Cognition & MS: My advice to you and strategies to fight this invisible symptom
WHAT IS COGNITION? The dictionary broadly defines it as “the act or process of knowing”.1 You might like this other definition (I do!): Think of it as the basic computer’s operations of:
If you think about cognition this way, it is easier to understand and see how it can be divided in four general areas:
Includes and integrates all input from the five (5) senses: 
What we recognize as the mental organization and handling of information
This cognitive function basically involves the acting upon and communicating information to others. You and I are no strangers to complaining about some cognition problems like remembering things, finding the right words, concentrating on any task or whatever you are reading. It is frustrating, I know. For example, reading, was and still is one of my favorite pastimes. But now I read out loud to myself or use books on cd’s and listen to them to help me deal with my cognition difficulties. You will find here more tips and strategies and further down there are directions and a link to a fantastic website resource to exercise your brain by using some cool brain-games! All these situations that you and I might joke about with family or some friends are really no laughing matter. You and I know that deep inside we have asked ourselves many times what’s wrong or if we are going crazy or if we are losing our minds. All these cognition problems are directly related to cognition and the cognitive functions - described above - that multiple sclerosis (MS) affects every day of our lives. Experts say that it helps to differentiate cognition “from emotions (one’s feelings and motivations) and from personality (one’s distinctive or personal characteristics)”. Look at it this way; when you talk about your body and its functions, you might refer to what appears to be separate systems (immune, circulatory, skeletal, nervous, etc.) but in reality they are all working together to form what you are: The human self. Take a moment and think about it, your ability:
is key to who you are. These cognitive abilities – more than physical ones – are in a few words what define you as a unique individual, different from everybody else. Now, if problems suddenly start appearing with your thinking and your memory, they can have a huge impact on your self-esteem and self-image. You might start second guessing yourself which leads to undermining your confidence to the point of disrupting or affecting your relationships with others. Cognition problems can easily make MSers feel somewhat lost and confused – as though we had misplaced the person we trusted and relied on and now we have to get to know and become familiar with someone a little bit different. It is a very frightening experience, especially for those folks whose sense of identity and self worth depends on intellectual rather than physical performance. The slightest change in cognition can easily make a person with MS feel dumb and/or self-conscious and afraid of looking stupid or foolish in front of others. These small cognitive changes can easily undermine self-confidence. Unlike the physical symptoms of MS like a gait or difficulty walking, these cognition problems are totally invisible except to whoever is experiencing them. Trying to explain what’s happening to your wife or husband or your parents or any close family member for that matter is never easy. Here are 2 great tips for you to manage cognitive changes with family members
First, try to keep in mind the invisibility of cognitive problems and you should know that cognitive symptoms are among the most difficult symptoms to understand and accept. Having said that, you should explain to your family all that you are experiencing and how they can be of help. This is a major step you can take to reduce the level of anxiety on everyone. Opening up and “coming clean” about the challenges you are facing will not only bring all of you closer but will give your family the chance to ask you questions, increase their understanding of your cognitive symptoms and share any concerns they may have. Your family can help you come up with strategies to manage cognitive challenges around the house like finding ways of being more organized around the house or help you keep track of everyone’s busy schedule by posting it on the family’s calendar. Remember that when you involve the members of your family in the problem-solving strategies, you are helping them enhance their understanding of cognitive symptoms. In your regular day-to-day life, these are some of the ways in which cognitive symptoms interfere with your ability to perform well at work or school:
information processing and attention are not uncommon and they can make it very difficult to obtain and hold on to any new information and skills. Your ability to perform such tasks is essential to personal growth and success. Nowadays, more often than 5 years ago, for example, I’m having trouble memorizing a telephone number or an address. If I don’t write it down right away....next minute, it's gone! can cause you to make errors, which can easily be misunderstood by others as carelessness or lack of interest on your part in the task at hand. like planning, organizing and prioritizing, as well as problem-solving can seriously hindrance your ability to start and complete any assigned task or responsibility. This can take its toll on your confidence and the respect of others. Cognitive problems can lead to a reduction in your performance – be it work or school – which can easily be misunderstood as lack of interest on your part, incompetence, emotional problems or even substance abuse (drug or alcohol) problems. Not too long ago these types of problems were not considered as being caused by multiple sclerosis (MS). Just a few decades ago it was believed that only around 3% of all MSers experienced cognitive impairment. Nowadays, with the advances in medicine, especially in the neuropsychologic evaluations and techniques used, we know that between 50% and 66% of the MS population suffers from cognition problems. One of the hardest things I have found about living with cognitive impairment is nothing new. Over 100 years ago MSers like you and I had to deal with the frustration and distress of trying to describe to other people our cognitive problems only to hear that “you are just depressed” or “We’re all getting older” and my favorite “It’s nothing…..that happens to me all the time”. In a nutshell, cognition problems in MS could be summarized as the reduction in mental sharpness. It’s very important to keep in mind that multiple sclerosis (MS) is a complex illness. No two persons will experience exactly the same symptoms and not all patients will experience all the cognitive problems listed below. IMPAIRED BY MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS (MS)
USUALLY NOT IMPAIRED BY MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS (MS) Learning and memory are essential and researchers tell us that around 40% of MSers have either no memory impairment or they have mild ones, about 30% have moderate impairment and the remaining 30% shows severe memory impairment. Memory and learning go together and are made up of several processes and levels. Memory can be divided into two types: Procedural memory remains intact in MSers and it’s not necessarily available or accessible to conscious experience or recollection. I don’t “remember” how I learned to play the guitar; I just know how to do it. Declarative memory can be subdivided into: Multiple Sclerosis (MS) normally does not affect semantic memory. Episodic memory can be subdivided into: Those of us with multiple sclerosis (MS) have problems with working memory (WM), especially during the mental manipulation part of the process. On the other hand, we could compare long-term memory (LM) to our computer’s disk drive. A place to store information to be recall later.. Depending on how important YOU consider the new information to be (What you had for breakfast yesterday) your brain will store it in the short-term memory or the long-term memory. Long-term memory (LM) can be subdivided into: In general, MSers do not have problems with retrograde memory. That’s why you can remember your high school math professor’s name but you have trouble remembering what color of pants you had on Tuesday of last week. To summarize, MSers like we, have trouble in the learning or acquisition process of new information rather than in recalling it. TREATMENT OF COGNITION PROBLEMS There are few studies that look specifically for drugs to help MS patients with cognitive problems. You have the Disease-Modifying Agents (DMAs) which are believed to be of help with cognition problems. The rationale for this belief is fairly straightforward. If multiple sclerosis (MS) is the cause of cognition problems in MS patients, then altering the course of MS should alter the course of these changes. The results from neuroimaging studies done in the past, are the strongest evidence to support this conclusion. In this group of drugs you’ll find: Avonex (Interferon Beta 1a), Betaseron (Interferon Beta 1b), Copaxone (Glatiramer acetate). Back a few years they were known as the ABC drugs. Rebif (Interferon Beta 1a) is today part of the DMA's drug family. You will also find the drug call Natalizumab, known by the trade name Tysabri There are also symptomatic treatments which are designed to improve symptoms without altering the course of the disease. Among these drugs you will find certain medications used for Alzheimer's patients, including donepizil or Aricept® or Namenda. I have used Namenda for a while now but it is hard (at least for me) to know how effective it has been. The way I see it is that perhaps I would be having more problems with some of my cognition functions, if I was not taking the Namenda. The only sure way to find out is to stop taking it, wait and watch to see what happens. I would not do that of course. You also will find some alternative therapies such as the herbal extract Ginkgo Biloba and also among the natural remedies you have the supplementation of the daily diet with Fish Oils and Essential Fatty Acids. I have benefited greatly from a book which has examined the link between what we eat and multiple sclerosis. If you would like to know what foods are attacking your body, what supplements you must take and how to create the energy that you need, then this book is a must read Reverse Multiple Sclerosis Please remember to consult your physician before deciding to start any treatment for cognition dysfunction. STRATEGIES FOR MANAGING COGNITION PROBLEMS You know that MS does not affect every person the same. The same is true when it comes to designing and implementing strategies to help you cope with cognitive dysfunction. Have A Great Strategy For Coping With Cognition Problems?Tell everybody about any tips or strategy you're using to better deal with cognition problems? Share it! What Other Visitors Have SaidClick below to see contributions from other visitors to this page... Great video! Thank you! I sat down with my husband and watch the First video (twice) since there were so many similar things that I have and he did not understand. We even laugh ...
Keeping a low body temperature really helps me.
Hi, want to congratulate you on your MS & intelligence page. Excellent page! and I wish to congratulate you on a superb site. You need to think about what works for you and then modify the strategies to suit you and your particular needs. Here are some ideas that have been of great help to me, make the appropriate modifications to tailor them to fit you. You must be aware that the strategies and tools you will read about here will not reverse memory loss or speed up information processing. Instead, you will use them to compensate a cognitive function that is no longer working as it should. If you are having a really hard time keeping track of all those appointments you used to keep in your head, you will find the use of a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) to be a fantastic tool. There is a wide variety out there. I personally decided to get a very user friendly PDA called AXIM made by Dell (the computer manufacturing company). I think I mentioned before. I really like computers. A really nice and helpful function is the synchronization capability that most (if not all) PDAs have to work with your home computer. I have Microsoft Office Outlook on my PC at home and nowadays keeping track of future appointments, birthdays, projects dead lines and miscellaneous notes is a breeze. I find that one of the hardest aspects of any strategy or tool you decide to use is having constancy. If you like and use computers as much as I do, working with the tools I mentioned above will become second nature to you. Of course, if you are not to thrill about computers and digital gadgets, the good old agenda or planner could be your best bet. HERE IS A LIST OF KEY ELEMENTS YOU SHOULD CONSIDER WHEN STARTING ANY STRATEGY
Being comfortable with whatever strategy or tool you decide to implement is a must to succeed in dealing with cognition problems. HAVE YOU HEARD ABOUT MYMSMYWAY? This is one of the coolest websites I have ran into and it is a free resource dedicated to connecting people with Multiple Sclerosis to accessible technologies that can help them live their lives better. This site is made for people with MS by people with MS. To go visit this excellent resource just click on MyMSMyWay Additionally, you can click here to go to My Brain Games. A new resource the help you exercise your brain and keep track of your scores and see how they change over time! References 1 Nicolas LaRocca, PhD. And Rosalind Kalb, PhD., Multiple Sclerosis understanding cognitive challenges, Demos Medical Publishing , 2006 New York
About Me | Privacy Policy | Disclaimer | Contact Me New! CommentsHave your say about what you just read! Leave me a comment in the box below. |
