our own wellbeing for years.
MINDFULNESS CAN GIVE US A TOOL THAT SAVES US A LOT OF SUFFERING. Mindful acceptance of situations means dropping the exaggerations and drama we generate almost by reflex. This allows us to deal with the reality of the situation which, usually, is easier to handle when we don't exaggerate.
So let's say you're waiting for the bus on a rainy night. The bus sails by without stopping. This is outrageous, you tell yourself, I have been treated with complete contempt. Actually, it's very, very annoying and inconvenient but it isn't outrageous. And you have been treated carelessly and not with "complete contempt." We are also tempted to use words like "outrageous" when we are kept waiting in a queue at a call centre. Once again, what's happening is annoying and frustrating but hardly outrageous.
Mindful acceptance means you pause, silence the drama in your head and connect with the reality of situations. To help you with this, you can bring your awareness back to your breath or to your body, for instance to your feet. This process was summed up in the phrase "Return. Invite silence." In other words return to awareness and invite your mind to remain silent for a while.
We tend to exaggerate our emotions almost by reflex and helping us to step out of our exaggerations is one of the ways in which the practice of mindfulness safeguards our emotional wellbeing.
Again Happy New Year. None of us can know what 2015 will bring. Lets make it as good as it can be.
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