> Hi All
> just a breif note to say Gemma my daughter ,was only 10 months old
> at the onset to TM and was not suffering from flu like symptons nor was she
> suffering from any kind of stress .We had returned from a holiday in spain
> only days before
> thanks Linda (ENGLAND)
I think for a baby a major change in schedule and routine and surroundings,
like an out-of-country trip, is a form of stress. It always took my kids a
while to get back to "normal" after a trip. Even though they don't "know"
what's going on, they know things are different and that can threaten their
security. And she could have had something going on, something not feeling
right, that of course she couldn't express. And we have to remember stress is
not always from something terrible like a death in the family or something
major and negative. We can be under stress even while involved with something
we enjoy...I experienced and was diagnosed with an optical migraine (which I
read can occur after a time of stress) just after making a presentation that I
enjoyed doing, had looked forward to for months, had really enjoyed preparing
for, yet took a lot of time and work to prepare for and disrrupted my normal
schedule. I also tend to get "stressed out" when preparing for company to
come, trying to get things ready, even though I'm looking forward to them
coming. So I think anything that disrupts our routine and taxes our "coping
skills" (I recently heard one dr. refer to "coping chemicals" the brain
produces; she said those can be "used up" and take a while to replenish and
that is a chemical cause of drpression) can be stressful.
I don't know if stress itself can trigger illness -- I think there are a
number of factors involved, but I think stress can certainly be a contributing
factor, maybe weakening your body's ability to cope or fight back.
Barbara