Be Aware: November Part Three When people think of November, they often think of Veteran's Day, Thanksgiving, and Christmas Carols (PLEASE PPL Halloween just ended stop singing Jingle Bells in the middle of the Market?). There's actually many things to be aware of in November. Here's a few MORE events this month, and that's still not all. A quick search of November observances shows so much more is going on around the world. National Epilepsy Awareness Month: A disorder in which nerve cell activity in the brain is disturbed, causing seizures. A few facts about Epilepsy: Epilepsy is the 4th most common neurological problem – only migraine, stroke and Alzheimer’s disease occurs more frequently. Each year, 150,000 or 48 out of 100,000 people will develop epilepsy. Approximately 2.2 million people live with Epilepsy. Epilepsy is mostly known for causing convulsions: sudden, uncontrolled movements; but seizures can trigger a many other symptoms, from staring to messing with clothes. Doctors catagorize seizures into different types depending on how the brain is affected. Each has its own set of symptoms. Absence seizures: staring spells. The person stops what they are doing and stare vacantly for a few seconds, then continues as if nothing happened. This type of seizure is more common in children and usually starts between the ages of 4 and 12. Some children have as many as 100 episodes in one day. Generalized tonic clonic seizures (formerly known as grand mal seizures) are the most easily recognized. They usually begin with a stiffening of the arms and legs, and are followed by jerking motions. These convulsions can last up to 3 minutes. After, a person may be tired and confused. This type of seizure involves both sides of the brain. Partial seizures: just one side of the brain is affected. A person having a simple partial seizure may have jerking motions or hallucinations, and still be aware of what is happening. When having a complex partial seizure, a person may wander, mumble, smack their lips, or fumble with their clothes. He or she may appear to be conscious to those around them, but is actually unaware of what they are doing. Causes of Epilepsy: Anything that disrupts the brain’s natural circuitry can cause epilepsy, such as: Severe head injury Brain infection or disease Stroke Oxygen deprivation A specific cause is never found for nearly two-thirds of people with epilepsy. Treatments include diet changes, medication, and in some cases surgery./list] What you can do: Know First Aid for Seizures. If you see someone having a seizure, take the following steps: Time how long it lasts. Clear the area of anything hard or sharp. Loosen anything at the neck that may affect breathing. Turn the person onto his or her side. Put something soft beneath the head. Don't place anything inside the mouth. Call 911 if a seizure lasts more than 5 minutes, happens again, or the person is pregnant, injured, or diabetic. Raise money for research- find better treatments, pin-point causes, perhaps even find less invasive cures. National Alzheimer's Disease Awareness Month: Alzheimer's, also known as Senile Dementia, is a progressive disease that destroys memory and other important mental functions. A Few Facts about Alzheimer's: Alzheimer's is the 6th leading cause of death in the US More than 5 million Americans are living with Alzheimer's Every 67 seconds someone in the US will develop Alzheimer's Memory loss and confusion are the main symptoms. No cure exists, but medications and management strategies may temporarily improve symptoms. What You Can Do: Wear purple to raise awareness Host or attend a charity event Volunteer in a facility for those affected Donate so that one day a cure, or preventative measures can be found. GERD Awareness Week: Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD) awareness week is held annually on the week of Thanksgiving (November 22-28, 2015). GERD develops when the back-flow (reflux) of stomach contents causes troublesome symptoms and/or complications. Serious health problems can result if it is not treated. A Few Facts about GERD: GERD treatments range from lifestyle or diet measures to the use of medication or surgical procedures. Failure to treat chronic heartburn/acid reflux can increase risk of esophageal cancer Approximately seven million people in the United States have some symptoms of GERD. 1 in 5 American Adults suffer GERD can affect children. Symptoms of GERD: The most frequent symptom of GERD is heartburn. It's so common that it may not be seen as part of a disease, however, repeated heartburn can be a sign of GERD. GERD may be present even without heartburn. Hoarseness in the morning Difficulty or pain when swallowing Waterbrash (sudden excess of saliva) Dysphagia (the sensation of food sticking in the esophagus) Chronic sore throat Laryngitis Inflammation of the gums Erosion of the enamel of the teeth Chronic irritation in the throat Hoarseness in the morning A sour taste Bad breath Chest pain may indicate acid reflux. However, this kind of pain or discomfort should prompt urgent medical evaluation. Possible heart conditions must always be excluded first. What You Can Do: If you suffer from GERD, here's a few tips for you this holiday season: Schedule and earlier meal Don't Smoke Stay Active Serve light appetizers Skip the Juice Have water not soda Season lightly Limit your alcohol Don't deep fry the turkey Use smaller plates Watch the desserts Pace yourself Don't Nap Talk with your doctor Encourage those you love experiencing GERD symptoms to go to the doctor. Take to Social Media! FURTHER READING November Part One November Part Two All statistics compiled from various Google searches, as posting links not pertaining to ATA/PiMD is not allowed a proper works cited is unavailable
LadyD as always I love how you bring awareness to all of these disorders. A really interesting thing about epilepsy is that in some cases ((the ones I hear about are the people who have major life limitations and poor quality of life due to tons of seizures in a day)) it can be treated POSSIBLY with MEDICAL marijuana. I find this fascinating.
I will see what I can dig up about research over this. See medical marijuana is only now getting looked into as for a long time the FDA said the plant had absolutely no uses (which with this plant being labeled this. Doctors weren't allowed to research it). Thus, the research is coming out now. The two major breakthroughs I hear about is the one with epilepsy and the one where medical marijuana is given to children with brain tumors. Along with chemo, the brain tumors that are not ever suppose to shrink or minimal shrinkage are now disappearing and shrinking! AS one person put it, these are the canna kids. The kids that are helping with the ground breaking breakthroughs since they are the test rats basically right now. This is because the FDA restricted research for so long. Now, some states are legalizing it medically. I will see if I can find a good research article to explain how it treats epilepsy further and where. And the part of the plant they give to kids would be cannabis. I think it is just cannabis with epilepsy too.
Yeah I think I had heard something about the part w kids, but dang ? just sucks what the downfall of public non-medical use is ?
U should make a threads about brain failure there is a scientific name but i forgot what it is... just becoz I actually had a family member that actually had a brain failure.... at first she just had a headache and a few weeks later she faints and when we arrive at the hospital the doctor said that her brain just basically dead but all other part of her body still functioning.... well I want to write about it but I'm too lazy