Hello friends --This week has been a blurrrrr. I had been to the HIMSS conference in Orlando (Health Information Management Systems Society) on a dead run. I flew home last Friday, unpacked, did laundry, slept in my own bed, packed and headed to D.C. for my daughter's volleyball tournament - where there were 1,000 teams participating!!  It was mind-blowing! No big surprise - I got sick. Why can't I remember to build in some rest time??  Do you do that too??  Overdo when you're feeling good? UGH.Between the sniffles - I'll post the top 6 things in the world of MS this week:1.  And now, in the "no shit Sherlock category" - the prevalence of #MS in the U.S. is estimated to be double what was originally estimated. To those of us in this game for awhile, we've known the estimates to be incredibly low. Why is this new, higher number important? I'll let the super smarticle Tamara Sellman of Sleepy Head Central explain: "Now that we have a decent estimation, maybe the government will take this disease more seriously and look for vaccines, remyelination approaches, or at least finally agree upon disease mechanisms and causes and take action accordingly." Here's the article: MS Prevalence2.  Here's a good one: "Researchers show compounds based onchloroindazole reduce inflammation as well as promote neuroprotection and remyelination, improving the primary symptoms in a mouse model of multiple sclerosis" Read more here: Superior Therapeutic Approach for MS3.  The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has warned against the use of plasma transfusions from young donors to alleviate or treat the symptoms of multiple sclerosis or other diseases, noting such transfusions have no proven clinical benefit and carry known health risks associated with their use. I didn't even know this was a thing - did you?? Here's the article: Plasma Transfusions4.  Vitamins B12 and B9 (folic acid) supplements can lower levels of homocysteine (a common amino acid), improve anemia status, and boost self-reported physical health in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS), according to new research.  Want to learn more?? Here you go (and take your supplements!!) Supplements for MS.5.  In the inspirational MS'er category - I give you - Melissa Ossanna. WHOA!!  She was dx'ed and her docs told her exercise might help. So she started with a marathon!!  Now she runs ultras (I didn't know what that was either) Read more here: Inspirational MS'er6.  I dropped a brand-spankin' new podcast episode this morning!!  It's a great one too. All about a collaborative effort between Lybulb and Celegen to sponsor an Innovation Challenge for patient entrepreneurs to help with everyday life issues for MS'ers. AND - the grand prize is - wait for it - $25,000!!!  Holy cow!  You can listen to the episode right here: Dr. Karin Hehenberger w/LybulbSo that's all folks! Hope this little missive of mine is of value to you. I really appreciate it when you all reach out and let me know what you want, how you're doing and let me know if you have other ideas of topics you'd like me to cover or people you'd like me to interview - maybe even YOU. You can simply hit "reply" to this email and let me know or meet me over in the FUMS Facebook community and let's chat!  Thanks.Warmly -- Kathy#FUMS

Sometimes it helps the stress, just to say "F-U-M-S"