MGA News Summer 2004

I missed the deadline for the last edition of MGA News, the reason? Mrs Gravis and I were suffering from the father and mother of a head cold, come chesty cough, come, well you name it. I believe that the medical term is 'there is a lot of it about'.

We treated ourselves using our favourite family home remedies, all of them over the counter products obtained from our local pharmacy. The valuable thing about our local pharmacists, a husband and wife, is that they both know all about me. They are aware of my condition and of all the medication I am on and guide me as to which of the over the counter medicines I can have without them effecting either my MG, or interacting with the prescription drugs. For instance they steer me away from one well known analgesic product because this has quinine sulphate as part of its make up and quinine can cause an increase in myasthenic weakness. Sadly this warning also applies to a 'G and T', Indian Tonic Water also containing quinine. When in doubt about anything, they refer to their computer database which has a record of all the medicines I take, and can cross reference these with other preparations.

If you live with MG then the real secret is to know when to call on your GP for help. After four weeks, much inhaling and the occasional firm exchange with Mrs Gravis on the subject of who was suffering most, we had both managed to throw off the infection. I, however, was left with a sinus problem which was also beginning to stimulate my MG, so it was off to see the Doctor, who prescribed a short course of antibiotics. He too has a wonderful computer with a cross referenced database, which promptly told him in bold red letters, with bells and whistles sounding, that every antibiotic he wished to prescribe was not recommended for Myasthenics. Fortunately we had encountered this before; advice from the consultant was that where the MG is under control, the use of suitable antibiotics, carefully monitored, would be safe. There has to be a balance between the possible side effects from the antibiotics and the potential myasthenic problems which can arise if an infection is left untreated. Each patient is different, Mrs Gravis says in my case peculiar, so that the treatment has to be tailored to each individual. I believe that both GP and Consultant should be involved in this process.

To get my head really straight, I thought that I would see what an 'Indian Massage' could do for me. We have a practitioner in our village and so I gave her a bell and an appointment was made. Mrs Gravis is used to my trying complementary therapies and given the fact that both she and Christine, the 'Head Massager', are members of our local Gardening Club, there were no objections from management. The session took place in our front room, me sitting on a foot stool and Christine working from behind. As she gently worked on my head and shoulders I could feel the tension fading away and I became much more relaxed; I am told that some patients actually nod off. When the treatment was ended I was told to drink a glass of water and to then make sure that I drank several more during the rest of the day. The idea was to flush away any toxins that I had released as a result of the massage. This seems to be a common factor with many therapies, Shiatsu, Aromatherapy and Chiropractics amongst others. My experience has been that it is wise to follow this advice, drink the water and lay off the coffee and tea. When I have failed to do so, I have experienced a sensation like a mild hangover. Not a truly scientific assessment I know, just one Gravis being treated, but it did seem to do me some good and I am going to have another session. Of course, these therapies cannot cure MG, but I find that they can alleviate some of the symptoms. As with all health issues, I have discussed complementary therapies with my GP, his feeling has always been that if it does no harm it may do good, and he will always warn me off anything suspect. I always use therapists who belong to the appropriate controlling institute or association. The other thing that has given me confidence is that all of the practitioners I have used have been keen to write to my GP and tell him what they are doing.

MGA NEWS Summer 2004

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