Newsletter Archive - Winter 2005/6

Hot News

All the latest to buy, think about and log on to

It's the season for giving...

Here's a wonderful idea from the Good Gifts Charity!

The Good Gifts charity is returning to the original idea of Christmas - giving to those less well off than ourselves in simple and practical ways. For instance, for £10.00 you can splash out and help improve the lives of fishing communities in South India. £85 buys a sea-worthy boat. £45 buys new fishing nets. £20 can set up a fishwife in business, selling and processing fish. And you enable them to harvest a living (as well as dinners) from the sea for years to come. Or your gift could go towards planting a grove of trees, clearing land of landmines, supporting old dogs or providing slippers for old people - there are hundreds of ideas on the Good Gifts website: (Delivery through South Indian Fishermen's Federation) Support a fishwife page: www.goodgifts.org Home page: www.goodgifts.org

Pill cutter

Plastic pill cutter with a small blade that cuts uncoated tablets in half. Complete with small storage area at the front, this is a convenient way of storing tablets while out for the day. Recommended Price:£2.12. YourAble price: £1.16 inc VAT Buy the pill cutter from the YourAble shop! Please remember - you can support painSupport by shopping from the Your Able site. Thank you! http://www.youreableshop.co.uk Please support painSupport! Further down the page you can read how buying from the YourAble website helps to keep painSupport up and running. If you'd like to support painSupport in this way, please would you bookmark on your Favorites list the following link. painSupport will only receive the small commission on any goods you buy if you use the link below or any of the others to YoureAble in this newsletter: http://www.youreableshop.co.uk

Snuggle up and keep warm

SnuggleSafe ‘hot water bottle' Originally made for pets, sold through vets, the SnuggleSafe was so popular that the company decided to make a human version of the microwaveable hottie. The Scottie Allnighter is the result. (£14.99). The warmth of a Scottie lasts a maximum of 8 hours – it's still warm when you wake up! No filling or emptying. It's quick, simple and easy to use in your microwave. The Scottie's polypropylene casing is washable, hygienic and comes with a free cosy cover. Please note that the SnuggleSafe is a rigid disc shape and weighs the same as a standard water filled hotwater bottle. Contact: Chris Kavallares Tel: 01903 730811 or 07793 048688 Email: info@lenric.com Or visit main site: www.snugglesafe.co.uk and enter Scottie in the search box

Log on…

Help around the Home Don't be put off by the name, the new ‘Help the Aged' catalogue is now available. It contains many products that are useful for people in pain, both indoor help and oudoor gadgets and equipment, including exercise equipment. Call 00870 770 0442 for your copy www.helptheaged.org.uk Arthritis Magazine To receive news of all the latest information about drugs and treatments for arthritis, subscribe to the Arthritis Today magazine. Before you do so, why not browse their excellent website. They have pages of information about all aspects of arthritis-related pains and all the various arthritis-related ailments. www.arc.org.uk General Health and Support Group information GUiDE is an excellent new service, based in Gloucestershire, but contains much information of use to us all. They are an information database about organisations in the areas of health, welfare, social care, disabilities, etc. It is funded by the NHS and Local Authority as a public information service. www.guide-information.org.uk

Digestive Disorders?

Here's a new website for all those with bowel problems of any kind. There are downloadable factsheets on topics such as Adhesions, IBS, Coeliac Disease, etc. www.corecharity.org.uk/ Read about how Yakult, a probiotic, can help digestive disorders. This site also has more information about digestive disorders. www.yakult.co.uk

Relief for osteoarthritis

Glucosamine sulphate supplements have been found to ease symptoms and slow cartilage deterioration in patients with osteoarthritis (as reported in The Lancet). Omega 3 fatty acids in cod liver oil (1,000mg twice daily) may reduce the action of enzymes causing the pain, inflammation and cartilage damage in osteoarthritis, researchers at Cardiff University have found. Both of the above supplements available from: www.naturesbest.co.uk The herbal remedy devil's claw, and SAM-e (S-adenoysyl methionine) — a naturally occuring compound available as a dietary supplement — may each ease symptoms of osteoarthritis with fewer side effects than NSAIDs (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs), according to recent studies. Sam-e from: www.biovea.net Devil's claw from: www.baldwins.co.uk One to watch out for… Other studies (including one specifically on patients with knee and hip osteoarthritis) have found that an avocado and soya bean preparation called ASU relieved pain, improved mobility and reduced the need for NSAIDs. Available in the US and other countries now but doesn't seem to be available in the UK yet. Meanwhile, presumably it can only do you good to eat avocados and soya products!

You Recommend...

You Recommend PainSupport member, Jane (UK) wrote to painSupport telling us about a mattress and a back support that have helped her. Jane said, "The two most useful products since my long spinal fusion operation last Nov have been a memory foam mattress pad(about £100 for a double, on special offer in newspapers) and an Obusforme highback back support - the only one to support the upper rather than the lower back that I have found - the same company also sell memory foam mattresses and pillows." Click on the backrest picture at the bottom of the main page: www.ezlmarketing.co.uk Betty, another UK member, loves her Backlife machine. Betty says, I have had my Backlife now for almost a year and have found it has helped me. When I get up so stiff in the morning it helps to stretch the spine and this helps me to get going and I also use it at lunch and dinner time. It does not take my pain away but can make me a bit mobile for a time. On the Backlife website there's a little video of how the machine works. You use it lying down, legs and knees on the machine which then moves the lower spine in circular movements. I use mine 3 times a day, some days it works for me some it doesn't so it is not a cure but just another little helper. You can have one on a month's free trail so it's worth giving it a try. Betty www.thebackcarewarehouse.co.uk Rachel M in the Midlands, UK has had her car adapted which makes her life much easier. Rachel says, "I have just had my car adapted with a hand control option and it's given me so much more freedom again. It took me ages to find out about the possibilities, then it was so easy to get done once I knew! I had mine done at Jim Doran's in Coventry - amazingly lovely guys who can make a vehicle work for anyone, and are really happy to tweak all the details so you feel minimal pain when you drive." Many thanks to everyone who wrote in with their suggestions and recommendations. More next time! If YOU have any suggestions or recommendations we are always willing to review them, just Contact Us.

Protection from the MRSA bug
Plus relief for eczema, dermatitis and psoriasis

Hygieia have developed a whole range of products to suit various skin conditions and environments and the version called 'Ultra' is even said to protect against the MRSA bug, so if you are going into hospital it is well worth considering. www.hygieia.uk.com

An Invitation…
If you're not already a member, why not join the painSupport Confidential Contact Club?
It is, of course, free!

The Contact Club goes from strength to strength. Recently I received an email from a member of the PainSupport Contact Club, saying, "I'm finding the Contact Club and your site really helpful. People with different illnesses find different ways of coping and it's good to bounce around ideas and speak to people that are in the same position as yourself. "I've been online and shown my family your site and Mum said the same as me. "Thank goodness someone out there that has been in the same position as myself is willing to do such a good job organising a site such as yours. "I am continuing to make new friends in the Contact Club and offer support and advice to them. I find your site invaluable and am glad that it's out there. Thanks and keep up your hard work. I appreciate it." Would you like to find some new contacts for support and friendship? If so, you may like to consider joining our extraordinarily successful Contact Club. There are lots of lovely people out there who just happen to have pain in their lives but who are determined to make the most of things despite it all. YOU have much to offer them, and they have much to offer YOU. Ease the pain by sharing life's ups and downs with those who understand. How to access the Contact Club... Click Main Menu on the left. Click Making Contact Click Contact Club. You will then see "Wish to Join the Contact Club?" Click where it says 'Please click here to Register' and complete the brief registration form.

The PainSupport Newsletter

Good luck to everyone - and keep your Feel-Good and Hot News tips coming in, your tip could be just the thing someone else has been seeking for years. If you haven't already registered and would like to be notified when the next newsletter is published on-line (all for free, of course), just Contact Us. By signing up you also receive free regular email newsletters with pain relief tips, inspirational stories, etc. Jan Sadler, Founder of the PainSUPPORT website