Tips for Staying Cool and Conserving Energy

Posted on July 10, 2013 by Samantha Schech

As the temperature continues to rise during these summer months there are several ways to help beat the heat and conserve your home energy. Start by trying some of these tips to lower your energy bill and keep your home cool!

Keep doors closed to uncooled parts of your home. If you have central air conditioning, close off the vents to any rooms that you will not be using.
- Tip: The lowest level of a home is often the coolest. If you have a basement, plan to spend most of the day in this room, to avoid over cooling the rest of your home.
Using ceiling and other fans, even if you have air conditioning, helps to provide additional cooling and better circulation of the cooled air.
- Tip: Place a bowl or tray of ice water in front of a fan to increase the chill factor!
Seal any holes or cracks around doors and windows, this helps to eliminate cold air leaks. Make sure to seal around window air conditioners with insulation.
Close the blinds and shades in windows facing the sun to keep out the sun’s heat and help fans and air conditioners cool more efficiently.
- Tip: Check out energy efficient curtains or blackout curtains to help keep the light and heat out of a room!
Clothes dryers and dishwashers produce a lot of heat. Use them in the early morning or late evening, not during the hottest part of the day.
- Tip: Wash clothes in cold water and air dry in front of a fan. This tip works the same as the bowl of ice water!
Turn off TVs, computers, and other electronic devices rather than use standby mode. Electronic devices can create additional heat in the home.
Unplug items like cell phone chargers, DVD players, microwave ovens and other appliances. They still use energy even when turned off!
- Tip: Plug electronics into power strips and turn off the power switch when the items are not in use.

The Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) helps keep families safe and healthy by assisting families with energy costs. Check in with LIHEAP about energy conservation and low income energy assistance programs. Often in the summer months, those with lower incomes, or individuals with disabilities are offered discounts on their energy bills to help keep their homes cool during the summer months. For information on applying for LIHEAP assistance, please contact your LIHEAP State or Territory agency.

Staying Active with MS

Posted on June 28, 2013 by Ashley

Usually when we hear “stay active” people are referring to some sort of exercise. But, that’s not what I’m implying when I say it, I like to keep my mind active.

And I don’t mean keep your mind active by stressing about what’s going on in your life or how your MS is affecting you that particular day. I mean, test your brain. Play some games online that really make you think; get a crossword puzzle book; or you can play games on Facebook, like I do!

However, if it’s one of those days where you just don’t even want to think too hard, because your head just can’t handle it, get lost in a book! That’s my favorite thing to do! I don’t sit there and worry about what’s going on in my life when I get lost in reading a book that I can really get into.

I can’t even describe how time goes by when I’m doing these things and how I don’t worry about how I’m doing with my MS, or anything else going on in my life. My brain is being active, but not to the point where it’s stressful, it’s relaxing. Something I really enjoy that we do at MSWorld.org is every Friday Night at 8pm ET, we play “Trivia.” One of the chat hosts puts together an hours worth of trivia, and the whole chat room plays. It’s nothing that is a “competition” or makes you think too hard, it’s really fun and gets you thinking!

Of course, it’s always good to stay physically active with MS… that’s a given, but I like to have a workout session with my brain more often than physical workouts! Needless to say, the only physical workout I can endure with out “over doing” or hurting myself is swimming. And I’m not just talking about hurting myself from doing too much, but I have made a fool of myself at the gym because I’m a walking accident!

So since it’s Summer time, take this time to enjoy and get your brain working, but in a fun way!

Preparing for a Doctor’s Visit

Posted on June 24, 2013 by Ashley

Okay, so we all go to doctor’s appointments… and we have to get there early, in order to fill out paper work… and while we’re filling our paper work in the doctor’s office waiting room, we have to try and ‘remember’ everything that we need to write down for the doctor.

So I’m going to share some things that I do, in order to prepare for a doctor’s visit… without forgetting information that needs to be shared.

For starters, I keep a journal. In my journal I keep note of any changes in how I’m feeling or how I’m reacting to medication. It’s also very handy, when I need to write down a question I want to ask my neurologist, and if I don’t write it down right then… I’m going to forget, even if I tell myself that I won’t.

Something I always have on me when I leave the house, (as well as at home saved on my computer), is a medication list. This way, if something was to happen and I have to go to the ER or anything like that, my medication list is always with me.

I can also say that I would be completely lost, if I didn’t program alarms on my phone for upcoming appointments, and to even take my medications! Yeah it’s annoying, but I don’t forget!

Having a list of my medications as well as my journal of how I’m feeling and how I’m doing on medications, etc., really helps when I go to see my neurologist. It also cuts down time that I have to fill out paperwork, which can sometimes be troublesome as I also have issues with Upper Limb Spasticity (in my hands) mainly in the summer months, so it’s not always “easy” to fill out paperwork.

One of the benefits from keeping things written down in my journal is that, my neurologist can see what triggered me not feeling better… like I stated earlier, my spasticity gets worse when it’s hotter outside, so I know what has caused the increase in my spasticity. (Mind you, I live in Central Texas, and it’s almost always hot here… so let’s just say “hotter”… like today’s “Real Feel” is 102 Degrees Fahrenheit.)

Now, I don’t carry around a small notebook with me anymore, but I do use my phone to keep notes on how I’m doing. You have to enjoy and embrace technology these days, as the famous saying goes … “There’s an APP for that.” (MSAA does have a mobile phone app, My MS Manager, which offers a journaling feature) It’s all true.

One last tip, if you’re the type of person to forget things easily, like I am see if your doctor would mind if you brought a voice recorder to your appointment. This will allow you to play back the visit and conversation to yourself when you’re at home. This is especially helpful if your doctor answered some of the important questions you had been waiting to ask.

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