March is National MS Education and Awareness Month (NMEAM), an initiative of the Multiple Sclerosis Foundation (MSF) to raise awareness for this chronic neurological disease affecting the brain, spinal cord and optic nerves.

This year’s theme is “At Your Best with MS,” encouraging the more than 2.5 million people with MS worldwide to seek the best quality of life possible.  This means different things to different people as MS varies widely in severity, with approximately 15% of those diagnosed becoming severely disabled.  It could include adhering to a treatment regimen, eating healthy, keeping fit, developing a support network and/or maintaining good emotional health.

It could also refer to nurturing hobbies and interests.  That’s why the MSF has launched the “Show Us Your Best” contest, which calls for creative submissions (such as poems, essays, photo collages, videos, songs and more) demonstrating how people are raising awareness of MS.  The deadline for entry is March 31st, and the grand prize winner will win a cruise for two on MSF’s 2013 “Cruise for a Cause” to Alaska.

With 26,000+ members, the MS community at PatientsLikeMe is one of our largest.  Approximately 80% of the MS community is female (reflecting the fact that MS is at least 2-3 times more common in women than men), and slightly more than half have the relapsing-remitting form of the disease (RRMS).  We also have 1,400+ patients with primary progressive MS (PPMS), 2,200+ with secondary progressive MS (SPMS) and 580+ with progressive relapsing MS (PRMS).

Some of the most commonly reported MS symptoms in our community include bladder problems, brain fog, excessive daytime sleepiness and stiffness/spasticity.  What are our members taking for these issues – as well as for MS itself?  From disease-modifying treatments (DMTs) like Copaxone, Avonex and Tysabri to steroids like Prednisone to symptom-specific medications like Baclofen and Modafinil, our members have submitted hundreds of evaluations for nearly all available treatment options.  (Click on each drug name above to find out how they rate the effectiveness, side effects, cost and more.)

Our members are not only sharing their experiences with treatments and symptoms on their PatientsLikeMe profiles – they’re also chatting about them.  A lot.  To date, the MS forum room has over 786,000 posts! Some of the most frequently used forum tags are CCSVI (“The Liberation Procedure”), Low Dose Naltexone (LDN), SSDI (Disability Insurance), Fatigue, “LimboLand” and Research.  (Click on each category to see what patients are saying about the topic.)

Piqued by all the knowledge found in our MS community?  This is just the the tip of the iceberg – and the kickoff of our MS coverage this month.  Stay tuned for more about what our MS members are sharing and learning during MS Awareness Week (March 10-17th), organized by the National Multiple Sclerosis Society (NMSS).

With more than 82,000 patients on PatientsLikeMe, there’s a lot of information being shared with one another.  Last month, we highlighted how your sharing affects the experience of many on our site (One For All series).

Today, we continue that theme by taking a look at information being shared across all of our communities that many of you may have in common. Can you guess how many of you are on similar treatments or experiencing similar symptoms even though you are in different communities? Read on to find out.

DID YOU KNOW…

• Of the members who have reported their age, more than 8,000 of our of you have indicated you’re under 30-years old and more than 12,000 are 55-years old or older.
• Approximately 31% (or 27,013) of patient members across all communities experience depression.

How are you treating your condition?

• You report using more than 4,500 treatments for your conditions, including prescription drugs, supplements, over-the-counter medications, medical devices, life-style modifications, therapies, etc.
• One of the top lifestyle modifications reported by our members is heat avoidance; and physical exercise is the #1 exercise cited.
• The most widely used prescription drugs reported across communities include Gabapentin (Neurontin), Glatiramer acetate (Copaxone) and Duloxetine (Cymbalta).
• The top 3 supplements reported by all patients are Vitamin D, Omega 3 Fish Oil and Multivitamins.

What are your major symptoms?

• The 5 most common primary symptoms reported include fatigue, anxious mood, depressed mood, pain and brain fog.

What are you talking about?

• Some of most frequently “tagged” topics in the forum include research, symptoms (e.g., pain), SSDI (Social Security Disability Insurance), coping strategies and side effects.

A special thank you to all of our members for continuing to share your data and experiences to help others just like you.

Last week, we posted highlights from our December community newsletter interviews. As we close out 2010, we want to spotlight another question asked this month – one that is relative to all members, all patients (no matter the condition).  What obstacles have you faced and overcome this year?

To review all of our newsletters, you can visit our archives page here.

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	(Amy) What obstacles have you overcome this year?
	(ellieGADsufferer – Mood Conditions Community) First of all, I became well enough to leave my local psychiatric hospital after having been an inpatient for six months. My anxiety means that all new things – even getting on a bus to go somewhere new – make me have severe panic symptoms. I now make sure I am out of bed by 0700hrs during the week and make myself go out at least three times per week, whether it is meeting friends for coffee or attending appointments. Otherwise I will return to “avoidance,” whereby I cut off all contact with friends and family, including calls and text messages.
	(kidneygirl1198and0505 – Transplants Community) I have had to deal with and overcome the struggles that come with tardive dyskinesia. Reglan has been black-boxed [with a FDA-mandated warning about the risk of tardive dyskinesia] over the past two years, but I took it for three or four years before that. [Read kidneygirl1198and0505's Reglan treatment evaluation for more details.] Signs of tardive dyskinesia may include: continuous and repetitive movements of the mouth, tongue, and jaw; facial grimacing; lip smacking, puffing of the cheeks; uncontrollable movements of the arms, legs, fingers, and toes; and swaying motions of the trunk or hips. Mine has gotten so bad that I have regular grand mal seizures from time to time, and sometimes it’s hard to carry on a conversation without looking weird.
	(mountain lady – Parkinson’s Disease Community) One of the biggest obstacles in my life this year was getting over the death of a very close friend.  This person became ill and died within a few months.  Her death made me more aware of how precious life is. Another obstacle was in the adjustment of my medicine for Parkinson’s.  My doctor wanted me to try a new medicine with fewer long-term side effects.  I tried it for several months but did not do very well.  I am currently back on my original medicine, taking a little more than before, but I have readjusted well.
	(andrewn78 – HIV Community) This year I overcame a hard breakup. It was difficult because I thought we were going to be together for a longer term relationship than we were (only nine months). It was also difficult to start dating again. I forgot how many people don’t know much about how HIV is contracted and that there are many people who would never date someone who is living with HIV or will date someone living with HIV but the fear of contracting HIV puts too much of a damper on the relationship. It’s a difficult process.
	(Tommy Maker – ALS Community) I’ve spent a lot of time this year getting used to the fact that I have become dependent on others. Prior to diagnosis, I sat on the local council, was involved in the organization of all types of public elections and I was a trade union official. These were voluntary roles which involved helping others. Yet, initially, after diagnosis, I had an enormous difficulty accepting help from others. However, I’ve come to realize that I have a loving family, fantastic friends and very supportive colleagues. I have found that many of them don’t know what to do and are very glad when I am specific as to what they can do for me. I’ve also learned that no question is too personal. I struggled a lot with questions about personal hygiene and when I found the courage to ask these most intimate questions, I found that the professionals were so familiar with the questions asked that, beyond the initial embarrassment, we quickly went on to find solutions. I have also found that when people ask questions about my condition, they are entitled to an answer, an honest answer.
	(Nates-Sweetpea – Fibromyalgia/CFS Community) Oh my, 2010 has been a huge year! I didn’t know how I was going to get through it whole, but here I am knocking on 2011, one step at a time. I had to rejoin the workforce on a part-time basis this year, after years of not working (not being able to work), but I had to as my husband had lost his job about 18 months previously, and we were facing bankruptcy! So I’ve been working part-time since last February, about 17 to 32 hours a week. We did go through bankruptcy, lost our home, vehicles and our high 700′s credit score with it. But you know what, I survived.  Actually, no, I overcame, with the help of a very supportive Sunday School class, great friends, and a wonderful husband and daughter.
	(kg10043 – Epilepsy Community) I work for the US Forest Service and, as of July, made it to retirement age still working. Two times they tried to force me to take a disability retirement. To keep working I have had to move around to several jobs in four different states because of my health. Not only have I made it to retirement age, but I am still working even though they are trying to get rid of me once again. (What a joke when you consider that the federal government has a quota for disabled employees). It has meant I have not only had to work in a variety of locations, but doing different kinds of work. Just in the time on this forest I have worked as the Oracle DBA in the computer shop, in GIS, later in Forest Planning, with a crew of five Soil Scientists, a Botanist and myself mapping the soils and ecological types and writing recommendations for management.  And now for the last two years I have been “unfunded” and doing all kinds of random jobs for projects in the office. Just this year that has included supporting the USFS in legal challenges as well as jobs so simple as filing paperwork and addressing envelopes.
	(cobebu8 – MS Community) For me, with multiple sclerosis and ADHD, my main problems have been the concentration to do what I need and want to do and fighting the progression of MS. I have RRMS [relapsing remitting MS] but since I have had it for 25 years, ever so slowly, it is progressing at the same time I get exacerbations. I have a new neurologist too, and he is part of a big group and getting through when I am having problems, is a problem. Plus, with only SSDI [social security disability insurance] and not being able to find a part-time job, I have had to stop taking some needed meds and not going to necessary doctor’s appointments (e.g. my eye surgeon/doctor to see if the optic nerve is still swollen and I can’t do a necessary MRI because the insurance company won’t pay.) So to get help for my asthma, I am doing a research study to get free care. I haven’t found one for MS or depression yet.

It’s Parkinson’s Awareness Month. As we continue to spread the word about this condition, we wanted to tell you a little bit more about our PatientsLikeMe Parkinson’s community. Launched two years ago this month, the community has steadily grown to include more than 3,400 patients. Below are some interesting facts about the community, as well as an interview with one of our members (“PokieToo”) giving her real-world experience of living with condition.

WHAT’S IT LIKE LIVING WITH PARKINSON’S DISEASE (PD)?
Meet PokieToo.  A long-time member of our PD community, she tells us how she continues to “look for the sunshine” while “taking 30 pills a day.”   “Out there for the next person,” PokieToo gives us a glimpse of the real-world experiences of living with Parkinson’s disease.

DID YOU ALSO KNOW…

• More than 1,500 of our patient members are 50-yrs old or older
• 140+ of our patient members have inherited Parkinson’s disease (PD), and a handful of people have the less common drug-induced Parkinsonism and Vascular Parkinsonism
• Approximately 10% of our patient members (or 331) are Young-Onset Parkinson’s patients; that is, they report having experienced their first symptom before the age of 40.

How are our members treating their condition?

• Patients are using more than 1200 treatments, including prescription drugs, supplements, over-the-counter medications, medical devices, life-style modifications, therapies, etc.
• The top lifestyle modification reported by our patients is physical exercise;  and walking is the #1 exercise cited.
• The most widely used prescription drugs reported by members are Carbidopa-Levodopa (Sinemet), Pramipexole (Mirapex) and Rasagiline (Azilect)
• Top 3 supplements: CoQ10 Coenzyme Q10, Multivitamins and Omega 3 Fish Oil

What are their major symptoms?

• For more than 1,300 patient members, a “tremor” was their first symptom of the condition.
• The 5 most common primary symptoms reported include: Stiffness/Spasticity, Slowness, Fatigue, Excessive daytime sleepiness (somnolence) and Insomnia.

What are they talking about?

• Some of the top topics “tagged” in our forum discussions to date include specific treatments (like Sinemet, Mirapex, Deep Brain Stimulation/DBS and Exercise), symptoms like tremors and depression, as well as other hot issues like SSDI (Social Security Disability Insurance), the annual Parkinson’s Unity Walk, stem cells, clinical trials and research.