Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!

Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays & Happy New Year!

I'll be taking 2 weeks for "vacation" to be with family and for medical concerns. 

I hope you have a wonderful holiday season 

and a joyous beginning to the new year of 2015. 

I wish everyone good health, love, and all the best in life!

Blessings to Everyone!

Photo of me in front of the 65-foot-tall Christmas Tree 

at the Venetian casino & hotel. The tree is lit with 50,000 LED lights.

Tuesday-Newsday #176

Time for Tuesday-Newsday! The Featured Blog Posts this week are all related to the holidays.

Let Me Know: If you’d like me to watch for articles on your pain condition, just drop me a note in the comments section below. 

WARNING:  My goal is to provide the most up-to-date news I can, which you can then take to your personal doctor and debate the merits of before you try it. I do not endorse any of the docs, treatments, info, and meds in anything I post nor can I guarantee they are all effective, especially not for everyone. As is the case with any health info, ALWAYS get your doctor's opinion first!

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*MEDICATION NEWS

~*Rx RECALL ALERT for Gabapentin (Neurontin)*~

Specialty Drugs to Cost Consumers More Next Year

Pharmacogenetic Testing in Pain Medicine: Experts Weigh In

Opioid Prescriber Monitoring May Increase Overdose Deaths

Chronic Opioid Users Pass Driving Test

Our Fear of Opioids Leaves the World in Pain

Docs: New pain med rule could hurt the elderly

COX-2: Biomarker discovery sheds new light on heart attack risk of Cox-2 NSAID

Ask the Pharmacist: Can a Pharmacy Delay Filling a Prescription?

*CHRONIC PAIN NEWS

Smart thermotherapy skin patch for pain relief with interactive control

Study Suggests Nasal Applicator Provides Effective Nerve Block in Seconds

FDA address cybersecurity in medical devices

*FIBROMYALGIA

Fibromyalgia patients can be treated with Lyrica for their pain and depression at the same time

Memantine drug shows promise for fibromyalgia

SURVEY RESULTS: Pain Treatments Used by Fibromyalgia Patients

Non-Drug Treatments More Effective Than Drugs for Multiple Fibromyalgia Symptoms, Meta-Analysis of Several Small Trials

ActiPatch Bioelectronic Therapy Relieves Chronic Pain In Fibromyalgia

Acupuncture Soothes Fibromyalgia And Helps Sleep

Warning about fibromyalgia poison ivy treatment

Fibromyalgia linked to heart disease in new study

The Latest in Fibromyalgia Diagnosis and Care, Expert Interview

With Fibromyalgia Treatment, One Size Does Not Fit All

MAGO treatment took away pain, exhaustion from fibromyalgia

Hypersensitivity to non-painful events may be part of pathology in fibromyalgia

Fibromyalgia linked to decreased brain connectivity

Can Online Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Help Fibromyalgia?

New research sheds light on mysterious fibromyalgia pain

Researchers testing non-drug treatment for fibromyalgia: Reduced Impedance Noninvasive Cortical Electrostimulation (RINCE)

Sensory Distress: The Other Side of Fibromyalgia

Fibromyalgia Prevalence in the General Population

Lyme Disease, Fibromylagia Link Evaporates: Earlier studies may have included patients who did not have Lyme disease

Light: A Window to Pain in the Brain?

Fibromyalgia Facts and Myths

opinion: The Facts and the Effects of Fibromyalgia Diagnostic Criteria

*CHRONIC FATIGUE SYNDROME (CFS) / MYALGIC ENCEPHALOMYELITIS (ME)

Protestors rallied outside NIH, angry at government neglect & mistreatment of 1 million disabled Americans with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis

The “Shake the CFS Stigma Challenge” Begins

How the definition of chronic fatigue syndrome keeps changing

Chronic Fatigue: NIH Literature Review Faulted

Survey Data on Name Change for ME/CFS Analyzed for Publication

Help the National ME/FM Action Network win $5000!

Study finds brain abnormalities in chronic fatigue patients

Study: Pain and pressure pain thresholds in adolescents with CFS and healthy controls

New clinical research program to combat chronic pain and chronic fatigue syndrome

Chronic fatigue syndrome and co-morbid and consequent conditions

*ARTICLES APPLYING TO ALL ABOVE CONDITIONS

ME/CFS and Fibromyalgia SURVEY RESULTS: Cognitive Impairment

Lack of Knowledgeable Healthcare Access for Patients with Neuro-endocrine-immune Diseases, such as Fibromyalgia, ME/CFS, and Chronic Lyme

opinion: Where Fibromyalgia and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Part Ways (and Where They Don't)

*FEATURED BLOG POSTS

Even if a Featured Blog Post is written specifically with emphasis on one chronic pain condition, it may still have information and ideas which can help people with any type of chronic pain/illness. I always select posts which I think can provide help for the widest audience.

The (Re)Cycle of Giving

by Me!

The Ultimate Guide for Surviving the Holidays with Fibromyalgia and CFS/ME and Chronic Health Issues

by Jacynthe Sonne

Tame Your Holiday Fibro Frenzy

by Sue Ingebretson

Feeling Grinch-y?

Dr. Laurie of CreakyJoints.org

Tuesday-Newsday #175

Time for Tuesday-Newsday! The Featured Blog Posts this week are all related to the holidays: “6 Ways to Handle Holiday Controllers, Critics and Coaches”, “Travel and the Holidays” and “Emotional Survival Guide for the Holidays.”

Let Me Know: If you’d like me to watch for articles on your pain condition, just drop me a note in the comments section below. 

WARNING:  My goal is to provide the most up-to-date news I can, which you can then take to your personal doctor and debate the merits of before you try it. I do not endorse any of the docs, treatments, info, and meds in anything I post nor can I guarantee they are all effective, especially not for everyone. As is the case with any health info, ALWAYS get your doctor's opinion first!

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*MEDICATION NEWS

New Combo Caps Approved for Moderate Pain: Trezix 

Painkiller Tramadol linked to increased risk of hospitalization for hypoglycemia

Zohydro ER Deemed Safe, Effective as Long-Term Chronic Pain Treatment 

Doctors Prescribing Fewer Opioids for Pain

Opioid Prescribing: Understanding the Risks

FDA Issues New Drug Label Rules to Better Inform Pregnant Women

Soaring Generic Drug Prices: 8 tips to save on your medications

*CHRONIC PAIN NEWS

The FDA has approved an injectable microchip nerve-stimulation device for the relief of ongoing back and leg pain

Study Suggests Resilience Determines Pain Tolerance

Unraveling the Mystery of Pain

Still Undiagnosed? 3 Options to Try

Spinal stimulators let those with chronic pain breathe a sigh of relief

Chronic Foot, Ankle Pain Can Lead to Neuroticism: People suffering with conditions also score high for anxiety, depression

Scientists chart spinal circuitry responsible for chronic pain

Write your way out of chronic pain

*MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS

FDA Approves Plegridy for MS

MS Drug Lemtrada Approved by the FDA

Sativex Helps MS Spasticity in Objective Tests, Small Trial Finds

Low Dose Naltrexone for Multiple Sclerosis, What Happened?

Dimethyl fumarate for multiple sclerosis: Added benefit not proven

Can Duloxetine Help Neuropathic Pain in MS?

Could Too Much Salt Harm MS Patients?

Multiple Sclerosis Risk Tied to Some Oral Contraceptives

Research Shows No Link Between Vaccinations, Risk for Multiple Sclerosis

Playing Video Game May Boost MS Patients' Balance: Study

'My body is acting like I never had it': Meet the 27-year-old who has dumbfounded doctors by recovering from MS after being told she would spend her life in a wheelchair

The benefits of wellness program for people with multiple sclerosis

Yoga program for MS patients improves physical and mental well-being

Massage therapy can alleviate symptoms of multiple sclerosis

'Healthy' Diets Don't Seem to Reduce MS Risk

Researchers Find Lifestyle Changes Can Help People With Multiple Sclerosis

Sleep problems may be a hidden epidemic among individuals with multiple sclerosis

Can exercise improve the quality of life for individuals with multiple sclerosis?

Sport can help multiple sclerosis patients

Depression: The Dark Side of Multiple Sclerosis

Novel cognitive study shows improvement in self-awareness with task experience in multiple sclerosis

A step closer to cell therapy for multiple sclerosis

People With HIV May Be at Lower Risk for Multiple Sclerosis

The Multiple Sclerosis Association of America Offers a New Resource to Guide the MS Community in Accessing Vital Information

The MSAA Launches Health Insurance Guide for Individuals with Multiple Sclerosis

Strides Made in 2014 Toward a World Free of MS

Healthline Names My MS Manager™ One of the Best Multiple Sclerosis Mobile Apps for Second Year

*FEATURED BLOG POSTS

Even if a Featured Blog Post is written specifically with emphasis on one chronic pain condition, it may still have information and ideas which can help people with any type of chronic pain/illness. I always select posts which I think can provide help for the widest audience.

6 Ways to Handle Holiday Controllers, Critics and Coaches

by Jude Bijou of PsychCentral

Travel and the Holidays

by Deborah Barrett of PainPathways magazine

Emotional Survival Guide for the Holidays

by Denise Mann

Tuesday-Newsday #174

Time for Tuesday-Newsday! The Featured Blog Posts this week are all related to chronic pain/illness and the holiday season. The titles are “How to Survive the Holidays with Chronic Illness,” “Oh Baby, ‘Tis the Season for THIS Therapy!” and “Surviving the Holidays: Give yourself the G.I.F.T. of a stress-free holiday.”

Let Me Know: If you’d like me to watch for articles on your pain condition, just drop me a note in the comments section below. 

WARNING:  My goal is to provide the most up-to-date news I can, which you can then take to your personal doctor and debate the merits of before you try it. I do not endorse any of the docs, treatments, info, and meds in anything I post nor can I guarantee they are all effective, especially not for everyone. As is the case with any health info, ALWAYS get your doctor's opinion first!

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~*HOLIDAY ALERT*~

Secure Your Prescription Drugs When Hosting Holiday Parties: Some guests might be tempted by easy access to medicines

*MEDICATION NEWS

FDA Approves 'Abuse-Resistant' New Hydrocodone Painkiller: Hysingla ER

Some Painkillers Tied to Bleeding Risk in Those With Abnormal Heartbeat

Panel Rejects Sternest FDA Warning for Steroid Injections for Neck and Back Pain

DNA testing to determine adverse reactions to medicine

U.S. Prices Soaring for Some Generic Drugs, Experts Say

opinion: Pain Medications: Are You Asking the Right Questions?

opinion: New Hydrocodone Rules Hurting Patients

*CHRONIC PAIN NEWS

Alliance for Balanced Pain Management launches

World-first transitional pain program aims to stop chronic pain following surgery

Researcher finds an off switch for pain

Researchers Recreate Pain-Sensing Neurons

*PATIENT NEWS

Some Newly Insured Under Obamacare May Have Trouble Finding Doctors

Tax penalties loom for anyone without health insurance: 2015 Health Insurance Guide

Medical Bills Pricey for Americans, Even With Private Insurance

Many U.S. Doctors Wary of Genetic Testing: Survey

How Big Data Is Changing Medicine

Virtual Patients Empower Real Patients

Tired GPs should work shorter shifts because they're 'more likely to prescribe wrong drugs at end of sessions'

How To Survive A Hospital Stay in TEN Steps

Surgery in Your Near Future?  Stay Out of the Hospital in the Summer Months

*SICKLE CELL DISEASE

Sickle Cell Anemia Treatment  With Hydroxyurea So Successful in Kids That Trial Is Halted

New Chronic Pain Management Recommendations Released for Sickle Cell Disease

New guideline created for managing sickle cell disease

Sickle Cell Disease: Managing the Pain

Easing the Pain of Sickle Cell

Neurobiology: Life beyond the pain

Sickle cell disease: Attempting to improve transition from child to adult care

FDA Report: The Voice of the Patient - Public Meeting Report on Sickle Cell Disease

Rapid, low-cost test for sickle cell anemia will likely save lives in the developing world

Less Toxic Transplant Treatment Technique Avoids Ill Effects Related to Long-term Use of Anti-Rejection Drugs

Blood Transfusions May Cut Risk of 'Silent' Stroke in Kids With Sickle Cell

Sickle cell patients who experience discrimination miss out on treatment

Scientists Studying Sickle Cell Trait

Doctors may be undertreating SCD patients, says NIH panel 

Sickle Cell Treatment Reauthorization Act of 2014 introduced in the House of Representatives

Sign the White House Petition to Support Passage of the Sickle Cell Treatment Act H.R. 5124

Donating Blood for SCA: The importance of diversity among blood donors, unique blood types

First Sickle Cell Patient Undergoes Gene Therapy

Daily Checkup: Sickle cell disease is a hereditary, life-shortening ailment

Sickle cell disease still persists 100 years after discovery

Sickle Cell Challenge Hoping to Make ALS Impact

Famous People with Sickle Cell Anemia Disease

*FEATURED BLOG POSTS

Even if a Featured Blog Post is written specifically with emphasis on one chronic pain condition, it may still have information and ideas which can help people with any type of chronic pain/illness. I always select posts which I think can provide help for the widest audience.

AWAP: How to Survive the Holidays with Chronic Illness

by Jenni Prokopy, editrix of ChronicBabe.com

Oh Baby, ‘Tis the Season for THIS Therapy!

by Sue Ingebretson of RebuilingWellness.com

Surviving the Holidays: Give yourself the G.I.F.T. of a stress-free holiday

by Karen Lee Richards of CFIDS & Fibromyalgia Self-Help

~* Happy Thanksgiving *~

Happy Thanksgiving Week!

I won't be posting news this week, but here are a few 

featured blog posts about being *thankful* 

in this holiday season, starting with an old one from me. 

I'll be back to regular Tuesday-Newsday next week!

Wishing you a great holiday!

~Shannon

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Thanksgiving - Using Life’s Ingredients To Make Our Feast

by Shannon of Nip Pain in the Bud & Let Your Soul Blossom

Surviving the Holidays when You’re Chronically Ill

by Toni Bernhard of Turning Straw into Gold

Thankful.

Jenni Prokopy, editrix of ChronicBabe.com

Hidden Benefits of Thankfulness 

by Sue Ingebretson of RebuildingWellness.com

Can Gratitude Make you Feel Better?

from PainPathways Magazine

Gourds I grew in my old garden.

Tuesday-Newsday #173

Time for Tuesday-Newsday! The Featured Blog Posts this week are “Adapting to Fibromyalgia”, “Pain and Emotions” and “My Life in Dog Years.” Remember that even if a featured post is focused on one particular pain condition, it may contain information or ideas that are useful to those with other pain issues.

Let Me Know: If you’d like me to watch for articles on your pain condition, just drop me a note in the comments section below. 

WARNING:  My goal is to provide the most up-to-date news I can, which you can then take to your personal doctor and debate the merits of before you try it. I do not endorse any of the docs, treatments, info, and meds in anything I post nor can I guarantee they are all effective, especially not for everyone. As is the case with any health info, ALWAYS get your doctor's opinion first!

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*ALERT* 

Medical firm profited on pain with knockoff spine surgery hardware

*MEDICATION NEWS

Study Further Explores Costs Associated with Chronic Pain

Scientists close in on non-addictive opioid painkillers

Opioid use may increase mortality in chronic pain patients; Unclear whether the cause is the opioid Rx or the seriousness of the pain problem

Hope that a prescription can mimic marijuana’s benefits

Marijuana's long-term effects on the brain demonstrated

Bill Introduced in Congress To Streamline Drug Development Process and Protect Patient Access to Medications

A Push to Back Traditional Chinese Medicine With More Data

opinion: Memo To The Gov.-Elect of MA - Include Pain Sufferers As You Seek Opiate Solution

*CHRONIC PAIN NEWS

Consumer Pain Groups Unite to Promote, Support and Monitor the National Pain Strategy

Canadian Pain Coalition States Urgency to Improve Chronic Pain Awareness and Access to Multidisciplinary Treatment Options

High Prevalence of Falls, Fear of Falling, and Impaired Balance in Older Adults With Pain in the United States

First of Its Kind Program Aims to Break the Chronic Pain Cycle

Cold-induced pain linked to the garlic, mustard receptor

Disrupting Calcium Channel Communication Key To Reversing Chronic Pain, Study Finds

Rare Disease Patient Voices Bring Change To The Clinical Trials Process

*PEDIATRIC PAIN

Adolescent chronic pain costs $19.5 billion a year in the U.S.

Aiming for an “Acceptable” Pain Level for Children

Acupuncture Eases Pain For Children, Stanford University

Neuropathic pain underrecognized in children with advanced or chronic illnesses

Chronic pain treatment in children and adolescents: less is good, more is sometimes better

1 child every 8 minutes experiences an out-of-hospital medication error

New App Calculates Pediatric Pain Medication Dosages

For children, growing pains don’t always stop & they can become chronic pain

Video Chats Help Hospitalized Children Recover Faster

In Kids With Chronic Pain, Function Improves Faster Than Pain With Psychological Treatment

Living Life with My Child's Pain: The Parent Pain Acceptance Questionnaire (PPAQ)

Perception of venipuncture pain in children suffering from chronic diseases

Helping kids kick the pain and fear out of cancer

Migraines and Kids: How to Cope

Diagnosis and Management of Pediatric Amplified Musculoskeletal Pain 

3D Printed, Fashionable Back Braces Encourage Kids with Scoliosis to Wear Them

Heroes Kit with Special Comic Book Designed to Ease the Anxiety of Pediatric Patients Undergoing an MRI Exam

Game Show Brings Fun to Kids in Children's Hospital, Helping Them to Forget Sickness, Pain

Teens with Disabilities May Face Greater Obesity Risk

Family Summer Camp for Pediatric Pain Patients - Free of Charge

The Coalition Against Pediatric Pain

Growing Pains: Website for Adolescents Living With Pain

When Your Child is Chronically Ill

Mackenzie Bearup - A Different Kind of Hero: A Teenager Transforms Her Pain Into A Way Of Helping Children

Meet the new Junior National Fibromyalgia Assoc. Spokesperson, 14-year-old Emma

'Butterfly child' with the extremely painful condition Epidermolysis Bullosa dreams of the Northern Lights 

What We Can Learn From Teens with Invisible Illness like Naomi Kingery

*FEATURED BLOG POSTS

Even if a Featured Blog Post is written specifically with emphasis on one chronic pain condition, it may still have information and ideas which can help people with any type of chronic pain/illness. I always select posts which I think can provide help for the widest audience.

Adapting to Fibromyalgia: Listen to what your body is saying

by Jana Murrell-Maxfield of CFIDS & Fibromyalgia Self-Help

Pain and Emotions

by Jan Sadler of Pain Support UK

My Life in Dog Years

by Sue Falkner-Wood

Tuesday-Newsday #172

~* This Veterans Day edition is meant to help 

and honor those who serve in our Armed Forces. 

Thank you for your service! *~

Time for Tuesday-Newsday! The Featured Blog Posts this week are “11 Ways to Make Your Chronic Marriage Extraordinary”, How to Turn 'Tough Things' into Treasure” and “How to Begin to Face Fear.”

Let Me Know: If you’d like me to watch for articles on your pain condition, just drop me a note in the comments section below. 

WARNING:  My goal is to provide the most up-to-date news I can, which you can then take to your personal doctor and debate the merits of before you try it. I do not endorse any of the docs, treatments, info, and meds in anything I post nor can I guarantee they are all effective, especially not for everyone. As is the case with any health info, ALWAYS get your doctor's opinion first!

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*MEDICATION NEWS

Pain Patients Forced to Go ‘Cold Turkey’ from Hydrocodone

Groups Angered Over FDA Warning on Epidural Steroid Injections

Certain Painkillers Tied to Raised Risk of Death After Stroke

Pain Experts Say New Opioid Has ‘Enormous’ Potential

FDA Warns That Supplements Can Be Dangerous Mix with Medications: Combination can alter drug absorption

High levels of toxic molds identified in herbal medicines

*CHRONIC PAIN NEWS

How Smoking Makes Chronic Pain Worse

EPAT device relieves chronic muscle pain in minutes

Nerve-Burning Promises Longer Pain Relief: Cooled Radiofrequency Treatment (Coolief)

Take the Sting Out of Alternative Medicine Costs

*MILITARY VETERANS

VA Announces Major Restructuring

First ‘Choice Cards’ Mailed to 320,000 Vets Living Far from VA Care

Widespread Chronic Pain Seen in Study of U.S. Military

U.S. Pledges Millions to Study Ways to Ease Soldiers' Pain: 13 projects will look at alternative therapies

At VA, exploring alternative therapies for chronic pain and other ailments

Free marijuana for vets creates buzz in pot debate while saving lives

DoD should review Tricare rules on compounded medications

Veterans find chronic pain relief with Neurostimulation

Arthritis Affects One Quarter of US Veterans, says CDC

Coenzyme Q10 helps veterans battle gulf war illness symptoms

Expert: Move pain management into 21st century

Pain Following Combat Trauma: A New Look at an Old Problem by the U.S. Army Surgeon General’s Pain Task Force (PTF)

Should first responders use acupuncture & integrative medicine in natural disasters & battle zones?

Pain of a Wounded Warrior - Part 1 and click here for Part 2

Researchers Aim to Understand Extremity Pain Among Military

Service Members Diagnosed with Chronic Insomnia May Face Increased Risk of Type II Diabetes and High Blood Pressure, Report Says

Study of an anti-inflammatory treatment for burns by high-velocity explosive devices may prevent what’s become one of the war-defining injuries for today’s troops

Common anesthetic procedure dramatically improves well being of veterans with PTSD

Genetic test for veterans with PTSD

Veterans Affairs updates disability claims form

DOD Grant to Fund UAB Rehabilitation Therapy for Wounded Warriors

Healing wounded warriors teaching them to play music

Laugh is a battlefield: Injured veterans use standup comedy to heal in ‘Comedy Warriors’

Boston Scientific Helps Turn Wounded Warrior Into Competitive Cyclist

Veteran finds home after legal battle over service dog

MakeTheConnection is a one-stop resource of info & support for Veterans and their families, including those living with chronic pain

*AMPUTEE (PHANTOM) PAIN

Prosthetic Hand Restores Touch, Heals Phantom Pain

WWI surgeons could do little for amputees' pain -- and treatment remains a challenge

Sandia Dynamic Leg Prosthesis Technology Auto-Adjusts for All Day Fit (VIDEO)

Why Do Amputees Feel the Ache of Nothingness?

Coping with life after limb loss: Program gets amputees together to support one another

Life With A Phantom

*FEATURED BLOG POSTS

Even if a Featured Blog Post is written specifically with emphasis on one chronic pain condition, it may still have information and ideas which can help people with any type of chronic pain/illness. I always select posts which I think can provide help for the widest audience.

11 Ways to Make Your Chronic Marriage Extraordinary

by Helena at Chronic Marriage: Helping couples with chronic illness build extraordinary marriages

How to Turn 'Tough Things' into Treasure

by Lisa Copen of Rest Ministries

How to Begin to Face Fear (AWAP Wednesday)

by Jenni Prokopy, editrix of Chronic Babe