Who Do I Become When I Am No Longer Me?: Stories of Illness, Injury, Chronic Pain, Aging, and Dying

DYING, SURVIVING, OR AGING WITH GRACE

---

Here six men and women speak about living with C. Diff Infections Rachel Rabkin Peachman, Consumer Reports, There's an alarming rise in recurring, hard-to-treat infections caused by the bacterium clostridium difficile, or C. In addition to harmful bacteria, antibiotics also destroy the protective bacteria that normally live in the intestines for up to several months.

That allows dangerous C. But once-reliable antibiotic treatments are no longer working in many cases, according to Lewis's study An important contributor to the increase in intractable C. Diff Infection Rates Plus advice on how to stay safe Antibiotics can kill off deadly infectious bacteria. Make sure you really need that antibiotic. Insist on hand-washing and gloves. Watch out for heartburn drugs. But those medications can also increase the risk of C. See chart with lowest-rated hospitals by state. For example, the biggest risk factor for C. But the CDC reports that so far, only 39 percent of all hospitals have an antibiotic stewardship program in place.

This review of C. A Science Salon, The first results from a faecal transplant trial have been published in the New England Journal of Medicine, and they are a resounding vindication for the technique. Tucker, Shots, NPR, 'Many with the condition dislike the name "chronic fatigue syndrome" because they feel it's trivializing and misleading, giving the impression that they're simply tired or depressed when in fact many are quite ill.

Are there any increased risks as people age after a brain injury?

Nailing down the cause — or, more likely, causes — of the illness has proved exceptionally difficult, since patients' symptoms vary tremendously. Routine laboratory tests are often negative, but even when they detect abnormalities, those are usually not specific enough to be helpful. The current hypothesis, Nath says, is that, in contrast to people with normal immune systems that act to quell an infection and then subside, there is "a subset of individuals whose immune systems overreact and do a lot of collateral damage.

Tucker, Shots, NPR, "Starting early next year [], the NIH will launch an in-house study of about 40 people who fell ill suddenly after a flu-like illness and never returned to normal. Adding insult to injury, research supporting it is now unraveling. When Nita needed to find a new primary care doctor, a friend recommended someone from the Cleveland Clinic. A Science Writer's Odyssey into an Illness Science Doesn't Understand by Julie Rehmeyer, describes the science and politics of chronic fatigue syndrome and other poorly understood illnesses.

This last avenue ultimately leads her to an extreme removal of mold from her environment, starting with a body-resetting solo expedition to Death Valley. Exploring ideas of dependence and self-sufficiency, Rehmeyer shows her illness through the lens of her personal relationships One group, the "moldies," who felt mold was involved in their illness, recommended spending two weeks in the desert with none of her belongings which might be contaminated with mold.

Plus, I was sick of rotting in bed Eventually, I concluded that patients possess more wisdom and expertise about this disease than anyone else. When the Lancet study, nicknamed the PACE trial, first came out, its inflated claims made headlines around the world. Just get out and exercise Ron Davis is a wizard at revealing what's invisible to the rest of the world. A renowned geneticist, in , The Atlantic magazine ranked him among the world's greatest living inventors. His biotech methods helped launch the field of genomics, making terms like "artificial chromosomes" and "genome editing" part of the lexicon.

A substantial number of the major genetic advances of the past 20 years can be traced back to Davis. Now the focus of his research is to find a cause and a cure for CFS, the disease that has crippled his son Whitney. Can NIH spare a few dimes? Brian Vastag, Washington Post, Where science has failed patients and where there are signs of better focus and potential advances.

Jennifer Brea is working on her PhD at Harvard and soon to be engaged to the love of her life when she gets a mysterious fever that leaves her bedridden and looking for answers. Disbelieved by doctors and determined to live, she turns her camera on herself and her community, a hidden world of millions confined to their homes and bedrooms by ME, commonly called chronic fatigue syndrome. Jen Brea's TED talk, 17 minutes. Her experience with suffering helped her understand Louis Zamperini, which helped him open up.

Hylton NY Times Magazine, Do read this one. A patient may be in excruciating pain without showing any outward sign of illness. There is still no simple laboratory test for the disease, nor any way to confirm its diagnosis. There is even some debate over what to call it. Other doctors resist this name, questioning whether patients with the disease reliably exhibit this inflammation. Charles Shepherd, a medical adviser to the ME Association in Britain, told me that decades of mystery around the illness have only worsened the suffering of victims. In many circles this disease, still known as Yuppi Flu, is dismissed as a psychological aberration.

For the nearly two million people who have endured its traumatic and very real debilitating physical effects, however, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome is no joke. Essential reading for understanding the political mess around this illness. See also Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and the Illness Experience an account of how a mysterious and life-altering illness struck overnight, dramatically changing Skloot's life, and how he dealt with it ; a later memoir, in the Shadow of Memory , contains essays about Skloot's experience of losing his memory after being infected by a virus and struggling to regain lost memories.

Read the Amazon reviews. How do men and women cope with the embarrassing symptoms and sometimes invasive treatments? Listen to the stories of seven men and women living with Crohn's disease. A Patient-Powered Research Network that allows any patient to contribute to research for the cure. What if we could learn from the collective experience of patients everywhere? Interview with Colleen Webb, clinical nutritionist at Weill Cornell Medical Center, who describes her work helping patients with assorted gastro-intestinal disorders, and tricks for adjusting the diet to reduce distress and promote gut health.

It usually affects the intestines, but may occur anywhere from the mouth to the end of the rectum anus. Ulcerative colitis is a related condition. One story posted there: Cohen stories about five "citizens of sickness," individuals with ALS, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, Crohn's disease, muscular dystrophy, and bipolar disorder.

Several people say Serovera changed their life. Improving the lives of people who have communication disorders. Part 1 of a two-part series. Tiny-tech options, like small hearing aids, are increasingly reaching the market. This doesn't mean that noise-induced hearing loss is not a problem. Workers in the mining sector, followed by those in construction and manufacturing, are most likely to suffer from hearing impairment He said he was never told to wear ear protection. But on this particular day, when he and his sister went around town, he noticed something different courtesy of Samsung and his sister.

The usual caveats apply: But it is often a good place to start, and this entry provides a good overview of issues and lots of references you can follow links to. Not Everyone Wants to Be 'Fixed' Allegra Ringo, The Atlantic, Hearing people often assume that Deaf people would naturally want to take advantage of any method that could lead them to the hearing world — especially cochlear implants, the most advanced hearing technology we have. That assumption is far from true.

The Journal of Political Philosophy 13 2. Get out a hankie! Parents of a child born deaf as the result of an epidemic of German measles waste years avoiding sign language before learning how to communicate with their child. Bouton tells her story about adult onset of profound deafness, and profiles others with similar losses -- an opera singer, a pastry chef, a psychoanalyst, and, as Jerome Groopman writes, "offers a wealth of information and insight about a frustrating and isolating condition.

The hearing grandchild of deaf immigrants, Cohen a sign-language interpreter whose father headed the Lexington School for the Deaf in Manhattan traces the lives of a Russian immigrant learning a second and third language, English and American sign language or ASL and a boy raised in an urban ghetto, to explore the world and issues of deafness: A Memoir of Deafness by Henry Kisor. Kisor, who lost his hearing at the age of three after a bout of meningitis, lipreads, does not sign, and never entered the subculture of the deaf. He writes of the problems a deaf person has learning to think in language, and with humor describes his life growing up in a hearing world -- the only deaf student at Trinity College, a graduate student at Northwestern, and book review editor for major newspapers.

What it was like to grow up deaf in France, where sign language was banned as too sensual until , well into Laborit's childhood; what it's like to communicate with others if you can't hear them; and how learning sign language made her life easier. Read this is your child or student is deaf. Untreated, it may travel to the lungs. Then she almost lost her life. The symptoms didn't seem life-threatening at the time, so we almost made a fatal mistake by delaying seeking medical treatment. Diabetes There are many blogs and websites about diabetes, and support groups that provide opportunities to connect with others with diabetes and to ask questions, exchange advice, and so on.

That cost is typically lower with insurance or with discount programs. Still, for some people the price is unmanageable, and consumer activists have begun putting pressure on the three main companies that make insulin in the U. Sanofi-Aventis, Novo Nordisk, Inc. Over time, having too much glucose in your blood can cause health problems, such as heart disease, nerve damage, eye problems, and kidney disease.

You can take steps to prevent diabetes or manage it. But most of [Dr. Hayward] Zwerling's patients have health insurance, and each health plan varies. When Zwerling meets with patients, he can't tell what the copay will be for each drug. He doesn't know if the patient has met their deductible.

Those on Medicare may be in the so-called doughnut hole.

I. Introduction

The brands of insulin Zwerling prescribes are covered by some plans, with varying costs for members, and not others. And the negotiated price for each drug may be different from insurer to insurer and pharmacy to pharmacy There are some remedies in the works. CVS Health has just rolled out a program that lets pharmacists show patients the cost of a prescription before they fill it, as well as cheaper options Massachusetts is, in theory, ahead of many states because doctors, hospitals and insurers are required to help patients find the price of services. But that requirement does not apply to pharmacies or prescriptions, and there's no move to amend the law.

That's disappointing to some consumer advocates. Diabetic ketoacidosis is a terrible way to die. It's what happens when you don't have enough insulin. Your blood sugar gets so high that your blood becomes highly acidic, your cells dehydrate and your body stops functioning. Diabetic ketoacidosis is how Nicole Smith-Holt lost her son. Three days before his payday.

Because he couldn't afford his insulin The price of insulin in the U. That has put the life-saving hormone out of reach for some people with diabetes The three companies are being sued in the U. Check out Kidney disease, kidney failure, dialysis, and kidney transplants for information on dialysis. The long-term data suggests the vaccine, the year-old Bacille Calmette-Guerin, or BCG, does lower blood sugar in people with Type 1 diabetes - but it takes a few years to see that effect. Faustman's lab is currently conducting multiple clinical trials on the vaccine's secondary effects on Type 1 diabetes.

When a routine physical revealed mildly elevated blood-sugar levels, Michael P was strongly encouraged to sign up for a diabetes self-management class But the year-old retired bank analyst was flabbergasted when he opened his bill after attending. These include whether drugmakers and middlemen in the supply chain have allowed prices to escalate in order to increase their profits. At the same time, prominent class-action lawyers are bringing suits on behalf of patients.

A study published Tuesday underscores that shortcoming as it applies to people who carry the sickle cell trait. Dana Lewis built her own artificial pancreas, and is helping hundreds of other people do the same Clare McGrane, GeekWire, Dana Lewis is the creator of the Do-It-Yourself Pancreas System, an entire artificial pancreas that includes a blood glucose monitor and an automatic insulin adjustor. Get Adam's book here on diaTribe site. Type 1 Diabetes Aliyah Baruchin, Health, NY Times, "Ninety percent to 95 percent of all cases of diabetes are Type 2, or adult-onset, a disease frequently linked to obesity.

But Type 1, known as juvenile diabetes, is not governed by lifestyle. It is an autoimmune disorder in which the body attacks the beta cells in the pancreas that produce the hormone insulin. Because people with Type 1 produce no insulin, they cannot survive without injecting it before each meal, and they must test their blood several times a day to check their glucose levels. What do we not know to cure type 1 diabetes?

For example, New Insulins: Why diabetes drug prices are soaring. They call it "shadow pricing," when "prices for some competing drugs go up in lockstep, rising the same amount at about the same time. The practice known as shadow pricing was first reported by Bloomberg News.

The newly insured patients who didn't understand what it means to have a high deductible are struggling because they're paying the full price. And, some patients have seen their insulin copays increase to a level where they can't even afford the copays. Tucker, NPR, A drop in the number of newly-diagnosed diabetes cases is good public health news. But for the Type 1 diabetes community it's a source of frustration, because the numbers hide their story.

While it's certainly the right direction for the more common Type 2 diabetes, the findings don't apply to Type 1, a different condition that appears to be on the rise and that is not caused by obesity or lifestyle factors. Or in plainer English, Effect of environmental air pollution on type 2 diabetes mellitus. Exposure to air pollutants is significantly associated with increased risk of type 2 diabetes mellitus.

Now it belongs to the poor. Niraj Chokshi, WaPo, What was once predominantly a rich-country problem has become one that disproportionately affects poorer countries. With urbanization, eating habits are changing and so are levels of physical activity and access to healthy foods, but scientists don't have a full explanation for rising levels of diabetes among the poor.

This memoir from the first Latino and third female Supreme Court Justice makes very clear the role her diagnosis with juvenile diabetes at eight years of age played in her success. She had to give herself insulin shots even as a child and the process made her disciplined. But research shows that it does.

He talks about the disease and about myths that can kill when the blood sugar falls low, it is NOT dangerous to give him an orange to suck on -- it might save his life. His novel, True Believers , a coming-of-age story and political mystery, features a main character who has diabetes I. Researchers and advocates say that more-precise figures are important as they strengthen the argument that more should be done to prevent and treat diabetes, which affects the way sugar is metabolized in the body. Anders Kelto, Morning Edition, NPR, Incremental improvements in the drug — and the disappearance of older versions, which aren't as profitable but work better for many patients -- have kept prices high.

A more affordable version is needed. Liver cancer is the sixth most common cancer, and its incidence has tripled since the mids in the United States For each 2-inch increase in waist circumference, the risk of liver cancer increased by 8 percent, even after controlling for B. And those with Type 2 diabetes had more than double the risk of liver cancer, even among the non-obese. She would sometimes have to justify it by stating that the patient was complaining of fatigue, for example. Now, insurers must cover the screening tests as well as counseling at the primary care practice office or off site at a hospital or elsewhere in the community.

A journalist who writes about diabetes, Mendosa also has it. And it's the ratio of the two, rather than the absolute amount, that is important. If you have almost no insulin, you might be able to have normal BG levels if you also had almost no glucagon. Walking speeds the rate at which food moves through your stomach, and "walking for 15 minutes shortly after each meal improved daily blood sugar levels to a greater extent than a single minute walk in the morning.

Michael Behar, NY Times, 'The 20, or so known proteins in each human body might soon be used as an early warning system for disease Proteomics, or the study of proteins, has long offered the ability to identify many biological processes As the workhorses in the human body, proteins play a role in nearly all of its biological processes Researchers are now learning that diseases have their own unique proteomic patterns A Memoir of Second Chances by Carole Calladine, a memoir of experiencing a midlife crisis, second chances, and the onset of type II diabetes.

If the vagus nerve, which controls the movement of food through the digestive tract, is damaged or stops working, the muscles of the stomach and intestines do not work normally, and the movement of food is slowed or stopped. If other solutions to the problem do not work, the patient may need surgery to insert a feeding tube called a jejunostomy tube , which allows him to insert nutrients special liquid food directly into the small intestine, bypassing the stomach.

All in Our Heads? Amy T, DiabetesMine, In , journalists began writing about diabulimia women with type 1 diabetes, who were shunning their medication for fear of getting fat-- or restricting or stopping taking their insulin to lose weight. There is a new book by Maryjeanne Hunt about battling this eating disorder: Healing from a Life of Diabulimia , which is reviewed here.

See also Gretchen's book, The First Year: Digestive Disease Institute Cleveland Clinic, scroll down on right. Writes one woman who is writing a book about dysautomnia, Deborah, "Dysautonomia is often listed as the familial type, which is genetic, and strikes when children are young. But there are other dysautonomias where the automatic autonomic processes slow down, malfunction, and cause general havoc from head to toe.

More young women are now being diagnosed with POTS, post orthostatic tachycardia syndrome, and don't realize that it is more than a heart problem, it is an assault on the entire body. This site keeps growing and has great resources. It explains why some very smart people have trouble learning to read. Dyslexia is a result of the way the brain is wired, making it difficult to process sounds heard in spoken language. Children with dyslexia often have significant strengths, and when their learning challenges are addressed they excel in school and in life.

Read the signs and symptoms at different levels of schooling. A more precise definition of dyslexia would clearly identify the disabilities that go along with it, while recognizing the associated abilities as well. I had never known the name for it, but I recognized immediately that the symptoms were also mine. But my dyslexic sister helped me see how valuable those much-maligned letters can be.

Wheeler, Chronicle of Higher Education, The Ehlers-Danlos Society They are a group of connective tissue disorders that can be inherited and are varied both in how affect the body and in their genetic causes. They are generally characterized by joint hypermobility joints that stretch further than normal , skin hyperextensibility skin that can be stretched further than normal , and tissue fragility. National Library for Medicine There are many more links online.

After years of pain and fatigue, novelist Hilary Mantel was diagnosed with endometriosis, a disease so little understood, she was offered psychiatric treatment. Early diagnosis is crucial. It must be treated and managed before permanent damage is done. I looked down at the patchy redness that had developed from holding a heating pad, turned all the way up, tight to my pelvis for hours on end. Almost two years ago, I was diagnosed with endometriosis, a chronic reproductive health condition that affects one in every 10 people with uteruses, although experts suspect it may be even more.

News, Very few California doctors perform the excision surgery that can offer relief—and very few insurers cover it. On average, it takes women up to ten years to receive a diagnosis. Writing with a Chronic Illness Nafissa Thompson-Spires, Paris Review, "Endometriosis is idiosyncratic, and while many of its symptoms should be telltale, it can only be diagnosed via surgery.

It often causes many more problems than painful periods and infertility, problems like pelvic-floor dysfunction, which makes sex difficult and at times impossible; higher rates of infections; depression; anxiety; chronic fatigue; vulvodynia; anemia; insomnia; all sorts of digestive problems; and unexplained bleeding. It often occurs alongside interstitial cystitis, which my specialist thinks I might have.

Endo can grow anywhere in the body A few studies report rare cases of endo on the brain. The adhesions that accompany endo cause organs to fuse together There are different types of epilepsy and seizures. Epilepsy drugs are prescribed to control seizures, and rarely surgery is necessary if medications are ineffective. Several articles here but see especially Slideshow: What is a seizure?

What happens during a seizure? What causes a seizure? What are the risk factors for epilepsy? How serious are seizures? About 1 in 3 people who come to UCLA for uncontrolled seizures don't have epilepsy. Usually, they have PNES, he says Sometimes the seizures stop once patients learn they don't have epilepsy. See map of which projects ILEP members are working on , where, and why. See WHO's global strategy and Links and resources , including fact sheets in various languages.

Especially in its intractable form, also called refractory epilepsy, the disorder — and the side effects of epilepsy medications — can cause problems in learning, memory and behavior, and indelibly alter development. It can also consume families, monopolizing their time, money and energy.

Many patients, doctors and families say that stigma hampers care, public recognition and the ability to raise money for research. This journey is also about a Draconian system where politics overrides science and patients are caught in the middle. Elizabeth Thiele, of MGH But it presents tremendous difficulties for those who try to follow it.

Freeman, Zahava Turner, James E. Investigations into the Strange New Science of the Self. Anil Ananthaswamy writes about what happens when our sense of self is compromised, how our how our body feels, for example, when our narrative, autobiographic self is damaged.

Among other things, he writes about ecstatic epilepsy. TSC is a genetic disorder that cause tumors to form in various organs, primarily the brain, eyes, heart, kidneys, skin and lungs. This rare disease is described in an article focused on proposed legislation: Cutting the orphan drug tax credit would take away my day in the sun Amy Dickey, STAT, With EPP, essentially, sunlight can cause damage to the skin "similar to second-degree burns, but from the inside out. People with these diseases have waited years, even lifetimes, for treatments.

Reducing or eliminating tax incentives for orphan drugs would extend their waits, which is neither fair nor moral. Fibromyalgia NY Times Health Guide With its generalized symptoms of pain, fatigue and digestive issues, fibromyalgia can often hide as something else for many years. Worse, some professionals doubt the existence of this condition, which can also cause chest pains, brain fog and depression. Here, six men and women speak about living with fibromyalgia.

Publishes a free e-book: Practical Living with Fibromyalgia by Maurice S. Site created by Mary Clarke and her husband, Maurice. Until recently, there were no drugs specifically tested and approved for the treatment of fibromyalgia. Instead, doctors used a variety of medications approved to treat things like depression, seizures, pain or muscle spasms, a practice known as off-label use.

Doctors thought it would be their go-to medication for treating the condition, but insurers thought differently That's where it gets so bad. See thumbnails of all 10 rules. HealthLine Read about "home remedies" check with your doctor first? GARD, NIH "The main feature of GSS is a progressive degeneration of the cerebellum a part of the brain that controls coordination, balance, equilibrium and muscle tone , as well as different degrees of dementia.

Signs and symptoms generally develop between ages 35 and 50 years and may include weakness in the legs, poor reflexes, abnormal sensations, progressive ataxia, cognitive dysfunction, slurred speech, and spasticity. On average, people affected by GSS survive approximately 60 months range 2 to 10 years following diagnosis. I don't often link to Wikipedia entries, but this one covers a lot of bases and links to other resources. It is the most common cause of hyperthyroidism overactive thyroid gland and affects more women than men.

Izabella Wentz, Thyroid Pharmacist, It has now spread to Los Angeles. Being without a bathroom or a place to bathe, or being forced to sleep or spend time in unsanitary conditions has a way of encouraging the spread of disease.

Browse by Topic

Hepatitis C is a blood-borne virus. Today, most people become infected with the Hepatitis C virus by sharing needles or other equipment to inject drugs. Chronic Hepatitis C is a serious disease than can result in long-term health problems, even death. The majority of infected persons might not be aware of their infection because they are not clinically ill. There is no vaccine for Hepatitis C. The best way to prevent Hepatitis C is by avoiding behaviors that can spread the disease, especially injecting drugs.

Hepatitis C virus infection can last a lifetime and lead to serious liver problems, including cirrhosis scarring of the liver or liver cancer. If a deal is worked out, Louisiana's Health Secretary Rebekah Gee said the state would be able to make substantial progress toward eliminating hepatitis C from Louisiana. The arrangement between the state and drug companies would also likely be the first of its kind in the country.

Patients and insurers often pay less, however, through negotiated insurance discounts and rebates Hepatitis C is a viral liver infection spread through blood that affects an estimated 3. It can take years to cause problems. In addition, the growing heroin epidemic is adding to the problem as people become infected by sharing contaminated needles. This is the Center for Disease Control's informative page answering any questions you might have.

Needle exchange sharply reduced sharing in an Indiana city wracked by an HIV outbreak Laura Ungar, Louisville Courier, A new federal study shows that needle sharing plummeted in Austin, Indiana after people who shoot up drugs began using a syringe exchange started in response to the largest drug-fueled HIV outbreak ever to hit rural America. Most HIV patients also have hepatitis C, and the state has a new program to help them, which allows rural doctors like him to consult remotely about cases with experts at Indiana University School of Public Health.

A lot of the public health people criticized Governor Pence for not implementing what that BMJ article called 'Standard-of-care addiction treatment,' which includes needle exchanges. CDC figures Where are you going to get that money? Are you going to take it out of your general hospital operating budget? In recent media interviews, the physician-researcher said he has rethought his opposition to promoting condom use in the fight against AIDS. He elaborated on that in a statement in July to KHN, saying he supports programs that encourage people who are not sexually active to delay sex and have fewer partners — an approach hailed by conservative activists.

Here's a handy tipsheet Karen Kaplan, LA Times, "In the early days of his presidency, Donald Trump famously declared that "nobody knew that healthcare could be so complicated. In a video that came to light this week, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates described two meetings with Trump where the men discussed a variety of issues related to innovation, science, education and global health. Then lifesaving drugs came along. In a viatical settlement, the holder of a life-insurance policy names a third, unrelated party as the benefactor, in exchange for immediate cash.

Brokers for viatical settlements advertised almost exclusively to people living with AIDS, and the industry quickly received a ghoulish reputation: An imminent death yielded a quicker return. Viatical settlements first emerged in direct response to the AIDS crisis. Then along came protease inhibitors and the odds changed. Public health experts are seeing an ominous rise in HIV infection rates. Rising rates might in part be reflective of wider testing within the population.

Michael Schulson, Undark, Social media algorithms help charlatans spread autism cures, vaccine disinformation, and AIDS denialism through online videos. Their algorithms, after all, are trained to give visitors more of the kind of content that they like — whatever that might be. If you watch one AIDS denialism video on YouTube, the site suggests other denialist videos, "essentially serving up content to keep me on the site longer.

An emerging health issue Evelyn P. At issue is a Gilead drug called Truvada, which is combined with one of two other medicines to form nPEP, or non-occupational post-exposure prophylaxis, the term used to describe preventive treatment. Observational studies suggest the combination can reduce the risk of acquiring HIV infection when started within 72 hours of exposure and continued for a month. McDaniels, Baltimore Sun, The estimated number of annual HIV infections in the United States fell nearly 20 percent between , after remaining stable since the mids.

Nick Harrison learned he was infected with H. The only thing H. The military bars anyone with the virus that causes AIDS from joining. Policies crafted in the s allow troops who contract the disease while in the military to stay as long as they remain otherwise healthy, but bars them from deploying in nearly all cases. He lives in San Francisco, which is turning the tide against H. PrEP Use in U. Adoption was initially slow, but by late it began to rise steeply as gay and bisexual men starting promoting PrEP within their communities.

However, it is difficult to estimate the total number of people who have used PrEP because this information is not centrally collected. In , Miami had the highest new infection rate per capita of any U. The report urged Miami to strengthen its testing and treatment efforts—as has happened in San Francisco, New York state, and Vancouver, Canada—and it promoted a proven prevention strategy called pre-exposure prophylaxis PrEP: Director Says Donald G. Frieden argued "for a public health approach to outweigh a strictly medical one. In , he advocated H.

Frieden expressed frustration with 'AIDS exceptionalism' — laws that made it difficult for public health authorities to treat AIDS as they might tuberculosis, syphilis or meningitis. Boerner takes a deep-dive into a complicated topic, writing the science not only crisply and clearly, but compellingly.

Boerner tells the story of two couples, each with an HIV-positive partner, who love one another so deeply that they are willing to take what seems like a risk to have a healthy baby of their own making. Positively Negative is a story of triumph, against the backdrop of medical advancement over more than a decade, that will touch readers and leave them thinking long after putting it down.

Paul Pioneer Press, Summer , posted on Storylines. But now, the technology is being used to map HIV outbreaks in real time, lending molecular weight to the in-person interviews that public health officials have used for centuries to track and stop outbreaks. The Austin reconstruction is an example of what it can do The idea was that they'd test it on the Indiana outbreak first, and then offer the technology, which uses multiple programs and takes partner interviews into account, for free to public health departments across the country At each step in this outbreak, officials could have intervened without the DNA map, Cooke says.

If that early person with HIV were able to access treatment, the risk of transmitting the virus in the first place would have been negligible. If there had been a syringe access program, there would have been less needle sharing and even injecting drugs wouldn't have transmitted the virus. If there was adequate mental health care, people might deal with childhood traumas differently.

If addiction treatment were more readily available, if HIV prevention tools like Truvada were available everywhere — all of these could have deescalated the outbreak, he says. Hyde This American Life ep. Benjamin Gilmer left gets a job at a rural clinic. Gilmer picture — who went to prison after killing his own father. I am really trying to understand certain behaviors that I feel stem from the head trauma. What is the best resource that I can use to learn more about this? I was 24 when I had moderate to severe tbi.

I'm 35 now, feels like after around 2 years since the 2 week coma, I'm completely recovered. I cannot see with one eye but it's because in the accident the eye nerve was cut by face bones. Depression, anxiety and etc.? Who doesn't have it? All of us have had different level of recovery which depends on many factors and especially age.

Back pain: how to live with one of the world’s biggest health problems

My doctor told me if I would've be 25 the recovery would be different. I'm in this same situation. I fell 15 ft out of a tree when I was six and cracked my skull open. I was in intensive care for months. Now I'm 32 and I experience bad migraines, eye pain, lack of energy, problems with balance, depression, and anxiety. Just started happening here lately. I'm sorry to hear of this, I was in a wreck with a brain injury and in a coma for a month.

I don't have any of the issues that you mention. The issue that I have to live with is that my brain stopped developing at So basically my mind will think I'm 19 for the rest of my life. Not sure the point in sharing here. I was hoping for answers: The motorcycle slammed me into the truck, broke most every bone in my body, then I flew 90 feet in the air, head first into the pavement. Learned how to walk, how to talk, how to think, all over again. And mentally, I felt 17 for the next 20 years.

Now I feel like I'm Meaning that my brain has not ever caught back up to my now 48 year old body. My body aged, my brain didn't. I eventually recovered enough to get into management and leadership roles. Just an old kid. I've always had some form of depression since the accident. About 5 years ago, I snapped. I screamed at a friend because I was mad at her. Prior to this event, I was always able to contain my anger. But I acted horribly. And I've been doing this more and more often.

I was a long term type employee. Now I can barely keep jobs I like. Because I'll blow up at something stupid. Now, I'm starting to feel like I'm losing my mind. I'm not right, and I don't know what's happening to me. On the outside, one may not know, that on the inside, I'm dying.

And I want to die. But I don't want to die. And I'm feeling like everyone is against me, even my friends. I can't think straight. I've gotten worse over the years and each year seems twice as bad as the previous. I yelled at and lost a woman I love, because I can't control this. I've lost many jobs in the last 5 years.

And I almost never lost a job before. Ever think about counseling? Hi I am glad I got to read your post. I also had a TBI 34 years ago and a concussion 24 years ago. I also just snapped about 5 years ago with very similar experiences. I have't found any real help or anyone to connect with about this.

If you have found a direction to get more help, please share. I am sorry for your pain and I definitely relate to the bewilderment. I hope to hear from you. I'm 53 years old. I had a head injury when I was 6 years old.

My skull was cracked and I was in a coma for 3 weeks. Now I suffer with depression, anxiety and loss of memory. Thank you for this article. Thank you so much for this article, it's really helpful. I had a concussion when I was four and was in a coma for six months. I'm now 39 and have been living a normal life so far, as I'm able to work and live independently. However, I still have problems with anxiety and depression, as well as worrying about the long term effect of my injury as I age.

Your advice is very useful. My uncle fell from a ladder while painting outside and suffered a brain injury, this was back in Sadly he now has little time left in this world and I will miss him dearly. They said he would not make it originally four years ago but he fought hard. After all the physical therapy, occupational therapy and rehabs.

Numerous test and examinations I think his body is tired. He suffered frontal lobe damage both sides. During his recovery diabetes, high blood pressure and seizures appeared, blood clots on his brain and body aches from the fall. About a month ago he suffered a stroke and he could no longer eat so they put in a feeding tube. He now has pneumonia and is not expected to make it till his birthday this month. I cared for my uncle after his injury until June of this year and he had a clean bill of health and the doctors told me he had no issues as long as he took his meds daily!

Guess they were so wrong I will always love him. Keep my family in your prayers. I hate to report he has been getting slowly worse over time. Even with physical therapy his balance starting getting bad which resulted in more falls and a few more hospitalizations. He has developed swallowing problems and after a swallow test was diagnosed with dysphasia. He has also had speech and OT therapies. I have to puree all of his foods.

He has lost a lot of weight. He is not the big strong man who went to work that day more than five years ago and he is not the same person. People do not understand that you are now living with a different person. This is not the man you married. TBI survivors need much more nutrition, and I promise that there is not a prescription better than these aforementioned supplements. Ten years later, my son continues to be introduced to new supplements, and each one works for him very specifically and sometimes quickly.

My fiances TBI happened over 20 years ago. Since I have been with him, I have seen various episodes where I know his brain isn't functioning correctly. I understand you can't give medical or legal advice He has talked to the doctors and he has been trying to get disability but Its like no-one is listening because his injury happened so long ago. My husband is also 42 but I'm really not only in age. It has caused so many problems. I had a severe traumatic injury years ago and have no assistance..

Just trying to enjoy everyday because yesterday is forgotten.

I had a severe brain injury at 12 years old. Skull fracture in a car accident. Coma for 14 days, hospitalized for 5 weeks. Had all kinds of problems my whole life related to it. But, with a lot of love and help from those around me, I've managed to live a relatively successful life as a musician and a meditation practitioner.

Now at age 54, early onset dementia came on with a profound sense of apathy and disconnection from the world. I realized that my life was coming to an end as a functional human being. Check out Dr Fife's book, although there also lots of other sources. My 31 year old son had a TBI a month ago. He lives with us. He seems ok but I worry about him being alone for a week if we go away as planned.

I feel I need to cancel our plans. He still has headaches and some equilibrium issues. I am 54 yrs now. In , hit by car. Coma 11 days, hospital 3 months. At that time, no one believed I had any brain problems; they just believed I became "lazy". Not able to communicate to get help. Recently, I tried to get family doctor to refer me. Drained to keep trying.

Very tired, a lot. Simple things take me all day. Even that drains me. Each second is a miracle. Even if I could just pray silently, instead of having a blank mind, a miracle. In I was hit from behind in a car. I know I look normal, etc. I "used to" lots of stuff, but can't anymore. I can't make decisions. Is there any help out there. I am 77 and falling down the "rabbit-hole. I'm a brain injury patient.

Suffering a closed head injury in and experienced amnesia for a few weeks. After the swelling went down my memory began to get better and six to eight months short term got better too. Now 61, I feel my meniere's disease is probably due to that injury of years ago! So pleased to read all this Every day is a battle to achieve things that used to be automatic and easy, especially cognitively, emotionally, short term memory and fatigue I maintain my old job on a reduced 3 days a week but the concentration and energy and reasoning required wear me out daily. I work with Registered nurses and health professionals supporting young families and none of my bosses or colleagues 'get it' which adds further to my frustrations.

My immediate manager said to me "it's hard to understand and appreciate your challenges because you look so normal" Grrrr If health professionals don't understand what hope is there for anyone else to understand. I still have to fight to prove myself often so I can be compensated by ACC accident compensation so they will cover the one day a week I have reduced my hours at work even though I have several medical reports saying this a long term condition unlikely to change. It would be nice if the professionals that mange these decisions understood the challenges and that pressure to perform and any change is stressful.

I feel like my whole life and personality has changed with my energy levels especially I hate it but it would be a lot easier to accept without having to work and the pressure to perform.. We like to think that this could never happen in the UK, and Underwood admits there is a huge difference between the two healthcare systems. My advice for anybody is: If the insurers are running for the hills, it cannot be worth the risk.

The US opioid crisis is well documented, but prescription of the drugs for chronic pain has been rising year on year in the UK too, and Underwood believes we need to take it seriously. At one end of the graph is Ealing, with just under 10 prescriptions for opioid analgesics per 1, patients; at the other end is NHS Durham Dales, Easington and Sedgefield CCG, where the rate is nine times higher. A study published in February found that, despite their ineffectiveness in treating chronic pain, opioid prescriptions by GPs are higher in deprived areas and northern England.

The alternative, says Underwood, is better support for GPs and better services to help patients manage their pain, such as self-management support services including groups that help participants learn techniques and strategies for dealing with the challenges of living with daily pain. Fundamental to understanding chronic low back pain, Ramin says, is the biopsychosocial model: Most patients who suffer for a long time lose that sense of control over the body.

They feel separate from their bodies, feel their bodies are taking terrible advantage of them. Breaking that cycle, managing your life and moving forwards has great potential to help. There is another way in which the mind can have an impact on back pain: There may have been some abuse or trauma that cannot be spoken, that has had to be repressed, and that comes out in physical rather than emotional pain.

In one project, he is working with Turkish and Kurdish women on a city farm, where gardening and therapy take place at the same time. And, eventually, they start talking about their trauma. It can reduce the need to focus so strongly on the symptom; it can make them feel more able to face life. The pain dominates less. So if you have low back pain, what should you do? They should be performed every day. She also practises Feldenkrais , an approach that combines movement, breathing, body alignment and mindfulness.

She has gone from struggling to walk for a few minutes to walking two miles a day. When I ask Underwood what works, he tells me: He has also worked on a trial that showed training physiotherapists to deliver the cognitive behavioural approach in a group, combining movement and reassurance about movement, is helpful to patients and could be delivered in the NHS at low cost. But perhaps the most helpful thing we can do is challenge the assumption that, if our back hurts, there is a pain generator in there somewhere that can be scanned, identified, injected or surgically removed, and fixed.

• Myths & Hitches 2
• Café Vaterland: Roman zweier Brüder (German Edition)
• Manipulateurs - Comment leurs échaper ? (French Edition)
• Urban Voodoo: A Beginners Guide to Afro-Caribbean Magic
• Dans la peau de Lady Gaga (French Edition)
• Big Is Beautiful! : Lessons for Living Happily With Your Plus Sized Body