Black Holes & Brain Atrophy
Do you like Swiss cheese? I love Swiss cheese. I love cheese period. Apparently my moms brain loves Swiss cheese as well. Let me explain. MS works like an electrical cord. If the cord gets chewed up from a rat the signal won't transmit, leaving the appliance broken. Your brain works in a similar way. With MS, the coating of your nerves get eaten away and the signal doesn't get transmitted to your arms, hands, feet, heart, lungs, etc. When this happens it leaves scars or lesions on the brain.
Sclerosis = Scars
Multiple Scars - Multiple Sclerosis
There are 2 types of lesions. T2 lesions, these lesions are active inflammation and will light up on an MRI when gadolinium is given. When these scars become too damaged they become what is known as T1 lesions or "black holes". It's when the nerve is permentaly damaged. Swiss cheese. If enough damaged has happened, sometimes these black holes can become non-repairable. My mom has several black holes. It's hard knowing there are parts of her brain that have permeant damage and cannot be repaired.
You know what else scary? Brain atrophy. What is that you ask? It's when your brain shrinks. Everyones brain shrinks. It's a natural part of life. But those with MS can experience atrophy 10x faster than those without MS. My mom also has brain atrophy. Atrophy can lead to many cognitive issues including memory loss, behavioral changes, and dementia. One of my moms biggest fears is that she's not going to remember who I am. She has always said that she can handle everything that comes along with MS but she couldn't handle not knowing my name or recognizing my face.
I like the idea of Brie or Gouda cheese better.
Sclerosis = Scars
Multiple Scars - Multiple Sclerosis
There are 2 types of lesions. T2 lesions, these lesions are active inflammation and will light up on an MRI when gadolinium is given. When these scars become too damaged they become what is known as T1 lesions or "black holes". It's when the nerve is permentaly damaged. Swiss cheese. If enough damaged has happened, sometimes these black holes can become non-repairable. My mom has several black holes. It's hard knowing there are parts of her brain that have permeant damage and cannot be repaired.
You know what else scary? Brain atrophy. What is that you ask? It's when your brain shrinks. Everyones brain shrinks. It's a natural part of life. But those with MS can experience atrophy 10x faster than those without MS. My mom also has brain atrophy. Atrophy can lead to many cognitive issues including memory loss, behavioral changes, and dementia. One of my moms biggest fears is that she's not going to remember who I am. She has always said that she can handle everything that comes along with MS but she couldn't handle not knowing my name or recognizing my face.
I like the idea of Brie or Gouda cheese better.
Comments
http://www.mslivingwell.org/learn-more-about-ms/understanding-your-mri/