Living With MS Episodes

When we think about MS, we tend to think about it as an adult disease. But the National MS Society reminds us that between 8,000 and 10,000 children up to 18 years old are living with MS in the United States. And studies suggest that between 2 and 5% of everyone living with MS has a history of experiencing the onset of at least one MS symptom before the age of 18. My guest on the podcast is Dr. Emmanuelle Waubant, one of the true pioneers and experts in the field of pediatric MS. We're talking ...

As technology advances at an ever increasing rate, it's speeding up the pace of scientific discovery. In this week's podcast, we're looking at new tech tools -- smartphone apps, desktop programs, and mobile technology -- that will change the way you manage MS fatigue, anxiety, foot drop, MS rehab, and more. And you'll meet this week's guest, Jayce Riley, an MS Road Warrior who is preparing to ride his bike 3,785 miles across the United States to honor his late mother, and raise money for MS res...

My podcast guest Stephanie Buxhoeveden was diagnosed with MS when she was 25 years old, working as a neurosurgical ICU nurse. Today, Stephanie is a board-certified Multiple Sclerosis Nurse, she is a Nurse Practitioner and she is the Co-Director of the MS Comprehensive Care Center where she has also been a patient. Stephanie will share some of her experiences and observations from the dual perspective of someone who is a medical specialist who treats patients with MS, and also someone who lives ...

March is MS Awareness Month, and tomorrow we'll be observing the first ever Progressive MS Day, which is being celebrated by several MS advocacy groups and state governments around the United States. My guests on the podcast are Dan and Jennifer Digmann. Jennifer was diagnosed with Progressive MS in 1997, and Dan was diagnosed with relapsing-remitting MS in 2000. Dan & Jennifer met at a National MS Society event in 2002, and they were married in 2005. Together, Dan & Jennifer write an award-wi...

Depression affects over one million people around the world who are living with MS. And when you fail to treat depression, every other aspect of life seems to get worse - and that can include your MS symptoms. My guest on this week's podcast is Dr. Athena Robinson, the Chief Clinical Officer at Woebot Labs, and we're talking about Woebot -- a breakthrough app that lives on your smartphone and has been proven to be effective in treating depression. We're also talking about a robotic arm brace t...

While we're tracking the breakthroughs and discoveries that move us closer to solving the riddle of multiple sclerosis, it's also important to remember that people living with MS need help today. Some of them need help with even the most basic sorts of daily tasks. My guests on the podcast are Angela Lett and Alison Payne from Helping Hands, a non-profit organization that helps adults with MS and other mobility impairments live independent lives by providing them with a very special service anim...

If you're looking for no-cost customized, personalized, one-on-one expert advice on all sorts of issues that people with MS encounter, you're going to want to pay attention to my conversation with Kay Julian, Executive Vice-President of Services at the National MS Society. We're also talking about the demographic imbalance in MS clinical trials, and why that matters. (And you can find the Accelerated Cure Project's MS Minority Research Engagement Report here). We're discussing the initial resu...

Sometimes, important breakthroughs can come from unexpected places. This week, our guest is Oded Ben Dov, an Israeli game developer who ended up creating life-changing technology designed to help people living with MS, ALS, and other disabilities. We're talking about some exciting news in Progressive MS research. We're also talking about a possible treatment for MS fatigue. Researchers in Australia have patented a molecule that's designed to protect the central nervous system and support myelin...

Robots?? Really??? The answer is YES! Dr. Maja Mataric joins us on the podcast, and we're talking about how socially assistive robots could be real game-changers for people living with MS and other chronic conditions, as well as their caregivers. We're breaking down the specific ways that the new U.S. tax code will impact people living with MS. We're also talking about how the FDA just raised a red flag for one stem cell treatment for MS that made promises it wasn't keeping. And we'll tell you ...

Jon's guest on the podcast is Victoria Reese, founder of the We Are Illmatic campaign. We Are Illmatic is building awareness and providing support for women of color who are living with MS in their lives. We have good news about the U.S. Defense Department's MS Research Program, and the passage of the bipartisan RAISE Caregivers Act. We'll tell you how an MS patient's handwriting may predict a decline in movement, sensory, and cognitive skills. And we'll share some interesting research about a...