Hi Everyone
Just interested to know if any of you have read the book ‘Overcoming Multiple sclerosis’ by George Jelinek.
The reason I ask is that for me it has given me strenght to face this disease head on and take on what ever it throws at me.
I’m surprised by how few people know about the book and why when I was diagnosed the neuro guy didn’t point me in the direction of finding it and utilising it to my advantage.
Your thoughts please
Jimbo
Because there is no clear evidence that it works in general. This and other special diets fall into the ‘some people find it helpful’ category; they are not usually recommended by conventional medics because there is no robust basis on which to make such a recommendation. Most neurologists, if asked, recommend a normal, healthy, balanced diet. Here is a link to what the MS Society says about some of the most popular special diets on the main part of this site (they also have lots of other useful stuff on there about nutrition generally - worth a look). http://www.mssociety.org.uk/what-is-ms/treatments-and-therapies/diet/special-diets-and-ms
I am glad that you feel that your diet is helping you. Good luck with it.
Alison
Hi Alison
Thanks for reply, but note I didn’t mention anything about diets as I believe they do not work. What I do think is that the book shows the fact health eating and exercise taking the right vitamins and meditation gives us lot a better chance of staying well for longer.
It is far to easy for us to rely on doctors advise and pills they give, yet they don’t really understand our bodies like an MS person does.
I’ll take alook at the website
Jimbio
“It is far too easy for us to rely on doctors advise and pills”(jimbo are these your thoughts or from someone else?) I think the reason for this is that the “pills” have been scientifically proven to work for people. Most people here tend to realise a healthy diet with vitamins will help everyone feel healthier regardless of whether they have ms or not. I believe in a good healthy diet with vitamins and some “pills” from the doctor to reduce the frequency/severity of my relapses. Other people on here could not be able to manage without other “pills” that they rely on for pain/spasms/ etc. I really don’t think meditation is going to help those of us suffering with pain. Teresa.
Hi Jimbo,
This book’s been around for a while now. I bought it and read it and passed it on to someone else about 8 years ago.
I also read ‘Curing the incurable’ which doesn’t seem to exist now and that helped me a lot, however it was old when I was diagnosed and the woman who wrote the book may not have had MS in the first place. Personally, I found diet to help enormously. It has really helped - but again, there are many, many diets, with quite different approaches. The low-fat diet did nothing for me - but again, that’s just me. It keeps me ticking along, but beta-interferon has stopped me from being constantly and acutely ill.
I could also write about overcoming MS, but it would only apply to me.
I see that the Jelinek campaign has now grown and that worries me a little. I enjoy discussion, reading peoples’ stories about how the got better and it’s humbling to read accounts of those who don’t have a great prognosis, but a charity that has paid administrators should do something concrete to help people. The MSS does, but what does (sorry can’t remember the charity’s name) do, except promote Professor Jelinek’s advice - sound advice, that it is.
There are so many movements/groups that claim to support people with MS - from LDN to CCSVI, to Jelinek to EL (here) and it gets complicated.
A general neurologist, who deals with Parkinsons, strokes, MS, epilepsy and other brain disorders isn’t going to produce the book and advise a newly diagnosed MSer to ‘read this!’. He/she won’t know. They aren’t trained to do this. I get quite irritated when people write that their neuro ‘should know’ about LDN, CCSVI, diet, massage, HBOT, Vitamin D3, B12, exercise, physiotherapy, weight training, fatigue management, when their next patient could have a diagnosis of Motor Neurone Disease and the poor neuro has to break the news to them.
You wrote; “It is far to easy for us to rely on doctors advise and pills they give, yet they don’t really understand our bodies like an MS person does.”
Hmm. I’d be dead without the various pills. Don’t ever advise people to stop taking medication. It’s very dangerous. As MS affects the brain, we can’t feel it. A doctor can sedate you and perform open-brain surgery and you wouldn’t feel a thing.
I owe my understanding of how MS affects my body to my various physios and chiropractors over the years. Knowing how to relieve muscle spasms is very important. Having someone check your gait, because you can’t see yourself walking, is also really important. The brain doesn’t receive pain messages properly with MS. So people with MS get injured more easily.
It’s dead complicated, MS. I don’t think we are the masters of our own body with this damn disease. That’s the cruel truth.
Jimbo, the main thing when reading about Jelinek is to be aware that he himself is on Copaxon and that he recommends that people take their DMDs in conjunction with his other ideas. He is not anti-pills or western medicine at all.
From his website…
It is also a bit much expecting your neurologist to point you in the direction of every book ever marketed about MS. There are an awful lot of them!!! Researching further information is really up to you and it would depend on each individual patient as to where their personal interesat took them.
Personally I have very little faith in Supportive and Complimetary Medicines (SCAM) and prefer to stick with empirically tested methods. This may interest you too…
Cheers,
B
hI
The book and programme does include diet,exercise, meditation,stress management and vitamin D supplements.
It certainly does not exclude medications - in fact Prof Jelinek talks quite clearly about that and doing “whatever it takes”. What he does do is synthesise the (medical/scientific) evidence and sets out a programme that pulls together all of these strands. Many people continue to follow this programme as well as their medications (and use the expertise of physios etc)
I have followed the programme for almost 6 years and have had good results. Jimbio I encourage you to get started on the Overcoming MS programme - Best wishes.
I don’t read delusional crap let alone pay for utter tosh
I am very confused now. On the blood type thread, you wrote that you are eating to your blood type and doing the 5:2 fast.
I do this as well and feel much better - seriously, but why the contradictions in your opinions? Are you more than one person or are you as confused as I am?
I have, and I started on the lifestyle, IT IS NOT JUST A DIET. now 6 months in.
I have remitting relapsing MS, sick for 3 years, first , episode 3weeks, second, 2 months and last 7 months, increasingly disabled, unable to walk, bedridden with many symptoms for my last relapse and progressively worse in between relapses. I am not delusional , I understand that our bodies are made of the food that we eat, I can see that MS and other illnesses are around and increasingly common in cultures that eat rubbish. I do not believe in waiting for a miracle pill that will do all the work while I just wait carrying on with poisoning my body with manipulated fat, sweeteners, proteins that are increasingly believed to promote autoimmune illnesses.
I am very annoyed that no neurologist even mentioned the possibility of helping myself through other approach I researched the illness more that the solutions available and it cost me 3 years of misery…
So now , I will let people know that you can make a difference to your health.
No, it doesn’t come with a guaranty and timescale but it does come with a huge amount of hope, support and understanding.
I have to go now because I like going for a bike ride before work, I started doing that since I got out my wheelchair. I love my job, I realised that while I was bedridden… my children are glad I read OVERCOMING MS: they have their mummy back!
Hobs I would urge you to have a rethink before rejecting Jelinek’s’ Overcoming Multiple Sclerosis’ (OMS) as delusional crap or utter tosh.
The sub-title of the book is ‘An evidence based guide to recovery’. Jelinek is a professor of emergency medicine and schooled in the paradigm of scientific evidence based analysis. As a medical scientist AND someone with MS he his perhaps in a better position than anyone to have a proper perspective on the disease.
First I would say that from what you have said above I don’t think you have a clue what the book is about. Perhaps you think he is saying that by eating right and meditating you can cure MS. Please don’t make that mistake. Jelinek has looked at this from EVERY angle. The book goes into a great deal of detail on ALL the relevant medications that have been on the market, and weighs the pros and cons by cross referencing a huge amount of data. He encourages people to ‘do whatever it takes’ - including interferons, steroids, whatever if it works.
What sceptics seem to get hung up on in that he thinks there is also some benefit in dietary approaches and meditation. With regards to meditation, all I will say is that the mind-body connection (in specific regard to health) is something that is already widely researched and in the last 10 or 15 years become increasingly recognised as a powerful factor in disease (of all kinds) progression. You can be as sceptical as you like, but at least look at the evidence first. MS progression is largely determind by inflamation. Stress affects the body in such a way that increases inflamation. Meditation helps to control stress. Its as simple as that. And there is plenty of evidence to back these claims up.
The recommendations on diet are based on many things, but this awarenesss of inflamation is certainly one of them. Some foods have an inflamatory effect on the CNS. Others an anti-inflammatory effect. But there are many more sides to this story. I’m perhaps not the person to try and explain it.
So I urge you to read the book. I would give you my copy, but I often go back to it for reference and clarifications. You can pick up a copy for under a tenner. It could just be the best tenner you ever spent, it certainly was for me. Now I have some hope at least, which is more than any neurologist ever offered me. You could be cynical and say its false hope, but 6 years now with no relapse, as with many other people following the protocol (notice I didn’t say diet) and there are a lot of us (I have met many). Every single person I’ve met is glad they read the book, are following the protocol and doing well - some with 10+ years of no relapses.
Tosh? Delusional crap? Please please please read the book and THEN decide.
Philly Dee
Jimbo Have you tried spending your time on oms forums or Facebook pages? The people on there are incredibly supportive and kind. They would never dismiss anything someone chooses to do to improve their health. They are motivated, determined, thoughtful and intelligent and you will learn a great deal there. I am constantly inspired. Whether it is grounded in science or ‘utter tosh’ it helps people enormously. I am also hugely interested by the research which demonstrates people with MS do better when following lifestyle changes as promoted by OMS. Personally - I will do whatever gives me the greatest confidence that I will be ok. If others choose a different path I think that is great too. I would never consider anyone that wants to get better delusional. We all have the same goal. Also - I attend one of the most scientifically funded MS clinics in the UK. They recommend the Jelinek approach in so much as they asked me to take vitamin d, omega 3, consider my diet and lifestyle - and think about mindfulness. They say it is proven. Good luck to you. Lu.
Hi Luciea.
I hope you are doing well by following the OMS program! I would love to know the clinic that you attend, I was diagnosed in February with RRMS and have been trying to follow the diet. When I told my neurologist and MS nurse they were not very supportive and the MS nurse was not even aware of the OMS program.
Nadia x
A three year old post, luciea may not look in on the forum anymore. Funnily enough, that one post plugging the Facebook page, was the only post.
I expect your Neuro and ms nurse aren’t supportive because they probably aren’t aware of anyone who has “overcome” ms, with or without a special diet. If this was possible, we would all be cured and there would be no forum.
Nadia - Im easing into the OMS program too. My neurologist recommended it outright. Dont be discouraged by the kneejerk negativity some people show… I think they frankly misunderstand what it is, assuming its a wild claim alternative business. Good luck to you! 
Id encourage any of us to read up. Its not a wild claim of anything. Also as an organisation its a great resource.
Wonder how well the diet, living (book) would have faired without the dmd? Agree totally with the fact no neuro should be telling people this is the way. Glad their not preaching religion, and poltics too.
I’m not assuming it’s a wild claim alternative, but I certainly don’t know of anyone who has "overcome " ms, like it’s a bout of flu or something. Do you? Does anyone here on the forum know of anyone? It makes me cross when I see these things being promoted.
Title of the mans research and preaching aside, it is evidence based information, therefore your medication is as is.
Agree at least medication is trialled, and the results based on evidence gained for all to see, not just a word of mouth, or opinion of someone. That’s the true ace up the sleeve for anyone, if available with m.s. to at least slow it down. Everyone is entitled to their own view on the book when they have m.s. and try it, not when they don’t.
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I don’t read delusional crap let alone pay for utter tosh
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A typical keyboard warrior throw-away comment!
Where/what do you base your ‘delusion’ judgement on? As you claim not to have read it how do you come to such a conclusion??
The book (yes I have it) is a wealth of information in not only understanding better why someflare-ups can happen but also in how to help yourself in dealing with and easing them. The book is also free from the website to those with MS and written by a professed with MS himself, hardly ‘delusional’.
For those of us diagnosed with progressive MS it is certainly a fantastic tool in helping to try and understand and ultimately slow down our own progression any way we can.
The only ‘utter tosh’ I see here is YOUR comment ‘Hobs’!