BARBARA'S TCHATZKAHS

from PhysOrg.com People who have the common chronic pain condition fibromyalgia often report that they don’t respond to the types of medication that relieve other people’s pain. New research from the University of Michigan Health System helps to explain why that might be: Patients with fibromyalgia were found to have reduced binding ability of a type of receptor in the brain that is the target of opioid painkiller drugs such as morphine. The study included positron emission tomography (PET) scans of the brains of patients with fibromyalgia, and of an equal number of sex- and age-matched people without the often-debilitating condition. Results showed that the fibromyalgia patients had reduced mu-opioid receptor (MOR) availability within regions of the brain that normally process and dampen pain signals – specifically, the nucleus accumbens, the anterior cingulate and the amygdala. “The reduced availability of the receptor was associated with greater pain among people with fibromy...

by Judith Fein Eighteen years ago, Erv Hinds was a traditional anesthesiologist with an open-heart surgery team. Today he's gone from putting people to sleep with drugs to trying to wake them up with what he calls patient-centered pain treatment. In his practice at the Albuquerque Pain Center, pain at every level is taken seriously. "Patients need to develop a vertical relationship - to nature or Jesus or Buddha or God," says Hinds, "or something that gets them out of entrenchment, outside of themselves." The journey that brought him to this point began when an X-ray revealed that he needed a heart valve replacement. "I didn't know what to do," Hinds says. He prayed with his Presbyterian pastor and did research in the University of New Mexico library. There he found a journal article about a surgeon in France named Carpentier who was repairing valves instead of replacing them, something not done in America. "Carpentier had done most of hi...

A recent study published in the American Journal of Psychiatry focused on the prevalence of PTSD in Israelis. It stated: Israel has not known a time without hostilities. Therefore, an analogy between periods of "infrequent" terrorism in Israel and the situation that prevailed in the United States before Sept. 11, 2001, may not be accurate. Unfortunately, the analogy might be binding if further terrorist attacks reach the United States. In that sense, the comparison provided by this work suggests that recuperation from early distress will occur in a similar proportion despite an eventual incremental increase in the incidence of terrorism. The results of this work show that intense initial responses are important risk indicators of PTSD across traumatic events. They support the rationale of assuming a common pathological outcome (i.e., PTSD) to various traumata. In that sense, it is remarkable that the reactions to the more frequent motor vehicle accidents behave like thos...

Emotional rape can be defined as: Emotional abuse characterized by patterned and purposeful behavior which purpose is to undermine and control the victim. It is an attack on the victim's personality rather than their body. In sexual rape, the term "without consent" refer to the victim having not agreed to sex. Emotional rape is the abuse of someone's higher emotions -love, self-respect, compassion, admiration - without consent. That is, the 'rapist' doesn't tell the truth to the victim and coerces them into sharing these emotions with them while having a covert agenda. (i.e. - sex, money, etc) Emotional rape is the exploitation of a person's higher emotions through manipulation and/or deception. In her true story, two people began a romantic journey and ended up completely estranged because of his need to use her emotions to get what he wants. For this reason, it is important that people become more educated about issues of psychological and emo...

Almost everyone on my mother's side of the family dies from heart disease. I test positive for CRP (Cardio-Reactive Protein) which is an indicator of heart disease. A simple blood test can tell if you carry this risk factor. I had a cardiac "incident" during a personally traumatic event 5 1/2 years ago - after which I was hospitalized a couple times for physical symptoms relating to Complex PTSD. When I saw this article it made perfect sense to me. New Study Shows Link Between Hopelessness and Hypertension New research shows a link between harboring feelings of hopelessness and developing hypertension. The research was published in the February 17 issue of Hypertension. The study of 616 middle-aged men from eastern Finland showed that men who suffered from feelings of high hopelessness over the course of the 4-year study were 3 times more likely to develop hypertension than men who did not suffer from feelings of hopelessness as much, if at all. "This is the first...

Along with my neurological and endocrinological problems - my cardiac problems were getting worse but have been halted in their tracks. All the medical testing in the world can only show the physical effects and try to treat them. But I know in my soul where the root of the problem is. It isn't just my lifetime of being a target for interpersonal exploitation & abuse, being invalidated and opprobriated b y those I trusted... it's this: "A debilitating weariness brought about by repetitive, empathic response to pain and suffering, compassion fatigue is a result of absorbing and internalizing the emotions of clients and, sometimes, coworkers, explains Karl LaRowe, MA, LCSW. It's an occupational hazard that may affect any professional who works day in and day out with those who are physically, mentally, or emotionally challenged or those who have been traumatized - whether by illness, violence or other tragedies." "Compassion fatigue, says LaRowe, is nothi...

One thing 15 years of an unpredictable. excruciating disability has taught me - is to prioritize. Get straight what is important and what isn't. As a single, divorced mom and an advocate for abused women I get overloaded with requests. Of course my children come first. That is something I make very clear. But I am good at my advocacy. And being good at something can be a blessing and a curse. Very often I tend to overload myself with work. However, in the years since I was paralyzed on the left side and couldn't walk to the last few years where I have been extricating myself from a very abusive & controlling partner - I've learned to say NO. I don't ask much for myself. Like I said, my children are my primary focus and then my health. The latter tends to DEMAND I pay attention or it literally makes me sicker than the white noise of physical pain and feeling lousy I do most of the time. My friends are always telling me to do more nice things for myself and to...