Crying, laughing, anger and joy are just part of our lives right now. We have recently taken a new position at a different Children's Home to allow for more time with our daughter, so our life is a little bit of a mess. To top it off, our daughter has been away from us for over a week now and it is killing my wife. They have an awesome relationship so it has been extremely hard for both of them to be apart. So we are trying to pack, watch our children's home kiddos, and keep our sanity without pushing ourselves too hard and trying to take care of my wife's health.
With all of the stress my wife's mood swings are full bore. She is laughing and joking one minute and about the blow up the next. Being away from our daughter has only stressed her out more, and when our daughter is struggling and crying on the phone, my wife just falls apart. I know it is bad when my wife starts crying uncontrollably from watching TV shows and having sympathy for the families that are struggling. The other night she watched the new John and Kate Plus 8 episode and was weepy for about any hour after it was over. She has watched this show from the beginning and she has such a huge heart for people that are hurting.
I don't know if Multiple Sclerosis causes mood swings or just how much it affects your emotions, but I know that when my wife is stressed and struggling, she has a very hard time controlling her emotions. That lack of control seems to be amplified when she is having MS issues. Today she visited the chiropractor because she knew she was out of alignment and was not sleeping very well. Her lower back was way out and the chiropractor used the Pro Adjuster to realign the places that were causing the issues. Many times after an adjustment my wife will feel very tired and need rest. Tonight she has been better emotionally but she laid down early to try and catch up on her sleep. It never ceases to amaze me how important it is to control stress, rest and keep her body aligned so that it can function properly. Once we get moved things will slow down for us, but for now we have to be vigilant about taking care of the things that are in our control, and mood swings seem to be a side effect of life being a mess.
Showing posts with label mood swings. Show all posts
Showing posts with label mood swings. Show all posts
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Monday, January 12, 2009
Hormones and Multiple Sclerosis
During the first year of learning about Multiple Sclerosis from our Naturopathic Doctor, we learned quickly that hormones play a huge roll in the bodies ability to function properly. Depression, mood swings, water usage, adrenal function, sleep problems and many other issues in Multiple Sclerosis seem to stem from hormone problems. The way we originally found this ND was through a video he created on the human body's need for water. Through this video he explained how hormones in the body regulate water which attributes to the underlying issues of disease. This video was made specifically for auto immune diseases and the effects water had on the healing of these diseases.
After visiting with the ND we soon learned that there were tests we could perform that would give levels of hormones circulating through the body. He advised us to complete a Female Circadian (24 hour) Hormonal Panel from Sabre Sciences. This test is conducted over a 24 hour period using swabs to capture saliva for testing. She would swab her mouth at different times so that our ND could see how her hormone levels were throughout a full day. The hormones tested included Cortisol, DHEA, Progesterone, Estradiol and Testosterone. The test also included 6 minerals/electrolytes. We were quite shocked to see the irregularities when the results arrived from the first test.
My wife has had insomnia off and on for years. With the hormone test, we found out why. In the results, you could actually see the Cortisol level jump in the middle of the night which would cause her to wake up and have issues sleeping. There were many other irregularities too that we soon found out affected her mood and many other issues she was having. Based off of these tests, we received a compounded cream that my wife would use daily to regulate her hormones. Once on the cream, she started sleeping better and feeling better. We were instructed to take the test fairly often at first to see the progress of the cream so it could be adjusted. We learned that it takes quite a bit of time for your hormones to come back into balance and you have to work to keep them balanced.
Through the hormone testing we also found that my wife's adrenals were shot. They were overworked and stressed out. My wife has had times when she would start to feel light headed and woozy and the ND attributed this to her adrenal problems. For awhile this seemed to happen often, but utilizing certain supplements, rest and diet, she was able to stop this problem. There is much more to say about hormones and MS, and on a future post I will try to give specifics on my wife's hormone level
results. I feel like this is one of the key elements we used to begin gaining some control over my wife's health.
After visiting with the ND we soon learned that there were tests we could perform that would give levels of hormones circulating through the body. He advised us to complete a Female Circadian (24 hour) Hormonal Panel from Sabre Sciences. This test is conducted over a 24 hour period using swabs to capture saliva for testing. She would swab her mouth at different times so that our ND could see how her hormone levels were throughout a full day. The hormones tested included Cortisol, DHEA, Progesterone, Estradiol and Testosterone. The test also included 6 minerals/electrolytes. We were quite shocked to see the irregularities when the results arrived from the first test.
My wife has had insomnia off and on for years. With the hormone test, we found out why. In the results, you could actually see the Cortisol level jump in the middle of the night which would cause her to wake up and have issues sleeping. There were many other irregularities too that we soon found out affected her mood and many other issues she was having. Based off of these tests, we received a compounded cream that my wife would use daily to regulate her hormones. Once on the cream, she started sleeping better and feeling better. We were instructed to take the test fairly often at first to see the progress of the cream so it could be adjusted. We learned that it takes quite a bit of time for your hormones to come back into balance and you have to work to keep them balanced.
Through the hormone testing we also found that my wife's adrenals were shot. They were overworked and stressed out. My wife has had times when she would start to feel light headed and woozy and the ND attributed this to her adrenal problems. For awhile this seemed to happen often, but utilizing certain supplements, rest and diet, she was able to stop this problem. There is much more to say about hormones and MS, and on a future post I will try to give specifics on my wife's hormone level
results. I feel like this is one of the key elements we used to begin gaining some control over my wife's health.
Monday, November 10, 2008
Multiple Sclerosis And Emotions
My wife has always been emotional. She has cried at the oddest things over the years and has grown angry over things that I wouldn't think really mattered. Mood swings have been a fairly common thing in our marriage, and last week we learned a lot about how the body is affected by those moods. We attended a training for our job to help troubled children with their emotions. The thought process behind the class had to do with a child acting out because they have no other way of processing their feelings. Little did I know that I was doing a horrible job of processing my own feelings.
My wife and I entered the class with some apprehension. There were mattresses in the corner and a group of about 30 other house parents in the room. We knew the class was supposed to help us with children that were suffering from attachement disorders and other disorders that they faced. We spent some time studying how the human brain handles stress and fear and how our bodies are affected by these feelings. I have always known that my wife's emotions and feelings really affected her physically, but I had never seen a presentation like this. We realized in the morning session that our bodies can give off all sorts of indicators that we are stressed, and that we affect the emotions and feelings of everyone around us through our physical actions and movements. Almost as if we give off a subconcious vibe to everyone around us that their subconcious reacts to. Sounds a little weird right?
That afternoon we soon found out exactly what the teacher was trying to get us to understand. Each one of us was placed in a group with a mattress. We then went through a breathing exercise designed to open up our lungs and allow us to feel what was going on in our body. After the breathing exercises we each took turns on the mattress telling a story from our childhood. I found myself lying on the mat telling my story and then I felt a lot of heat radiating from my face. One of the instructions we had been given was to find how our body reacted to the story, so I told the instructor and he also felt the heat. Over the next few hours we were shocked as each person shared about their lives and we could literally feel the heat or other reactions that their bodies were going through.
This was an eye opening experience for my wife and I. I had always known that her Multiple Sclerosis was affected by stress but what I didn't realize was how affected my body was by stress. I had physical hot spots and pain when dealing with some of those feelings. We spent the next day and a half getting in touch with gut level feelings and experiencing how our bodies, minds and others around us felt after these times on the mat. I honestly understand now why stress is causing my wife so many issues. Dr. Swank always told us that one of the first things you had to do if you had MS was to control the stresses in your life. I think I more fully understand that now. My wife's emotions usually come flooding out in crying or anger, and her body is usually punished for it. Sometimes she will lose some feeling or become very fatigued after a stressful situation and then she has to rest for a few days to get it under control. The first day we were in class my wife cried and cried and cried. She explains it as if her body is leaking the tears out because she can't stop them. This was only day one, so we had no idea how she would be affected later.
My wife and I entered the class with some apprehension. There were mattresses in the corner and a group of about 30 other house parents in the room. We knew the class was supposed to help us with children that were suffering from attachement disorders and other disorders that they faced. We spent some time studying how the human brain handles stress and fear and how our bodies are affected by these feelings. I have always known that my wife's emotions and feelings really affected her physically, but I had never seen a presentation like this. We realized in the morning session that our bodies can give off all sorts of indicators that we are stressed, and that we affect the emotions and feelings of everyone around us through our physical actions and movements. Almost as if we give off a subconcious vibe to everyone around us that their subconcious reacts to. Sounds a little weird right?
That afternoon we soon found out exactly what the teacher was trying to get us to understand. Each one of us was placed in a group with a mattress. We then went through a breathing exercise designed to open up our lungs and allow us to feel what was going on in our body. After the breathing exercises we each took turns on the mattress telling a story from our childhood. I found myself lying on the mat telling my story and then I felt a lot of heat radiating from my face. One of the instructions we had been given was to find how our body reacted to the story, so I told the instructor and he also felt the heat. Over the next few hours we were shocked as each person shared about their lives and we could literally feel the heat or other reactions that their bodies were going through.
This was an eye opening experience for my wife and I. I had always known that her Multiple Sclerosis was affected by stress but what I didn't realize was how affected my body was by stress. I had physical hot spots and pain when dealing with some of those feelings. We spent the next day and a half getting in touch with gut level feelings and experiencing how our bodies, minds and others around us felt after these times on the mat. I honestly understand now why stress is causing my wife so many issues. Dr. Swank always told us that one of the first things you had to do if you had MS was to control the stresses in your life. I think I more fully understand that now. My wife's emotions usually come flooding out in crying or anger, and her body is usually punished for it. Sometimes she will lose some feeling or become very fatigued after a stressful situation and then she has to rest for a few days to get it under control. The first day we were in class my wife cried and cried and cried. She explains it as if her body is leaking the tears out because she can't stop them. This was only day one, so we had no idea how she would be affected later.
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Dr Pepper-holic
I don't know how many people out there remember the old Dr Pepper commercials. The ones where they promoted drinking a Dr Pepper at 10,2 and 4. I sure do. My grandfather lived off of Dr Pepper and would religiously drink one at least 3-4 times a day. My wife also has this love of Dr Pepper, and can become quite cranky when she doesn't have one. Quite a few years back, she quit drinking any "cokes" and went through the whole sugar and caffeine withdrawals. Those were not fun days, but she felt so much better after it was all out of her system. Now, she will drink one and then wonder why she can't go to sleep at bedtime.
Cokes have a very real affect on my wife's MS. If she gets back in the habit of drinking them, I notice a change in her mood and a growing problem with insomnia. And when she quits them again, my daughter and I both notice the changes in her personality. This is one of those things that she really struggles with. The 23 flavors of Dr Pepper seem to call her by name and every once in a while I find one stashed somewhere that she was drinking or find one placed at the back of the fridge out of sight. She knows that she shouldn't be drinking them, and I give her fits when she does give in and has one. It has kinda become a game between us over the past few years, but we both know that cokes can cause real issues with MS.
Regular sodas have so much sugar in them that they can't be ignored when a person is trying to improve their health. Diet sodas are even worse. We know of a MS patient in Texas that was stuck in a wheelchair before he quit drinking diet sodas. He had been wheelchair bound for years and then started a diet and supplement regimen and was playing golf within a year. If I remember right he was even featured on Good Morning America. It was pretty incredible to see the transformation. One thing they found out was he had been drinking diet sodas continually throughout the day. The doctors felt like the artificial sweetener was the cause of many of his MS issues. The strength slowly started returning to his limbs and he began to slowly exercise and work his muscles until he was finally able to live a regular life.
I have seen too many cases like this to ignore them. I joke with my wife that the Dr Peppers are what's causing everything, but we both know they are just a piece of the overall puzzle. We know for a fact that she has less insomnia, better emotional control and is in a better overall mood when she is not drinking sodas. Even knowing those things, I know they are one of her weaknesses and she tries to enjoy them in moderation. I would almost bet that today she will have a Dr Pepper and that those 23 flavors will be calling out to her to drink more.
Cokes have a very real affect on my wife's MS. If she gets back in the habit of drinking them, I notice a change in her mood and a growing problem with insomnia. And when she quits them again, my daughter and I both notice the changes in her personality. This is one of those things that she really struggles with. The 23 flavors of Dr Pepper seem to call her by name and every once in a while I find one stashed somewhere that she was drinking or find one placed at the back of the fridge out of sight. She knows that she shouldn't be drinking them, and I give her fits when she does give in and has one. It has kinda become a game between us over the past few years, but we both know that cokes can cause real issues with MS.
Regular sodas have so much sugar in them that they can't be ignored when a person is trying to improve their health. Diet sodas are even worse. We know of a MS patient in Texas that was stuck in a wheelchair before he quit drinking diet sodas. He had been wheelchair bound for years and then started a diet and supplement regimen and was playing golf within a year. If I remember right he was even featured on Good Morning America. It was pretty incredible to see the transformation. One thing they found out was he had been drinking diet sodas continually throughout the day. The doctors felt like the artificial sweetener was the cause of many of his MS issues. The strength slowly started returning to his limbs and he began to slowly exercise and work his muscles until he was finally able to live a regular life.
I have seen too many cases like this to ignore them. I joke with my wife that the Dr Peppers are what's causing everything, but we both know they are just a piece of the overall puzzle. We know for a fact that she has less insomnia, better emotional control and is in a better overall mood when she is not drinking sodas. Even knowing those things, I know they are one of her weaknesses and she tries to enjoy them in moderation. I would almost bet that today she will have a Dr Pepper and that those 23 flavors will be calling out to her to drink more.
Monday, December 10, 2007
MS may stand for Mood Swings
Multiple Sclerosis attacks every area of your life. It affects your daily life, your work life, your family life and your spiritual life. It doesn't seem to have any boundaries and no remorse for what it does or how it does it. As a husband, I am always watching to see how my wife is doing. Her MS is sometimes very sneaky in how it works itself out in her life. For instance, she will start to develop knots in your shoulder muscles that are aggravating but not anything too bad. Over a few days those knots can develop into major pain and severe headaches. With all of the physical issues of MS, no wonder my wife has mood swings.
When my wife is having MS problems, it can manifest itself in a lot of ways. One way that it usually comes out is her need to cry. She will cry at puppy commercials and pretty flowers and anything else that remotely touches her heart. I know it frustrates her to no end because once she starts crying, she has an extremely hard time stopping. I guess I have gotten used to it now, but it seems so make other people nervous when she starts crying for no apparent reason. We have sat in teachers meetings for our daughter and my wife just can't help but cry due to the subject of our daughter. It embarrasses her and frustrates her, and I feel helpless watching her body expressing everything built up inside of her.
Along with the crying can come other emotions, like anger or joy or excitement. As a young girl, my wife hated surprises. She would have to know what she was getting for Christmas or her birthday, and she really hated to be startled. I have heard that a Multiple Sclerosis patient feels everything a normal person would feel at 10X the intensity. I know for my wife that more often than not, this rule applies. Early on in our marriage I would playfully chase her around the house. One day very early on, I caught her on an emotional day and she was in a great mood until I chased her. All of the sudden she fell to the ground in a ball just crying and asking me to stop. I had no idea what was going on, but I quickly found out that she didn't like to be chased or startled or surprised. It physically hurt her.
I don't know that I understand the physical hurt, but she feels things so differently than I do. The intensity, and the extent of the feelings she has are so much more powerful than what I feel. Sometimes her moods swing so much that I am not sure what to do, but I have learned that many times she doesn't even realize that it is happening. To be honest, I really love the fact that she cries when something touches her heart, or she feels so strongly about something. Back when we would go see Dr. Swank, he described MS patients as one of the most alive patients he had ever treated. He would say that they were vibrant and full of life and beautiful. I can attest to that. My wife is vibrant, beautiful and full of life like no other woman I have met. MS may stand for mood swings sometimes, but I am OK with that. It also stands for my sweetheart.
When my wife is having MS problems, it can manifest itself in a lot of ways. One way that it usually comes out is her need to cry. She will cry at puppy commercials and pretty flowers and anything else that remotely touches her heart. I know it frustrates her to no end because once she starts crying, she has an extremely hard time stopping. I guess I have gotten used to it now, but it seems so make other people nervous when she starts crying for no apparent reason. We have sat in teachers meetings for our daughter and my wife just can't help but cry due to the subject of our daughter. It embarrasses her and frustrates her, and I feel helpless watching her body expressing everything built up inside of her.
Along with the crying can come other emotions, like anger or joy or excitement. As a young girl, my wife hated surprises. She would have to know what she was getting for Christmas or her birthday, and she really hated to be startled. I have heard that a Multiple Sclerosis patient feels everything a normal person would feel at 10X the intensity. I know for my wife that more often than not, this rule applies. Early on in our marriage I would playfully chase her around the house. One day very early on, I caught her on an emotional day and she was in a great mood until I chased her. All of the sudden she fell to the ground in a ball just crying and asking me to stop. I had no idea what was going on, but I quickly found out that she didn't like to be chased or startled or surprised. It physically hurt her.
I don't know that I understand the physical hurt, but she feels things so differently than I do. The intensity, and the extent of the feelings she has are so much more powerful than what I feel. Sometimes her moods swing so much that I am not sure what to do, but I have learned that many times she doesn't even realize that it is happening. To be honest, I really love the fact that she cries when something touches her heart, or she feels so strongly about something. Back when we would go see Dr. Swank, he described MS patients as one of the most alive patients he had ever treated. He would say that they were vibrant and full of life and beautiful. I can attest to that. My wife is vibrant, beautiful and full of life like no other woman I have met. MS may stand for mood swings sometimes, but I am OK with that. It also stands for my sweetheart.
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