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MS is thought to be an autoimmune disease that affects the central nervous system (CNS). The CNS consists of the brain, spinal cord, and the optic nerves.
Surrounding and protecting the nerve fibers of the CNS is a fatty tissue called myelin, which helps nerve fibers conduct electrical impulses.
In MS, myelin is lost in multiple areas, leaving scar tissue called sclerosis. These damaged areas are also known as plaques or lesions. Sometimes the nerve fiber itself is damaged or broken.
Myelin not only protects nerve fibers, but makes their job possible. When myelin or the nerve fiber is destroyed or damaged, the ability of the nerves to conduct electrical impulses to and from the brain is disrupted, and this produces the various symptoms of MS.
The Healing Code by Dermot O’Connor
ISBN: 0-340-89815-1
Reviewed by Liz Costello
A healing code, what a great concept – no more drugs, no more waiting lists and no more doctor’s appointments to remind you of how your life has changed…just in case you’d forgot.
I should first of all say the reason I was asked to review this book was because I suffered with the same aggressive form of multiple sclerosis as Dermot and although my recovery was not entirely due to Chinese healing methods and positive thinking, it was in part and I wholly embrace his thinking.
The book is written by a person who understands not only the physical problems MS presents but the impacts any chronic illness has on a person’s emotional state, personality and lifestyle – also known as ‘invisible symptoms’ that not all of the people around you can always appreciate.
If you are reading this review and have also been diagnosed with a chronic illness, like me, you may find yourself trying to somehow detach yourself from your own body, but I’ve tried that and it really doesn’t work. You book a holiday and hey presto your body turns up and that’s when you finally accept there are challenges in this life that you just can’t take a break from. Dermot gives you the tools you need to make this partnership work, not only in a way that makes your daily life more bearable but, in a way that can actually heal both the mind and body – so booking that holiday no longer seems like the answer.
The book will take you through five key steps to put you on the road to recovery, for example, are you someone who reinforces your situation by stating the facts out loud? You are! Well in that case try replacing the word ‘frightened’ with ‘challenged’, or how about using ‘energised’ instead of ‘stressed’. How about a few easy to follow meditation techniques? When you feel comfortable with this positive approach to life the next step teaches you how to heal your body and soul through eating the right foods. Did you know that while porridge reduces cholesterol it can in some cases cause digestive problems? No? Well read on because Dermot really does make understanding food easy.
Without giving too much of the book away the final stage helps you with a manageable exercise routine to bring strength and calm to your life. With an easy to follow photographic step by step guide to Chi Kung you will learn ways to relax your mind and body to give yourself a chance to change the course of fate you’d previously thought you would have to play out.
FINAL WORD: If you are sitting there thinking, ‘this is all well and good but I really have it bad and I don’t think reading a book will change that’, then all I have to say to you is have faith and you’ll be amazed what miracles your own mind and body can pull out of the hat when you let them work together. So give them a chance to make you proud and I wish you love and light with the next steps of your journey in becoming a happy and healthy person once again.
