TMJ 'dysfunction' - Health implications

It was good see you again last week Jen, you seemed in good spirits.

Emma had a tough week - but like you, a new brace and few adjustments and she was back on course again. Until next time!

Thanks EJC, it was great to see you and Emma again. I always enjoy the chats we have in Amir's waiting room, putting the world to rights!
After my last appointment I was starting to feel stronger having begun wearing the adjustable braces again but over the weekend I have gone down with a horrible bug. It has completely knocked me for six with flu like symptoms and upset tummy. I can't eat either so I'm feeling very weak and sorry for myself. I do find it annoying though; not so much because I feel terrible but more because it has interrupted my progress with the brace. Still, can't be helped I suppose, there's a lot of it about!
I'm looking forward to shaking it off and resuming my regime

I'm really pleased to hear of all your improvements Jenny, for your sake but also as an indicator what to expect from this treatment. Looking forward to more updates in the coming weeks.
Michele

Here is a letter someone else has recently written to the MS Society:
7th November 2013

The Communication Team
MS Society
MS National Centre
372 Edgware Road
London
NW2 6ND

Dear Sir/Madame
Re: Evidence that even primary progressive MS can be improved speedily
My name is Della Shanker. My son Arongit, aka Reece, was diagnosed with primary progressive MS and has been confined to a wheelchair for the last 7 years.

He is a patient at White Horse Surgery & Walk in Centre, Fleet Health Campus, Vale Road, Northfleet, Kent DA11 8Z since 2011. Dr Robert Shane Delamont at Darent Valley Hospital in Dartford, Kent, is his neurologist.

Reece’s many symptoms and prolonged suffering
Reece had many debilitating symptoms which deteriorated rapidly about 12 months ago. He became so lifeless that I feared he was going to die. He is only 23.
He was so weak that he would not say anything for days. He spoke with a slur and had no energy to round off his words. His eyes were dull and he struggled to keep them open. He had blurred vision and sometimes his right eye could not move. I think his lungs must have been very weak because he often gasped for air. He had difficulties swallowing and was choking every day even on his own saliva. He choked until his face turned red and tears came out of his eyes. It was frightening because I never knew when the choking would stop.

Constipation was a big problem because he had no energy to open his bowels or to pass motion. He had to push hard and wait for the next bout of energy to push again. His stools were so hard that they caused pain and bleeding. It used to take him an hour to pass motion, 20 minutes to urinate. For many years Reece had no energy to force urine out of his bladder. He had to concentrate hard and sometimes he could not feel the urine. He learned to press on his bladder repeatedly to make sure that it had emptied.

His circulation was very bad. His body was cold especially the right side which was like ice even in summer. In winter his joints hurt. He had numbness and tingling all over. His right limbs were so numb that he could not feel a needle piercing his flesh.
Reece has a personal trainer and was training 3 times a week for an hour on each occasion as advised by doctors. He would be exhausted after training and I had to prop him up to eat. Many of his symptoms such as breathlessness and double vision very much worsened after training. However, Reece was unable to sweat, not even during training in hot weather.

MS affects mostly the right side of Reece’s body which was stiff all over. His back had been arched for years since he had no energy to straighten up. He could not move his right limbs. For the last few years his right hand clenched and he could not move his fingers except when you put a video game control in his hand. No doctor has ever been able to explain why his fingers move only when he plays video games which used to exhaust him physically and mentally.
Reece had foot drop and had been wearing a splint for the last 7 years. His right arm had been wasting and is considerably thinner than his left. The right side of his face also shrunk. His nails were weak and hardly grew. His hair was splitting like straws, falling out every day. He had these thick, itchy red marks on his body as though he had been whipped.

Spasms got much worse and more frequent about 12 months ago, 15-20 a day. These spasms were so aggressive that they caused his body to contract and shake violently, pulling his legs sharply off the ground.

His legs were getting weaker by the day. He lost balance and was falling several times a day hurting himself. He has scars and bruises on his back. He also hurt his head, knees and other body parts.

Reece was too tired and stressed to eat regularly. Some days he had no appetite and skipped meals. He had heartburn which made him feel awful.
Sleep and extreme tiredness were the biggest problems. Reece used to go to bed between 11pm and 1 am and could not fall asleep before 2-3am. He would wake up after 1-2 hours to urinate, then could not sleep again for hours. The best he could manage was 5-6 hours of restless sleep a night. He woke up feeling extremely tired each morning as though he had not slept.

Reece needed care around the clock. He used to wake me up in the middle of the night, every night, to take him to toilet. I had to stop working to look after him full time. I bathe, clean and dress him. I had to carry him into the bath and out, onto and off his scooter, onto and off the toilet seat. I had to take down his pants and to wait to put them back on. He got spasms whenever he remained in a position for long and I had to carry him to change his position. I feed him when he is too tired to hold a spoon. Reece was completely helpless. He could not even turn himself in his sleep.

Reece was always irritated, angry, intolerant, anxious or depressed. He was too tired to concentrate or to remember. Even thinking seemed to tire him. It was heart breaking to see my son turning into a vegetable day by day, weakening progressively.

MS Can Be Improved Easily By the Body Itself

Reece had been searching the internet desperately look for anything that can relive any of his symptoms. It took him 3 months to find The Chinese Clinic website.
The website says that MS cures itself if you give the body the energy it needs. It explains how oligodendrocytes build and repair myelin through the process of remyelination and how sleep gives the body the energy it needs to restore organ and cell functions.
It says that the Clinic has not come across of a case of MS that has not improved and it provides a money back guarantee to improve not only MS, but also sleep, energy, productivity and quality of life.
We read the testimonials and realised that everyone is talking about sleep and about how quickly sleep improved when they changed the way they think and the way they live their life.

http://www.thechineseclinic.co.uk/#/cur ... 4577303340
Treatments that speedily improve MS

I brought Reece to the Clinic on 27th July 2013. Alex, the life coach, told us not to worry because worrying is the problem, not MS. He promised that Reece’s life would change the moment he lets go of the past and starts enjoying his surroundings. He said that the body has always healed itself if you give it a chance. There is nothing to fear except fear itself.

Alex explains that many of Reece’s symptoms are in fact classic symptoms of chronic fatigue syndrome and therefore they can be improved and eliminated by boosting energy which restorative sleep provides.

The effect of the life coaching was remarkable. Reece became relaxed and motivated for the first time in many years. He believed his life would soon change and understood all he needed to do to get well is to stop worrying or thinking after 7pm. We both felt so much better instantly.
Alex advised Reece to stop training immediately which was a surprise since doctors and healthcare professionals have always told Reece to keep active because he would lose it if he did not use it. Alex explained that the exhausting training was draining what little energy Reece had, leaving his organs with not enough energy to maintain normal functions.
The Clinic recently recommended Reece to start light training again since his energy significantly improved. I respectfully ask MS Society to highlight the danger of exercises that drain the body of energy it needs. .
Unbelievably Reece fell asleep easily that night by around 10.30pm and slept through the night. The other improvements are just as miraculous, not possible in conventional medicine.
For example, doctors first recommended the use of catheter to drain urine when Reece encountered problem passing urine 6-7 years ago. He was able to pass urine naturally and freely a few days after treatment started. He has been passing urine like normal people do, effortlessly. He opens his bowels regularly every day or two and empties quickly, taking only a few minutes. There has been no pain, no bleeding.
Reece quickly regained a degree of independence. Shortly after treatments started he could stand on his own feet and move around the house by himself on the scooter. He can get himself onto and off the scooter, onto and off the toilet seat. He can take down and put on his pants, he can get himself to the toilet at night and back into bed without waking me for help.
The vast and sustained improvements in so many seemingly unrelated chronic conditions suggest that Reece’s body is recovering as a whole, not just from MS.
It is noteworthy that some symptoms like spasms, weakness and falls recur when Reece cannot sleep well. He cannot sleep well whenever he cannot stop worrying or over thinking.
For details of the many amazing improvements that Reece is continuing to experience I refer you to his testimonial which he sent to his GP Dr Kevin Tan dated 8th August, and to the Clinic’s Report Alex sent to Dr Tan on 8th October 2013 (enclosed).
Regular poor sleep kills, not MS
NHS Choices explains that regular poor sleep weakens the immune system and puts people at risk of serious medical conditions such as diabetes, high blood pressure and heart disease, and that regular poor sleep shortens life expectancy.

It says: “It’s now clear that a solid night’s sleep is essential for a long and healthy life”.

This explains that prolonged poor sleep kills, whether you have MS or not.

http://www.nhs.uk/Livewell/tiredness-an ... risks.aspx

The BBC reports explains how cutting sleep to 6 hours a night for just one week alters over 700 genes to damage cells, affecting the immune system, leading to illnesses such as degenerative diseases:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-21572686

The Clinic explains restorative sleep gives you a full tank of energy. Sleep that is not sufficiently restorative gives you a reduced supply. 90% of people with MS suffer from extreme tiredness or fatigue because the quality of their sleep is not restorative enough. Sleep is a brain function. Restorative sleep is not possible as long as the brain is overwhelmed by constant worries, anxiety and fear.

The NHS evidence and the BBC report mean that no treatment can protect the immune system or life expectancy as long as regular poor sleep is allowed to persist.
The Clinic believes that the NHS’ failure to provide effective treatment to restore restorative sleep is the reason why so many people are allowed to become progressively more ill and to die prematurely, not just people with MS.

Given that regular poor sleep kills, not MS, I respectfully urge MS society to highlight the danger of regular poor sleep, and to advice patients to seek treatment to regain restorative sleep to protect life expectancy if not to improve MS.

Please Investigate and Change the Information on MS according to new findings

People with MS cannot sleep well because they cannot stop worrying. They cannot stop worrying because their mind is constantly disturbed by the belief that no treatment can improve MS and that they would die earlier than the population at large by an average of 10 years.
Reece had problem sleeping for many years. His sleep improved drastically after visiting the Clinic because the belief that his life will improve gave his mind the peace it needs.

I remember clearly how devastated Reece and I were by the diagnosis of MS. Being told that no treatment can prevent his life from becoming progressively worse and that he would die early is worse than being handed a death sentence without the possibility of appeal. People sentenced to death know when they will die and do not have to suffer progressively the way Reece had to suffer endlessly.

In the light of the fact that many of Reece’s chronic symptoms have disappeared completely for the last 2-3 months and the improvements he is continuing to experience, the information your website provides that MS cannot be improved is evidently wrong.

Incorrect information is cruel and immensely harmful because it instils in MS sufferers constant fear and anguish. This prevents them from sleeping restoratively which weakens their body progressively to allow symptoms and other health conditions to develop, compromising their life expectancy.

I therefore respectfully ask MS Society to investigate the Clinic’s claims and to evaluate the efficacy of their treatments.

The Clinic explains on their website that all they do to prevent illness and to improve MS and all sorts of conditions that are incurable in conventional medicine is to help patients regain restorative sleep.

I hope that MS Society is able and willing to work with the Clinic because they guarantee to improve sleep and energy which are what people with MS need most.
I believe that the information that MS can be improved will give every MS sufferer the relief and peace they need to improve their energy which only restorative sleep can provide.

Please Help Examine Evidence in order to Avoid Needless Suffering and Waste

Reece and I want to help people with MS get well. We want to publicise his amazing experience to give others hope and encouragement, and to show them how to avoid pitfalls such as overexertion and overthinking that hinder recovery.

We have been struggling to get by on state benefits and I have been borrowing money to pay for Reece’s treatments. The Clinic is providing free acupuncture but it is still costing us about £150 a week plus petrol money to go from Gravesend to Balham 3 times a week.

We asked Dr Tan to examine the many improvements that changed Reece’s life and to secure NHS funding for him to continue with treatments. Kent and Medway Commissioning Support Unit refused to consider the funding application on the ground that Dr Tan did not supply sufficient evidence. Dr Tan said it is not up to him to examine evidence. He said it is up to me and the Clinic to persuade the NHS and health organisations such as MS Society to examine evidence and to provide funding.
The NHS’ refusal or failure to provide funding for treatment Reece needs has revived his anxiety and fear which are affecting his sleep. His sleep is far better than before but he has not been able to sleep well for longer than 4 consecutive nights.

Reece has brought his complaints to the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman and asked for protection under Articles 2 and 3 of the Human Rights Act. He complains that the NHS’ failure to provide effective treatments to improve his sleep amounts to knowingly compromising his life expectancy. He also complains that the failure to provide treatments he needs amounts to subjecting him to torture or inhuman or degrading treatments, in violation of his human rights. We will seek judicial review if necessary.

We hope that the MS Society will support our fight to secure for all MS sufferers the treatments they need.
The Clinic provides a money back guarantee to improve not only MS but also sleep, energy, productivity and quality of life. They prevent illness and restore health just by restoring restorative sleep to give the body the energy it needs.

I believe that this innovative, holistic, approach will benefit everyone with or without MS. At the very least, the Clinic guarantees to improve sleep and energy, which everyone needs.
I am writing to newspapers and health organisations in the hope of finding a sponsor to organise a scientific trial to evaluate the efficacy of the treatments the Clinic provides. I have good reasons to believe that the lack of restorative sleep is the underlying cause of MS and other debilitating conditions that ruin lives.
Thank you for reading my letter. Reece and I look forward to receiving your support.
Yours sincerely,

Della Shanker

The Chinese clinic informs us:
"The Society has done nothing to research how we speedily and consistently improve and eliminate symptoms it attributes to MS."
16th March 2014

A much overdue update - 2015 has been a year of even more, gradual improvement to my mobility and energy. I have started sessions with a very good neuro-physiotherapist in Banstead who specialises in brain injury. She has been working with me to improve the range of movement in my left foot and ankle. Years of immobility, coupled with numbness and foot drop had left it pretty weak and unresponsive - or so I thought. After a few targeted massages and special stretching exercises with the therapist, it now lifts up allowing my leg to step through without dragging. I can feel every part of my feet again, they feel part of me like they did before 'MS'. I have stopped using my rollator (in use for 6 years prior to treatment) and now use crutches and I can walk much further without getting exhausted.

Progress is by no means quick but it is consistently going in the right direction. I have not had any 'MS' symptoms for well over 3 and a half years since being treated for the REAL cause of all my symptoms. Any recurrence of numbness, tingling or L'Hermitte's sign has been immediately resolved with a small 'tweak' to my dental appliance. Dr Amir is amazingly intuitive - I don't fear MS anymore - together we are crushing it