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Keep your life on track with MS Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic, unpredictable disease that poses challenges for the whole family.
Multiple Sclerosis For Dummies is your accessible guide to living well with MS. Learn how to optimize your physical and emotional wellbeing with early treatment, comprehensive symptom management, and attention to your overall wellness-all with the goal of helping you function comfortably, safely, and independently at work, at home, and in your community. Together with your MS care team, you will create a treatment plan that works for you.
Inside... - Managing visible and invisible symptoms
- Understanding the importance of early treatment
- Building your healthcare team
- Enhancing your wellness as a person with MS or a care partner
- Managing stress and enhancing resilience
- Understanding your workplace rights
- Navigating the insurance maze
- Building your safety nets for the unpredictable future
List of contents
Foreword xv
Introduction 1
Part 1: When MS Becomes Part of Your Life 5 Chapter 1: Meeting MS Face to Face 7
Chapter 2: So, What Do I Have? Getting a Diagnosis 25
Chapter 3: You Have MS - So Now What? 39
Chapter 4: Getting the Right Players on Your Healthcare Team 57
Part 2: Taking Charge of Your MS 73 Chapter 5: Developing a Plan to Take Charge of Your MS 75
Chapter 6: Managing the Disease Course and Treating Relapses 83
Chapter 7: Managing Symptoms That Impact Sensation 101
Chapter 8: Managing Symptoms That Impact Motor Function 111
Chapter 9: Managing Invisible Symptoms 125
Part 3: Staying Healthy and Feeling Well 165 Chapter 10: Paying Attention to Your Health - It's Not All about MS 167
Chapter 11: Making Healthy Lifestyle Choices 177
Chapter 12: Handling Stress without Giving Up Your Life 189
Part 4: Managing Lifestyle Issues 203 Chapter 13: Presenting Your MS Face to the World 205
Chapter 14: Making MS a Part of the Family 219
Chapter 15: And Baby Makes Three, Four, or More: Planning a Family around Your MS 241
Chapter 16: Parenting: It Wasn't Easy Before You Had MS! 251
Chapter 17: Coping with Progressive Forms of MS 269
Part 5: Creating Your Safety Nets 287 Chapter 18: Keeping Your Place in the Workforce 289
Chapter 19: Getting a Grip on Insurance 305
Chapter 20: Planning for a Future with MS 319
Part 6: The Part of Tens 333 Chapter 21: Ten MS Myths Debunked 335
Chapter 22: Ten Tips for Care Partners 341
Chapter 23: Ten Tips for Trouble-Free Travel 347
Glossary 353
Index 365
About the author
Rosalind Kalb, PhD, CHC, is a clinical psychologist and lead senior programs consultant at Can Do MS, a health and wellness organization for those affected by MS.
Barbara Giesser, MD, is a neurologist and director of the MS Comprehensive Care Clinic at the Pacific Neuroscience Institute.
Kathleen Costello, ANP-BC, MSCN, is chief operating officer at Can Do MS.
