MS Maze

Multiple sclerosis information on the web… on Twitter… on Facebook… oh my!

When newly diagnosed with something like multiple sclerosis, your first task is to get educated so that you can become your own best advocate. We truly do live in the information age and the internet can be a wonderfully informative source once you weed out the clutter.

While it is up to each individual to judge these sites on their own merits, what follows is a list of some popular online resources for news and information regarding MS, chronic illness, and disability issues in general.

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Multiple Sclerosis Info on the Web, on Twitter, on Facebook

Photo: http://www.sxc.hu/photo/1105361

The email appears to originate with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and speaks of a “State Vaccination Program.” The reader is prompted to create a personal H1N1 (swine flu) Vaccination Profile on the CDC website.

WARNING: The email is a hoax — nothing but a phishing scam. The CDC has no state vaccination program requiring registration.

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Don’t Fall for this H1N1 Scam!

Photo: U.S. Centers for Disease Control

Writing around the web this week:

Sometimes the positive attitude patrol functions as a guilt trip in disguise. Are they really promoting a positive attitude in the best interest of someone else… or is it a lopsided attempt to protect themselves from having to deal with someone else’s disease or disability? Keep up the positive attitude because I can’t deal with your problems. Do people with health concerns have a responsibility to people around them… to protect them from dealing with the uncomfortable? When Positive Attitude Goes Negative.

In the interest of promoting patient-centered, compassionate medicine, I wrote a post last week soliciting commentary from patients about their doctors. This week, I ask Are you guilty of making these 5 mistakes with your doctor? It is a two-way street.

I write about health care reform and it is a frequent topic of conversation in my life. This would be a great place to insert the usual point/counter-point arguments, but this isn’t about politics; it’s personal. Why I take health care reform personally — and you should too. And, please, Don’t Fall for this H1N1 Scam!

I just finished reading Dan Brown’s The Lost Symbol. It was a wild wide full of twists and turns and a thoroughly enjoyable read, if you like a page-turner. Goes good with popcorn.

It was quite a week in my writing life. Lots of quiet introspection. On its surface, freelancing is flexible and rewarding, but underneath the pretty facade, it means staying on top of things all the time and never resting on your laurels — a constant quest for the next project.

My email inbox is often overflowing with questions about how I’ve come to do what I do. That’s a tough one. It’s inch by inch, baby, and we each have to cut our own path in the woods. Starting out is easy — lots of new writers and bloggers crop up every day, especially in a down economy. Understanding that you must not only write, but sell, promote, and market yourself is crucial. If you’re looking for instant recognition and high-paying assignments to pour in, you will soon be disheartened.

The best advice I can give is to write because you know yourself to be a writer. If you want to be a freelance writer, you’ve got to BE a freelance writer. That takes lots of time and energy. If you accept an ongoing freelance assignment, you must accept the reality of deadlines and working with editors and possibly with a whole team. If you’re not up to that, don’t take the job.

Basically, I got my butt kicked this week. Not having worked on my book in quite some time, I am now at the mercy of my eldest son, who has promised to continue the butt-kicking until I get serious about it. That’s what happens when you have no editor and no deadline looming…

Read more:
Care2 Healthy & Green Living with MS
Care2 Reform Health Policy

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Health care reform is more than a political issue for me. It’s personal.

I write about health care reform and it is a frequent topic of conversation in my life. To those who stand against reform, nothing I say will sway them. They see even minor reform through the lens of socialism, or argue that the constitution does not grant us a right to health care, or speak of the tremendous cost.

This would be a great place to insert the usual point/counter-point arguments, but that’s not where I want to lead the discussion today. This isn’t about politics; it’s personal.

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Why I take health care reform personally — and you should too

Photo: http://www.sxc.hu/photo/1039786

Are you a good patient?

As the health care debate rages on, we continue to look at ways individuals can take charge of their own health and become our own best health care advocates.

The doctor-patient relationship is the cornerstone of patient-centered, compassionate medicine — but only if both doctors and patients take responsibility for their role and cooperate in the best of interest of the patient.

Most patients can come up complaints about doctors and doctors’ offices, but do you make some of these common mistakes with your doctor?

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Are you guilty of making these 5 mistakes with your doctor?

Photo: U.S. Centers for Disease Control