Tag: Conditions and Diseases

Posted in September

Cervical Dystonia

Posted on by dystoniaandme

Cervical Dystonia is when the spasms are in the neck, this can be quite painful and can result in awkward neck postures.Generally the spasms will cause the head to pull to one side, backwards or forwards. In my case my head pulls down towards my left shoulder but with a forward twist. I also have a no style tremor to my neck. It is the most common form of Dystonia and according to The Dystonia Society is currently estimated to affect around 18,000 people in the UK. Like most forms of Dystonia if it occurs in adulthood then it will hopefully remain in just that part of the body.

The most effective treatment for Cervical Dystonia at the moment is regular Botox injections, though how well this work varies from sufferer to sufferer. I receive regular Botox injections to both sides of my neck and it has had a massive impact and helps me keep my head fairly straight  whilst the Botox is working. Medications such as muscles relaxants can provide people with some relief as well. Pressure being applied to specific points around the neck and face in some people is beneficial but this is not the same for everyone.

This image demonstrates some of the positions the spasms can pull the head in to.

Posted in Archive, May 2014

Leg/foot Dystonia

Posted on by dystoniaandme

Instead of working steadily down the body for my blog posts I decided today to go straight on down to the leg/foot. This may have been influenced by todays spasms. For me, I class my leg/foot spasms as one of my most debilitating symptoms as it has resulted in me being unable to walk and having to use a wheelchair. In young adults and children Dystonia in the leg/foot area can be a sign of generalised Dystonia. Whereas for older adults (usually 30+ ) it would be more likely that it would be just in that area, this is known as focal Dystonia. I used to always walk funny, often falling over, and kicking my ankles open. I would often say “my legs just won’t do what I want”, at the time it was laughed off but now I often wonder if this was the first sign of the condition.

Dystonia is currently not a curable condition, therefore treatment is focused more on managing the current symptoms as well as possible. The most effective treatment at the moment involves regular Botox injections, where the injections are given depends on the spasm. Some people find that they need a combination of medications such as muscle relaxants as well as Botox injections . Physiotherapy is thought to be of use as well in a number in a cases, this is something I am starting to try along with Botox and muscle relaxants.

 Below are two photos of my foot/leg spasms.

Posted in Archive, May 2014

Oromandibular Dystonia

Posted on by dystoniaandme

Oromandibular Dystonia affects the mouth area, this includes the tongue, jaw and lips. It is part of my Generalised Dystonia and I find it affects both my jaw and my tongue. I have often found myself in situations where I have found myself sounding like I am drunk because I am unable to pronounce my words due to the spasm going on in my tongue.

Oromandibular Dystonia often affects the sufferers ability to chew and speak. When my spasms are bad I find that I can only consume liquified foods and yoghurts, as the spasms that are taking place leave me unable to chew. Some people may just have Oromandibular Dystonia or they may have it with Blepharospasm (Eye Dystonia), or as part of Generalised Dystonia like myself. If it is a focal Dystonia (just on its own) then it normal appears between the ages of 40 and 70.

Oromandibular Dystonia was one of my first symptoms. I was at university, and to be honest I didn’t really think too much of it at first, but then when the spasms became extreme and caused my jaw to dislocate I began to realise just how much pain they could inflict. As there is no cure for Dystonia a combination of Botox injections and medications are used to manage it. I find Botox injections to be particularly effective at managing it. Botox seems to only work for around 5/6 weeks for me, luckily I have a very lovely neurologist who is willing to administer the injections every 6 weeks. This works fantastically well for me, as without this my jaw spasms are extreme. Some people find pressure points or chewing gum helpful in managing their symptoms.

I would highly recommend for anyone wanting to know more on the condition checking either out The Dystonia Society website http://www.dystonia.org.uk/index.php/about-dystonia/types-of-dystonia/mouth-or-tongue-dystonia or The Dystonia Research Foundation http://dystonia-foundation.org/what-is-dystonia/forms-of-dystonia/focal-dystonias/more-on-oromandibular-dystonia .

Posted in Archive, May 2014

Blepharospasm

Posted on by dystoniaandme

Blepharospasm is a type of Dystonia that affects the eyes. These spasms are often rather painful and can involve the eyelids as well as the muscles behind and around the eyes. As with all types of Dystonia people experience different types of spasms, some people have increased sensitivity to light and rapid blinking, whilst others find their eyes spasm shut, and in some cases the muscles behind the eyes pull the eyes up into the head making the person functionally blind. I experience several of these spasms and find that the sensitivity to light often triggers the other spasms.

Generally speaking symptoms usually appear in people around the ages of 50 to 70. However it does affect younger people, Blepharospasm can appear on its own or in conjunction with or part of other Dystonias such as Meige Syndrome or Generalized Dystonia. Blepharospasm is thought to affect around 7,000 adults in the UK.

There is currently no known cure for Dystonia. Treatment for Blepharospasm normally involves regular Botox injections. I find that six weekly injections around my eyes helps with symptoms such as spasming shut and rapid blinking, but the muscles behind the eyes cannot be injected. By wearing dark sunglasses in the sunlight or in brightly lit area, I can reduce the chances of going blind but it still happens. The longest this has ever happened for is 15 hours. Some people find that pressure points around the temples, and nose area can help relieve the spasms. Obviously these pressure points differ from person to person.

In the picture below you can see my eyes pulled back in a spasm leaving me functionally blind.

as

The Dystonia Society’s website has some great tips on how to cope with the condition so head on over to it to find out more http://www.dystonia.org.uk/index.php/about-dystonia/types-of-dystonia/eye-dystonia-

Posted in Archive, May 2014

Dystonia Awareness Week

Posted on by dystoniaandme

From today to the 11th of May is Dystonia Awareness week! To celebrate it and help spread awareness I have taken apart in the Go Green for Dystonia campaign. I decided that I would do this in a similar way to last year and have dyed a section of my hair green for the week (luckily it will wash out quickly).

. Photo: Green streak in my hair and wearing green for Dystonia awarness week.

I have a of couple awareness activities planned for this week besides being part of the Go Green for Dystonia Campaign. The first of my awareness activities is to do a blog every day, minus today’s entry I plan for each one to focus on a different aspect of Dystonia and how they can impact on day-to-day life. On Wednesday I am running an Awareness event at my college which I am really excited about, it’ll be a fantastic opportunity to educate lots of people on the condition and raise a bit of money for The Dystonia Society.

I have also signed up to Thunderclap, which is something all of you lovely readers can get involved with too! Thunderclap sends out an awareness message via your Facebook/twitter/tumbler (depending on what you choose) at 1:30pm on May 9th. It’s a great way to spread the word about Dystonia. Even Stephen Fry has signed up for it! If you would like to join in here is the link https://www.thunderclap.it/projects/9777-dystonia-awareness-week.

 

 

Posted in April 2014, Archive

Disappointed & Disheartened

Posted on by dystoniaandme

Yesterday I had my appointment up in London with my neurologist. I had been really looking forward to this appointment, as I wanted his opinion on a couple of things. Firstly on my new leg spasm and if there was any treatments he could suggest that could help it. I am taking 45mg/ml of Baclofen a day for it and whilst this is controlling it, it impacts my cognitive ability greatly. I am able to hold a conversation but anything that requires me to start actually using my brain and answering questions is too much and I am unable to do so, I end up relying on my mum or whoever is with me at the time to do so for me.The second thing I wanted his opinion on was on a type of splint that my physios are arranging for me to try called Second Skin. It’s a lycra based splint that provides  feedback to the brain, and it seems to work either really well or not at all.

For my leg he had no idea what to do other than keeping me on the Baclofen.  He is referring me for more intensive physiotherapy to see if that will help but other than that he was lost for ideas. So I guess all we can do is hope that these new splints when I try them work, because otherwise I do not know what to do. In regards to the splints he did not say too much, he said they could do no harm which is always good to know and that they may help but didn’t say much more on the subject.

The main reason I had been looking forward to yesterday’s appointment is that in a letter I had received from my neurologist the other week he had stated in it that he hoped to have an answer for me about my IV treatment for Neurological Lyme Disease by the time he next saw me. I took this as a positive statement when I read it as recently in conversations with my doctors it had all been looking like it could go ahead if someone could be found to oversee it. Sadly this is not this the case. The hospital that originally said this can be set up if you find a neurologist to oversee it, is now saying they want more evidence that I have Lyme. By evidence they mean a positive Lumbar Puncture result.

My neurologist has said that he can arrange for me to have a Lumbar Puncture very quickly and it is up to me whether or not I agree to go through with it. He is not very happy for me to have one done as it puts me at risk of developing new symptoms or my current symptoms getting worse. There is also the problem that I cannot actually guarantee I can stay still due to body spasms so for them to realistically be able to do the Lumbar Puncture I would have to be under a General Anesthetic. The tests for Lyme Disease are also extremely unreliable giving false positives and negatives, and with a years worth of oral antibiotics in my system its more likely to come back negative.

I started taking oral antibiotics for Neurological Lyme Disease this time last year, and we have battled for the correct treatment which is IV antibiotics for the last year. For a whole year I have been put under the impression that I would get IV it would just be a bit difficult to set up. Now I am extremely upset. All I have done since I left the hospital yesterday is cry on and off. The IV would not cure my Dystonia but it would cure my Lyme, and who knows how much of my body is that! I had all my hopes pinned on this!! I am terrified that now when they take me off my oral antibiotics, which I know will happen soon, that my symptoms like my hand spasms, that improved may come back. I could not cope with that!

My plan today is to phone a local private hospital that I know treat Lyme Disease and see if they will consider treating me without the Lumbar Puncture. If they won’t then I will have the Lumbar Puncture done as I would rather risk it and hopefully get treated then spend my whole life wondering what if I had done it.

I am feeling very lost, and sad right now and I know things can only get better. It’s just hard after spending a whole year having all my hopes pinned on this treatment to have it snatched away. On a positive note I did get my injections done, and he was so lovely and apologetic. I am lucky that I have him. I  just have to struggle on.struggle

 

Posted in Archive, March 2014

Ambulance Trip

Posted on by dystoniaandme

I’d like to start this post off by apologizing in advance if bits don’t quite make sense. I have a fair bit of medication in my system and I am having to concentrate very hard as I do not really feel like I am with it today. Over the last few days my body has been very interesting. I presumed it was just in meltdown mode after the trip to London and back for my Botox injections last Tuesday. My right leg in particular has been bad. The spasms have been impressive but rather painful. I have found myself repeatedly over the last few days in the position in the photo below. which I can assure you is not a comfortable one to be in.

Photo: So its not a particularly bad spasm. But why my leg felt the need to spend more time next to my head baffles me and was rather uncomfertable

Last night my body did full body twitches, which was a new symptom for me, however this did not seem to stop, then my leg joined in spasming repeatedly into the above position. However several times whilst in that position my hip spasmed in one direction and my lower leg spasmed in the opposite direction. This caused agony, and according to my family they all heard a cracking sound. I then started to have lots of my Non Epileptic Seizures. In between seizures when I was spasming we tried administering our crisis medication, Tramadol and diazepam, but this did not seem to touch the pain or the spasms, which meant that an Ambulance had to be phoned.

The paramedics, Gareth and Amanda, were two of the nicest people I have met. They helped keep me as comfortable as possible, which is saying something considering the amount of pain I was in. It was decided that I needed to go to hospital to have my leg checked out as it was swelling and they thought I had torn a ligament. In the end they gave me IV morphine which made me slightly sleepy and giggle, to helped ease the pain enough to transfer me into the ambulance safely, where they then gave me Gas and Air. I now understand why the women I looked after on the labour ward loved the stuff so much. At first it had me creasing up in laughter like a crazy woman, eventually I then thought I was dreaming the whole situation, which was when we decided I had maybe had enough of it. I have to say I was so impressed by the standard of care they gave me. They didn’t know anything about my condition, but they treated better than half the previous doctors I have seen!

The doctor Teeto and the nurse Precious in charge of my care, were again wonderful people. I feel extremely lucky to have been under the care. Teeto actually knew a fair bit about Dystonia and was not fazed by spasms at all. He quickly had me sent down to x-ray to make sure I had not broken my knee, where I had some more seizures on the poor woman as she to move my leg about. Thankfully I have not broken anything!! I have just damaged and pulled some of the bits in my leg. Teeto, sent me home with a box of Diazepam, his plan is for me to take this at regular intervals over the next few days, in the hope it will break this new spasm cycle.

Whilst I am in a lot pain now, and feeling rather spaced, I am so thankful that I was under the care of four such wonderful people last night. They were all so caring, and you could tell really wanted to help stop my pain and spasms. It is amazing the difference incredible people like these can make during times when you are in agony!

Posted in Archive, March 2014

Fundraising and Awareness

Posted on by dystoniaandme

As many of you the Dystonia Society is a charity that is very close to my heart. Without the amazing work they do I would not have known who to turn to in the beginning, I would most likely still be looking for a diagnosis. The support they provide is invaluable to so many sufferers and the website is full of information that is constantly being updated. They also help provide funding for research, this is vital as you never know whose research will one day find a cure to Dystonia. For such a small charity they provide an amazing service, however they are reliant on donations. This is why each year I do lots of fundraising activities and awareness campaigning.

My cousin David and his fabulous friend Sam are running the London Marathon in a couple of weeks’ time. This is something I admire them greatly for doing. They are aiming to raise a total of £3000 for the Dystonia Society. Now some of you may be thinking that’s a mighty high target! Well, that’s because the London Marathon organisers charge charities £2000 a place! So for charities to actually gain any money from donations the targets have to be placed extremely high. However people who have not gained a place through a charity don’t have to pay anywhere near this amount of money to run!  If you would like to help David and Sam achieve there £3000 target here is their Just Giving link http://www.justgiving.com/DavidandSam2014.

A fab company called Recykilt are running a competition so if you like to win a one of kind Recykilt cushion, when you donate simply type the words Recykilt in the comment box, make sure you have included your name. You can see examples of previous cushions here https://www.facebook.com/recykilt/media_set?set=a.171278609595603.40296.100001403947434&type=3

David has been doing other bits of fundraising as well, with his previous company even joining in. So to help out we are throwing our annual Dystonia tea party earlier than normal to raise money to add to David and Sam’s total. As usual our tea party will consist of all the cake and tea/coffee you can eat and drink, along with lots of information on Dystonia. The Dystonia Society have been very kind and provided us with some fantastic leaflets so if anyone has any questions that I don’t know the answers to then I am sure they will be in there. 

Last year myself and a lady in America organised an event called Go Blue. Well this year, I am encouraging everyone to Go Green during awareness week (May 3rd -11th), which is the Dystonia Society’s colour.  Whether you dye a lock of hair green, dress in green, wear green make up etc., it does not matter as long as people know what you’re doing and why. Encourage as many people as you can to get involved, take a photo and spread the word.

The Dystonia Society are also using a website called Thunderclap that co-ordinates sending messages out for groups of people. The aim of this is that on the 9th May a mass message gets sent out at 1:30pm through the social media network saying ““Help us raise awareness of #dystonia, a neurological condition that causes muscle spasms. Do it for dystonia! http://thndr.it/1fXu9dr” The more people that sign up to Thunderclap, then more people will see this, it is a fantastic awareness tool, but it will only work if lots of us sign up to it.  You can register through your Twitter and/or Facebook account with them, and it sends out a message on your behalf at the set time during awareness week. You can register here https://www.thunderclap.it/projects/9777-dystonia-awareness-week?locale=en .

I have some other fundraising and awareness ideas up my sleeve, but until they are certain I shall keep them for another blog post. Raising funds, and awareness is the only way Dystonia will ever be cured, so please share this, donate, and sign up!

Posted in Archive, March 2014

Neurophysiotherapy

Posted on by dystoniaandme

Today I had an appointment at Jacketts Field Neurological Centre for my neuro-physiotherapy assessment. I was slightly worried as I had heard very mixed reviews about the unit but was doing my best to go with an open mind. As it was an assessment I knew a lot of the time there would be spent answering questions verbally e.g how does your spasms affect your ability to swallow or do you have any walking ability? However some of it was going to be physical, this left me concerned as my body is currently in meltdown mode due to lack of Botox so moving about could be painful. Luckily my mother agreed to come with me which put my mind at rest, if the worst did happen and I had seizure after seizure and an ambulance needed to be called, I would be safe and my mother would be able to instruct them on what needed to be done – however all that worrying was for nothing as I didn’t have a seizure 🙂

After answering a lot of questions and having a good laugh with the physiotherapist, it was time to demonstrate just what my little Dystonia alien does to my legs. Figuring I would only have to take two or three steps with my walking sticks, plus the physio and my mum holding me up, I happily stripped off my splints and stood up. This promptly set off my spasms in my legs and the next things I knew I was on the floor! I had not even taken one step! Benedict obviously had been enjoying playing twister with my face and got his knickers in a right old twister when asked for my legs to join in…stroppy sod! As much as my body is now a little sore at least it gave the physio a good idea of what exactly I am contending with.

Due to how much my body does, the assessment did not get finished even though we majorly ran over time! So we have had to book another assessment in! I am really looking forward to this.

On a quick note this Saturday I am attending my local Dystonia Society Group meeting, this will be this first one I have been to and I am so excited to meet other people with my condition!

Posted in Archive, February 2014

Feeling Good

Posted on by dystoniaandme

Last time I posted I felt that I was balancing on the knifes edge and was feeling pretty negative, well I’m feeling darn good today and I plan on enjoying it. My legs have not been as bad the last couple of days, the swelling in my knees is going down and the pain in them is tolerable. This improvement has made such a mental difference as the pain was really beginning to get me down.

Having my pain levels go down has made the biggest difference as it is the pain that I struggle to deal with the most. I can cope with my body spasming, tremoring and getting into unnatural positions but the pain is what I can’t cope with. Normally it would be my jaw that causes the unbearable pain, so at least having it in my knees made a change.

I am now on half term, which mean no college and no riding 😦 however I know that it is best just to let my body rest and recover this week, before I throw myself back into everything head first next week. On a positive note I made into college last week!! After being too ill to go in the week before I was determined to drag myself out of bed and into college – trying to get dressed whilst my legs where on strike was interesting but  I managed it and it was the best thing I could have done. I know that I tire very easily these days but doing normal things like college make me so happy.

As I have mentioned before my cousin David and his friend Sam are running the London marathon for The Dystonia Society in April. I woke up to see a small article had been written on them in their local newspaper (Somerset). Its so positive to see awareness of Dystonia spreading!

I often say that I wish I could see inside my brain so I could have a better understanding of what exactly is going on. As other than all the medical jargon I have no idea what exactly it is doing…this picture describe it perfectly and makes me smile.