I just don't know enough about TM to comment on whether or not it is or can be
heridity. From all that I have read on your family history, there sure seems
to be more than a coincidence.
My Aunt was DXed with MS at almost the exact time I was DXed with TM. I only
know half of my heredity, so I cannot speculate on my immune system. They now
feel she has had MS since she was 8 years old and she is now 48.
My grandmother, my mothers's mother is depressed. Two of her daughter's are
depressed. I see the same symptoms in my oldest daughter. I remember my
grandmother not coming out of her room for hours at a time. Crying at the drop
of a dime. Feeling so overwhelmed by the smallest of things. My daughter is
irritable, tired quite often, very angry, and her way of thinking is somewhat
irrational. Heredity? Much like her two grandmothers's and one great Aunt.
I can guess at a lot of things as I have had back problems from the time I was
a teenager. Slight curvature of the spine, fractured coccyx at 16, bulging
disk in the lumbar, etc. The list is far too long for my back problems. I had
mono as a teenager. Had brain surgery in June of 97, fell down the stairs
twice in July of 97 and started with my TM symptoms in August of 97. It was
slow and progressive until the onset in March of 98 when I had the worst flu
I've ever had followed by this pox like rash that made my body feel like it
was on fire from the inside out.
I've been on so many different types of anti-seizure meds that I have to read
my journal to know just how many. I have tried every new one available which
means they don't really know the long term affects because it hasn't been on
the market long enough to know. Takes about 5 years to really know long term
affects of new meds unless it's something like those diet pills where it
causes problems immediately.
Heredity? Who knows. I still consider myself without as much knowledge as most
of you. I sometimes try to find a pattern and then other times think why
should I try to find one. TM hit me, it came it did it's damage, and I'm left
with the residuals. That is how I get out of trying to overthink this. I just
get so tired of trying to find out why as opposed to trying to learn how to
live with it. I probably get this way because I have so much to deal with.
I went throught this with my epilepsy too. Why, and where did it come from?
Well, they "think" is the best they can come up with.
I am much more knowledable about epilepsy than TM because I've had it all my
life. So I used to put, before TM, all of my energy into finding ways to help
reduce my seizure activity. Once I get this disc removed, I can start to focus
more on helping myself with the TM and epilepsy.
It's very hard for me to focus on either because the pain and neurological
dysfunctions from the herniation are so great that it's hard to know what is
from the herniation and what is TM.
Well, enough of my ramblings. Just taking a load off I guess. Glad to hear
that your dear grandchild is getting on better. Will continue to keep her in
my prayers.
Maria in Tonwanda who now needs to keep the small stuff small :)